Make Your Point > Archived Issues > MINUTIAE

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connect today's word to others: Minutiae are little things, things that don't matter much on their own, things that are minute: small, trivial. Have you ever wondered what's up with "minute," the adjective for small things, and "minute," the unit of time? Why are they the same word? Well, first, let's talk about seconds. A while ago, as part of a word game we were playing, I asked you about "second" as in "first, second, third and "second" as in "second, minute, hour." Is the identical spelling a coincidence? Or are the words related? They're related! Here's my explanation again: The first time we slice up an hour, we slice it into minutes. Then the second time, we slice it into seconds. "Second," as in "one-sixtieth of a minute," comes from the Medieval Latin phrase pars minuta secunda, meaning "the second diminished (sliced-up) part." That secunda in another form is the Latin secundus, where were we got "second" as in "first, second, third." So now, let's add to that explanation and notice how pars minuta prima is Latin for "the first diminished (sliced-up) part." That clarifies why the noun "minute" as in "sixty seconds" looks just like the adjective "minute" as in "small, diminished, sliced-up, little-bitty, teeny-tiny." Okay, so we've talked about seconds and minutes. Sticking with the theme of time, see if you can explain these meanings:    nanosecond,    zero hour,    workaday,    red-letter day,    and ad infinitum. make your point with... "MINUTIAE" Something minute is very small or very unimportant. A minutia ("min NEW she uh") is a point, a detail, or a matter that is small and not important. The plural of "minutia" is "minutiae" ("min NEW she ee"). So, minutiae are small, unimportant points, details, or matters. Pronunciation: Several ways are acceptable. I prefer "min NEW she ee." Part of speech: Noun, the countable kind, and the plural kind: "these minutiae," "such minutiae." Other forms: The singular noun is "minutia," pronounced "min NEW she uh," so you talk about "one minutia," "a single minutia," "each minutia," "every minutia" and so on. "Minutious," "minutial," or "minutiose" things are those that involve minutiae, like accounts, designs, criticisms, examinations, managements, etc. How to use it: This word is often negative, but it can be neutral. Talk about the minutiae of something: the minutiae of the law, the minutiae of planning a trip, the minutiae of running a restaurant, the minutiae of the grieving process. Or, talk about legal minutiae, legislative minutiae, cultural minutiae, etc. And you can obsess over minutiae, focus on minutiae, get bogged down in minutiae, ignore the minutiae and so on. examples: It's a little creepy: with Google Analytics, you can monitor and scrutinize the behavioral minutiae of the visitors to your site. "Where Seinfeld centered around embarrassment and minutiae, Atlanta submerges itself in crime, violence and exploitation."    — Randall Colburn, The Guardian, 10 May 2018 study it now: Look away from the screen to define "minutiae" without saying "trifles" or "fine details." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "(Someone) aims to enjoy _____ without getting mired in minutiae." Example: "We aim to enjoy the party-planning without getting mired in minutiae." 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 "A Doodad Named After a Thingamajig." If I give you two categories, X and Y, can you think of an X that was named after a Y? We'll start off easy--these first few questions will have lots of correct answers each that you might think up--and we'll work our way toward harder questions that, as far as I know, have only one correct answer each. From the previous issue: Can you think of a hat named after a city? The only answer I know of is the fez. Nancy, a reader, also thought of the Homburg and the Monmouth cap! (If you know more, please share them!) Try this one today: Can you think of a method of social protest named after a person? review today's word: 1. One opposite of MINUTIAE is A. ESSENTIALS. B. BIG DREAMS. C. SMALL POTATOES. 2. He argues against _____, against the kind of minutial analysis that _____. A. price-gouging .. takes advantage of people's suffering B. navel-gazing .. blurs distinctions and erases meaningful categories C. spine-counting .. ignores the emotional connection between fisherman and fish 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. C