Make Your Point > Archived Issues > LEONINE

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explore the archives: Word lovers have long embraced lists of adjectives for animal qualities. These terms run the gamut from the grand and elegant (aquiline, eagle-like; tigrine, tiger-like) to the insulting and somewhat icky (hircine, goat-like; porcine, piggy) to the more familiar (asinine, canine, lupine, vulpine). Leonine (lion-like) is king among these adjectives. Consider all the cultural, religious, and literary associations that crowd your mind as soon as you think of lions and you'll probably agree that leonine is useful enough to make an appearance here in Make Your Point. Though we'll probably check out lionize later on, we haven't yet looked at other words related to lions. By coincidence, the following words look like they should be about lions! Could you recall them? 1. A _____lion is a large group of anything--usually people--that's organized and powerful. 2. A _______lion is a person who's dishonest or just playfully mischievous. make your point with... "LEONINE" Someone or something leonine reminds you of a lion: it might be courageous, powerful, large, graceful, kingly, and/or shaggy. Pronunciation: LEE uh nine 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 leonine thing" or "a leonine person." 2. After a linking verb, as in "It was leonine" or "He was leonine.") Other forms: leoninely How to use it: This word connotes power, beauty, ruggedness, strength, majesty, royalty--anything you associate with lions. So, talk about leonine people with leonine bodies, leonine heads, leonine faces, and leonine manes. You might describe someone's leonine posture, gait, nature, presence, or demeanor. Or someone might have leonine beauty, leonine prowess, leonine grace, leonine courage, and so on. examples: With his broad leonine face and commanding onscreen presence, Leonardo DiCaprio couldn't have a more appropriate first name. Does your workout mix have Katy Perry's "Roar"? That leonine chorus is potent. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "leonine" means when you can explain it without saying "regal" or "courageous." try it out: Think of someone you know who has a loud voice or a strong, assertive personality. Fill in the blanks: "With (his/her) leonine (voice/appearance/demeanor), (Person) easily (accomplishes something in particular)."  Example: "With his leonine voice, Dwayne easily commanded the room." 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. Language Techniques: When language sounds beautiful or memorable, often there’s some particular technique responsible for that effect. Each day this month, I’ll give you a specific stylistic technique or quality, and I’d like you to recreate (as closely as you can) the quote that I’ve botched by removing it. We’ll work our way from the easiest to the hardest techniques. Enjoy! From yesterday: Every guide to writing style has a chapter on this technique, and no one quite agrees on what to call it--but when you place your most explosive word or idea last, it resonates the most. Arthur C. Clarke wrote that "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." Magic! Jane Austen didn't write, "The person, be it gentleman or lady, is intolerably stupid if he or she has not pleasure in a good novel." How does that line really go? Answer: "The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid."  Try this one today: Without rhetorical questions, how could we be dramatic? T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" would have been all "Perhaps I should disturb the universe" and "Maybe I'll eat a peach" instead of "Do I dare disturb the universe?" and "Do I dare to eat a peach?" Michael Bolton didn't sing, "If we can't be friends, perhaps we can't be lovers." How does that line really go? review today's word: 1. The closest opposite of LEONINE is A. FELINE B. MOUSY C. FLORAL 2. The role of the villain Javert demands a _____, almost leonine presence. A. plodding B. withering C. snarling Answers are below. a final word: To be a sponsor and send your own message to readers of this list, 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. B 2. C