Make Your Point > Archived Issues > APERTURE
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pronounce
APERTURE:
Say it "APP ur chur."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
From StudioBinder.com:
As you can see, the aperture in your camera is the little hole or eye, and--assuming your camera is on the fancy side--you can adjust it. The bigger the aperture, the more light comes in.
So an aperture is often found in a camera. But it can be any kind of little hole, any little portal that allows things in.
Much like a la___a can be any kind of gap, empty space, blank spot, or missing part. Can you recall that word?
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
definition:
We took our word "aperture" from a Latin one that means the same thing.
An aperture is a gap, a hole, or any other little opening, often one that lets light through.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech:
Noun, the countable kind: "Here's the aperture;" "We need to widen the aperture."
Other forms:
The plural is "apertures."
And the adjective, which is rare but fun to say, is "apertural." (Say it "app UR chure ull.")
how to use it:
"Aperture" has a precise, scientific tone.
Often we talk literally about a camera's aperture, or the apertures in a sponge or a mollusc.
As you can see, apertures are generally small. But the smallness is relative. Even a window might be called an aperture if you're talking about it in relation to the entire building.
To use the word figuratively, call something an aperture when it seems to be a small opening or passageway for things to go through--things like ideas, memories, insights, emotions, information, etc.
examples:
"When the camera is rolling, you don't see the camera. The illusion is as old as Thomas Edison and the Lumière brothers: The camera is your eye, it roams the world, seeing and recording it transparently, as if its aperture is consciousness itself."
— Philip Kennicott, Washington Post, 29 May 2020
"Corey Funk (@coreyfunk): This 23-year-old Californian started out as a stunt scooter rider, but now offers all the thrills of Jackass. There's a lot of goofy go-karts, ball pits and jumping into pools. To watch Corey belly-flop through a variety of apertures cut into insulation boards is to relive a misspent youth, in under 60 seconds."
— Alex Rayner, The Guardian, 26 May 2020
has this page helped you understand "aperture"?
study it:
Explain the meaning of "aperture" without saying "puncture" or "orifice."
try it out:
Consider how Facebook has been working to ban misinformation and other harmful material. But they still want to allow people to express themselves.
Here's BBC News, "Facebook has insisted that unless there was the prospect of real imminent harm, then the company would and should allow... the 'widest possible aperture' for freedom of expression on the internet."
Talk about what it means when we have a wide aperture for freedom of expression online. What would it mean to narrow this aperture? To widen it even further?
before you review, play:
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
Our game for October is "Silly Smashings!"
In each issue this month, I'll give you the definition of a word I've concocted by smashing together two words we've studied before.
See if you can come up with the same silly smashing that I did.
For example, I'll say, "This noun means 'an extremely outdated, old-fashioned, ill-considered assumption that there are only two ways of dealing with a certain problem.'" And you'll say, "That's a troglodichotomy." (Which is a silly smashing of troglodyte and dichotomy.)
I'll list the answer at the bottom of each issue. Maybe your answer will match mine. Or maybe yours will be even better; if so, be sure to share it with me!
Try this one today:
This six-syllable noun means "the constant, inescapable, ever-present flow of trashy, meaningless, blustering talk in the news media."
review this word:
A. PLUG.
B. SLIDE.
C. STITCH.
2. Reviewing a nonfiction book for the New York Times, Sam Dolnik wrote: "Kolker brings each family member to life... But he's also able to _____ the aperture, describing how mental illness reshapes the lives of everyone within sight."
A. widen
B. deepen
C. elevate
a final word:
I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love.
I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.
From my blog:
36 ways to study words.
Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.
Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.
From StudioBinder.com:
We took our word "aperture" from a Latin one that means the same thing.
Part of speech:
"Aperture" has a precise, scientific tone.
"When the camera is rolling, you don't see the camera. The illusion is as old as Thomas Edison and the Lumière brothers: The camera is your eye, it roams the world, seeing and recording it transparently, as if its aperture is consciousness itself."
Explain the meaning of "aperture" without saying "puncture" or "orifice."
Consider how Facebook has been working to ban misinformation and other harmful material. But they still want to allow people to express themselves.
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
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