munificent - Word of the Day - 31/03/17

munificent

adjective

Pronunciation

myoo-NIF-uh-sunt

Definition

1 : very liberal in giving or bestowing : lavish
2 : characterized by great liberality or generosity

Examples

"On the hill, where kites used to be flown, stood the fine college which Mr. Laurence's munificent legacy had built." — Louisa May Alcott, Jo's Boys, 1886

"Each taco is $3, and each is munificent. You might not manage more than two." — Ligaya Mishan, The New York Times, 9 Dec. 2016

Did You Know?

Munificent was formed back in the late 1500s when English speakers, perhaps inspired by similar words such as magnificent, altered the ending of munificence. Munificence in turn comes from munificus, the Latin word for "generous," which itself comes from munus, a Latin noun that is variously translated as "gift," "duty," or "service." Munus has done a fine service to English by giving us other terms related to service or compensation, including municipal and remunerate.

Name That Synonym

Fill in the blanks to complete a synonym of munificent: _ _ en _ an _ e _.

 Merriam-Webster

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

transpicuous- Word of the Day - 30/03/17

transpicuous

adjective

Pronunciation

tran-SPIK-yuh-wus

Definition

: clearly seen through or understood

Examples

"Measuring and studying a small business is not inherently different from doing it for a large corporation if its financial reports are set up to be transpicuous and to make its activities transparent and there is an incentive for making them so." — Isabel Anderson, The Financial Post (Canada), 28 Jan. 2006

"… the surfaces of his literary work were so terribly transpicuous, so banally boring—simple declaratives rife with simple vocabulary." — Joshua Cohen, Harper's, July 2012

Did You Know?

Transpicuous is derived from the Latin word transpicere, meaning "to look through." Transpicere, in turn, is a formation that combines trans-, meaning "through," and specere, meaning "to look" or "to see." If you guessed that transpicuous is related to conspicuous, you're correct. It's also possible to see a number of other specere descendants in English, including aspect, circumspect, expect, inspect, perspective, and suspect. Another descendant of specere, and a close synonym of transpicuous, is perspicuous, which means "clear and easy to understand," as in "a perspicuous argument." (Per-, like trans-, means "through.") There's also perspicacious, meaning "keen and observant." (You might say that perspicuous and transpicuous mean "able to be seen through," whereas perspicacious means "able to see through.")

Word  Quiz

What word is derived from Latin avis, meaning "bird," and specere, "to look," and refers to a prophetic or favourable sign?

Merriam-Webster

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

Occam's razor - Word of the Day - 29/03/17

Occam's razor

noun

Pronunciation

 AH-kumz-RAY-zer

Definition

: a scientific and philosophic rule that entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily which is interpreted as requiring that the simplest of competing theories be preferred to the more complex or that explanations of unknown phenomena be sought first in terms of known quantities

Examples

Invoking Occam's razor, Randall concluded that the sill was wet most likely because someone left the window open during the storm.

"To even describe the plot is to make clear how phantasmagorical the whole idea is. Occam's razor applies here. Or, as medical students are taught, when you hear hoofbeats, think horses not zebras." — Paul Cassell, The Washington Post, 6 Feb. 2017

Did You Know?

William of Occam (also spelled "Ockham") didn't invent the rule associated with his name. Others had espoused the "keep it simple" concept before that 14th-century philosopher and theologian embraced it, but no one wielded the principle (also known as the "law of parsimony") as relentlessly as he did. He used it to counter what he considered the fuzzy logic of his theological contemporaries, and his applications of it inspired 19th-century Scottish philosopher Sir William Hamilton to link Occam with the idea of cutting away extraneous material, giving us the modern name for the principle.

Test Your Vocabulary

Fill in the blanks to complete a word for a principle intended as a general rule of action: pr _ _ e _ t.

Merriam-Webster

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

retrospective - Word of the Day - 28/03/17

retrospective

adjective

Pronunciation

reh-truh-SPEK-tiv

Definition

1 a : contemplative of or relative to past events : characterized by, given to, or indulging in retrospection
   b : being a generally comprehensive exhibition, compilation, or performance of the work of an artist over a span of years
2 : affecting things past : retroactive

Examples

The audit revealed that the organization owed retrospective taxes.

"The 1998 retrospective Ladies and Gentlemen—The Best of George Michael (Epic/Sony) is the album to receive the most attention in the late singer-songwriter's catalogue…." — Paul Sexton, Billboard.com, 30 Dec. 2016

Did You Know?

"Look not mournfully into the past. It comes not back again," wrote Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his 1839 novel Hyperion. But these days the past is trendy, old-fashioned is hip, and retrospective is as retro as it gets. A glance at the history of retrospective reveals that it traces back to the Latin retro- (meaning "back," "behind," or "backward") and specere (meaning "to look at"). Once you have retrospective behind you, you can also add its kin retrospect (which is used as a noun, an adjective, and a verb) and retrospection to your vocabulary, too. Retrospective can also be used as a noun, referring to an exhibition that "looks back" at artistic work created over a span of years.

Word  Quiz

What verb beginning with "d" is derived from Latin specere and means "to look down on with contempt or aversion"?

Merriam-Webster

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

sarcasm - Word of the Day - 27/03/17

sarcasm

noun

Pronunciation

 SAHR-kaz-um

Definition

1 : a sharp and often satirical or ironic utterance designed to cut or give pain
2 a : a mode of satirical wit depending for its effect on bitter, caustic, and often ironic language that is usually directed against an individual
   b : the use or language of sarcasm

Examples

"I'm seeing more and more of my friends coming to watch the races instead of being a part of them. And then, some of the girls that are racing against me are literally half my age. It's awesome. Don't know if you can hear my sarcasm—really awesome." — Lindsey Vonn, The Associated Press, 3 Nov. 2015

"Often, users on social media tend to portray complicated social and political issues as simple and obvious, at times employing sarcasm or satire to disparage those who disagree." — James Lee, The Daily Pennsylvanian (University of Pennsylvania), 12 Feb. 2017

Did You Know?

If you've ever been hurt by a remark full of cutting sarcasm, you have some insight into the origins of the word. Sarcasm can be traced back to the Greek verb sarkazein, which initially meant "to tear flesh like a dog." Sarkazein eventually developed extended senses of "to bite one's lips in rage," "to gnash one's teeth," and "to sneer." The verb led to the Greek noun sarkasmos, ("a sneering or hurtful remark"), iterations of which passed through French and Late Latin before arriving in English as sarcasm in the 17th century. Even today sarcasm is often described as sharp, cutting, or wounding, reminiscent of the original meaning of the Greek verb.

Test Your Vocabulary

Fill in the blanks to complete an adjective that can mean "sarcastic in tone or manner": s _ ar _ _.

Merriam-Webster

http://writingforchildrenstage.blogspot.com.au/

perpend - Word of the Day - 26/03/17

perpend

verb

Pronunciation

 per-PEND

Definition

1 : to reflect on carefully : ponder
2 : to be attentive : reflect

Examples

Perpend: it is easier to build on a good first impression than it is to repair a bad one.

"Okay folks, it looks like all is not lost. Electronic Arts is at least perpending their stance heading into the next-generation of console gaming and after originally writing off Nintendo's Wii U, they've now reneged on that stance and are reconsidering the Big 'N's offerings." — William Usher, Cinema Blend, 23 Aug. 2013

Did You Know?

Perpend isn't used often these days, but when it does show up it is frequently imperative, as in "Perpend the following." As such, its use can be compared to the phrases "consider this" or "mark my words." Perpend arrived in English in the 15th century from the Latin verb perpendere, which in turn comes from pendere, meaning "to weigh." Appropriately, our English word essentially means "to weigh carefully in the mind." Pendere has several descendants in English, including append, compendium, expend, and suspend. Perpend can also be a noun meaning "a brick or large stone reaching through a wall" or "a wall built of such stones," but that perpend comes from a Middle French source and is unrelated to the verb.

Word  Quiz

What 8-letter verb beginning with "v" is derived from Latin pendere and means "to hold or treat as of little worth" or "to disparage"?

Merriam-Webster

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

unreconstructed - Word of the Day - 25/03/17

unreconstructed

adjective

Pronunciation

 un-ree-kun-STRUK-tud

Definition

: not reconciled to political, economic, or social change; also : holding stubbornly to a particular belief, view, place, or style

Examples

"When Jane Austen wrote 'Pride and Prejudice' in the early years of the 19th century, there was no heroic place for the unreconstructed nerd in the throbbing romantic novel." — Chris Jones, The Chicago Tribune, 22 Nov. 2016

"Writers of all descriptions are stampeding to buy word processors. Machines have already become so user-friendly that even the most unreconstructed of Luddites can be charmed into laying down the old sledgehammer and stroking a few keys instead." — Thomas Pynchon, The New York Times, 28 Oct. 1984

Did You Know?

The reorganization and reestablishment of the seceded states in the Union after the American Civil War is referred to as the Reconstruction. The earliest known use of unreconstructed is by a writer for the Boston, Massachusetts, publication The Liberator, who in 1865 used it to describe Southerners who were not reconciled to the outcome of the War and the changes enacted during the Reconstruction. The word immediately caught on and has been used to refer to intransigent or dyed-in-the-wool partisans ever since. The word is also used outside of political and social contexts, as when a person is described as "an unreconstructed rocker" or "an unreconstructed romantic."

Name That Synonym

Fill in the blanks to complete a synonym of unreconstructed: un _ e _ en _ r _ te.

Merriam-Webster

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