Make Your Point > Archived Issues > FLIPPANT

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explore the archives: Some dictionaries define flippant as "behaving with inappropriate levity." Of course, that helps only if you remember what levity means. make your point with... "FLIPPANT" Someone or something flippant is silly or funny when the situation requires seriousness or respect instead. Pronunciation: FLIP int 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 "a flippant thing" or "a flippant person." 2. After a linking verb, as in "It was flippant." or "He was flippant.") Other forms: flippantly, flippantness/flippancy What does "flippant" have to do with flips? Not much now, but "flippant" used to mean "nimble, flexible." The meaning drifted to "using nimble, flexible speech," then to "using playful speech," then to "using inappropriately playful speech," the current meaning. How to use it: Talk about flippant people and their flippant attitudes and flippant comments. Sometimes we're flippant about a topic: "She copes with her disease by being flippant about it." Shows, movies, books, articles, posts, tweets, memes and so on can be flippant or have a flippant tone. You can also point out a flippant dismissal, a flippant laugh, a flippant attempt to divert people's attention, someone's flippant disregard for social rules, etc. examples: Her flippant chatter in the cemetery irked me. We eventually got tired of his flippancy, but he amused us on that first day of geography class by toting in an enormous sparkly book titled My First Atlas instead of the assigned textbook. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "flippant" means when you can explain it without saying "inappropriately silly" or "disrespectfully lighthearted." try it out: What's something you take seriously now that you didn't before? Fill in the blanks: "Up until _____, I was flippant about _____." Example: "Up until college, I was flippant about learning disabilities, assuming they were an invented excuse for laziness."  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. This month, we're playing with the original and literal meanings of familiar words. I'll give you three words and their original or literal definitions, and you'll match them up. Easy! But then the following day, see if you can recall those old meanings. Hard! :) Our game has two purposes. One, we'll visit the interesting, thought-provoking old meanings of words. And two, we'll remind ourselves of a powerful learning strategy: delayed recalling. Let's play! First, try to recall from yesterday the original meaning of "indent" and the literal meanings of "confetti" and "bacteria." Answers appear at the bottom of this issue. Next, match these words to their original or literal definitions in the answer bank below: 1. "Grocer" originally meant _____ 2. "Describe" literally means _____ 3. "Fajita" literally means _____ Answer bank: A. "small strip or belt." B. "to write down." C. "a dealer in gross (large quantities)." review today's word: 1. One opposite of FLIPPANT is A. SILENT B. REVERENT C. SLUGGISH 2. Wisely, he set his characteristic flippancy aside to _____. A. join the debate about which superhero is best B. try something new from the menu C. propose to his girlfriend 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 game questions: 1. "Indent" originally meant "to give tooth-like notches." 2. "Confetti" literally means "sweetmeats." 3. "Bacteria" literally means "little sticks." Answers to review questions: 1. B 2. C