Make Your Point > Archived Issues > SINUOUS

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connect today's word to others: Something sinuous is full of curves or turns. While it might sound snakey, it's not based on a word meaning "snake," but rather on the Latin sinus, which means "a curve, a bend, or a fold." (Ah ha, so the sinuses are named for their shape!) We've checked out five synonyms of sinuous. Here they are, in order by tone, from lovely and graceful to hideous and twisted: 1. U___lant  2. M____ering  3. S_____tine  4.  D__ious 5.  T___uous  Where would you place sinuous on that list above? Its tone is fairly positive, so I'd probably place it between 2 and 3. (To reveal a word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "SINUOUS" Something sinuous has curves that go back and forth. Or, it's so complicated that it seems to curve back and forth. (Very rarely, "sinuous" means "crooked in an immoral way." We won't focus on that meaning in this issue.) Pronunciation: SIN you us Part of speech: Adjective. (Adjectives are describing words, like "large" or "late." They can be used in two ways: 1. Right before a noun, as in "a sinuous thing." 2. After a linking verb, as in "It was sinuous.") Other common forms: sinuously, sinuosity (or "sinuousness") How to use it: The tone of this word is often positive. Sinuous things are often graceful and often found in nature. To be literal, talk about sinuous roads, rivers, coastlines, etc. Or, talk about sinuous bends, folds, curves, shapes, outlines, features, courses, motions, and movements. You might be figurative and talk about a sinuous career path, the sinuous plot of a movie, a philosopher's sinuous argument, and so on. When you use the noun, "sinuosity," you can make it both countable ("the plot's many sinuosities") and uncountable ("the plot's sinuosity"). examples: He gets to the point, but sinuously, winding his way through anecdotes. "It was like a creature awakening from sleep, and when it moved—sinuous, liquid—and shook open its massive wings, a bone-deep terror stirred in all the warriors."    — Laini Taylor, Strange the Dreamer, 2017 study it now: Look away from the screen to define "sinuous" without saying "twisting" or "turning." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "I no longer (follow or navigate) the sinuosities of _____--(say why, or say what you do instead)." Literal example: "I no longer navigate the sinuosities of mountain roads at night--too scary." Figurative example: "I no longer followed the sinuosities of Lost--too bizarre, and too inconsistent." before you review: Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first. Complete the Limerick! In each issue this month, finish off the last line of the poem with a word or phrase we've checked out before. From the previous issue: This know-it-all: never comedic. His fact-sharing: never strategic. No matter the topic, Your story, he’ll top it. His knowledge is encyclopedic. Try this one today: The Springer show, back in its heyday, Was our after-school junk-TV mainstay. It had name-calling, line-crossing, Screaming, and chair-tossing: A delightfully loud, trashy _____. review today's word: 1. One opposite of SINUOUS is A. SHORT. B. STRAIGHT. C. SPARTAN. 2. In the _____ winds, the flag _____ sinuously. A. gale force .. tore B. intermittent .. billowed C. absence of any .. hung, listlessly and Answers are below. a final word: Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From Liesl's 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. Answers to review questions: 1. B 2. B