Make Your Point > Archived Issues > MERCURIAL
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connect today's word to others:
When you hear the name "Mercury," what do you think of first: the planet, the chemical, or the Roman god? All three of those things influenced today's word, mercurial. Mercurial people are full of life; they're quick-witted; they change their minds a lot, and they change quickly from one mood to another. These are qualities we associate with the god, with the metal, and with people "born under" the planet.
That makes our word mercurial a wonderful linguistic mel____, or mixture.
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
make your point with...
"MERCURIAL"
Here's the first meaning. Mercurial people are quick, lively, clever, and/or imaginative.
And here's the second meaning. Mercurial things and people often change a lot in an unpredictable way.
Pronunciation:
mur CURE ee ull
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 mercurial thing" or "a mercurial person."
2. After a linking verb, as in "It was mercurial" or "He was mercurial.")
Other forms:
mercuriality or mercurialness, mercurially
How to use it:
This word most often describes people. Talk about a mercurial person, or someone with a mercurial nature, temperament, or personality. And someone can have a mercurial wit, mood, mind, humor, or style.
Is it a compliment or an insult to call someone mercurial? It depends on which meaning you're using, which is clear from the context. "She's mercurial and, as a result, unable to hold down a job." "She's mercurial, a true artist and a dazzling conversationalist."
The kinds of things might you call mercurial include costs, markets and industries, forces of nature, performances, works of art, and basically anything else that's full of life and imagination OR that's changeable and hard to predict.
examples:
Free-spirited, mercurial, beaming and pigtailed, Taylor abruptly stops dancing to assemble a puzzle.
In "Winter Dreams," the narrator chases after the mercurial Judy Jones, who pulls him in and pushes him aside again and again.
study it now:
Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "mercurial" means when you can explain it without saying "volatile" or "inventive."
try it out:
Fill in the blank: "You have to keep up in the mercurial world of _____."
Example: "You have to keep up in the mercurial world of Internet memes."
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 some beautifully worded passages from the Bible as we recall words we've studied before.
From our previous issue:
"Whoever fears the LORD walks uprightly, but those who despise him are d______ in their ways." (New International Version, Proverbs, chapter 14, verse 2.)
What's the missing word? It means "straying from the path of honesty by being sneaky or tricky."
Answer: devious.
Try this today:
"So they that forsake the law praise ungodliness; but they that love the law _______ themselves with a wall." (New International Version, Proverbs, chapter 28, verse 4.)
What's the missing word? It means "to strengthen yourself so you can be prepared, in body or spirit, for whatever you need to accomplish."
review today's word:
1. One opposite of MERCURIAL is
A. DEEP
B. STABLE
C. IMPRESSIONABLE
2. He remains mercurial, and so does his songwriting process: it resists any attempt to impose _____ on it.
A. whimsy
B. discipline
C. ornamentation
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. B
2. B
When you hear the name "Mercury," what do you think of first: the planet, the chemical, or the Roman god? All three of those things influenced today's word, mercurial. Mercurial people are full of life; they're quick-witted; they change their minds a lot, and they change quickly from one mood to another. These are qualities we associate with the god, with the metal, and with people "born under" the planet.
"MERCURIAL" Here's the first meaning. Mercurial people are quick, lively, clever, and/or imaginative. Part of speech: Other forms:
Free-spirited, mercurial, beaming and pigtailed, Taylor abruptly stops dancing to assemble a puzzle.
Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "mercurial" means when you can explain it without saying "volatile" or "inventive."
Fill in the blank: "You have to keep up in the mercurial world of _____."
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.
1. One opposite of MERCURIAL is
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. |