Words you don’t fully understand

[Honeypickle]

Are there words you use quite frequently in conversation without 100% fully knowing what they mean? I just did it with the word “aggregate”. Another example would be “arbitrary” . Does anyone else do this?

@Letsallscreamatthesistene

All these words can be googled. You dont need MN here....

They can indeed. Someone might learn a new word from this thread though, or find out the definition of another word. I reckon that makes this thread worth having.

A lot of things on Mumsnet can be googled. It doesn't matter. We can still have interesting chats about stuff and nobody is being forced to contribute or read a thread, if they don't want to.

The teenager had to explain dripping to me today!
Apparently it means high fashion 😲

@HeartZone my teenager deliberately uses slang that she knows is meaningless to me and then says "Oh, don't you know what x means?" in a patronising, withering tone of voice. 🙄

Mind you, she still gets me to check uni/job applications for her when she needs her use of Standard English to be correct. 😁

I have trouble with insidious and invidious - no matter how many times I look them up and try to memorise their meanings, it just won't stick in my head.

Yup. But coming to MN to find a definition is ridiculous.

@Inextremis

I have trouble with insidious and invidious - no matter how many times I look them up and try to memorise their meanings, it just won't stick in my head.

Ooh, I like invidious. I can think of quite a few invidious characters. They can be insidious with it too

I like these kinds of discussion. It adds more than a quick Google definition.

Schadenfraude is a term that I've googled umpteen times but refuses to stick in my head. I'm regularly reminded of it as there is a poster with it in their name.

@Inextremis

I have trouble with insidious and invidious - no matter how many times I look them up and try to memorise their meanings, it just won't stick in my head.

That's an interesting one. I had to think really hard about those (and then Google to check!)

Insidious is to have a gradual and cumulative effect or to be harmful but enticing. I'd try to remember by thinking about the "sid" in the middle of the word and imagine someone charming but dangerous sidling up to some poor innocent and whispering poison into their ear.

Invidious means likely to provoke resentment or anger. I'd think about the "vid" in the middle and imagine someone filled with rage after losing a violent video game or full of resentment after watching a colleague's braggy video of a tropical 5 star holiday while they're stuck at work in a dreary, rainy British town.

Ha!
For years I thought the phrase common or garden, was common old garden.
Kind of makes more sense to me still! 🤣

When I hear the word hubris I always think it means the exact opposite even though I know I’m wrong every time. It’s like there is just a default setting in me that gets it wrong and it takes me a few minutes to reset. I mean, it’s not like I hear the word hubris is every conversation! But it definitely is a mental block word for me.

@cariadlet

I took "that's not right, is it?" the same way, wanting some answer.
hence my reply to @MellowBird85 as well

@ZingDramaQueenofSheba I thought you were thinking the same way and also trying to be helpful. The criticism took me back a bit.

[quote cariadlet]@ZingDramaQueenofSheba I thought you were thinking the same way and also trying to be helpful. The criticism took me back a bit. [/quote]
@cariadlet

yeah, I thought it was strange that someone took offence when a question to clarify something was asked.

some people like being professionally offended on others' behalf.
or maybe they just don't understand any of the words...😉🤣

Condone.

I always think its the opposite of what it is and am always a bit 😲 at first then have to remind myself i’m wrong.

Say for example there was a racist/homophobic/transphobic type comment made by someone and their workplace had to make a statement about it. When they say “we don’t condone the comments made by X…” I take it as “we don’t disagree with X…”

I don’t even know it i’m making sense, i’d never use it in a sentence myself incase I use it the wrong way

I use the word ‘thus’ all the time. I know it’s a deictic, and I know how to use it and what it means when somebody else uses it, but I couldn’t possibly explain what it means or precisely what its function is. If somebody would like to furnish me with an explanation I would be most appreciative.

@Itsstartingtorainout

I use the word ‘thus’ all the time. I know it’s a deictic, and I know how to use it and what it means when somebody else uses it, but I couldn’t possibly explain what it means or precisely what its function is. If somebody would like to furnish me with an explanation I would be most appreciative.

@Itsstartingtorainout

thus means 'therefore' , 'in that way'

^Florence started training regularly at a very early age, thus paving the way to become a top athlete^

the first part of a sentence is usually a reason/action, the second part is the consequence/reaction.

that's my understanding of it
does it help?

AColdDuncanGoodhew maybe you think condone means the opposite of its actual meaning because it sounds like condemn. So "we don't condone something" comes across as refusing to condemn it.

My misunderstanding was thinking that approximate meant exact. I can remember letters coming home from school saying that events would start at approximately x o'clock and then getting annoyed when they didn't begin at precisely that time.

@AColdDuncanGoodhew

I know what you mean!

condone sounds so similar to condemn and I usually need a few seconds to double check it

@cariadlet

great minds & x-post! 😁
I started writing my post but got distracted by Denmark scoring again!

@ZingDramaQueenofSheba I'm a football widow. Mumsnetting in the conservatory while dp is watching the football so no distractions and I beat you to it. 😁

I struggle with ironic. I only seem to know what it doesn't mean but people use it to mean.

There are plenty of people on this thread who clearly know what ‘supercilious joysucker’ means.

ZingDramaQueenOfShe

Yes, thank you. I kind of liken it to joining two clauses with the word ‘so,’ so I suppose it’s kind of the same thing.

@5128gap I know what you mean about recognising irony when it's being misused. I think that ironic is often used as a synonym for sarcastic or just to mean surprising and unexpected.

I learned about dramatic irony way back when I did A Level English: the author (and, therefore the reader, knows more than the character) but I'm not confident on the wider meaning.

I've just found this really interesting article about it.
www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-irony-different-types-of-irony-in-literature-plus-tips-on-how-to-use-irony-in-writing#what-is-irony

@cariadlet

AColdDuncanGoodhew maybe you think condone means the opposite of its actual meaning because it sounds like condemn. So "we don't condone something" comes across as refusing to condemn it.

My misunderstanding was thinking that approximate meant exact. I can remember letters coming home from school saying that events would start at approximately x o'clock and then getting annoyed when they didn't begin at precisely that time.

Yes! I think that is why I get confused, because it’s similar to condemn