Make Your Point > Archived Issues > EFFLORESCENCE

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pronounce EFFLORESCENCE: Say it "EFF luh RESS unce." To hear it, click here. connect this word to others: If you work with brick or concrete, you're probably familiar with efflorescence: that ugly stuff that seems to blossom out of nowhere. (Thanks for the image, Wikipedia!) But "blossom" is the key word here. An efflorescence can also be a blossoming of artistic output, cultural growth, nationwide prosperity, or anything else that you might liken to a bright field of flowers in bloom. You'll recognize the word's similarity to flower, flourish, and Florida, as well as flor__, which can mean either "healthy and reddish, like flowers in bloom" or "overly fancy and showy--again, like flowers in bloom." Can you recall that one? (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) definition: The word "efflorescence" has Latin roots that literally mean "a blossoming out." Literally speaking, efflorescence is the act of bursting into bloom, or the period of time when a plant bursts into bloom. And figuratively speaking, efflorescence is a period of great success or activity that reminds you of a flower bursting into bloom. grammatical bits: Part of speech: Noun, both the countable kind ("It was an efflorescence") and the uncountable kind ("It was a period of efflorescence"). Other forms:  The adjective is "efflorescent." And the verb is "effloresce:" "Her hunch effloresced into a brilliant theory;" "Rational thought was efflorescing all over the continent." how to use it: Unless you're using it to talk about chemical efflorescence, like in the photo above, the semi-common word "efflorescence" most often has a lovely tone. We use it to label all kinds of artistic and cultural outbursts and blossomings: "the efflorescence of jazz music," "the efflorescence of rational humanism," "the seasonal efflorescence of outdoor art in this city" (New York Times), "the efflorescence of 'politically correct' discourse" (Salon), "the initial efflorescence of important African American art in postwar California" (Los Angeles Times). examples: "His musical efflorescence was tragically brief, but this is the man who turned the chord-strumming, jobbing electric guitar into a high-wire, virtuoso lead instrument, from also-ran to star turn."    — Howard Goodall, The Story of Music, 2012 "Prior to Miranda's reimagining, Hamilton's most recent efflorescence in popular or political culture, a decade or so ago, was as a hero to neoconservatives."    — Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 25 September 2015 has this page helped you understand "efflorescence"? 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 "efflorescence" without saying "a blossoming" or "period of popularity." try it out: Sometimes we'll say that some trendy or popular thing is in efflorescence. Here's an example from the New Yorker: "By the late nineties, black napkins were in efflorescence—a kind of secret handshake between swanky restaurants and the people who spend a lot of time in them." With those trendy black napkins in mind as an example, think of something else that once seemed to be blossoming out everywhere. Fill in the blanks: "By (some point in time), (something) (was or were) in efflorescence." If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.) 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 for March is "Yup, that's a real word." Check out the definition of a silly-sounding word--yes, a real one, from the Oxford English Dictionary--and see if you can come up with the word itself. To see the answer, scroll all the way down. Here's an example: "This three-syllable noun ending in the -ship suffix (as in 'friendship' and 'fellowship') means 'skill in traversing snow.'" The answer is "snowmanship." (Yup, that’s a real word!) Try this one today: A common suffix takes up four of the five syllables in this noun, which means "the quality of being safe to pet." review this word: 1. A near opposite of EFFLORESCE is A. WILT. B. WATER. C. WEED OUT. 2. An efflorescence: if it's on your _____, scrub it off; if it's in your hobby, let it _____. A. brick .. bloom B. backpack .. unfold C. bathroom tile .. deepen Answers to review questions: 1. A 2. A Answer to the game question: Pettability. Sure, a goldfish is nice, but I prefer a companion with pettability. 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.