Make Your Point > Archived Issues > ROUGH-CAST
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pronounce
ROUGH-CAST:
Say it "RUFF kast."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
Our adjective rough-cast follows that same pattern as words like well-read, well-played, soft-spoken, hard-won, b____bound ("unwilling to change, as if bound by a certain kind of metal"), h_d_bound ("unwilling to change, as if bound by an overly tight 'skin' of opinions"), and hard-b___en ("tough, gruff, and persistent, like a dog who won't let go").
Could you recall those last three?
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
definition:
One meaning of the word "cast" is "to create something by shaping metal in a mold." You pour the metal into the mold, wait for it to cool, then pull it out. Ta-da! You made a coin. Or a sword. Or a piece of jewelry, maybe.
The word "rough-cast," which dates back to about 1423, describes metal objects that are made roughly: not perfectly, or not precisely.
And the word "rough-cast" also describes walls and buildings that were made in a rough, imperfect, imprecise way. In fact, "roughcast" is also what we call a certain kind of plaster for making walls and buildings. It's called that, it seems, because you simply cast it (throw it) on the wall, which makes for a rough and bumpy surface:
(Thanks to Wikipedia for the picture!)
So, if you call something rough-cast, you mean it's created or put together in a rough, imprecise, imperfect way.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech: adjective: "this rough-cast road," "his rough-cast genius."
Other forms:
Sometimes you'll see the adjective written without the hyphen, "roughcast," or as two words, "rough cast."
And, "rough-cast" is also a noun. Aside from its literal meanings in construction work, a "rough-cast" can also be any rough sketch, model, or outline.
Finally, "rough-cast" is a verb, too. You can rough-cast something: "R. L. Stein rough-casts each chapter before sitting down to write it."
how to use it:
This word is clear and simple, and it provides a fresh alternative to words like "basic," "rudimentary," "unpolished," and "incomplete."
You can be literal and talk about rough-cast walls, houses, and buildings.
Or, be figurative, and talk about rough-cast ideas and plans, rough-cast skills and talents, rough-cast opinions and understandings, rough-cast manners and ways of speaking, etc.
examples:
"You ascend a road so called,—a rough cast path, narrow and full of asperities,—to the top of the prominence."
— Peter Leonard, The Western Coast of Africa: Journal of an Officer Under Captain Owen, 1833
"The humbler Tuscans made their rough-cast gods out of the drenched earth, from which they themselves arose."
— "The Book-Buyer's Guide," The Critic, 1901
has this page helped you understand "rough-cast"?
study it:
Explain the meaning of "rough-cast" without saying "unpolished" or "rough-draft-y."
try it out:
Focus on an important skill or project you've developed in your life.
Talk about what it was like, in the past, when this skill or project was rough-cast. When it was still vague, sloppy, and undeveloped? How did you shape this rough-cast skill or project into a state of refinement? Are you still doing it? Are there parts or aspects of it that still seem rough-cast to you?
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 called "Recollections."
In each issue, I'll share a quote from some work--it might be a song, a poem, or a book--and you'll come up with that work's title. You can assemble the title, highlighted in the vertical blue line below, by recalling words to fit into the puzzle. Scrap paper might help!
From the previous issue:
"'Grown-ups don't pay attention to me.'
And he felt the warmth of a wrinkled old hand.
'I know what you mean,' said the little old man."
Those words appear in the poem "The Little Boy and the Old Man" by Shel Silverstein.
If you'd like to review any of the words from the puzzle, give them a click: palatable, machismo, sacrosanct, taciturn, qualm, raconteur, abject, jeopardize, yawp, obliquity, ultimacy, wanderlust, hailstorm, valence, zenith.
Try this one today:
"'I'll tell you...what real love is. It is blind devotion, unquestioning self-humiliation, utter submission, trust and belief against yourself and against the whole world, giving up your whole heart and soul to the smiter—as I did!"
In what work does the quote above appear?
1) verb: "to bring something into brilliant, passionate existence, as if by fire"
2) adjective: "very pale, skinny, or tired-looking, like a dead body"
3) noun: "sensational public success, like a dazzling flash of light"
4) noun: "something awful that causes a lot of destruction; as in, 'it's the ____ of my existence'"
5) adjective: "cowardly or sneaky, tricky, and cruel, like a villain in a movie"
6) noun: "a part or aspect of something, as if one of many surfaces on a gemstone"
7) noun: "a link, a connection, or an intersection"
8) adjective: "reckless, hasty, and wild, as if mentally insane"
9) noun: "a fuss, a commotion, or some kind of noisy disturbance"
10) verb: "to hurt emotionally, as if making deep, rough, irregular slices"
11) noun: "a quick, helpless fall into a bad situation: pshewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww"
12) noun: "someone who's self-obsessed"
13) noun: "a really, really tiny space or distance, as if as broad as a single hair"
14) adjective: "vulgar but stylish or carefree"
15) noun: "a huge, violent, chaotic whirlpool, or something that reminds you of one"
16) noun: "a difficult, confusing situation that you don't know how to get out of"
17) adjective: "burdened with a heavy, difficult responsibility"
review this word:
A. OUTCAST.
B. POLISHED.
C. EFFORTLESS.
2. With a new textbook to read, I start by skimming the table of contents, which rough-casts _____.
A. which chapters will be most relevant to me
B. the time when I'll actually having to slog through it
C. both the subject and the way the publishers have approached it
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.
Our adjective rough-cast follows that same pattern as words like well-read, well-played, soft-spoken, hard-won, b____bound ("unwilling to change, as if bound by a certain kind of metal"), h_d_bound ("unwilling to change, as if bound by an overly tight 'skin' of opinions"), and hard-b___en ("tough, gruff, and persistent, like a dog who won't let go").
One meaning of the word "cast" is "to create something by shaping metal in a mold." You pour the metal into the mold, wait for it to cool, then pull it out. Ta-da! You made a coin. Or a sword. Or a piece of jewelry, maybe.
Part of speech: adjective: "this rough-cast road," "his rough-cast genius."
This word is clear and simple, and it provides a fresh alternative to words like "basic," "rudimentary," "unpolished," and "incomplete."
"You ascend a road so called,—a rough cast path, narrow and full of asperities,—to the top of the prominence."
Explain the meaning of "rough-cast" without saying "unpolished" or "rough-draft-y."
Focus on an important skill or project you've developed in your life.
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.
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