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SuperESL Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
Jeremiad
Hi,
Some queries on the usage of the word "jeremiad":
According to the Oxford online dictionary, the word can mean two things:
(1) A long, mournful complaint or lamentation
(2) A list of woes
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/jeremiad?q=jeremiad
And according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the word can mean:
(1) A prolonged lamentation or complaint
(2) A cautionary or angry harangue
At MW the following example is also given:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jeremiad
Two questions:
(A) I haven't come across an example anywhere where the word is used to mean "a list of woes" (a list of problems / troubles). It seems to me it is always used only in the sense of a complaint or lament, or the act of complaining or lamenting (definition (1)). Can it mean "a list of woes"?
(B) Regarding the example at MW noted above, it sounds strange to my ears. Can you "show" a jeremiad against something? My understanding is that a jeremiad should be a concrete complaint that you voice, not an attitude you show.
Thank you.
Some queries on the usage of the word "jeremiad":
According to the Oxford online dictionary, the word can mean two things:
(1) A long, mournful complaint or lamentation
(2) A list of woes
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/jeremiad?q=jeremiad
And according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the word can mean:
(1) A prolonged lamentation or complaint
(2) A cautionary or angry harangue
At MW the following example is also given:
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jeremiad
Two questions:
(A) I haven't come across an example anywhere where the word is used to mean "a list of woes" (a list of problems / troubles). It seems to me it is always used only in the sense of a complaint or lament, or the act of complaining or lamenting (definition (1)). Can it mean "a list of woes"?
(B) Regarding the example at MW noted above, it sounds strange to my ears. Can you "show" a jeremiad against something? My understanding is that a jeremiad should be a concrete complaint that you voice, not an attitude you show.
Thank you.
Top answer
(A) I suppose if you give a list of things you want to complain about, they are a list of woes. I would be surprised to see it used to refer to the list itself rather than the complaints in it. " The shown in that example refers to political apathy , not jeremiad .
- (A) I suppose if you give a list of things you want to complain about, they are a list of woes.
- I would be surprised to see it used to refer to the list itself rather than the complaints in it.
- " The shown in that example refers to political apathy , not jeremiad .
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14 Answers
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(A) I suppose if you give a list of things you want to complain about, they are a list of woes. I would be surprised to see it used to refer to the list itself rather than the complaints in it. In other words, I would not expect to see "I asked him to give me a jeremiad so I would be able to see what needed to be fixed."
(B) "A jeremiad against the political apathy sho
(B) "A jeremiad against the political apathy sho
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By the way, jeremiad isn't a frequently used word. Many native speakers probably would not know it.
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You might also want to note that it is an uncommon, rather literary word.
You probably know this already.
Clive
You probably know this already.
Clive
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This word occurs 54 times in the American Corpus, a set of 450 million words from citations 1990-2010. I cannot remember ever having seen it used. It is an extremely rare word based on the Old Testament book of Jeremiah. If you read this book, (or a synopsis) you will understand how the word came to be. Jeremiah ranted against the evil and sinful ways of the people; that they had broken ***'s cove
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Thank you so much.
(A) So the Oxford dictionary is probably remiss in defining "jeremiad" as "a list of woes."
(B) That really should have been obvious. I was too hasty when reading the sentence.
I agree that words have registers and should be used according to the given context (thanks for the reminder!).
I spotted the word today towards the very end of an op-ed article in t
(A) So the Oxford dictionary is probably remiss in defining "jeremiad" as "a list of woes."
(B) That really should have been obvious. I was too hasty when reading the sentence.
I agree that words have registers and should be used according to the given context (thanks for the reminder!).
I spotted the word today towards the very end of an op-ed article in t
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SuperESLFor me, if a word is not out of place in an outlet like the NY Times, or the Guardian, or the Globe and Mail, then it really should be part of an educated person's vocabulary. By that standard, jeremiad is a word that I would want to acquire and feel free to use.Papers like the NY Times and the Guardian are aimed at an educated readership. We were not
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SuperESLBy that standard, jeremiad is a word that I would want to acquire and feel free to use.Fine, but you'll find quite a few reasonably well educated native speakers looking at you a little strangely if you do use it.
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SuperESL(A) So the Oxford dictionary is probably remiss in defining "jeremiad" as "a list of woes."I disagree. To get such an entry, there must have been citations to justify it.
Do you know how dictionaries are created?
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Yes, I know you mean well. I'll be careful about when to use the word. Don't want to be seen as a snob. Thanks.
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I was actually looking for examples where "jeremiad" defined as "a list of woes" would fit in. The Oxford dictionary doesn't give me any. That's what prompted my original post.
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