aphorism
/ˈæfəˌɹɪzəm/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 2.49 in modern English
15
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
4
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "[K]novvledge, vvhile it is in Aphoriſmes and obſeruations, it is in grovveth [growth]; but vvhen it once is comprehended in exact Methodes; it may perchance be further polliſhed and illuſtrate, and accommodated for vſe and practiſe; but it encreaſeth no more in bulke and ſubſtance."
- "Is not thy common talke ſound Aphoriſmes?"
- "'[T]is an old Aphoriſme, Oderunt omnes, quem metuunt [Everyone hates the one they fear]."
- "[…] Exiſtence is a perfection: Firſt it is palpably plain, according to that ſenſible Aphoriſm of Solomon, Better is a living Dog then a dead Lyon."
- "Oppreſſion, according to Harrington [James Harrington?]'s aphoriſm, vvill be felt by thoſe that cannot ſee it; […]"
- "As the promoters expected the overall size of the rail market to expand, it demonstrated the aphorism that 'a rising tide lifts all the boats' associated with the belief that improved services benefit all the participants."
Etymology
The noun is derived from Late Middle English amphorisme, from Middle French aphorisme, afforisme (modern French aphorisme), from Medieval Latin aphorismus, aforismus, from Ancient Greek ᾰ̓φορῐσμός (ăphorĭsmós, “limitation; distinction, separation; definition; aphorism”), from ἀφορίζω (aphorízō, “to mark off a boundary; to define, determine; to distinguish, separate; etc.”) + -μός (-mós, suffix forming abstract nouns). Ἀφορίζω (Aphorízō) is from ᾰ̓πο- (ăpo-, prefix meaning ‘away; from; off’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂epó (“away; off”)) + ὁρίζω (horízō, “to delimit; to define; to determine; to divide, separate; etc.”) (from ὅρος (hóros, “boundary, limit; definition, term; etc.”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *werw- (“to draw; to mark out”)) + -ῐ́ζω (-ĭ́zō, “suffix forming similative verbs”)). The verb is derived from the noun.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *werw-, amphorisme, aphorisme, aphorismus, ᾰ̓φορῐσμός, *h₂epó
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈæfəˌɹɪzəm/
- British English: /ˈæfəɹɪz(ə)m/