motherhood statement
/ˈmʌðɚˌhʊd ˈsteɪtmənt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.36 in modern English
30
Scrabble Score
19
Letters
4
Syllables
10
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A vague, feel-good platitude, especially one made by a politician, that most people would agree with.
Canadian usage; American usage
Example Sentences
- "[A]n objective needs to be followed up by some specific form of measurement or it is meaningless – It is a motherhood statement."
- "Technology transfer and the principle of making useful research and development information available to all public sectors is now being endorsed by everybody. I really don't know anybody who objects. As a matter of fact, by now it has become a motherhood statement. The question is, how do we achieve the blessed state of motherhood?"
- "When English judges speak of rights they often do so in terms that are usually imprecise and lacking in clear principle. The problem is worsened by the frequent judicial recourse to motherhood statements, which are not simply imprecise but provide generalised statements that are difficult to disagree with at a conceptual level. […] [M]otherhood statements assume or imply the existence of what [Martin] Loughlin described as an 'imaginary consensus' on important doctrinal principles."
- "At worst, the term ‘ownership’ becomes a ‘motherhood statement’ which, whilst always sounding worthy, can be entirely lacking in specified content. The term ownership is used to imply varying degrees of local control that are typically not realized."
- "One could say that at least Culpo's response referred to something specific in her life, and was not just the typical motherhood statement expected of polished beauty contestants – the proverbial Miss Universe answer."
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈmʌðɚˌhʊd ˈsteɪtmənt/
- British English: /ˈmʌðəhʊd ˈsteɪtm(ə)nt/