After reading the Math Thread yesterday I thought I would put something out about just one area that my daughter asked me about last night after taking the PSAT yesterday. Before she handed me the piece of paper she told me that I could not look the word up anywhere. I had to know the definition so that I could use this word in sentence. So here goes...no cheating by looking it up. The word is "obfuscator". This and other words similar to this were on the Reading Comprehension part of the PSAT. She stated that after the test she asked everyone she could find if they knew this word and some others and most either said they did not make it to that part or never had heard or seen those words. She asked me why they would do that and I told her that she probably would never forget this one word because of her reaction and if they can a child to remember one new word each time how wonderful learning would be. She told me to go back to reading the newspaper, which I did. Grace
obfuscater ... hmm ...something or some one in a specific field that seperates or ...extracts one specific thing from another ....? * "specific", meaning I don't have a friggin clue! Now it's killing me - I have to look it up... Also, spell check shows it as obfuscator
I looked it up and I'm WAY off.... but it's a safe bet that there at least 4 people here that know the definition. Dictionary suggestions: obfuscatory obfuscate obfuscated obfuscates obfuscating offuscate Encyclopedia suggestions: Obfuscator Obfuscate Obfuscated
Well i happen to know for a fact that the definition of it means....the amount of graphite that is lost during a typical sharpening of a pencil, but only from one of those little hand held sharpeners and not an electric sharpener. The coefficient of the friction of the pencil versus the force of the blade against the pencil itself is what gives you the obfuscator factor.
I know the definition. Are we supposed to post it? Personally, I like reading the dictionary. Words mean things, and using them correctly will get your point across with no room for doubt in what you meant to say. Unfortunately people aren't like that any more. They will hear a word they don't know and try to figure out its definition based on the context. From that point on, they believe they know the definition, when if fact they may not at all.
You are so full of it. DHis like that. He can come up with the strangest crap and reel me in like a dead fish every time.
A fine example: When my son was little he had a Winnie the Pooh that sang a song about exercise and eating healthy. Part of the recording was garbled and one of the words came out as "uppertrite". He had me totally convinced it was a part of the digestive system. :neutral: ...But I should have known... his Dad was probably the best BS'r I've ever known. And the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. edited to add: the word in question was appetite
I didn't look this up so I may look stupid later, but here's my guess. I think "obfuscater" is an uncommon extension of the word obfuscate. I think obfuscate means to blur or hide the truth. So an obfuscater would be a liar or deceiver.
Ya know what I hate? It's when my husband uses slang wordage and I say "that's not even in the dictionary" stop using it, he proceeds to get the dictionary and dang if it isn't in there, my response is "it didn't use to be considered a word and shouldn't have been put in the dictionary", he just laughs.
Every so often I am a boondoggler at work and I enjoy it. This is why I want to make sure my child understands the importance of spelling and that words are wonderful. I had a friend a while back whose parents traveled alot when he was very young and he actually read the dictionary. He would put a piece of paper on desk with a word on it, daily, and it became quite fun looking them up and remembering them. Unlike him, I was not into knowing the page number or where the darn thing came from. I do understand that to really know the word you need to know the origin, but not to the extent that he did. Glad you are enjoying the Tread, will show my teenager tonight that she may have made some others use their brain as well. Grace
I knew that, thanks I need all the humor I can get today, it being Thursday and all that. Pouring down rain here in Cary.
My favorite class in college was English Words from Latin & Greek Elements. Also went thru 4 years of Latin, so breaking down that word is fun. The root word is obfuscate...the word in question added the "or" so that would be a person in action....is has a negative connotation...if I write up a sentence it'll give it away.... Frogger
Bingo...you win!!!! Your last paragraph was absolutely correct. Great job Fogger. No prize other than a pat on the back. Grace:idea:
Ever watch Akeela and Bee.....we did recently and thats what interested me about it. Being able to learn the latin or root word then you're half way there at figuring out what it means and how to spell it. Since we as a family watched it, I'll have to ask my daughter if it helped her with the PSAT yesterday. If you haven't seen this movie, you really should, GREAT movie!
