Make Your Point > Archived Issues > ACME

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"ACME" Meaning: The acme of something is the very highest or very best point of it. In other words, something's acme is its very best period or most highly developed period. Pronunciation: ACK me Part of speech: Countable noun. (Countable nouns, like “bottle,” “piece,” and “decision,” are words for things that can be broken into exact units. You talk about “a bottle,” “three pieces,” and “many decisions.” Likewise, talk about one acme or multiple acmes.) Other forms: The plural is "acmes." You can use "acmic" or "acmatic" for the adjective. How to use it: This word almost always has a positive tone. Talk about a person or company being at the acme of success, something or someone being the acme of beauty or art (or the acme of accomplishment, the acme of life, and so on.) You might say that something (like the population of a city, or enrollment at a college) has reached or attained its acme. Although it's less common, you can use "acme" in a negative sense to talk about the acme of a disease, the acme of greed, the acme of totalitarian power, etc. Say what you will, but the acme of affordable furniture is Ikea. Taylor Swift's new music video is the acme of popular entertainment--it has explosions, weapons, stunts, elaborate costumes, and incredible makeup. Woo! Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "acme" means when you can explain it without saying "highest peak" or "point of perfection." Think of a musician, artist, or writer that you like, and fill in the blanks: "(Person)'s talent was at its acme when (he/she) (created something in particular.)" Example: "Steinbeck's talent was at its acme when he wrote East of Eden." Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game and quote below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first. Playing With Words: This month, we're playing New Word Order! It's a card game that I recently created; it involves figuring out the order in which certain words and phrases entered our language. I'll give you several words and/or phrases, and you'll use your knowledge of history, slang, technology, popular culture, fashion, psychology, etc. to put them into chronological order. I'll post the right answer to each question on the following day. If you like this game, you can download and print it to play with your family and friends. (It's free.) When you play New Word Order on hard mode with a group of friends, you make one big timeline together, which can get pretty long—and that makes it challenging to place new terms on it! For about the final third of this month, we’re building one big timeline. (And we’ll finish out the month—the 28th through the 30th— with three unique and highly challenging questions.) Yesterday's task was to add "body art" to this timeline: Brainwashing, 1950 Inner child, 1955 Parallel parking, 1962 Smokey Bear, 1969 Pimped-out, 1988 Fauxhawk, 2000 Answer: Brainwashing, 1950 Inner child, 1955 Body art, 1960 Parallel parking, 1962 Smokey Bear, 1969 Pimped-out, 1988 Fauxhawk, 2000 Today, add this final term to the timeline above: "neuroimaging." Special preview of next month's game: In December, we'll be sampling questions from Orijinz, an awesome series of games about the origins of words, phrases, and quotes. Click here or on the logo below if you want to go ahead and check them out! A Point Well Made: Areopagitica: “Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties.” 1. The opposite of ACME is A. LEVEL PLAYING FIELD B. LOWEST POINT C. FAIR GAME 2. Naturally, a printer at the very acme of quality and speed _____. A. comes with a relatively hefty price tag B. is fine for a student but embarrassing for a professional C. can usually be fixed if you jiggle a wire or shake the ink cartridge Answers are below. To be a sponsor and send your own message to readers of this list, please contact Liesl at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each day for free by Mrs. Liesl Johnson, M.Ed., a word lover, learning enthusiast, and private tutor of reading and writing in the verdant little town of Hilo, Hawaii. For writing tips, online learning, essay guidance, and more, please visit www.HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: Word meanings presented here are expressed in plain language and are limited to common, useful applications only. Readers interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words are encouraged to check a dictionary. Likewise, word meanings, usage, and pronunciations are limited to American English; these elements may vary across world Englishes. Answers to review questions: 1. B 2. A Exploring the archives: Not too long ago, we checked out "zenith," a very close synonym of today's "acme." So what's the difference? Why bother knowing both "zenith" and "acme"? Well, there's a slight difference in tone. Choose "zenith" when you want that astronomical flavor (because a zenith is the highest point in the sky right above you,) but choose "acme" when you need to emphasize the absolute exactness of the highest peak of something... and when you're willing to remind your audience of Wile E. Coyote. :) Could you recall the exact opposite of "zenith" and "acme"? It starts with "n."