Category Archives: Quotes

As every second post on this site is a quote. You’ll find a deep and broad variety of quotes under this category, which overlap with several other tags and categories. Many of the quotes are larded with links for deeper reading on the subject of the quote, or connections between the subject of the quotes and other people, things, or ideas. See the Taxonomies page for more about this category.

Intonaco

Posted on August 12, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Intonaco: In fresco, the final coat of plaster on which the painter actually works, while it is still wet.”

Excerpted from: Diamond, David G. The Bulfinch Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms. Boston: Little Brown, 1992.

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Calumny

Posted on August 12, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Calumny (noun): A deliberate or malicious false statement injurious to another’s reputation; defamatory report or accusation; slander. Adj. calumnious; adv. calumniously; n. calumniator; v. calumniate.”

Excerpted from: Grambs, David. The Random House Dictionary for Writers and Readers. New York: Random House, 1990.

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The Algonquin Wits: Alexander Woollcott’s Riposte in a Moment of Immodesty

Posted on August 12, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Ever conscious of his weight problem, Woollcott installed a steam cabinet at his ‘Wit’s End’ home on the East River. The cabinet had a large window in front, through which an outsider could see anyone sitting inside. One afternoon Peggy Pulitzer, while a guest at Woollcott’s, wandered by the cabinet and beheld Aleck’s stark-naked form. Later she advised him, ‘You should cover that window with an organdy curtain.’ Woollcott corrected the lady’s phrasing, however” ‘Curtain de organ.’”

Excerpted from: Drennan, Robert E., ed. The Algonquin Wits. New York: Kensington, 1985.

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John Kenneth Galbraith on Meetings

Posted on August 3, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Meetings are indispensable when you don’t want to do anything.”

John Kenneth Galbraith

Excerpted from: Winokur, Jon, ed. The Big Curmudgeon. New York: Black Dog & Leventhal, 2007.

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Intimism

Posted on August 3, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Intimism: The painting of intimate scenes, e.g. domestic interiors or objects associated with them. A type of genre practiced particularly by French painters like Pierre Bonnard and Edouard Vuillard.”

Excerpted from: Diamond, David G. The Bulfinch Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms. Boston: Little Brown, 1992.

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Book of Answers: L’Encyclopedie

Posted on August 3, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Who edited L’Encyclopedie? Denis Diderot (17013-84), French philosopher. This compendium of knowledge was published in thirty-five volumes between 1751 and 1776. It was meant to cover all aspects of life and embodied the rationalistic ideals of the Enlightenment. Contributers included Voltaire, Montesquieu, and Rousseau.”

Excerpted from: Corey, Melinda, and George Ochoa. Literature: The New York Public Library Book of Answers. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1993.

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Cacophony

Posted on August 3, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Cacophony (noun): Disagreeable or jarring sound; aural infelicity; discordance; babble or tumult. Adj. cacophonous; adv. cacophonously.

‘And always with an air of vast importance, always in the longest words possible, always in the most cacophonous English that even a professor ever wrote.’ H.L. Mencken, Prejudices: First Series”

Excerpted from: Grambs, David. The Random House Dictionary for Writers and Readers. New York: Random House, 1990.

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Term of Art: Teachable Moment

Posted on August 2, 2022 | Leave a comment

“teachable moment: A confluence of experience and instruction that suddenly awakens student interest and gives life to what is taught. A teachable moment may occur as the result of a current event, of a school or classroom occurrence, or of something that happened to a student or a teacher. Suddenly, a concept that once seemed abstract becomes clear and important. Teachable moments may also occur between parents and children, as parents teach spontaneous everyday lessons about behavior, morals, ethics, and values.”

Excerpted from: Ravitch, Diane. EdSpeak: A Glossary of Education Terms, Phrases, Buzzwords, and Jargon. Alexandria, VA: ASCD, 2007.

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Interlace

Posted on July 29, 2022 | Leave a comment

“Interlace: Decoration formed of entwined, interwoven, linear elements.”

Excerpted from: Diamond, David G. The Bulfinch Pocket Dictionary of Art Terms. Boston: Little Brown, 1992.

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Term of Art: Structural Analysis

Posted on July 29, 2022 | Leave a comment

“structural analysis: A type of word recognition that identifies structural features such as syllables, prefixes, suffixes, and roots. Other structural elements include compound words (sunshine) and contradictions (do not).

A reader may use a combination of structural analysis and context clues to identify an unfamiliar word. Individuals with learning disabilities benefit from the explicit teaching of structural analysis skills in order to improve spelling and reading comprehension.”

Excerpted from: Turkington, Carol, and Joseph R. Harris, PhD. The Encyclopedia of Learning Disabilities. New York: Facts on File, 2006.

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