Make Your Point > Archived Issues > OEUVRE
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connect today's word to others:
In Latin, the word for "work or effort" is opera, which became oeuvre in French.
When we talk about an artist's oeuvre, or a writer's oeuvre, we mean all the work he or she produced, ever.
Closely related to our word oeuvre are a few terms you might know already: first, a chef d'œuvre (pronounced "sheff DUV ruh") is a masterpiece--literally a "chief work"--and second, hors d'oeuvres are appetizers, or food served "outside the work (of the main meal)."
See if you can recall these other related terms:
1. Something op__ose requires a whole lot of work, effort, or labor.
2. Someone's m____m op__, or "great work," is the best piece of work someone has ever created.
(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.)
make your point with...
"OEUVRE"
Someone's oeuvre is their entire body of creative work.
In other words, an oeuvre is the whole collection of creative output from a particular artist, musician, writer, or other creator.
More loosely, an oeuvre can be any collection of someone's creations.
Pronunciation:
I recommend "UV ruh."
Some dictionaries also recognize "OO vruh," "UR vruh," and more.
(Basically, take a look at those first three vowels, shrug, and give it your best shot.)
Part of speech:
Noun, the countable kind:
"this oeuvre," "his oeuvre," "her oeuvre," "an oeuvre," "the oeuvre."
Other forms:
The plural is "oeuvres," pronounced the same as "oeuvre," but we hardly ever use it.
How to use it:
Talk about a person's oeuvre: "Frida Kahlo's oeuvre," "Roald Dahl's oeuvre."
Or, the oeuvre of someone: "the oeuvre of Titian," "the oeuvre of Bach."
Or, less commonly, "the _____ oeuvre:" "the Shakespeare oeuvre," "the Rolling Stones oeuvre."
Although using the word "oeuvre" usually means we're talking about some famous writer, scholar, philosopher, artist, or musician, we can use the word more loosely to refer to the work of anyone who publishes creations or gives performances: cartoonists, comedians, screenwriters, software designers, video game designers, even companies and manufacturers.
You might talk about people who study, critique, sample, enjoy, appreciate, celebrate, publicize, exhibit, popularize, suppress, or condemn some particular oeuvre.
Or, talk about how some song, poem, book, film, or other individual piece of work fits in (or fails to fit in) with someone's oeuvre.
Or, you might talk about people who create, build up, develop, expand, or diversify their own oeuvres.
Finally, you can talk about how someone's oeuvre inspires, delights, instructs, or confuses other people.
examples:
Even my wall of twenty-six framed Elton John albums doesn't represent his entire oeuvre.
"As office neighbors, we developed an oeuvre of goofy private jokes."
—Ann Hornaday, The Washington Post, 1 July 2018
study it now:
Look away from the screen to define "oeuvre" without saying "body of work" or "total output."
try it out:
Fill in the blanks: "(Some particular feature, or achieving some particular quality) is a definitive part of (someone's) oeuvre."
Example: "Putting the takeaway message front and center--repeating it, repeating it--is a definitive part of Paulo Coelho's oeuvre."
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.
Apt Adjective Anagrams!
I'll invent a person's name and a brief description of that person, and you unscramble the letters in the name to form an adjective that aptly describes the person or the person's situation.
For example, if I say "Naomi Cirous is still holding a grudge," then you rearrange the letters in "Naomi Cirous" to form the adjective "acrimonious," meaning "sharp, bitter, and mean"--an appropriate adjective for someone holding a grudge.
From the previous issue: Ed Fit is in desperate need of a hot, soapy shower.
Answer: He's fetid.
Try this today: Hundreds of people call Georgi Sura a friend.
review today's word:
1. A near opposite of OEUVRE is
A. A TEPID PUBLIC RECEPTION.
B. A FORGETTABLE MEAL.
C. A MINOR PUBLICATION.
2. Tyson's Astrophysics for People in a Hurry is an oeuvre de vulgarisation: a _____ that makes some lofty, esoteric subject accessible to regular folks.
A. film
B. novel
C. work
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
In Latin, the word for "work or effort" is opera, which became oeuvre in French.
"OEUVRE" Someone's oeuvre is their entire body of creative work. Pronunciation: Other forms:
Even my wall of twenty-six framed Elton John albums doesn't represent his entire oeuvre.
Look away from the screen to define "oeuvre" without saying "body of work" or "total output."
Fill in the blanks: "(Some particular feature, or achieving some particular quality) is a definitive part of (someone's) oeuvre."
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.
1. A near opposite of OEUVRE is
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. |