Sunday, October 18, 2009

Solace Meaning and Usage


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Solace Meaning:

noun.

- Comfort in sorrow, misfortune, misery, disappointment or distress; consolation; giving relief in affliction

- A source of comfort or consolation.

tr. verb.

- To comfort, cheer, or console, as in trouble or sorrow.

- To allay or assuage

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Use solace in a sentence:

1. She found solace in writing when her father died.

2. They solaced themselves with their fan mail.

3. The insurance payment hardly solaced Mark for driving his Porsche into the lake.

4. The King tried to find some solace in building a monument in the name of his departed wife.

5. Her only solace is her copy of Rudolf's novel.

6. Jack didn’t get a pay hike this time; the only solace was, nobody else in his team did.

7. He often needs to seek solace in places near water.

8. The retired couple was looking for solace when they moved away from the busy city.

9. Deprived of love since the tragic demise of his parents, fourteen-year-old Harry Potter thought he had found solace in his steady girlfriend at Hogwarts, Muggle-born Hermione Granger.

10. Company is always a solace to someone feeling lonely.

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Solace Synonyms:

Noun - consolation, comfort, ministration, succor, succour, relief, alleviation, assuagement, condolence, balm, support,help, reassurance, cheer

Verb - comfort, console, soothe, calm, tranquillize, quiet, lull, allay, still, ease, relieve, condole, support, help, succour, alleviate, ameliorate, mitigate, assuage, cheer, reassure, hearten

Solace Antonyms:

Noun - discord, disharmony
Verb - trouble, upset, worry

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Some more examples:

1. The children brought her solace in her bereavement.

2. Volunteers often work to solace those confined to hospital beds.

3. ‘Cry,’ said the chemist; ‘let nature take her course; that will solace you.’

4. Mrs. Athelny treated Philip with motherly kindness now that he was in a different position, and he was touched by her anxiety that he should make a good meal. It was the solace of his life that he could go every Sunday to that friendly house. It was a joy to sit in the stately Spanish chairs and discuss all manner of things with Athelny.

5. The dowagers sought solace in a quiet game at cards.

6. There was little to solace James's misery.

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Some Quotes to bring you solace…!!!

"You cannot run away from a weakness; you must sometimes fight it out or perish. And if that be so, why not now, and where you stand?" - Robert Louis Stevenson

"You must have long term goals to keep you focused and not distracted or frustrated by short term disappointments." -- Source Unknown

"Better keep yourself clean and bright; you are the window through which you must see the world." - George Bernard Shaw

"Every step is a step towards achieving something better than you current situation." - Source Unknown

"If you never hurt you will never grow." - Source Unknown

"Our lives are not determined by what happens to us, but how we react to what happens; not by what life brings us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events and outcomes. It is a catalyst, a spark that creates extraordinary results." - Source Unknown

"Work like you don't need money, love like you've never been hurt, and dance like no one's watching." - Source Unknown

"If we don't change, we don't grow. If we don't grow, we are not really living. Growth demands a temporary surrender of security." - Gail Sheehy

"To live happily is an inward power of the soul." – Aristotle

"It doesn't matter how long we may have been stuck in a sense of our limitations. If we go into a darkened room and turn on the light, it doesn't matter if the room has been dark for a day, a week, or ten thousand years - we turn on the light and it is illuminated. Once we control our capacity for love and happiness, the light has been turned on." - Sharon Salzberg

"Take care of yourself. Good health is everyone's major source of wealth. Without it, happiness is almost impossible" - Source Unknown

"The greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions, and not on our circumstances. We carry the seeds of the one or the other about with us in our minds wherever we go" - Martha Washington

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Saturday, October 3, 2009

Alacrity Meaning and Usage


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Alacrity Meaning:

adjective
- Cheerful willingness; eagerness.

- Speed or quickness; celerity.

Usage:
"he accepted with alacrity"
“an alacritous response to the invitation”

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Alacrity Synonyms:

alertness, avidity, briskness, cheerfulness, eagerness, enthusiasm, gaiety, hilarity, joyousness, liveliness, promptitude, promptness, quickness, readiness, smartness, speed, spirit, sprightliness, willingness, zeal.


Alacrity Antonyms:

apathy, aversion, disinclination, dullness, indifference, reluctance, slowness, unwillingness, indolence.


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Use alacrity in a sentence:

1. When Greg’s boss invited him to lunch, he accepted with alacrity.

2. The manager was so impressed by the worker's alacrity; he suggested a promotion.

3. Immediately he had finished tea he rose with alacrity to go out.

4. After her 2 week visit, Shane carried his mother-in-law’s luggage to the taxi with alacrity.

5. On the first day of her new job, the recent college graduate was able to leave early after completing all of her tasks with alacrity.

6. Everyone joined to decorate the house for the holidays with a sparkling alacrity befitting the season.

7. My wonder cat Gizmo exhibited great alacrity when I opened a new bag of cat food.

8. ‘I’ll go and see to it at once, sir,’ he said with alacrity and with less frigidity in his manner.

9. "When tasked with testing the pastries for freshness, Tom went about his duties with alacrity."

10. He did not fail to notice the alacrity with which Fred raised his hand when a volunteer was needed.

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Know more:


"Alacrity," "celerity," "dispatch," and "expedition" all refer to quickness or speed.

“Celerity" is a rather neutral term for swiftness though the cleanness in its sound implies a smooth swiftness without miscue or stumble.

"Dispatch" (or "despatch") refers to promptness in settling some business or finishing a project (The contract was written and signed with great dispatch).

"Expedition" derives, like "expeditious," from "expedite" and hence refers to an efficient swiftness (This is a complex project which requires completion with all possible expedition)

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Some more examples:

1. Many people have admired the certainty and alacrity with which gulls pick up a fragment of biscuit from the white wake of a steamer, and the incident is characteristic. In their power of rapidly altering the focus of the eye, birds are unsurpassed.

2. Gwen ate her dinner with alacrity, eager to leave to go to the movie theater.

3. Tom wagged his tail rapidly indicating his alacrity to go for a walk when he heard Jack getting his leash.

4. And then a number of brisk young men began with remarkable alacrity to tidy up the goods that remained disturbed.

5. Mary directly drew her work table near her and reseated herself with an alacrity and cheerfulness which seemed to infer that she could taste no greater delight than in completing the task in hand.

6. She asked William if he would not come and sit at her end, and he with his unfailing politeness accepted with alacrity.

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