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To borrow words from Thomas Carlyle, today's word is not Roman catholic, but Human catholic. "Catholic" is Greek for "concerning the whole," so originally, "the catholic church" or "the church universal" meant everybody who believed, not just a specific congregation of believers.
Catholic, then, can mean universal, general, affecting everybody, embracing everything.
A close synonym of catholic is pan_____: involving all of humanity. Can you recall it?
make your point with...
"CATHOLIC"
Catholic things are general or universal: they affect everybody or interest everybody.
And catholic people have no preferences and no prejudices; instead, they accept and embrace everything.
Pronunciation:
"KATH lick" (my preference)
or "KATH uh lick"
Part of speech:
Adjective.
(Adjectives are describing words, like "large" or "late."
They can be used in two ways:
1. Right before a noun, as in "a catholic thing" or "a catholic person."
2. After a linking verb, as in "It was catholic" or "He was catholic.")
Other forms:
catholically, catholicity (not Catholicism--that's the religious belief or practice); catholicize, catholicized, catholicizing
How to use it:
Talk about a catholic goal or object, a catholic principle or ideal, catholic poetry or literature or art, or something of catholic use, interest, or value.
A catholic bookstore sells books on everything, a catholic diet allows every kind of food, and a catholic embrace is wide enough to include everything.
You might be a catholic observer, giving your attention to absolutely everything. You might have a catholic taste, interest, attitude, or perspective, appreciating and embracing everything. And you might be a person of catholic feeling, understanding and sympathizing with everyone.
You can be catholic in doing something or catholic in how you do something: "he's catholic in supporting local causes," "she's catholic in how she donates to local causes."
And you can be catholic in your understanding or definition of something: "They're catholic in their definition of 'art.'"
examples:
His passion for music is so strong, and his taste so catholic, that his collection dominates not just the living room but the whole apartment.
The cafeteria's definition of "vegetable" is surprisingly catholic. I got mac and cheese.
study it now:
Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "catholic" means when you can explain it without saying "universal" or "all-embracing."
try it out:
Fill in the blanks: "(Something) clearly holds a catholic allure: _____."
Example: "Meditation clearly holds a catholic allure: the National Institutes of Health estimates that 18 million people meditate in the U.S. alone."
before you review:
Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first.
License Plate Words!
You’ve spotted a cluster of three letters on a license plate. Keep all three letters together—don’t insert any letters between them—but add any letters you like to the left and/or right of the cluster to form words.
For example, when you spot the cluster CKG, you can form BACKGROUND and BACKGAMMON (and all their related words, like BACKGROUNDER and BACKGAMMONING, for a total of 8 possible words).
We’ll move from easy to hard clusters as the month goes on. (For the curious, you can generate a complete list of answers using a tool like this one.) Let's play!
Our previous question:
If you spot the cluster TWE, you can use it to form 95 words. Give yourself a minute or so. How many can you think of?
Possible answers:
You may have thought of BETWEEN, FOOTWEAR, LIGHTWEIGHT, OUTWEIGH, TWEET, TWEEZERS, TWELVE, TWENTY, and/or TWERP.
Try this today:
If you spot the cluster AQU, you can use it to form 86 words. Give yourself a minute or so. How many can you think of?
review today's word:
1. One opposite of CATHOLIC is
A. NARROW
B. CONCRETE
C. SKEPTICAL
2. With a title like _____, your book isn't exactly going to have catholic appeal.
A. How to Win Friends and Influence People
B. How to Train Your African Grey Parrot
C. How to Lose Weight and Keep it Off
Answers are below.
a final word:
To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact Liesl at Liesl@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. A
2. B
To borrow words from Thomas Carlyle, today's word is not Roman catholic, but Human catholic. "Catholic" is Greek for "concerning the whole," so originally, "the catholic church" or "the church universal" meant everybody who believed, not just a specific congregation of believers.
"CATHOLIC" Catholic things are general or universal: they affect everybody or interest everybody. Part of speech:
His passion for music is so strong, and his taste so catholic, that his collection dominates not just the living room but the whole apartment.
Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "catholic" means when you can explain it without saying "universal" or "all-embracing."
Fill in the blanks: "(Something) clearly holds a catholic allure: _____."
Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first.
1. One opposite of CATHOLIC is
To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact Liesl at Liesl@HiloTutor.com
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