Make Your Point > Archived Issues > FORAY

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connect today's word to others: Over time, "foray" has had many meanings. Here's the only one we use these days: "an attempt at doing something new, outside our area of expertise."  But originally, to foray was to pillage, to plunder, to make a raid, to steal stuff and run off with it--basically, to ma____ (to roam around in a threatening way, often stealing things or damaging things) but in a more focused way. (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "FORAY" A foray is an attempt to do something that's very different from what you usually do. For example, if you're a soccer player who decides to write a novel, you're making a foray, or making a foray into writing. Pronunciation: FORE ay Part of speech: Both a noun (the countable kind: "a foray," "his forays," "many forays") and a verb (the intransitive kind: "to foray," "to foray into something"). Other forms: forays, forayed, foraying How to use it: Even though a foray was originally a short raid--a quick dash into a place to take what you can get, then get out--we seem to have forgotten all about that meaning. Today, forays are movements into new areas of business or life, they're rarely brief or hasty, and even though they're new and experimental, they're often planned, professional, and if they go well, permanent. Talk about someone's foray, especially someone's foray into an area: "their foray into local politics," "the doctor's foray into private practice," "the singer's foray into voice acting," "the Florida-based restaurant's foray into other southern states." As you can see from those examples, people's forays are more often into abstract arenas instead of concrete places. That is, we'll talk more often about forays into careers, genres, techniques, markets, and industries than we'll talk about hikers' forays into forests or soldiers' forays into enemy territory. Although we most often pair "foray" with a person or group ("his foray," "her foray," "the company's foray" and so on), you can also say that someone plans or considers a foray, makes or attempts a foray, leads or conducts a foray, and so on. Add an adjective if you want: a new or recent foray, an ambitious or dangerous foray, a public or private foray, a wild or ill-conceived foray, a cautious foray. So far I've used "foray" as a noun. We can use it as a verb, too; it's just less common. You can foray into something: "Actors who forayed into politics include Schwarzenegger and Franken." examples: He taught neuropsychology at a university before foraying into clinical practice. Sheryl Crow would probably prefer that we forget her dull foray into country music. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "foray" means when you can explain it without saying "venture" or "endeavor." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "_____ is the result of (someone's) foray into _____." Example: "Mandy, a poignant novel about an orphan finding acceptance, is one result of Julie Andrews's foray into literature." 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 Banishing Bland Adjectives. In each issue, we're strengthening our word-finding skills as we take aim at a vague little adjective and think up three ways to make it more specific. Resist the urge to sneak off to the thesaurus! From the previous issue: MANY (or A LOT OF). 1. When there are so MANY things that you couldn't even say how many there are, then instead of MANY, call them _____. 2. When there are so MANY things that they're just everywhere and it's wonderful, then instead of MANY, call them _____. 3. When there are so MANY things that they form a big mass or a huge collection, then instead of MANY, call them _____. Suggested answers: 1, countless; 2, bountiful; 3, voluminous. (Your answers might be different but just as precise.) Today: NORMAL. 1. When something is NORMAL because we do it all the time without even thinking about it or trying to do it a certain way, then instead of NORMAL, call it _____. 2. When something is NORMAL because it's what society expects us to do and it's what our parents and grandparents always did, then instead of NORMAL, call it _____. 3. When something is NORMAL because it's how it's supposed to be and how we need or expect it to be, then instead of NORMAL, call it _____. review today's word: 1. A close opposite of FORAY is A. FORAGE B. VENTURE C. SPECIALIZE 2. The fascinating word "ultracrepidarian," literally "beyond the sole (of the shoe)," refers to the story of a cobbler who tries to critique a painting and today describes critics who foray _____. A. into matters beyond their own expertise B. beneath the limits of their own competence C. against artists with greater skill and finer technique 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. A