Make Your Point > Archived Issues > RAMIFICATION
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pronounce
RAMIFICATION:
Say it "RAM uh fuh KAY shun."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
See if you can recall this close synonym of ramifications:
Unintended effects, or consequences that seem to strike back at you, are rep__c___ions.
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
definition:
From Latin bits meaning "making a branch," "ramify" means "to grow outward in branches, or to divide into sub-parts."
And, a ramification can be a branchlike growth or division.
But more often, a ramification is a figurative branching: a result or an effect that causes problems.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech:
Noun, the countable kind: "We didn't predict this ramification;" "Now we'll have to suffer the ramifications."
Other forms:
We often make it plural: "ramifications."
There's a verb, "ramify," but it's rare. It's usually intransitive, as in "Here's how the veins ramify;" "Here's where the sidewalk ramifies;" and "This discovery will ramify for centuries." Its other forms are "ramified" and "ramifying."
how to use it:
"Ramification" is a formal, semi-common word that helps you sound very serious (compared to synonyms like "results," "consequences," or "complications").
Talk about the ramifications of some event--often a bad one, like a war, a crime, a breakup, a bad policy, an unwise decision, or the release of a big-budget movie that's absolutely terrible.
You might talk about certain kinds of ramifications, like legal, cultural, financial, political, or economical ones.
This word tends to have a negative tone. If you need one with a positive tone instead, let me suggest resonances.
examples:
"They analyze the shape of the [Supreme Court] and the ramification of its decisions."
— Dahlia Lithwick, Slate, 3 July 2021
"By the late 1930s, [Theodosius Dobzhansky] began to realize that his understanding of genes, variation, and natural selection had ramifications far beyond biology."
— Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Gene: An Intimate History, 2016
has this page helped you understand "ramification"?
study it:
Explain the meaning of "ramification" without saying "a complication" or "a repercussion."
try it out:
Trevor Noah wrote: "If you stop to consider the ramifications, you'll never do anything."
Talk about what he means. Do you agree with him? Why or why not? Have you been in a situation where you took too long (or not long enough) to consider the ramifications?
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 September is Solve the Square!
It's inspired by Squareword, which is like Wordle but in 3D. In each issue this month, find the 5-letter word that completes the square, creating words both horizontally and vertically. For a bonus point, define the word you've supplied. For the answers, scroll all the way down. Enjoy!
Here's an example:
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The answer here is OPINE, meaning "to say what your opinion is," because it completes the square, creating the vertical words SCOUR, COPSE, ARIAS, RANGE, and FLEET:
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Try this one today:
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review this word:
1.
The opposite of RAMIFICATIONS could be
A. CAUSES.
B. PROTECTIONS.
C. REPETITIONS.
2.
Here's Cyborg from Teen Titans Go!, commenting on ramifications: "_____."
A. Um, unless they tickle people to death here, I think you can chill
B. How did you know that donkeys were my favorite mode of transportation?
C. Sci-fi rule number 1: You start messing with the past, you end up with monkeys ruling the future
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.
See if you can recall this close synonym of ramifications:
From Latin bits meaning "making a branch," "ramify" means "to grow outward in branches, or to divide into sub-parts."
Part of speech:
"Ramification" is a formal, semi-common word that helps you sound very serious (compared to synonyms like "results," "consequences," or "complications").
"They analyze the shape of the [Supreme Court] and the ramification of its decisions."
Explain the meaning of "ramification" without saying "a complication" or "a repercussion."
Trevor Noah wrote: "If you stop to consider the ramifications, you'll never do anything."
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.
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. |