Make Your Point > Archived Issues > INCORRIGIBLE

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explore the archives: We can't talk about incorrigible without fondly recalling this scene from The Sound of Music:    Kurt: "I'm Kurt, I'm eleven, and I'm incorrigible."    Maria: "Congratulations."    Kurt: "What's incorrigible?"    Maria: "I think it means you want to be treated like a boy." Not quite. Incorrigible people are so badly behaved that they can't be cured. So you might think Maria's response was p_____izing, meaning she looked down on Kurt and treated him like he was stupid or delicate. Or maybe she honestly didn't know this word! :) make your point with... "INCORRIGIBLE" Take "in" (meaning "not") and the Latin corrigere (meaning "correct"), then add "-ible," and you get "incorrigible," which means "not able to be corrected: incurable." In other words, incorrigible people (and things) are lost causes. They're permanently bad: so bad that nothing you do will cure them. Pronunciation: in CORE idge uh bull Part of speech: Adjective. (Adjectives are describing words, like "large" or "late." They can be used in two ways: 1. Right before a noun, as in "an incorrigible thing" or "an incorrigible person." 2. After a linking verb, as in "It was incorrigible" or "He is incorrigible.") Other forms: incorrigibly, incorrigibility Can people and things be corrigible (curable, fixable), too? You bet! You might talk about corrigible defects and failures, corrigible offenders and sinners, etc.  How to use it: Often we use this word seriously: an incorrigible drunk, an incorrigible criminal, these incorrigible liars, those incorrigible racists. But your tone can be lighthearted, too: an incorrigible optimist, his incorrigible faith, their incorrigible enthusiasm, our incorrigible love of vocabulary words. Just keep in mind that, because "incorrigible" means "incurable" or "incapable of being reformed," when you use this word in a positive sense, you're essentially saying, "Aw, shucks, we can't seem to get rid of this great quality." The adverb is also useful: he's incorrigibly vulgar; her reasoning is incorrigibly flawed; we're incorrigibly chipper even on Monday mornings. Notice how "incorrigible" almost always describes people ("an incorrigible child," "this incorrigible gambler") and their traits or behaviors ("incorrigible selfishness," "incorrigible gambling"). That's the most common way we use this word, but you can also talk about incorrigible problems, like incorrigible corruption. examples: Salman Rushdie's "Good Advice is Rarer than Rubies" is the story of a self-assured young woman and an incorrigible old swindler. I love my littlest students. They're eager to learn and incorrigibly cheerful. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "incorrigible" means when you can explain it without saying "so bad that reform isn't possible" or "unable to be cured of flaws." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "I spent (a certain amount of time) battling my incorrigible (problem)." Serious example: "The nation has spent decades battling its incorrigible poverty."  Lighthearted example: "My sister and I spent our early teen years battling our incorrigible hair." 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 "What's the Difference?" I’ll give you two terms. Without using Google or a dictionary, explain how they’re different. Go beyond saying, "well, I know the difference, but I can’t explain it," or "show me an example and I'll tell you which it is." In your explanations, try to focus on features, not comparisons. For example, what's the difference between climate and weather? A good explanation focuses on features: "climate is what’s going on in the atmosphere over long periods of time, and weather is what’s going on in the atmosphere at a particular place and time." A weaker explanation focuses on comparisons: "climate is more concerning than weather." The game will get harder as the month goes on: we’ll start with objects—natural first, then man-made—then switch to concepts. Let’s do this! From yesterday: What's the difference between a tsunami and a tidal wave? Answer: Actually, there are several differences! Here's the one I see as fundamental. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, tidal waves are caused by gravitational interactions, but tsunamis are caused by events like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Try this today: What's the difference between a squirrel and a chipmunk? review today's word: 1. The exact opposite of INCORRIGIBLE is CORRIGIBLE. But another opposite of INCORRIGIBLE is A. REMEDIABLE B. MEMORABLE C. DEMONSTRABLE 2. Once viewed as incorrigible, criminals were imprisoned solely to _____. A. spend time reflecting on the damage they had caused B. learn prosocial behavior in order to earn their freedom C. protect the rest of society from them Answers are below. a final word: To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact Liesl at Liesl@HiloTutor.com Disclaimer: Word meanings presented here are expressed in plain language and are limited to common, useful applications only. Readers interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words are encouraged to check a dictionary. Likewise, word meanings, usage, and pronunciations are limited to American English; these elements may vary across world Englishes. Answers to review questions: 1. A 2. C