Sunday, January 17, 2010

Harbinger Meaning and Usage

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Harbinger Meaning:

noun
- one that indicates or foreshadows what is to come; a forerunner.

verb
- foreshadow or presage
- to act as harbinger to; herald the coming of.

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Usage examples:

frost is a harbinger of winter.
harbinger of doom.
harbinger of a new dawn.

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Use Harbinger in a sentence:

1. "And while lower prices could mean an opportunity for investors and some savings for American consumers, such reductions could also be a harbinger of deflation."

2. J P Morgan has posted modest profits for the quarter. This seems to be a harbinger for far better things to come.

3. This book may well be considered the harbinger of the next generation of community studies.

4. The damage the initial wind gusts did to the seaside cafe's table umbrellas was a harbinger of the hurricane damage to follow.

5. This misfortune might prove a harbinger of worse things to come.

6. Indeed, the international financial market is portraying China's perceived recovery as a harbinger for global recovery.

7. Thick fur on a wooly worm is a harbinger of a cold winter.


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Harbinger Synonyms:

Noun.
forerunner, predecessor, precursor, indicant, indication, sign, messenger, omen, portent, foretoken, augury.

Verb.
annunciate, foretell, herald, announce, tell.

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Harbinger Antonyms:

Noun.
follower, supporter, successor, disciple, descendant.

Verb.
hide, withhold.

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Some more examples:

1. The ominous clouds were harbingers of the tornado.

2. The bright glow on the Western horizon might not be the harbinger of a new dawn; it might very well be the red flames of a huge funeral pyre…!!!

3. To make matters worse, a terrifying figure now emerges from the sea like a harbinger of doom.

With Birds as harbingers….!!!

4. The albatross following the ship was feared by the superstitious sailors as a harbinger of doom.

5. The crowing cock is the harbinger of dawn.

6. The geese flying south is a harbinger of the weather’s turning cold.

7. The robin is a harbinger of spring.

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Word Origin & History:

From herbengar, "one sent ahead to arrange lodgings" (for a monarch, an army, etc.), which inturn comes from Medieval English. herberger which is to "provider of shelter, innkeeper"

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Saturday, January 16, 2010

Resilience Meaning and Usage

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Resilience meaning:


noun

- the ability to recover quickly from illness, change, or misfortune; buoyancy.
- the property of a material that enables it to resume its original shape or position after being bent, stretched, or compressed; elasticity.

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Usage examples:

"some resilient plastic material"
"I'm a resilient kind of person"
"the resilience of human beings"

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Forms:

resilient - adjective
resiliency - noun
resiliently - adverb

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Use Resilience in a sentence:

1. In spite of the violence in Northern Ireland, industry there has shown a remarkable resilience.

2. The earthquake destroyed thousands of people's lives but I was struck by the incredible resilience of the survivors I met.

3. Do not stretch your face into funny positions because it may not be resilient.

4. The athlete proved himself to be very resilient after his ankle injury.

5. Foam rubber is a very resilient material, and cushions made from it retain their shape after being sat on hundreds of times.

6. Gwen showed that she was resilient by joking with the paramedics only moments after they pulled her from the rubble of the collapsed building.


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Resilience Synonyms:

bounce, buoyancy, elasticity, ductility, flexibility, malleability, pliability, pliancy, suppleness, strength, toughness, adaptability, hardiness

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Resilience Antonyms:

fragility, inflexibility, rigidity, vulnerability, weakness

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Some more examples:

1. There is a need for more resilient bumpers on cars that can withstand minor accidents.

2. She knew him well enough to be sure that, sooner or later, the resiliency of his nature would assert itself.

3. Early next morning, before the other two were awake, Harry left the tent to search the woods around them for the oldest, most gnarled, and resilient—looking tree he could find.

4. The resilience of youth is astonishing, and Bill was soon on his feet again.

5. Tony showed that he was resilient by hitting a home run after striking out three consecutive times.
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Thursday, January 14, 2010

Cantankerous Meaning and Usage

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Cantankerous Meaning:


adjective.

- ill-tempered and quarrelsome; disagreeable.
- difficult to handle

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Usage examples:

“a cantankerous old man”
“a cantankerous, argumentative man”
"a cantankerous and venomous-tongued old lady"
"had to use liquid helium, which is supercold, costly and cantankerous"
“disliked her cantankerous landlord”

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Forms:

cantankerously - adverb
cantankerousness - noun

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Use cantankerous in a sentence:

1. The bear was always a little cantankerous in the mornings.

2. It is hard not to sympathize with his desire to knock off manager Mark, a hammy, cantankerous old man.

3. Philip’s few friends would describe him as cantankerous, tight-fisted, mean-spirited and misanthropic.

4. The cantankerous behavior that the students exhibited during the demonstration agitated the principal.

5. "Greg is so cantankerous, he complains about his birthday gifts."

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Cantankerous Synonyms:

bad-tempered, crabbed, cranky, cross, disagreeable, fretful, grouchy, grumpy, ill-tempered, irascible, irritable, nasty, peevish, petulant, querulous, snappish, snappy, surly, testy, ugly, waspish, ornery, crotchety.

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Cantankerous Antonyms:

easy, good-natured, happy, nice, pleasant

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Some more examples:

1. The cantankerous customer continued to insist on a refund in his loud, irritating voice.

2. The doctor told the young man to go out and find the ugliest, most cantankerous woman he could find and marry her!!!

3. Tom was always cantankerous in the morning, given to snapping and snarling until he'd had his first cup of coffee and a soothing hot shower.

4. That day, this normally upbeat guy was uncharacteristically irritable and cantankerous.

5. Charlie used to be so friendly, but he's become a cantankerous old codger.

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