English Synonyms and Antonyms Part 90

RACY.

Synonyms:

flavorous, lively, pungent, spicy, forcible, piquant, rich, spirited.

_Racy_ applies in the first instance to the pleasing flavor characteristic of certain wines, often attributed to the soil from which they come. _Pungent_ denotes something sharply irritating to the organs of taste or smell, as pepper, vinegar, ammonia; _piquant_ denotes a quality similar in kind to _pungent_ but less in degree, stimulating and agreeable; _pungent_ spices may be deftly compounded into a _piquant_ sauce. As applied to literary products, _racy_ refers to that which has a striking, vigorous, pleasing originality; _spicy_ to that which is stimulating to the mental taste, as spice is to the physical; _piquant_ and _pungent_ in their figurative use keep very close to their literal sense.

Antonyms:

cold, flat, insipid, stale, tasteless, dull, flavorless, prosy, stupid, vapid.

RADICAL.

Synonyms:

complete, ingrained, perfect, const.i.tutional, innate, positive, entire, native, primitive, essential, natural, thorough, extreme, organic, thoroughgoing, fundamental, original, total.

The widely divergent senses in which the word _radical_ is used, by which it can be at some time interchanged with any word in the above list, are all formed upon the one primary sense of having to do with or proceeding from the root (L. _radix_); a _radical_ difference is one that springs from the root, and is thus _const.i.tutional_, _essential_, _fundamental_, _organic_, _original_; a _radical_ change is one that does not stop at the surface, but reaches down to the very root, and is _entire_, _thorough_, _total_; since the majority find superficial treatment of any matter the easiest and most comfortable, _radical_ measures, which strike at the root of evil or need, are apt to be looked upon as _extreme_.

Antonyms:

conservative, incomplete, palliative, slight, tentative, inadequate, moderate, partial, superficial, trial.

RARE.

Synonyms:

curious, odd, scarce, unique, extraordinary, peculiar, singular, unparalleled, incomparable, precious, strange, unprecedented, infrequent, remarkable, uncommon, unusual.

_Unique_ is alone of its kind; _rare_ is _infrequent_ of its kind; great poems are _rare_; "Paradise Lost" is _unique_. To say of a thing that it is _rare_ is simply to affirm that it is now seldom found, whether previously common or not; as, a _rare_ old book; a _rare_ word; to call a thing _scarce_ implies that it was at some time more plenty, as when we say food or money is _scarce_. A particular fruit or coin may be _rare_; _scarce_ applies to demand and use, and almost always to concrete things; to speak of virtue, genius, or heroism as _scarce_ would be somewhat ludicrous. _Rare_ has the added sense of _precious_, which is sometimes, but not necessarily, blended with that above given; as, a _rare_ gem. _Extraordinary_, signifying greatly beyond the ordinary, is a neutral word, capable of a high and good sense or of an invidious, opprobrious, or contemptuous signification; as, _extraordinary_ genius; _extraordinary_ wickedness; an _extraordinary_ a.s.sumption of power; _extraordinary_ antics; an _extraordinary_ statement is incredible without overwhelming proof.

Antonyms:

See synonyms for GENERAL; NORMAL; USUAL.

REACH.

Synonyms:

arrive, attain, come to, enter, gain, get to, land.

To _reach_, in the sense here considered, is to _come to_ by motion or progress. _Attain_ is now oftenest used of abstract relations; as, to _attain_ success. When applied to concrete matters, it commonly signifies the overcoming of hindrance and difficulty; as, the storm-beaten s.h.i.+p at length _attained_ the harbor. _Come_ is the general word for moving to or toward the place where the speaker or writer is or supposes himself to be. To _reach_ is to _come to_ from a distance that is actually or relatively considerable; to stretch the journey, so to speak, across the distance, as, in its original meaning, one _reaches_ an object by stretching out the hand. To _gain_ is to _reach_ or _attain_ something eagerly sought; the wearied swimmer _reaches_ or _gains_ the sh.o.r.e. One _comes_ in from his garden; he _reaches_ home from a journey. To _arrive_ is to _come to_ a destination, to _reach_ a point intended or proposed. The European steamer _arrives_ in port, or _reaches_ the harbor; the dismantled wreck drifts ash.o.r.e, or _comes to_ land. Compare ATTAIN.

Antonyms:

depart, go, go away, leave, set out, set sail, start, weigh anchor.

embark,

REAL.

Synonyms:

actual, demonstrable, genuine, true, authentic, developed, positive, unquestionable, certain, essential, substantial, veritable.

_Real_ (L. _res_, a thing) signifies having existence, not merely in thought, but in fact, or being in fact according to appearance or claim; denoting the thing as distinguished from the name, or the existent as opposed to the non-existent. _Actual_ has respect to a thing accomplished by doing, _real_ to a thing as existing by whatever means or from whatever cause, _positive_ to that which is fixed or established, _developed_ to that which has reached completion by a natural process of unfolding. _Actual_ is in opposition to the supposed, conceived, or reported, and furnishes the proof of its existence in itself; _real_ is opposed to feigned or imaginary, and is capable of demonstration; _positive_, to the uncertain or doubtful; _developed_, to that which is undeveloped or incomplete. The _developed_ is susceptible of proof; the _positive_ precludes the necessity for proof. The present condition of a thing is its _actual_ condition; ills are _real_ that have a substantial reason; proofs are _positive_ when they give the mind certainty; a plant is _developed_ when it has reached its completed stage. _Real_ estate is land, together with trees, water, minerals, or other natural accompaniments, and any permanent structures that man has built upon it. Compare AUTHENTIC.

Antonyms:

conceived, feigned, illusory, supposed, unreal, fabulous, fict.i.tious, imaginary, supposit.i.tious, untrue, fanciful, hypothetical, reported, theoretical, visionary.

REASON, _v._

Synonyms:

argue, debate, discuss, establish, question, contend, demonstrate, dispute, prove, wrangle.

controvert,

To _reason_ is to examine by means of the reason, to prove by reasoning, or to influence or seek to influence others by reasoning or reasons.

Persons may _contend_ either from mere ill will or self-interest, or from the highest motives; "That ye should earnestly _contend_ for the faith which was once delivered to the saints," _Jude_ 3. To _argue_ (L.

_arguo_, show) is to make a matter clear by reasoning; to _discuss_ (L.

_dis_, apart, and _quatio_, shake) is, etymologically, to shake it apart for examination and a.n.a.lysis. _Demonstrate_ strictly applies to mathematical or exact reasoning; _prove_ may be used in the same sense, but is often applied to reasoning upon matters of fact by what is called probable evidence, which can give only moral and not absolute or mathematical certainty. To _demonstrate_ is to force the mind to a conclusion by irresistible reasoning; to _prove_ is rather to _establish_ a fact by evidence; as, to _prove_ one innocent or guilty.

That which has been either _demonstrated_ or _proved_ so as to secure general acceptance is said to be _established_. _Reason_ is a neutral word, not, like _argue_, _debate_, _discuss_, etc., naturally or necessarily implying contest. We _reason_ about a matter by bringing up all that reason can give us on any side. A _dispute_ may be personal, fractious, and petty; a _debate_ is formal and orderly; if otherwise, it becomes a mere _wrangle_.

Prepositions: