Make Your Point > Archived Issues > FACILE
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pronounce
FACILE:
Say it "FASS ull."
Or, if you're British, "FASS ile."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
As we're checking out the word facile, meaning "able to do things easily" and "done in a too-easy way," see if you can recall the meanings of these closely related terms:
Someone or something that's facile princeps is... ?
And, a facilis descensus is a... ?
If you were taking your best guess at translating the Latin, you might guess that a facile princeps is "easily the prince" and that a facilis descensus is an "easy descending."
And you'd pretty much be right! If you're not sure of these terms' exact meanings, give them a click.
definition:
Our word "facile" traces back to the Latin facilis, "easy to do."
When you do something easily, maybe you're great at it--or maybe you barely tried. So, "facile" has two very different meanings in English:
First, something facile (like a facile mind or hand) is very quick and skilled: able to do things easily.
Second, something facile (like a facile comment or analysis) is done in a way that was too easy, without any real thought or effort, and so it seems shallow or simplistic.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech:
Adjective: "a facile mind;" "Their response seemed facile."
Other forms:
The noun meaning "skill" is "facility," as in "He has such a facility with words."
And the noun meaning "superficiality, or lack of effort" is "facileness," as in "a movie riddled with facileness" and "the complexity of practical life compared with the facileness of theory" (Michael de la Bédoyère).
how to use it:
"Facile" is a common, formal word.
Its tone is positive or negative, depending on your meaning:
When you use "facile" to mean "skilled, practiced, proficient, expert, fluent," your tone is positive. You might talk about someone's facile mind, hands, speech, writing, music, or performance.
When you use "facile" to mean "thoughtless, too-easy, shallow, overly simplified," your tone is negative. You might talk about someone's facile comments, answers, solutions, assumptions, explanations, or interpretations.
examples:
"The cub stood for a moment and then hesitantly advanced toward the rut where the terrier lay. He sniffed around, wrinkling his facile nose at the unfamiliar smell."
— Sheila Burnford, The Incredible Journey, 1960
"Soon we are questioning our facile, Western assumptions about China. We might be wondering who has the right to tell a story if it's not the storyteller's own or if it's outside his or her culture."
— Daryl H. Miller, Los Angeles Times, 7 November 2017
has this page helped you understand "facile"?
study it:
Explain both meanings of "facile" without saying "skilled" or "effortless."
try it out:
In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel Half a Yellow Sun, the narrator says:
"Miss Adebayo visited and said something about grief, something nice-sounding and facile: Grief was the celebration of love, those who could feel real grief were lucky to have loved."
Do you agree that Miss Adebayo's statement was facile? Why or why not? Is it possible to say anything about grief that isn't facile? Why or why not?
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 for this month is MYP Wordles!
You're likely familiar with the popular new game Wordle, created by Josh Wardle and recently purchased by the New York Times. You can play the real Wordle each day here.
It's fun, simple, and addictive. You try to guess the five-letter word. Each time you guess, you see how close you are: a green box means you've gotten the right letter in the right spot; a yellow box means you've gotten a letter that's in the word but in the wrong spot; a gray box means you've guessed a letter that isn't in the word at all.
There's only one real Wordle every day. But luckily for us, the good folks at StriveMath.com have created a copycat Wordle tool, so you can play as many Wordles as you want, and even create and share your own.
So, in each issue this month, try the MYP Wordle linked below. The answer will be a word we've studied. I'll give a series of hints that you can reveal if you choose to. If you can't figure out the answer, you can let the puzzle reveal it, or you can scroll all the way down. Enjoy!
Click here to play today's MYP Wordle.
If you need some hints, highlight the hidden white text below.
The letter it starts with is… D
The vowels it includes are… O and Y
The part of speech is… adjective
The definition is… plain or ugly in a dull, unstylish way
review this word:
A. SLOW, CLUMSY; NUANCED, and WELL-REASONED.
B. SHY, WITHDRAWN; BURIED, and WELL-CONCEALED.
C. TRUE, LOGICAL; AUTHORITATIVE, and WELL-DOCUMENTED.
2.
A. O. Scott praised the film Baby Boy, saying it "disarms any facile analysis or _____ judgment of its characters."
A. easy
B. harsh
C. crude
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.
As we're checking out the word facile, meaning "able to do things easily" and "done in a too-easy way," see if you can recall the meanings of these closely related terms:
Our word "facile" traces back to the Latin facilis, "easy to do."
Part of speech:
"Facile" is a common, formal word.
"The cub stood for a moment and then hesitantly advanced toward the rut where the terrier lay. He sniffed around, wrinkling his facile nose at the unfamiliar smell."
Explain both meanings of "facile" without saying "skilled" or "effortless."
In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel Half a Yellow Sun, the narrator says:
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.
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. |