Unit Five Vocabulary

VID PARI

PARA SPEC

PHAN

VID – Latin videre, visum “to see”

envisage – v.

To imagine;

to conceive of

Once he envisaged the conflict, he was able to create his short story.

visage – n. Face, facial expression

A person’s visage can give away a lot about his or her feelings.

VID – Latin videre, visum “to see”

PARI – Latin parere, paritum “be visible, appear”

apparition n. An unreal figure; a ghost syn.: specter

Many books about ghosts have a photo of the famous apparition, the Brown Lady of Raynham Hall.

PARA – Latin parare, paratum “to prepare, order”

imperative – adj. Absolutely necessary; crucial

syn.: critical

It is imperative that emergency workers have an ability to remain calm under pressure.

disparate – adj. Different or diverse syn.: inconsistent

Not only did the members of the group look different, but they also had disparate opinions.

PARA – Latin parare, paratum “to prepare, order”

SPEC – Latin specere, spectum “to look”

retrospective – adj. Looking backward over a period of time

He preferred the retrospective view of his hairline to his present-day balding.

perspicacious – adj. Wise; insightful; acutely intelligent

syn.: perceptive

The owl is often portrayed as a perspicacious creature.

SPEC – Latin specere, spectum “to look”

aspect – n. A part that can be considered or viewed syn.: facet

SPEC – Latin specere, spectum “to look”

In dividing the tasks to complete the project, each person was assigned an aspect that best suited his or her strengths.

introspective – adj. Contemplating one’s own thoughts and feelings How do I feel about that?

SPEC – Latin specere, spectum “to look”

In today’s busy world, people don’t spend enough time being introspective.

PHAN – Greek phanein “to appear, show”

phenomenon – n. A fact or event which can be observed and/or documented

We stayed up past midnight to view the phenomenon of the meteor shower.

diaphanous – adj. Lightweight and transparent

The diaphanous bubbles were beautiful when they reflected the sunlight.

PHAN – Greek phanein “to appear, show”

epiphany – n. A moment of great insight; revelation

PHAN – Greek phanein “to appear, show”

Readers found it frustrating that the character’s epiphany occurred only after a tragic event.

sycophant – n. A person who

flatters; a “yes-man”

PHAN – Greek phanein “to appear, show”

The leader of any high school clique always has a sycophant or two to maintain the needs of his or her ego.

Allusions

White Elephant

Fiddle While Rome Burns

White Elephant

White, or albino, elephants do occur from time to time in India, Asia, and Africa. Because of their rarity, they are considered special and are not made beasts of burden. According to an old legend, in Siam (now Thailand), these white elephants were considered so valuable that any automatically became the king’s property. The king soon realized that caring for the animals was quite costly, especially since the elephants didn’t bring in any income like the other elephants that worked. Therefore, the king began to give a white elephant to anyone who displeased him. The burden of feeding the animals quickly brought financial ruin to the recipient of the “gift.”

So, a “white elephant” is an object that has no use to its owner and may even represent a financial burden or inconvenience.

White Elephant

The house I inherited from my grandparents turned out to be a white elephant. Although it was paid for, the property taxes were astronomical, and the old house was in constant need of maintenance and costly repairs.

So, what is a “white elephant” sale?

Fiddle While Rome Burns

During the reign of the Roman emperor Nero, a fire consumed half of Rome. Legend has it that Nero showed complete indifference, playing his violin, or fiddle, during the emergency. Thus, Nero showed his complete disregard for the hardship suffered by the people he governed.

So, to fiddle while Rome burns is to display indifference in the midst of an emergency or disaster.

Fiddle While Rome Burns

After the tornado devastated

a neighboring community, the

town decided to postpone its

annual parade. The town leaders

did not want it to appear that they

were fiddling while Rome burned

rather than showing concern for their neighbors.