Make Your Point > Archived Issues > PIÑATA
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pronounce
PIÑATA:
Say it "pin YOT uh."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
Let's add piñata to our list of colorful, flavorful words we took straight from Spanish, which also includes picaresque, aficionado, and peccadillo. Could you define all three?
Let's also add piñata to a list of words that includes yo-yoing and cat's cradle. Could you name the concept that unites these three metaphors?
definition:
The Latin word for "pine cone," pinea, is where we get the Spanish word for "jug or pot," piñata.
And we took piñata straight into English, where it first meant "a decorated bowl" but now means "any decorated container filled with candies or other treats, so that kids (or people acting like kids) can take turns smacking it open to let it spill out all the goodies." Good times.
Figuratively speaking, a piñata is someone or something that seems to get eagerly attacked a lot, or that seems to be filled with goodies to be grabbed, or both.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech: noun, the countable kind: "the Bible is a piñata for atheists"
Other forms: just the plural, "piñatas"
how to use it:
Compared to the word "effigy," "piñata" is more colorful, and more easily understood.
And compared to "target," "punching bag," and "sitting duck," it's a lot more fun.
So, feel free to refer to things or people as piñatas. In fact, I encourage you to grab any concrete noun and use it as a metaphor, even if--no, especially if--you haven't seen it done before.
Oh, and if you prefer, you can leave out the tilde over the "n" and just write "pinata."
examples:
"More is more and is, at times, just right in '22 Jump Street,' an exploding pinata of gags, pratfalls, winking asides, throwaway one-liners and self-reflexive waggery."
— Manohla Dargis, The New York Times, 12 June 2014
"As his standing in the polls improves, Mitt Romney is piling up public endorsements from a new cohort of voters: the celebrity-train-wreck set. The latest celebrity to climb aboard the Romney bandwagon is actress and Page Six piñata Lindsay Lohan."
— Alex Altman, TIME, 15 October 2012
has this page helped you understand "piñata"?
study it:
Explain the meaning of "piñata" without saying "punching bag" or "package of goodies."
try it out:
I don't know about you, but I'm weary of people talking about "the media having a field day with" such-and-such.
Let's talk now and then about the media using such-and-such as a piñata.
What do you think? Talk about an issue, an event, or a celebrity that the media seem to treat as a piñata, taking crack after crack at it, and seeming to crowd beneath it to gather up the goodies that pour out.
before you review, play:
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
Our game this month is "Subject Line Crosswords."
We'll revisit some of the email subject lines from 2019 issues, using them as a tool for recall.
Each day this month, see if you can complete the mini-crossword with words we studied last year. If you need extra clues, look below the puzzle to view definitions and parts of speech. And I'll share the answers in the following issue. Enjoy!
From the previous issue:
Extra clues:
ACROSS
2. adjective meaning "friendly, with no hatred and no fighting"
3. verb meaning "to take away people's wrong ideas: to show them the truth, to teach them how things really are"
DOWN
1. adjective meaning "said only for social reasons (like a need to be polite, or a need to acknowledge someone's presence)"
Answers:
If you like, you can review the words amicable, disillusion, and phatic.
Try this today:
Extra clues:
ACROSS
2. noun meaning "somebody's explanation or interpretation (of a text) that is too influenced by that person's own ideas"
3. noun meaning "a worker who does all kinds of tasks, or a thing that's useful in very many ways"
DOWN
1. adjective meaning "tailored to the customer, or made with great care, quality, and uniqueness"
review this word:
1. A near opposite of PIÑATA is
A. ONE WHO TAKES THE FALL.
B. ONE WHO TAKES THE CAKE.
C. ONE WHO GETS AWAY CLEAN.
2. Give it a rest. It won't work. You're _____ piñata.
A. pumping a dry
B. prodding a dead
C. whacking an empty
a final word:
I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love.
I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.
From my 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.
Let's add piñata to our list of colorful, flavorful words we took straight from Spanish, which also includes picaresque, aficionado, and peccadillo. Could you define all three? The Latin word for "pine cone," pinea, is where we get the Spanish word for "jug or pot," piñata.
Part of speech: noun, the countable kind: "the Bible is a piñata for atheists"
Compared to the word "effigy," "piñata" is more colorful, and more easily understood.
"More is more and is, at times, just right in '22 Jump Street,' an exploding pinata of gags, pratfalls, winking asides, throwaway one-liners and self-reflexive waggery."
Explain the meaning of "piñata" without saying "punching bag" or "package of goodies."
I don't know about you, but I'm weary of people talking about "the media having a field day with" such-and-such.
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
Extra clues:
If you like, you can review the words amicable, disillusion, and phatic.
Extra clues:
1. A near opposite of PIÑATA is
|