Make Your Point > Archived Issues > MASQUERADE

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explore the archives: Today we're checking out masquerade, a familiar word that's useful and dramatic enough to warrant our attention. When you're masquerading as someone, you're pretending to be someone you're not--as if you're putting on a mask, or a false face, or a fa____: a false front for a building, or any fake appearance. make your point with... "MASQUERADE" A masquerade is a masked ball: the kind of huge party where everyone wears masks. More generally, a masquerade is a disguise or pretense. Also, to masquerade is to pretend to be someone (or something) very different. In other words, to masquerade is to pass yourself off as a very different person, or to fool people into thinking that something is very different than it actually is. Pronunciation: MASS kuh RADE Part of speech: Both a noun (the countable kind: one masquerade, this masquerade, so many masquerades) and a verb (usually the intransitive kind: he masquerades, she's masquerading, it's masquerading as something else). Other forms: masquerades, masqueraded, masquerading How to use it: For the noun, talk about someone's masquerade, someone's masquerade as something else ("their masquerade as a legitimate company," "my masquerade as a potential client"), a masquerade of something ("her masquerade of wealth") or someone who's living a masquerade, consumed or convinced by a masquerade, engaged or lost in a masquerade, etc. It's rare, but you can also use the noun "masquerade" to mean any extravagant assortment, one that reminds of you of a swirl of costumed people at a ball: "The film overwhelms us with a masquerade of sleek special effects." For the verb, talk about someone or something masquerading, or masquerading as someone or something else: a salesperson masquerading as a friend, a hate group masquerading as a church, articles masquerading as legitimate news, tasteless pink and white cubes masquerading as tomatoes in your pico de gallo, opinion masquerading as fact, hate masquerading as humor, eloquence masquerading as logical reasoning. examples: Some of my family runs a wedding business, and many years ago when my husband and I were dating, we masqueraded as an engaged couple to go scope out a competing chapel. Devious! If you paid for all the merchandise you're trying to sell to your friends, you might be a customer masquerading as a consultant. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "masquerade" means when you can explain it without saying "make a false show of something" or "disguise." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "(Something low-quality) was masquerading as (something better)." Example: "The linoleum, with its slightly raised pattern of squares, was masquerading as tile." 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 the original and literal meanings of familiar words. I'll give you three words and their original or literal definitions, and you'll match them up. Easy! But then the following day, see if you can recall those old meanings. Hard! :) Our game has two purposes. One, we'll visit the interesting, thought-provoking old meanings of words. And two, we'll remind ourselves of a powerful learning strategy: delayed recalling. Let's play! First, try to recall from yesterday the literal meaning of "dictionary" and the original meanings of "irony" and "fiance." Answers appear at the bottom of this issue. Next, match these words to their original or literal definitions in the answer bank below: 1. "Issue" originally meant _____ 2. "Judo" literally means _____ 3. "Expensive" originally meant _____ Answer bank: A. "gentle way." B. "an exit or release." C. "willing to spend extravagantly." review today's word: 1. The closest opposite of MASQUERADE is A. ABLE BODY B. RED HERRING C. TRUE REPRESENTATION 2. Now that they're widely recognized as _____, they can no longer masquerade as _____. A. an international brand .. their online presence B. endangered .. fair game for hunters C. a hate group .. a Baptist church 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 game questions: 1. "Irony" originally meant "made of iron." 2. "Dictionary" literally means "word collection." 3. "Fiance" originally meant "confidence or trust." Answers to review questions: 1. C 2. C