Word of the Day-labile0 评论
Pronunciation: ['ley-bIl or 'ley-bêl]
Definition: Changeable, unstable; apt to slip away. Usage: When used to describe personalities, today's word replaces "temperamental" or "moody," as in, "Birgitta was a labile lass with a personality hard to calculate." It also refers to unstable chemical and electrical changes. The noun is lability [lê-'bi-lê-tee]. Suggested Usage: Today's proffering works in discussions of international politics: "Don't talk to me about lability in the Middle East. We've reconsidered 3 vacations in the past 2 years over it." With its two 'liquid' sounds (L's in this case), the word is euphonic (nice-sounding) enough for poetic or romantic expression, "The sunny, labile days of that spring were hard to pin down in his memory; she was the constant that held that year together in his mind." Word of the Day-gambit0 评论
Pronunciation: ['gæm-bit]
Definition: A daring opening move in chess that sacrifices a piece for a future advantage. Usage: Applied first and foremost to the game of chess. Suggested Usage: Of course, it can be applied to any daring opening move, such as a provocative statement to open a conversation or a risky business maneuver that promises long-term gains. "Buying so much of the flood plain was a risky gambit that could pay off if fish-farming becomes profitable." Word of the Day-sedulous0 评论
Pronunciation: ['se-jê-lês] (US) or British ['se-dyu-lês]
Definition: Diligent, assiduous, zealous; applying oneself unflaggingly to a task. Usage: This is a qualitative adjective, which means it can compare, "more sedulous, most sedulous", form an adverb, "sedulously," and a noun, "sedulity" [sê-'ju-lê-tee] or [sê-'dyu-lê-tee]. Suggested Usage: Today's is another general purpose word, "If you do your homework sedulously this week, I'll take you to see the Red Sox play this weekend" is a good way for Bostonians to encourage good study habits. Use it outside the home, too: "If Ferenc were as sedulous in his work as he is in his golf, he would have dodged this last round of lay-offs." industrious diligent Word of the Day-assiduous0 评论
Assiduous (adjective)
Pronunciation: [ê-'sid-ju-wês] Definition: Persistently diligent and attentive at some activity; ardent. Usage: This word implies a stronger application of oneself to a job or task than does "diligent." It might also imply applying oneself overdiligently. "John was assiduous in pleasing his mother-in-law." The adverb, "assiduously," is probably used more than the adjective. The noun is "assiduity." Suggested Usage: Use this word where "diligent" does not seem strong enough: "Had Roger worked as assiduously on his homework as he did on his roller blades, he would be in Harvard now" or "Unfortunately, Felix can be quite assiduous when it comes to hacking security systems." 同根：insidious Word of the Day-extirpate0 评论
Pronunciation: ['ek-stêr-peyt]
Definition 1: To completely remove surgically. Usage 1: Extirpation (action noun), extirpative (adjective), extirpator (agentive noun). Definition 2: To annihilate, exterminate, destroy completely, especially by rooting out. Suggested Usage: The close definition is "to eradicate by rooting out," so the verb is best used along these lines: "We are going to extirpate every single source of drugs in the city," or "When we extirpate the last trace of political corruption from society, the development of other forms will be greatly expedited." Word of the Day-apposite0 评论
Pronunciation: ['æ-pê-zit]
Definition: Strikingly appropriate, applicable, or fitting; well put. Usage: Today's adjective has abandoned its family and gone out into the world on its own. The underlying verb, "appose," now means "to place on, apply" or "place in proximity," as in the case of appositive nouns. A noun in apposition to another is a noun referring to the same object added immediately following the first noun, as in, "His new financial advisor, Boesky, (made him feel a bit uneasy"). So "appose" and "apposition," oddly enough, have nothing semantically to do with today's word. Suggested Usage: "Apposite" is a prejudicial word that takes sides on questions of right and wrong, "I thought it very apposite of our group to bombard the committee with water balloons in protest of their decision to sell water rights to outsiders." It also takes sides on issues of social etiquette, "Yes, but do you think that, 'I just loved your sister to death,' was the apposite phrase to use at her funeral?" Word of the Day-lascivious0 评论
Lascivious (adjective)
Pronunciation: [læ-'si-vi-yês] Definition: Lustful, lewd, wanton; eliciting or expressing carnal desire. Usage: From an older word "lascivy" = "lasciviousness," this word seems to have run amok, accumulating several suffixes only to return full circle semantically to its original meaning. The adverb is "lasciviously" and the current noun is "lasciviousness." The verb is lasciviate "to behave lewdly." Avoid such behavior at all costs but enjoy the word when criticizing others. Suggested Usage: Here is the perfect substitute for the overworked metaphorical sense of "dirty" as in, "The lascivious jokes told by the fraternity brothers made Chastity uncomfortable all weekend." But we have to rue the unwarranted oversight of the verbal counterpart of today's word: "Our old friend, Tucker Doubt, lasciviates evenings in the red light district of our fair city." Word of the Day-harangue0 评论
Harangue (verb)
Pronunciation: [hê-'ræng] Definition: Verbal harassment, a tirade; a ranting uncontrolled preachment or piece of writing focused on a subject of interest only to the speaker or author. Usage: Today's noun serves equally well as a verb; one can harangue one's neighbors about petty grievances or harangue one's children about whom they associate with (though, of course, one shouldn't). Don't forget the "ue" on the end of today's word—a remnant of its French heritage. Someone who harangues is a haranguer. Suggested Usage: Harangues are a natural part of politics: "C-SPAN, the federal television network, brings the political harangues of both houses of Congress right into our living rooms." You do, more than occasionally, encounter them in other arenas, though, "After her long harangue about how he does nothing around the house, Ida Claire noticed through the window that her hubby had mown the lawn and weeded the flower beds while she napped." Word of the Day-dishevel0 评论
Dishevel (verb)
Pronunciation: [di-'shev-êl] Definition: To disorder or tousle, especially hair or clothing. Usage: This is one of those negated words without a positive correlate, e.g. "disgruntled," "unkempt," "nonchalant." If I am disheveled and tidy up, why am I not then "sheveled?" (Do kempt people make you gruntled or chalant?) In current American usage, "dishevel" takes the endings -ing and -ed without any changes to the stem; in British usage, the "l" is doubled: "dishevelled," "dishevelling." Suggested Usage: Disheveledness can be irksome or disarmingly attractive: "He looked up from the garden, a streak of dirt across his forehead and hair on end, and his disheveled appearance endeared him to her all the more." The word for it also slips comfortably into the metaphorical, "Watching five kids and a Labrador Retriever for a day completely disheveled Mia's sense of humor." disheveled , adjective; also dishevelled: In loose disorder; disarranged; unkempt; as, "disheveled hair." His cheeks were perpetually rosy, and his thinning sandy brown hair was brushed straight back -- and disheveled just enough to suggest a man in a hurry.-- Kai Bird, The Color of Truth I was known for my disheveled attire, messy desk and erratic work habits.-- Michael Isikoff, Uncovering Clinton He was wearing a disheveled shirt buttoned up wrong and a belt outside the belt loops and even with the beanie on his head looked as always handsome.-- Susan Minot, Evening At one point she bends her body in an arc, lifts a hind leg, and scratches her shoulder, leaving a disheveled spot in her fur.-- Richard Nelson, Heart and Blood Word of the Day-risible0 评论
Pronunciation: ['ri-zê-bêl]
Definition: (1) Given to laughter, likely to laugh; (2) related to laughter; (3) eliciting laughter, laughable, funny, comic. Usage: This word reminds us that, in addition to all the other clever things humans do that distinguish them from other creatures, we are also the risible creature, the only species capable of laughter. Babies begin to laugh when they are only 3-4 months old and those that laugh the most throughout their lives, seem to have the healthiest relationships. The adverb is "risibly" and the noun, "risibility." Suggested Usage: Today's word is a bit odd in that it can mean either laughing oneself or causing others to laugh. In this sentence, it could mean either: "Everyone loves that risible Irish darling, Beryl O'Laughs; she keeps everyone in stitches（忍不住大笑）." Here are two that separate the two main senses: "Risible foreigners must enjoy the antics of the US Congress" (sense 1) and "You've invented an electric pencil? That is as risible an idea as I've ever heard" (sense 3).
订阅：
博文 (Atom)
|