Sugarcoat is a compound word. Compounds or compound words are words that are derived from two separate words joined together. Sugarcoat is a closed compound word, which is a word that is made up of two words joined together without hyphens or spaces. This type of compound is also called a solid compound word. Sugarcoat is also seen in its hyphenated form, sugar-coat. This is the preferred spelling in the Oxford English Dictionary. A hyphenated compound word is a compound that is composed of two … [Read more...]
Use vs utilize
The words use and utilize are increasingly used interchangeably, but in truth, these two words do not mean exactly the same thing. Many people employ the word utilize instead of use because they think it sounds more important or more formal than the word use. However, using a word incorrectly is never a good idea. Choosing the correct words to use in the correct situation is a building block of grammar. Grammar is the way in which language is structured, the rules that are the foundation of that … [Read more...]
Grandstanding
Grandstanding is an idiom that came into use in the 1800s. An idiom is a word, group of words or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is not easily deduced from its literal definition. Often using descriptive imagery, common idioms are words and phrases used in the English language in order to convey a concise idea, and are often spoken or are considered informal or conversational. English idioms can illustrate emotion more quickly than a phrase that has a literal meaning, even when the … [Read more...]
Running on empty and running on fumes
Running on empty and running on fumes are idioms that were first seen in the mid-twentieth century. An idiom is a word, group of words or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is not easily deduced from its literal definition. Often using descriptive imagery, common idioms are words and phrases used in the English language in order to convey a concise idea, and are often spoken or are considered informal or conversational. English idioms can illustrate emotion more quickly than a phrase that … [Read more...]
Analogy vs allegory
Analogy and allegory are two types of figures of speech that are often confused. The term figure of speech came into use at the turn of the eighteenth century. Figures of speech are rhetorical constructions in English grammar that are to be taken figuratively or non-literally. These literary devices are used to make a point in an emotional fashion or to make a point in a more vivid fashion in figurative language. Analogy and allegory are often used in poetry, poetic rhetoric, and other narrative … [Read more...]
Brown-nose and brownnose
Brown-nose or brownnose is an idiom that was first seen in the twentieth century. An idiom is a word, group of words or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is not easily deduced from its literal definition. Often using descriptive imagery, common idioms are words and phrases used in the English language in order to convey a concise idea, and are often spoken or are considered informal or conversational. English idioms can illustrate emotion more quickly than a phrase that has a literal … [Read more...]
Tip of the iceberg
Tip of the iceberg is an idiom that was first seen in the mid-twentieth century. An idiom is a word, group of words or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is not easily deduced from its literal definition. Often using descriptive imagery, common idioms are words and phrases used in the English language in order to convey a concise idea, and are often spoken or are considered informal or conversational. English idioms can illustrate emotion more quickly than a phrase that has a literal … [Read more...]
Take to the cleaners
Take to the cleaners is an idiom that was first seen in the early twentieth century. An idiom is a word, group of words or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is not easily deduced from its literal definition. Often using descriptive imagery, common idioms are words and phrases used in the English language in order to convey a concise idea, and are often spoken or are considered informal or conversational. English idioms can illustrate emotion more quickly than a phrase that has a literal … [Read more...]
Man does not live by bread alone
Man does not live by bread alone is a proverb, which is a short, common saying or phrase. These language tools particularly give advice or share a universal truth, or impart wisdom. Synonyms for proverb include adage, aphorism, sayings, and byword, which can also be someone or something that is the best example of a group. Often, a proverb is so familiar that a speaker will only quote half of it, relying on the listener to supply the ending of the written or spoken proverb himself. Speakers of … [Read more...]