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Make Your Point > Archived Issues > ENNUI

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connect today's word to others:

If you're bored by life and all it offers, you suffer from ennui. Ennui is closely related to the word annoy; it sounds French and absolutely is, but it ultimately came from a Latin phrase, in odio, which means "it is hateful to me." So, if the world seems hateful because it annoys you with its tedium, you've got ennui. I hope you soon regain your joie de vivre!

But let's go back to in odio and try to recall another word that this phrase gave us. That word starts with O, has three syllables, and means hatefully disgusting or offensive.

make your point with...

"ENNUI"

Ennui is a feeling of sad, dull boredom that you get when life itself seems boring or pointless. Ennui usually lasts for a long time: it's not something you feel for just a moment or just a day.

Pronunciation:
on WEE

Part of speech:
Uncountable noun.
(Like "milk," "rice," and "education," uncountable nouns are words for stuff that can’t be broken into exact units. You talk about "some milk," "the rice," and "a lot of education," but you don’t say "a milk," "three rices," or "many educations."
Likewise, talk about "the ennui," "this ennui," "her ennui," "such ennui," "no ennui," and so on.)

Other forms:
None are common, but you can use "ennui" as a verb and say that something ennuied you, or use the adjective "ennuyé" ("on WEE yay") and talk about ennuyé people.

How to use it:

Say that someone has ennui, feels ennui, suffers from ennui, experiences ennui, is plagued by ennui, is afflicted by ennui, and so on. 

Or, talk about someone's ennui, or the ennui of someone: "the student's ennui," "the ennui of a student slogging through his seventh year in undergraduate school."

Or, talk about ennui in general: "He banished the ennui that had darkened his thoughts." "Exciting hobbies and beloved friends guard against ennui."

Events and conditions can provoke ennui, aggravate ennui, ease ennui, protect us against ennui, etc.

Add an adjective, if you like: domestic ennui, suburban ennui, millennial ennui.

You can get more abstract and attribute ennui to animals, to poems and novels, to shows, to songs and albums, to works of art, etc. 

examples:

Fiona Apple albums aren't exactly bubblegum pop; they're often a mixture of rage and ennui. In the lyrics to "Paper Bag," she mistakes some litter for a soaring bird, then lets out "a weary tear."

The heat and humidity, the shortage of places to go and things to do--it was a recipe for ennui.

study it now:

Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "ennui" means when you can explain it without saying "spiritlessness" or "a case of the blahs."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "Everyone in (a particular story, place, or situation) is afflicted by (a certain type of) ennui."

Example: "Everyone in The Great Gatsby is afflicted by a fashionable ennui."

before you review:

Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first.

Our game this month is called Felicitous Names. 

A felicitous name for a fictional character is a highly appropriate name, a name that fits that character so perfectly that you just know the writer picked it on purpose. This month, draw on your knowledge of both vocabulary and fiction to pick out the right name for the character described. Enjoy!

From our previous issue: There's a fictional ballet dancer with a felicitous name. She's graceful and talented, but timid and dependent like a child. Is she called Nora, Nina, or Natalie? Why?

Answer: The main character in Black Swan is the graceful, childlike Nina. Notice how close that is to the Spanish niña ("child") even as, in Russian, it's actually a shortened form of Anna, which is Hebrew for "grace."

Try this today: Let's pick a straightforward felicitous name for an evil wizard. Will it be Gandalf, Malvel, or Albus? Why?

review today's word:

1. One opposite of ENNUI is

A. STRIFE.
B. SOLEMNITY.
C. SATISFACTION.

2. If happiness is a smile, ennui is a _____.

A. wheeze
B. glare
C. shrug

Answers are below.

a final word:

Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.

From Liesl's 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.

Answers to review questions:
1. C
2. C

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