Make Your Point > Archived Issues > PERSPICUOUS

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connect today's word to others: Hey, didn't we just recently cover the word perspicuous? Nope, we looked at perspicacious. It's really easy to mix those up. The perspicacious person is wise and insightful, seeing everything, and so is the perspicuous person--but perspicuous can also mean "easily seen: easy to understand." Yes, the two words have identical roots: they're basically Latin for "seeing through." See if you can recall these synonyms of perspicuous in its sense of "easily seen:"    1. Pell___d things are clear: see-through, or easy to understand.    2. Pa___t things are very clear, obvious, evident, and easy to notice.    3. Unequi____l things are so clear and definite that no one could misunderstand them. (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "PERSPICUOUS" This word has two meanings. First, perspicuous things are easy to understand because they're expressed so clearly. Second, perspicuous people and things are smart, sharp, observant, and insightful. Pronunciation: per SPICK you us 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 perspicuous thing" or "a perspicuous person." 2. After a linking verb, as in "It was perspicuous" or "He was perspicuous.") Other forms: perspicuously, perspicuity/perspicuousness How to use it: This is a formal word with a positive tone. (Like the words "logical" and "elegant," the word "perspicuous" is a compliment, one that points out a valuable quality.) When you're using the first meaning--"easily understood"--you talk about perspicuous words, sentences, paragraphs, writing, language, and style; perspicuous reasons, meanings, ideas, arguments, explanations, descriptions, and requests; and anything written in a perspicuous manner or in a perspicuous order or arrangement. Or, you can say that someone says or writes something perspicuously, or with (or without) perspicuity. And, when you're using the second meaning--"easily understanding everything"--you talk about perspicuous people, like perspicuous writers, speakers, and observers, as well as their perspicuous methods, insights, and intellects. Or, say that people or things have, show, develop, or lack perspicuity. examples: I think that when we require teenagers to read a serious novel, we owe them, first, a perspicuous account of who wrote that novel, when, where, and why it's worth reading. "Zbigniew Brzezinski, national security adviser to President Jimmy Carter, made similar points—with a lot more perspicuity—in his recent book, Strategic Vision."    —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times, 13 February 2012 study it now: Look away from the screen to define "perspicuous" without saying "intelligible" or "intelligent." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "(Someone) (is/was) a perspicuous observer of _____." Example: "The young narrator of To Kill a Mockingbird is a perspicuous observer of her neighbors and their conflicting values. (Too perspicuous.)" 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. Apt Adjective Anagrams!  I'll invent a person's name and a brief description of that person, and you unscramble the letters in the name to form an adjective that aptly describes the person or the person's situation. For example, if I say "Naomi Cirous is still holding a grudge," then you rearrange the letters in "Naomi Cirous" to form the adjective "acrimonious," meaning "sharp, bitter, and mean"--an appropriate adjective for someone holding a grudge. From the previous issue: Hundreds of people call Georgi Sura a friend. Answer: He's gregarious. Try this today: Karen Toucans is always grumpy. review today's word: 1. One opposite of PERSPICUOUS is A. MUDDLED. B. OBJECTIVE. C. PREJUDICED. 2. Strunk and White urged us toward perspicuity: _____ A. "Instead of announcing what you are about to tell is interesting, make it so." B. "The adjective hasn't been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place." C. "Clarity, clarity, clarity. When you become hopelessly mired in a sentence, it is best to start fresh..." 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