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Something that is amorphous has no clear shape, boundaries, or structure.
When something attenuates, it lessens in size or intensity; it becomes thin or weakened.
The word corporeal refers to the physical or material world rather than the spiritual; it also means characteristic of the body rather than the mind or feelings.
Someone who is corpulent is extremely fat.
A diaphanous cloth is thin enough to see through.
Something ethereal has a delicate beauty that makes it seem not part of the real world.
Limpid speech or prose is clear, simple, and easily understood; things, such as pools of water or eyes, are limpid if they are clear or transparent.
If someone is lucid, they are able to understand things and think clearly; this adjective also describes writing or speech that is crystal clear and easy to understand.
An organization or system that is a monolith is extremely large; additionally, it is unwilling or very slow to change or adopt something new.
If you describe something as nebulous, you mean that it is unclear, vague, and not clearly defined; a shape that is nebulous has no clear boundaries.
Something is opaque if it is either difficult to understand or is not transparent.
Something that is pellucid is either extremely clear because it is transparent to the eye or it is very easy for the mind to understand.
When a substance permeates something, it enters into all parts of it.
To rarefy something is to make it less dense, as in oxygen at high altitudes; this word also refers to purifying or refining something, thereby making it less ordinary or commonplace.
If you say that something is somatic, you mean that it relates to or affects the body and not the mind.
Stasis is a state of little change over a long period of time, or a condition of inactivity caused by an equal balance of opposing forces.
If you are steadfast, you have a firm belief in your actions or opinions and refuse to give up or change them because you are certain that you are doing the right thing.
The adjective svelte describes a person who is attractive, slender, and possesses a graceful figure.
Something tenuous is thin, weak, and unconvincing.
A translucent object allows some light to pass through it.
Something that is turbid, such as water, is muddy or cloudy because it has lots of small pieces of matter or dirt in it.
Something that is vaporous is not completely formed but foggy and misty; in the same vein, a vaporous idea is insubstantial and vague.
Adj.
gossamer
GOS-uh-mer
Context
As I was hiking through the forest, I kept on seeing thin, gossamer threads of spiderwebs above me—and to the right and left. These gossamer threads seemed so insubstantial, so not solid, that it was hard for me to believe they could support the weight of even something so light as a spider. Even the air wafting through these gossamer, flimsy strands seemed of the same slight consistency as these spiderwebs. Imagine my delight when some light hit the dew hanging on the gossamer threads, creating a beautiful luminous spectacle; I watched them, spellbound—until I saw thousands of spiders emerge!
Quiz:Try again!
What does a poet mean if they describe a dragonfly’s wings as gossamer?
They are disproportionately large compared to the body of the dragonfly.
They are rather insubstantial, almost transparent, and airy in nature.
They are fluttering too fast to be seen by the human eye.
Became a Ghost When I became a ghost, I gained a gossamer body through which all could see.
Examples
The gossamer-thin strands of ultra-pure glass delivering voice, video and data at the speed of light have replaced copper as the backbone of America’s telephone and cable television networks and enabled the phenomenal growth of the Internet.
—
USA Today
Large and bold, and crafted in a flowing style reminiscent of the Belle Epoque, the brooch is mounted in titanium, and is so light you could wear it on the thinnest gossamer silk.
—
The Economist
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said its Stardust spacecraft could pass within 186 miles of the comet Wild 2 on Friday while flying through the gossamer cloud that envelops the dirty ball of ice and rock.
—
Wired
"This is my dress!" I announced. The clerk draped it over her arm and headed toward the cash register. Driving home I imagined myself gliding across the polished dance floor in high-heeled silken shoes, the gossamer layers of chiffon rustling from side to side.
—
The Christian Science Monitor
Word Ingredients
Perhaps from root words meaning “goose” and “summer.” During the season of “summer,” fine, filmy cobweb-like strands, or gossamer, are often found in the grass in the early morning dew which resemble fine “goose” down.
