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Make Your Point > Archived Issues > VARIEGATED

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pronounce VARIEGATED:

VAIR ee uh gay tid
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connect this word to others:

If we crack the word variegated in half, we can almost glimpse the Latin varius ("varied, spotted") and agere ("to do, to move, to perform").

That helps us see how variegated is closely related to other words from varius, like vary, various, and variety; and to other words from agere, like agile, agenda, litigate, m___gate ("to make softer"), and c_ge__ ("powerful, persuasive, moving"). Can you recall those last two?

(To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) 

definition:

"Variegated" has Latin bits that literally mean "given various (colors)."

It first showed up in 1653, in a religious text by Henry More, who wrote in praise of "The glorious Wisdom and Goodness of God so fairly drawn out and skilfully variegated in the sundry Objects of externall Nature."

(Source 1) (Source 2, family photo) (Source 3)

Beautiful, right? The idea that wisdom and goodness is variegated (meaning, diversified or brought to life) into natural things of many colors, as in the photos above of variegated leaves, fur, and wood.

"Variegated" still sometimes has a holy tone to it, suggesting that some mystical power has filled natural objects with various colors.

But it doesn't have to sound holy or serious. In general, something variegated has several colors, or has a lot of lively or interesting variety or diversity.

grammatical bits:

Part of speech:

Adjective: "These tulips are variegated;" "These are variegated tulips."

(Source)

Other forms: 

The verb is "variegate," and it's the transitive kind, as in "Shades of orange and cream variegate Mia's fur."

The noun is "variegation," as in "I love the variegation in Mia's fur."

how to use it:

When you want a grander, loftier, livelier synonym of "varied," "various," and "diverse," one that suggests the beauty of colors in nature, pick the common, formal word "variegated."

You might talk literally about variegated objects, like wood, fur, plants, hills, forests, canyons, skies, colors, stripes, or paintings.

And you might talk figuratively about variegated groups of people, societies, religions, political parties, philosophies, or bodies of work.

examples:

"Nearly every college now existing [in America] can legitimately lay claim to a distinctive sort of liberal education. Generic descriptions simply cannot convey the variegated vitality of liberal education as it is lived on our many college campuses." 
  — Christopher B. Nelson, Washington Post, 23 May 2014

"Mr. Rainey, a drummer, crafts constantly shifting, variegated textures on the toms and cymbals, always in fluid response to his band mates." 
  — Giovanni Russonello, New York Times, 28 December 2017

has this page helped you understand "variegated"?

   

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this term, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.


study it:

Explain the meaning of "variegated" without saying "multi-colored" or "vividly diverse."

try it out:

Fill in the blanks: "(Something) is variegated with (certain colors, shades, or other things)."

Literal example: "Mia's fur is variegated with shades of cream, orange, chocolate, and black."

Figurative example: "The double bill... [featuring] the saxophonist Jackie McLean and the trumpeter Terence Blanchard, is a perfect example of how music often written off as hard bop is in reality variegated, with all sorts of stripes and colors."
  — Peter Watrous, New York Times, 10 June 1995




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 this month is Slide Into The Title: Elton John Edition! 

Have you noticed how pop songs tend to use rhyme, rhythm, and semantics to guide you straight into singing the correct title, even if you’ve never heard it before? I love that, how the title clicks into place. See if you can slide into a complete title, given a snippet of lyrics.

You can check out some examples here.

Try this one today:

"Well they say that it's a shame
If you have nothing to believe,
And if you can't hold onto something,
You might as well die where you sleep.
You don't need a prayer,
And there's no price to ask why.
Sometimes you'll find an answer in ___ ___."

To see the answer, scroll all the way down.

review this word:

1. One opposite of VARIEGATED is

A. MANIFEST: easy to see or understand.
B. MONOCHROME: one-colored, or homogeneous.
C. MONOMANIACAL: fully obsessed with a single goal.

2. The musical "_____" centers on the variegated object in the title.

A. Natasha, Pierre, & the Great Comet of 1812
B. Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
C. Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?




Answers to the review questions:
1. B
2. B

From the game: That song is "Answer In The Sky."


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:
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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.

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