Make Your Point > Archived Issues > INERTIA

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connect today's word to others: Think of a day when you felt like Bruno Mars in "The Lazy Song:" "Today I don't feel like doing anything...I'm gonna kick my feet up and stare at the fan." That day, you were inert. Although you might have been feeling down, unable to shake the feeling of heb___de (dullness and motionlessness), you might instead have been savoring a la___id day (one that's slow, lazy, relaxed, and peaceful). I hope it was the latter!  (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "INERTIA" This word is Latin for "inactive," or more literally, "unskilled." Something inert can't move on its own and can't resist being moved. (More generally, inert people and things are lazy and inactive.) In physics, inertia is an object's resistance to motion, or its resistance to a change in speed. In other words, inertia is the tendency for a body to stay at rest, or to stay in motion, unless something else acts on it. More generally, inertia is a lazy tendency to stay inactive.     Pronunciation: in UR shuh Part of speech: Uncountable noun. (Like "milk," "rice," and "advice," uncountable nouns are words for stuff that can’t be broken into exact units. You talk about "some milk," "the rice," and "a lot of advice," but you don’t say "a milk," "three rices," or "many advices." Likewise, talk about "the inertia," "this inertia," "his inertia," "such inertia," "no inertia," and so on, but don’t say "an inertia," "one inertia," or "inertias.") Other forms worth knowing: "Inertness" and "inertion" are nouns you can use in place of "inertia," but I think "inertia" sounds best. For general topics, the adjective is "inert" (in URT) and the adverb "inertly."  (If you mean "related to physical inertia," you can use the adjective "inertial" [in UR shull].) How to use it: Compared to more general words like "sloth," "dullness," "laziness," "idleness," and "inactivity," our word "inertia" has a fun scientific flavor. When you talk about, say, legislative inertia, you're hinting that not only are the lawmakers being lazy and getting nothing done but also that outside forces will need to apply more pressure to get those lawmakers moving. Like we just did with the phrase "legislative inertia," we can talk about inertia as if it belongs to someone, to some group of people, or to some thing or some period of time: her inertia, my inertia, bureaucratic inertia, the program's inertia, summertime inertia, Friday afternoon inertia. Or, talk about being frustrated by inertia, being driven into inertia, slipping into inertia, reducing inertia, combating inertia, overcoming inertia and so on.  examples: Even as she watches Bo on the Go!, part cartoon, part exercise program, Taylor sprawls on the rug, inert, a sippy cup in one hand. Surely you can blame inertia, not malice, for how long you had to wait for the company to send your refund. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "inertia" means when you can explain it without saying "the tendency to do nothing" or "a state of getting nothing done." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "After (someone or something) yanked me from my inertia, I (took some specific action)." Example: "After his encouragement yanked me from my inertia, I applied for better jobs." 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. Our game this month is "The Meanings of Maladies." I'll share a tidbit about the word for a particular symptom, disease, or condition, and you try to name it. We'll start with common maladies and work our way toward the rare and strange. From our previous issue: The name for this disease comes from the Latin word for "rose-colored." What is it? Answer: Rosacea, which causes redness on the face. Try this today: The Latin word for "rage, fury, or madness" gave us the name of this disease, which tends to affect impoverished areas. According to the World Health Organization, we're working to see zero human deaths from it by the year 2030. What is it? review today's word: 1. A close opposite of INERTIA is A. INITIATIVE. B. ARTISTRY. C. KNOWLEDGE. 2. When you're _____ by bureaucratic inertia, _____. A. wounded .. fight back B. stymied .. push harder C. ousted .. find a way back in 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. A 2. B