English Synonyms and Antonyms Part 18

Synonyms:

have the appearance _or_ semblance, look, seem.

_Appear_ and _look_ refer to what manifests itself to the senses; to a semblance or probability presented directly to the mind. _Seem_ applies to what is manifest to the mind on reflection. It suddenly _appears_ to me that there is smoke in the distance; as I watch, it _looks_ like a fire; from my knowledge of the locality and observation of particulars, it _seems_ to me a farmhouse must be burning.

Antonyms:

be, be certain, real, _or_ true, be the fact, exist.

Prepositions:

Appear _at_ the front; _among_ the first; _on_ or _upon_ the surface; _to_ the eye; _in_ evidence, _in_ print; _from_ reports; _near_ the harbor; _before_ the public; _in_ appropriate dress; _with_ the insignia of his rank; _above_ the clouds; _below_ the surface; _under_ the lee; _over_ the sea; _through_ the mist; appear _for_, _in behalf of_, or _against_ one in court.

APPENDAGE.

Synonyms:

accessory, addition, appurtenance, concomitant, accompaniment, adjunct, attachment, extension, addendum, appendix, auxiliary, supplement.

An _adjunct_ (something joined to) const.i.tutes no real part of the thing or system to which it is joined, tho perhaps a valuable _addition_; an _appendage_ is commonly a real, tho not an essential or necessary part of that with which it is connected; an _appurtenance_ belongs subordinately to something by which it is employed, especially as an instrument to accomplish some purpose. A horse's tail is at once an ornamental _appendage_ and a useful _appurtenance_; we could not call it an _adjunct_, tho we might use that word of his iron shoes. An _attachment_ in machinery is some mechanism that can be brought into optional connection with the princ.i.p.al movement; a hemmer is a valuable _attachment_ of a sewing-machine. An _extension_, as of a railroad or of a franchise, carries out further something already existing. We add an _appendix_ to a book, to contain names, dates, lists, etc., which would enc.u.mber the text; we add a _supplement_ to supply omissions, as, for instance, to bring it up to date. An _appendix_ may be called an _addendum_; but _addendum_ may be used of a brief note, which would not be dignified by the name of _appendix_; such notes are often grouped as _addenda_. An _addition_ might be matter interwoven in the body of the work, an index, plates, editorial notes, etc., which might be valuable _additions_, but not within the meaning of _appendix_ or _supplement_.

Compare ACCESSORY; AUXILIARY.

Antonyms:

main body, original, total, whole.

Prepositions:

That which is thought of as added we call an appendage _to_; that which is looked upon as an integral part is called an appendage _of_.

APPEt.i.tE.

Synonyms:

appetency, impulse, l.u.s.t, propensity, craving, inclination, pa.s.sion, relish, desire, liking, proclivity, thirst, disposition, longing, p.r.o.neness, zest.

_Appet.i.te_ is used only of the demands of the physical system, unless otherwise expressly stated, as when we say an _appet.i.te_ for knowledge; _pa.s.sion_ includes all excitable impulses of our nature, as anger, fear, love, hatred, etc. _Appet.i.te_ is thus more animal than _pa.s.sion_; and when we speak of _pa.s.sions_ and _appet.i.tes_ as conjoined or contrasted, we think of the _appet.i.tes_ as wholly physical and of the _pa.s.sions_ as, in part at least, mental or spiritual. We say an _appet.i.te_ for food, a _pa.s.sion_ for fame. Compare DESIRE.

Antonyms:

antipathy, disgust, distaste, indifference, repugnance, aversion, dislike, hatred, loathing, repulsion.

detestation, disrelish,

Compare ANTIPATHY.

Preposition:

He had an insatiable appet.i.te _for_ the marvellous.

APPORTION.

Synonyms:

allot, appropriate, deal, distribute, grant, appoint, a.s.sign, dispense, divide, share.

To _allot_ or _a.s.sign_ may be to make an arbitrary division; the same is true of _distribute_ or _divide_. That which is _apportioned_ is given by some fixed rule, which is meant to be uniform and fair; as, representatives are _apportioned_ among the States according to population. To _dispense_ is to give out freely; as, the sun _dispenses_ light and heat. A thing is _appropriated_ to or for a specific purpose (to which it thus becomes _proper_, in the original sense of being its own); money _appropriated_ by Congress for one purpose can not be expended for any other. One may _apportion_ what he only holds in trust; he _shares_ what is his own. Compare ALLOT.

Antonyms:

cling to, consolidate, gather together, receive, collect, divide arbitrarily, keep together, retain.

Prepositions:

Apportion _to_ each a fair amount; apportion the property _among_ the heirs, _between_ two claimants; apportion _according to_ numbers, etc.

APPROXIMATION.

Synonyms:

approach, likeness, neighborhood, resemblance, contiguity, nearness, propinquity, similarity.

In mathematics, _approximation_ is not guesswork, not looseness, and not error. The process of _approximation_ is as exact and correct at every point as that by which an absolute result is secured; the result only fails of exactness because of some inherent difficulty in the problem.

The attempt to "square the circle" gives only an _approximate_ result, because of the impossibility of expressing the circ.u.mference in terms of the radius. But the limits of error on either side are known, and the _approximation_ has practical value. Outside of mathematics, the correct use of _approximation_ (and the kindred words _approximate_ and _approximately_) is to express as near an approach to accuracy and certainty as the conditions of human thought or action in any given case make possible. _Resemblance_ and _similarity_ may be but superficial and apparent; _approximation_ is real. _Approach_ is a relative term, indicating that one has come nearer than before, tho the distance may yet be considerable; an _approximation_ brings one really near.

_Nearness_, _neighborhood_, and _propinquity_ are commonly used of place; _approximation_, of mathematical calculations and abstract reasoning; we speak of _approach_ to the sh.o.r.e, _nearness_ to the town, _approximation_ to the truth.

Antonyms: