Make Your Point > Archived Issues > MARINATE

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explore the archives: Used literally, marinate is a way to prepare fresh food. How about leftover food: can you recall a fun-to-say three-syllable French word meaning "warmed-up leftover food, or an unimpressive rehashing of anything"? It starts with "re," meaning "again," and is related to "chafe" (meaning "to become warm") and "chafing dish" (a metal pan that keeps food warm). (Thanks again to the reader who pointed out this connection to me!) make your point with... "MARINATE" When you marinate your food, or when your food marinates, it's soaking in a marinade (a flavorful liquid that seeps into the food). Figuratively, a person or thing that marinates is soaking in something, as if that person or thing is sitting still, letting that other thing seep in. Pronunciation: MARE in ate Part of speech: Verb. It’s both transitive (you marinate something)  and intransitive (you marinate, or you marinate in something). Other forms: Marinated, marinating. For the figurative meaning that we're focusing on, although it's less common, you can also use "marinade" as a verb, as in "Vacationers marinaded in the sun." How to use it: Talk about someone who marinates in something, or someone who simply marinates: "They sat, marinating in their own anger," "She listened, marinating in the warmth and the pulsing music of the club," "His demands were ignored for months--they left him to marinate." You can also marinate something in something else: "the fashion show marinated our senses in color and beauty;" "her speech is marinated in southern phrases." When you pick "marinate" instead of "soak" or "immerse," you're comparing your subject to, say, a piece of chicken or fish that's completely surrounded in a tasty liquid before being cooked. So you pick this word to emphasize stillness, waiting, or helplessness along with total involvement or the sense that one thing is slowly filling another--and that situation might be positive ("they marinated in happy anticipation"), but it's more often negative ("they marinated in tense anticipation"). examples: In middle school we subscribed to Seventeen and Teen Magazine and marinated in their tone, their images, their insistence that pretty shoes and pink glosses and perfect-10 nails were must-haves. Before threatening the president's life on social media, she'd been marinating for years in conspiracy theories and anger. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "marinate" means when you can explain it without saying "bathe in something" or "sit and stew." try it out: Think of something so trendy or popular that it seems to have soaked into our lives. Fill in the blanks: "(A group of people) are/were marinating in (a certain trend or popular thing)." Example: "Young girls are marinating in Disney merchandise." 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. This month, we're playing with KWIKORD, an addictive, challenging new word game for solo or group play, created by Wayne Ellice.  We're dipping our toes into the game this month, trying some simple challenges first and working our way toward harder tasks. (Check out my interview with the game's creator here, and order your own copy of the full version of KWIKORD here.) You'll see a sample answer to each puzzle the following day. Enjoy! Yesterday, you took the letters GLTEOU and arranged them into words that fill the perimeter of a 3x3 grid. Many solutions were possible. Here are two: Wayne and I hope you've enjoyed these simpler puzzles so far.  Making things a bit more challenging, the new goal is to completely fill the grid with 3-letter words. For example, this grid is filled using the letters TWYAEE: Ready for this challenge? Try it today with the letters LNTAEO. Draw a tic-tac-toe board on some scrap paper and go for it! review today's word: 1. One opposite of MARINATE is A. SHUT OUT B. LOOK IN C. PIERCE 2. Before Netflix, we had to marinate in _____ for _____. A. suspense .. a week between each episode B. reliable information about show times .. the T.V. Guide C. actual theaters .. shows uninterrupted by commercials 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. A