Make Your Point: ARTLESS

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pronounce ARTLESS:

ART less

connect this word to others:

As we check out the sweet, simple word artless, see if you can recall a word that's closely related and nearly opposite in meaning:

Art___c_ is highly skillful trickery: the use of clever scheming to deceive other people.

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)

definition:

"Artless" comes from the Latin ars, meaning "art, craft, skill," so it literally means "without art: without craftiness."

In English today, "artless" sometimes means "without art: unskilled, clumsy, ugly," or even more simply, "having no artwork."

But most of the time, "artless" means "honest and sincere: totally lacking in craftiness or trickiness."

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Adjective: "an artless child," "her artless approach."

Other forms:

Artlessly, artlessness.

The opposite is "artful," meaning "crafty, tricky." Its other forms are "artfully" and "artfulness."

how to use it:

Pick the formal, semi-common word "artless" when you want to strike a positive tone, emphasizing the purity, innocence, openness, and straightforwardness of some person, behavior, or creation. In that case, you might talk about artless people, artless eyes and faces, artless poetry and acting, etc.

But you can also use "artless" with a negative tone when you want to describe things as clumsy, unlearned, and without talent or skill. In that case, you might talk about artless people, like artless boors or amateurs, or artless behaviors or creations, like artless jargon or novels.

We'll see two examples below that illustrate these two very different meanings of "artless." The first example has the positive meaning; the second, negative.

examples:

"He has a fizzy, artless laugh and a maximal smile that makes him look like a kid who has somehow grown a beard."
— Alexis Soloski, New York Times, 8 October 2019

"That problem [with the book] becomes acute in long, artless passages of editorializing — about, say, Ronald Reagan or the Catholic Church — that have all the considered insight of barbershop chatter."
— Ron Charles, Washington Post, 12 October 2022

has this page helped you understand "artless"?

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 most common meaning of "artless" without saying "guileless" or "free from artifice."

try it out:

Mark Morris, a dancer and choreographer, said that if choreography "looks artless, that's down to artfulness."

Talk about what he means: how could artfulness be creating a sense of artlessness in dance? What's another art or activity that you could describe as "artfully artless"?

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 "It Sounds Wiser in Latin."

Longtime readers will recognize this game. It's back, with fresh new (okay, mostly ancient) Latin idioms!

Try matching a handful of Latin phrases to their English translations. If you need some clues, I'll provide them in the form of definitions of related English words. For example, the clue "Something anguine reminds you of a snake" could help you determine that "Latet anguis in herba" means "A snake hides in the grass."

You can see the answers by scrolling to the bottom of the issue.

Try these today:

1. Animus homini, quicquid sibi imperat, obtinet.
2. Eodem cubito, eadem trutina, pari libra.
3. In propria causa nemo debet esse iudex.
4. Malum quidem nullum esse sine aliquo bono.
5. Melium est nomen bonum quam divitae multae.

A. A good name is better than great riches.
B. No one should be the judge in his own trial.
C. The mind of man can accomplish whatever it resolves on.
D. There is, in fact, no evil without some good.
E. Whatever measure you deal out to others will be dealt back to you.

To peek at the clues, follow the links:

1. The base of words like "equanimity" is...
2. A tertium quid is...
3. Something nominal is...

review this word:

1. In its most commonly used sense, ARTLESS is the opposite of

A. ARTFUL, meaning "tricky."
B. ARTFUL, meaning "full of artwork."
C. ARTFUL, meaning "artistically talented or tasteful."

2. A child with an artless face is likely to inspire _____.

A. pity
B. trust
C. laughter

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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