Make Your Point > Archived Issues > GREENHORN

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connect today's word to others: Imagine a young buck fawn with nubby little antlers. He looks delicate, unsure, maybe unsteady on his feet. He's a (nearly literal) greenhorn: a newbie, a beginner, someone with very little experience. In our word greenhorn, "green" means "new, raw, untrained, inexperienced." (Speaking of colors, can you define the "brown" in "brown study," that formal term we recently checked out?)  Let's say you're new at your job, or new to living in this country. You're a greenhorn, like a young deer. Or, you're a fl____ing, like a young bird. And if you're a greenhorn, you might be ver___t, or "green" in the sense of inexperienced and therefore easily tricked. (In other contexts, that word ver___t means "green like grass; full of green plants; or fresh, flourishing, and abundant.) (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "GREENHORN" A greenhorn is a new, inexperienced person who is just starting out in a particular situation. Pronunciation: GREEN horn 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 greenhorn or multiple greenhorns.) Other forms: Even though it's usually a noun, you can use "greenhorn" like an adjective. Greenhornism is the state of being a greenhorn. And, a greenhornism is something you do that reveals how new or inexperienced you are. How to use it: The tone of this word can be neutral or slightly negative. When you call people greenhorns, you might be hinting that they're clumsy, clueless, easily fooled, or even useless. And because we first used "greenhorn" to describe newly enlisted soldiers, the word still has a whiff of the military to it. But we also use it to describe newly arrived immigrants, as well as people who are just starting out in their jobs or their hobbies. So, call someone a greenhorn, or talk about greenhorns as a group: "his bumbling errors marked him as a greenhorn," "I still had the misplaced confidence of a greenhorn," "she looks down on all these greenhorns." When you're using "greenhorn" like an adjective, you can talk about greenhorn people (like greenhorn soldiers and greenhorn beginners), or people in a greenhorn state, stage, or phase.  examples: Send help: our leader is a greenhorn who's ignorant of his responsibilities and unwilling to learn them. We were greenhorn freshmen back then, writing our locker combinations with Sharpies on our Converses, slipping red-faced into the guidance office because we lost the printout of our class schedules (again). study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "greenhorn" means when you can explain it without saying "newbie" or "tenderfoot." try it out: Fill in the blank: "As it turns out, (something advanced, complex, or overwhelming) was not for greenhorns." Example: "As it turns out, the salsa made from the Carolina Reaper (the world's hottest pepper) was not for greenhorns." 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. Uncommon Opposites! In each issue this month, I'll give you a rare word and its definition, and you come up with its more familiar opposite. For example, if I say, "To exfiltrate is to secretly withdraw people from a dangerous situation," then you come up with the opposite: "infiltrate." Or if I say, "An allograph is something written by someone other than the person concerned," then you come up with "autograph." We'll take these in order from easy to hard as the month goes on. Ready? From our previous issue: Someone gruntled is happy or pleased with a situation. What’s the opposite? Answer: Someone disgruntled. Try this today: Something diurnal happens daily, or it's related to the daytime, or active during the day. What’s the opposite? review today's word: 1. The opposite of GREENHORN is A. YOUNG BLOOD. B. MIDDLE TINT. C. OLD HAND. 2. In Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, James Stewart plays the greenhorn senator, all ____. A. gritty and hard-bitten B. wide-eyed and unpretentious C. debonair, charismatic, always smiling Answers are below. a final word: Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From Liesl's blog:    36 ways to study words.    Why we forget words, & how to remember them.    How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes. Answers to review questions: 1. C 2. B