zoomorphic - Word of the Day - 09/12/17

zoomorphic

adjective

Pronunciation

 zoh-uh-MOR-fik 

Definition

1 : having the form of an animal

2 : of, relating to, or being a deity conceived of in animal form or with animal attributes

Did You Know?

Zo- (or zoo-) derives from the Greek word zōion, meaning "animal," and -morph comes from the Greek morphē, meaning "form." These two forms combined to give us the adjective zoomorphic in the 19th century to describe something that resembles an animal. English includes other words that were formed from zo- or zoo-, such as zoology (made with -logy, meaning "science"). And there are also other words that were formed from -morph, such as pseudomorph, for a mineral having the outward form of another species. (The combining form pseud- or pseudo- means "false.")

Examples

The couple could not agree on a dining room set: one preferred a sleek, modern style, while the other liked a more elaborate one with the table and chairs ending in zoomorphic clawed feet.

"The vibrant postmodern façades of Mamani's buildings (and their imitators) contrast with the raw brick and concrete of El Alto's ramshackle architecture.… Ancient motifs, like … zoomorphic figures from mythology, are abstracted and merged with futuristic flourishes." — Judith Thurman, The New Yorker, 28 Dec. 2015

Word Quiz

Fill in the blanks to complete a "morph" word that describes something (such as a lens) that distorts an image: _ n _ morph _ _.

Merriam-Webster

http://creatingcharactersforfictionwriters.blogspot.com.au/

wend - Word of the Day - 08/12/17

wend

verb

Pronunciation

WEND
 

Definition

: to direct one's course : travel, proceed

Did You Know?

Wend is related to the verb wind, which means, among other things, "to follow a series of curves and turns." It is also a distant relative of the verb wander. Wend itself began its journey in Old English as wendan, which was used in various now-obsolete senses relating to turning or changing direction or position and which is akin to the Old English windan ("to twist"). Wend has twisted itself into various meanings over the years. Most of its senses—including "to come about," "to depart," "to change," and "to betake"—have since wandered off into obscurity, but its use in senses related to going or moving along a course has lent the English verb go its past tense form went (as a past tense form of wend, went has long since been superseded by wended). The current sense of wend, "to direct or to proceed," is holding steady on the path.

Examples

The hikers wended their way along the forest trail toward the evening's campsite.

"Meanwhile, several lawsuits involving the hotel developments that stoked the city's political divides are still wending their way through the courts." — Sheila Mullane Estrada, The Tampa Bay Times, 13 Oct. 2017

Test Your Vocabulary

What verb beginning with "t" can mean "to travel over" or "to trade or barter"?

Merriam-Webster

http://writinghaikup.blogspot.com.au/

maieutic - Word of the Day - 07/11/17

maieutic

adjective

Pronunciation

may-YOO-tik
 

Definition

: relating to or resembling the Socratic method of eliciting new ideas from another

Did You Know?

Maieutic comes from maieutikos, the Greek word for "of midwifery." In one of Plato's Dialogues, Socrates applies maieutikos to his method of bringing forth new ideas by reasoning and dialogue; he thought the technique analogous to those a midwife uses in delivering a baby (Socrates' mother was a midwife). A teacher who uses maieutic methods can be thought of as an intellectual midwife who assists students in bringing forth ideas and conceptions previously latent in their minds.

Examples

"The maieutic art of Socrates consists, essentially, of asking questions designed to destroy prejudices; false beliefs which are often traditional or fashionable beliefs; false answers, given in the spirit of ignorant cocksureness." — Karl Popper, Conjectures and Refutations, 1962

"Montaigne wrote as a kind of maieutic exercise, a way of drawing his thoughts into the light of day, of discovering what he wanted to say as he said it." — James Somers, The Atlantic, 21 Dec. 2010

Test Your Vocabulary

Fill in the blanks to complete an adjective that means "of, relating to, or associated with childbirth": _ _ s _ et _ ic.

Merriam-Webster

http://grammarandpunctuationmodule4.blogspot.com.au/

candor - Word of the Day - 06/12/17

candor

noun

Pronunciation

KAN-der 

Definition

1 : whiteness, brilliance
2 : freedom from prejudice or malice : fairness
3 : unreserved, honest, or sincere expression : forthrightness

Did You Know?

The origins of candor shine through in its first definition. Candor traces back to the Latin verb candēre ("to shine or glow"), which in turn derives from the same ancient root that gave the Welsh language can, meaning "white," and the Sanskrit language candati, which translates to "it shines." Other descendants of candēre in English include candid, incandescent, candle, and the somewhat less common candent and candescent (both of which are synonyms of incandescent in the sense of "glowing from or as if from great heat"). There is even excandescence, an uncommon word that refers to a feverish condition brought on by anger or passion.

Examples

"In an e-mail, Shonda Rhimes praised [Jenji] Kohan's kindness and candor, calling her one of the few showrunners with whom she can talk honestly about career strategy." — Emily Nussbaum, The New Yorker, 4 Sept. 2017

"'I pay very little attention to legal rules, statutes, constitutional provisions,' he said in a retirement interview. He deserves credit for candor, at least." — National Review, 2 Oct. 2017

Test Your Vocabulary

Fill in the blanks to complete a word that means "lacking in candor": _ i _ i _ g _ n _ o _ s.

Merriam-Webster

http://writingthestorypruthpunton.blogspot.com.au/

maudlin - Word of the Day - 04/12/17

maudlin

adjective

Pronunciation

MAUD-lin

Definition

1 : drunk enough to be emotionally silly
2 : weakly and effusively sentimental

Did You Know?

The history of maudlin owes as much to the Bible as to the barroom. The biblical Mary Magdalene is often (though some say mistakenly) identified with the weeping sinner who washed Jesus' feet with her tears to repent for her sins. This association led to the frequent depiction of Mary Magdalene as a weeping penitent, and even the name Magdalene came to suggest teary emotion to many English speakers. It was then that maudlin, an alteration of Magdalene, appeared in the English phrase "maudlin drunk," which, as one Englishman explained in 1592, described a tearful drunken state whereby "a fellow will weepe for kindnes in the midst of his Ale and kisse you."

Examples

Rather than give his aunt a maudlin greeting card, Jake looked for one that was more in line with her snarky sense of humor.

"There are scenes of violence, grieving, hardship and heartbreak, but 'Rags' never melts into a puddle of maudlin self-pity. It maintains an optimistic attitude." — James Gill, The New Orleans Advocate, 25 Oct. 2017

Name That Synonym

Unscramble the letters to create a synonym of maudlin: ONLCYIG.

Merriam-Webster

http://plotsandtension.blogspot.com.au/

pillory - Word of the Day - 03/11/17

pillory

noun

Pronunciation

PILL-uh-ree
 

Definition

1 : a wooden frame for public punishment having holes in which the head and hands can be locked
2 : a means for exposing one to public scorn or ridicule

Did You Know?

In days gone by, criminals who got caught might well have found themselves in the stocks (which held the feet or both feet and hands) or a pillory. Both of those forms of punishment—and the words that name them—have been around since the Middle Ages. We latched onto pillory from the Anglo-French pilori, which has the same meaning as our English term but the exact origins of which are uncertain. For centuries, pillory referred only to the wooden frame used to hold a ne'er-do-well, but by the early 1600s, folks had turned the word into a verb for the act of putting someone in a pillory. Within a century, they had further expanded the verb to cover any process that led to as much public humiliation as being pilloried.

Examples

"When I was in college in the 1980s, the general store down the road shamed deadbeats by posting their bounced checks next to the cash register. It was a pillory of sorts, a wall of shame." — Dwight Garner, Esquire, September 2017

"The really offensive thing about the bailouts was … that Congress and the White House and the Treasury and the Fed were more or less making things up as they went along. This bank got rescued, that one didn't. This firm got a bailout on generous terms, that one got the pillory." — Stephen Spruiell and Kevin D. Williamson, The National Review, 5 Apr. 2010

Test Your Vocabulary

Fill in the blanks to complete a word that means "an object of ridicule": _ a _ g _ _  n _ s _ oc _.

Merriam-Webster

http://creatingcharactersforfictionwriters.blogspot.com.au/

intersperse - Word of the Day - 02/12/17

intersperse

verb

Pronunciation

 in-ter-SPERSS

 Definition

1 : to place something at intervals in or among
2 : to insert at intervals among other things

Did You Know?

Intersperse derives from Latin interspersus, formed by combining the familiar prefix inter- ("between or among") with sparsus, the past participle of spargere, meaning "to scatter." In sparsus one finds an ancestor to our adjective sparse, as well as a relative of spark. (The relationship of spark to a word that describes something being scattered about makes sense when you think of sparks bursting or scattering off a flame.) Intersperse is often followed by the preposition with, as in "a straggling street of comfortable white and red houses, interspersed with abundant shady trees" (from H. G.  Wells' 1898 novel, The War of the Worlds).

Examples

The author has interspersed the guidebook with illustrations of the different birds we might encounter on the safari tour.

"Interspersed throughout the beds of deliberately overgrown azaleas, roses, and hydrangeas is the world's largest private collection of sculptures…. — Harper's, 18 Apr. 2017

Word Quiz

What verb derives from Latin spargere ("to scatter") and can mean "to sprinkle with holy water" or "to attack with false charges"?

Merriam-Webster

http://writinghaikup.blogspot.com.au/