Make Your Point > Archived Issues > PATRIMONY

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connect today's word to others: If you're recently married, with no kids yet and no plans for them anytime soon, you might be annoyed to know that matrimony literally means "mother-ness." Weird, right? And here's "father-ness," or more specifically, "an inheritance from a father:" patrimony, the word we'll check out today. (Don't worry, it has a more general meaning!)  Patrimony comes from the Latin pater, "father," and so does pat___ize, meaning "to be a customer at a particular business" and "to treat someone in a snobby way." Can you recall it? And can you explain why it has the two totally different meanings? You can find an explanation at the top of the archives page for pat___ize. (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "PATRIMONY" A patrimony is property that belongs to a church, OR property that someone inherited, especially from their father. More generally, a patrimony (or just "patrimony") is something valuable that we have because it was passed down to us from previous generations. Pronunciation: PAT truh mo nee Part of speech: Noun. It's both countable ("a patrimony," "this patrimony," "these patrimonies") and uncountable ("the patrimony," "to get something by patrimony"). Other forms: patrimonial, patrimonially How to use it: We'll focus on the abstract meaning: if we call something a patrimony, we mean that it's worth appreciating and that it's ours because we inherited it from those who came before us. Examples of things we might call a patrimony include our culture; our education and knowledge; our physical strength; our mental capabilities; and the cities, buildings, landmarks, literature, technologies, and scientific advances that we treasure. We often use the word "patrimony" on a grand scale to talk about the patrimony of humanity, the patrimony of us all, the world's patrimonies, etc. But we can also talk about an individual person's patrimony: "The patrimony of a poor man lies in the strength and dexterity of his hands" (Adam Smith) or about the patrimony of a certain group of people ("the patrimony of the poets"). When we use "patrimony" in a sentence, we often simply point out that something is a patrimony. But we can also say that people are gaining something by patrimony or claiming something as patrimony. (Or, we'll say that something comes to someone by patrimony.) And we can talk about saving, restoring, recognizing, protecting, treasuring, and appreciating our patrimonies. Finally, sometimes we stick on an adjective: cultural patrimony, national patrimony, intellectual patrimony. examples: As Venice slowly sinks, we feel the blow that global warming is dealing to our cultural patrimony. Virginia Woolf tells the story of a woman being barred from a college library, as if the knowledge there was to be kept secret from women, as if it wasn't the patrimony of all humankind. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "patrimony" means when you can explain it without saying "legacy" or "inheritance." try it out: Fill in the blank: "We gain by patrimony the ability to (do something natural and wonderful)." Example: "We gain by patrimony the ability to absorb thousands of words in early childhood." 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. Subject Line Redux! You know how I fill the subject line of each Make Your Point email with a little comment about the word? Let's revisit some of those subject lines; they make a good study tool. That is, you'll improve your chances of recalling our words when you need them later if you do this now: look at the little comment from the subject line and use that to recall the word, its meaning, and how it connects to the little comment. (For more on active recall and how you can employ it to strengthen your vocabulary, please go here.) In each issue this month, I'll share a puzzle or other activity that prompts you to recall 5 previous words based on their subject lines. (To make your own activities like these, check out the fun and useful Vocabulary Worksheet Factory.) And I'll share the answers in the following issue. From our previous issue:  Answers: Try this today: review today's word: 1. A close opposite of PATRIMONIAL is A. FIRST-HAND. B. SECOND-IN-COMMAND. C. THIRD-ESTATE. 2. In 2017, the Pope tweeted this: "We must never forget that _____ is [...] the patrimony of all humanity." A. greed B. the natural environment C. the misapplication of religious texts 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. B