Make Your Point: TEMERITY

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pronounce TEMERITY:

tuh MARE uh tee

connect this word to others:

Let's say you're in a meeting, and you hear your boss mispronounce a word. The same one, over and over.

It's a bad idea to interrupt and inform your boss of the mistake, right? I certainly wouldn't.

But maybe you'd have the temerity to do it: the guts, the pluck, the audacity, the boldness, the eff___ery. (Can you recall that last synonym? It means "someone's bold rudeness that doesn't even embarrass them.")

Getting back to temerity, you might notice that the first three syllables, "tuh MARE uh," sound exactly like the name "Tamera," as in the actress Tamera Mowry. That's a coincidence, but it's a fun one: Tamera's character on Sister, Sister, also named Tamera, had plenty of temerity. Plenty of guts and boldness. Like whenever her neighbor Roger annoyed her, instead of listening politely to him, Tamera had the temerity to shout at him to go home.

(Source)

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definition:

"Temerity" traces back to the Latin temere, which could mean either "by chance: randomly" or "rashly, recklessly, foolishly."

In English, for hundreds of years, we've used the word "temerity" as a more formal synonym of "boldness" and "recklessness."

In other words, when you have the temerity to do something, you have the audacity to do it: the mix of bravery and stupidity that allows you to do something risky, usually in a social setting, like asking a rude question or telling someone they're wrong.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Noun, the uncountable kind: "She had the temerity to interrupt the lecturer." "He had the temerity to order something that wasn't on the menu."

Other forms:

There are a couple of adjectives, but they're rare: "temeritous" and "temerarious."

how to use it:

Pick the formal, semi-common word "temerity" (instead of "guts" or "audacity") when you want to call special attention to someone who does something rude, daring, or otherwise risky.

Often we say that someone had the temerity to criticize someone, to challenge someone, to voice an unpopular opinion, or to attempt something that society typically doesn't allow. "She had the temerity to correct him in front of his friends." "He had the temerity to refuse a gift."

"Temerity" is great for sarcasm, too. "On Mondays, pre-coffee, she scowls at anyone with the temerity to wish her a good morning." "Why was he was pulled over? He had the temerity to drive while Black."

examples:

"Once at a lunch at a large bookseller's... I had the temerity to disagree with [Gore Vidal]."
— Gerald Howard, as quoted by Hillel Italie, Seattle Times, 1 August 2012

"[Megyn Kelly] had the temerity to ask if Trump's disparaging comments about women disqualified him from the presidency."
— Sarah Burris, Salon, 28 January 2016

has this page helped you understand "temerity"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "temerity" without saying "guts" or "recklessness."

try it out:

The narrator in Catch-22 says:

"No one even knew Major de Coverley's first name, because no one had ever had the temerity to ask him."

Relatable, right? That same fear, and that same lack of temerity, is often captured by the Afraid to Ask Andy meme:

(Source)

Have you ever been in this situation: lacking the temerity to ask a question when you really should have known the answer long ago?

If so, talk about it. If not, talk about a time when you did have the temerity to ask something—and whether or not you regretted asking.

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.

This month, our game is "Smorgasbord of Wordly Lore!"

Try a trivia question each day. It’ll have something to do with a food or a drink. You can play on hard mode by answering the question cold, or play on easy mode by highlighting the multiple choice options. To see the correct answer, scroll all the way down. Enjoy!

Try this one today: While searching for El Dorado around the year 1595, what did Walter Raleigh refer to as "the princess of fruits"?

Highlight below to reveal the multiple choice options.…
A. mango
B. papaya
C. pineapple

review this word:

1. The opposite of TEMERITY is

A. MALICE.
B. TIMIDITY.
C. WILDERNESS.

2. In the movie Clueless, when Cher says "____," she's usually _____.

A. As if! .. chiding some boy for his temerity
B. I am totally buggin' .. trying to tame her own temerity
C. He's kind of a Baldwin .. appreciating some boy's physical temerity

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:
On vocabulary...
  36 ways to study words.
  Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
  How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
How to improve any sentence.
How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.

From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

A 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.

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Make Your Point > Archived Issues > TEMERITY

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