Redound(ed)

Building Your Power of Expression Redound(ed), v. Pronunciation: rəˈdound (ed) Meaning: To contribute greatly to a person’s credit or honor. Usage: His latest diplomatic effort truly redounded to his credit. Any good parent would prefer to mete out punishment that redounded to the benefit of the child rather than simply repaying the child for the […]

Building Your Power of Expression Inveigh, v. Pronunciation: inˈvā Meaning: To inveigh is to speak or write about something with great hostility. Usage: Netanyahu’s government inveighed against any institution or nation-state that gave aid to Hamas. Because one particular politician opted to inveigh on the subject of immigration for over an hour, the debate went […]

Building Your Power of Expression Inimical, adj. Pronunciation: iˈnimək(ə)l Meaning: Something that is inimical tends to bring harm. Think in terms of unfriendly or hostile. Usage: I cannot go along with their plan, as it is inimical to our interests. Some of the illegal aliens who are pouring into our country have inimical tendencies that […]

Building Your Power of Expression Inchoate, adj. Pronunciation: inˈkōət, ˈinkəˌwāt Meaning: Sometimes a person will get a basic idea in their head, but the idea is not fully formed. It is still taking shape. In such instances, we could say such a person has a still inchoate idea sprouting. Anything that is still undeveloped or […]

Building Your Power of Expression Reify, v. Pronunciation: ˈrēəˌfī Meaning: To reify is to take something that is abstract and render it more concrete or real. It is to give definite content and form to a concept or idea. It is often used in the past tense. Usage: With this constraint, many of the possible […]

Building Your Power of Expression Vanguard, n. Pronunciation: ˈvanˌɡärd Meaning: In a military context, this word referenced the foremost part of an advancing army or naval force. It also is more commonly used in reference to a group of people leading the way in new developments or ideas. In addition, it could be used to […]

Building Your Power of Expression Recalcitrant, adj., n. Pronunciation: rəˈkalsətrənt Meaning: This word describes having an obstinately uncooperative attitude toward authority or discipline. As a noun, it describes a person in possession of such an attitude. Usage: Unfortunately, I was given a class comprised of recalcitrant 15-year-olds. Tommy is a problem child in that he […]

Building Your Power of Expression Secretion, n. Pronunciation: səˈkriSH(ə)n Meaning: A process by which substances are produced and discharged from a cell, gland, or organ for a particular function in the organism or for excretion. I often use the term symbolically, in its non-scientific contexts. Usage: His endless blather was like the inky secretions of […]

Building Your Power of Expression Apotheosis, n. Pronunciation: əˌpäTHēˈōsəs Meaning: In some circles, this word has a particular theological meaning. When speaking of divine things, apotheosis refers to the process of divine sanctification wherein a disciple of Christ, at some point in the next life, is elevated to the status of a divine being, a […]

Building Your Power of Expression Parsimony, n. Pronunciation: ˈpärsəˌmōnē Meaning: Parsimony refers to a rather austere commitment to frugality, or an aversion to spending money or other resources. Usage: I think you need to have a little parsimony injected into your brain; your spending habits are out of control! A great tradition of public design […]