Make Your Point: ARCHAIC

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pronounce ARCHAIC:

ar KAY ick

connect this word to others:

You'd think that archaic and arcane would be closely related, right? They both describe old, ancient things.

But as we'll see in a second, the resemblance is a coincidence: arcane comes from a Latin word meaning "a box or chest for hiding things away," while archaic comes from a Greek word meaning "old-fashioned."

While we're talking about arcane things, see if you can recall the noun for a person who studies arcane things, and the noun for an arcane secret.

definition:

In Greek, arkhein means "to rule something, to begin something, or to be the first," and arkhaikos means "old-fashioned." Arkhaikos traveled through French and into English, and since the year 1810 or so, we've called things "archaic" when they're very old or very old-fashioned.

In other words, archaic things are so old or so old-fashioned that they're totally different from normal things today.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Adjective: "an archaic phrase;" "That tradition is archaic."

Other forms:

None are common.

If you need an adverb, there's "archaically."

And if you need a noun for the quality of being archaic, or for a specific thing that's archaic, you can call it archaism (or an archaism).

how to use it:

Pick the formal, common, academic-sounding word "archaic" when you want to strike a serious tone as you point out how something is so old that it really belongs to a different time period altogether.

You might talk about archaic words, phrases, languages, beliefs, traditions, expectations, or styles of art, music, architecture, or literature.

examples:

"As you ventured deeper into the museum, the games grew older and more archaic. Turn-of-the-century coin-ops. Lots of head-to-head fighting games with blocky polygon-rendered figures."
— Ernest Cline, Ready Player One, 2011

"The 1960s were mid-swing, but attitudes towards female athletes and their participation in long-distance running remained archaic... Female runners remained barred from practically every marathon event around the world."
— Olivier Guiberteau,BBC, 28 August 2023

has this page helped you understand "archaic"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "archaic" without saying "primitive" or "obsolete."

try it out:

When you read or watch science fiction, you get to imagine a world where the unpleasant things we do today have become archaic.

Like in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, where medical technology has advanced so much that dialysis is archaic and you can just pop a pill to grow a new kidney.

With dialysis in mind as an example, talk about something else we do or use today that you hope will one day be archaic. What should replace it? Do you think it might become archaic in your own lifetime, or will you just have to imagine a distant future where it's become archaic?

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 this month is "Market That Makeup!"

Check out the names given to the shades in a palette, and decide what to call the shade with the missing name. You might channel the vibe established by the other shade names, or just pick the weirdest or most grandiloquent name you can think of. To see the shade's real name—the one that the marketing team picked—scroll all the way down.

Try this one today:

Lime Crime's "Venus XL Palette" includes shades like "Eden," "Fresca," "Inspire," "Celestial," and "Triumph."

Invent a name for the shade on the bottom row, far left:

(Source)

review this word:

1. An opposite of ARCHAIC is

A. FLAT.
B. CRUDE.
C. CONTEMPORARY.

2. In Futurama, Fry _____ and confuses his new friends with his archaic _____.

A. dreams of a utopian future .. hopes and plans
B. travels a thousand years into the future .. pronunciation of certain words
C. accidentally destroys the universe .. method of playing Dungeons and Dragons

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:
On vocabulary...
  36 ways to study words.
  Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
  How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
How to improve any sentence.
How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.

From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

A 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.

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