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proclivity: msg#00028culture.language.word-of-the-day
**************************************************************** Do your modifiers dangle? Suffering from split infinitives? Get instant help with our Concise Dictionary of English Usage. http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/book.pl?conusg.htm&6 **************************************************************** The Word of the Day for January 29 is: proclivity \proh-KLIV-uh-tee\ noun : an inclination or predisposition toward something; especially : a strong inherent inclination toward something objectionable Example sentence: Our proclivity to remember things selectively often means that memory simply cannot be relied on. Did you know? Have you always had this leaning toward wanting to know about words and their etymologies? Maybe you even have a propensity to use the featured word several times in the course of the day -- due, of course, not to a proclivity for pretentiousness, but because you simply have a penchant for using a rich vocabulary. And perhaps you have a predilection for using lots of synonyms, such as "proclivity" (from "clivus," the Latin word for "slope"), referring to a tendency toward something bad, "propensity," suggesting an often uncontrollable inclination, "penchant," meaning an irresistible attraction, and "predilection," which describes a strong liking derived from one's temperament. |
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