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If you abridge a book or play, you make it shorter by making cuts to the original.
When something attenuates, it lessens in size or intensity; it becomes thin or weakened.
Attrition is the process of gradually decreasing the strength of something—such as an army or workforce—by continually weakening it or decreasing it in size.
To augment something is to increase its value or effectiveness by adding something to it.
If you describe a system or process as byzantine, it means that you are criticizing it because it is excessively complicated and difficult to understand.
Something colossal is extremely big, gigantic, or huge.
If something daunts you, it makes you worried about dealing with it because you think it will be very difficult or dangerous.
Debility is a state of being physically or mentally weak, usually due to illness.
If you describe someone, usually a young woman, as demure, you mean that she is quiet, shy, and always behaves modestly.
A diminution of something is a reduction in the size, number, or importance of it.
If something is formidable, it is impressive in size, power, or skill; therefore, it can make you feel frightened, alarmed, or in awe because it is so powerful or difficult to deal with.
Something gargantuan is extremely large.
Something that is imperceptible is either impossible to be perceived by the mind or is very difficult to perceive.
Something that is inconspicuous does not attract attention and is not easily seen or noticed because it is small or ordinary.
An indomitable foe cannot be beaten.
Someone who is inexorable can be pitiless and cruel since they cannot be persuaded to consider mercy.
Something infinitesimal is so extremely small or minute that it is very hard to measure it.
An irrevocable action or decision is impossible to change, reverse, or stop.
A juggernaut is a very powerful force, organization, or group whose influence cannot be stopped; its strength and power can overwhelm or crush any competition or anything else that stands in its way.
If you describe a situation or process as labyrinthine, you mean that it is very complicated, involved, and difficult to understand.
A macrocosm is a large, complex, and organized system or structure that is made of many small parts that form one unit, such as a society or the universe.
A microcosm is a small group, place, or activity that has all the same qualities as a much larger one; therefore, it seems like a smaller version of it.
Something minuscule is extremely small in size or amount.
An organization or system that is a monolith is extremely large; additionally, it is unwilling or very slow to change or adopt something new.
An omnipotent being or entity is unlimited in its power.
A task or responsibility is onerous if you dislike having to do it because it is difficult or tiring.
Something that is prodigious is very large, impressive, or great.
When someone exhibits profundity, they display great intellectual depth and understanding; profundity can also be the depth or complexity of something.
If you describe someone as redoubtable, you have great respect for their power and strength; you may be afraid of them as well.
Someone who is unassuming is not boastful or arrogant; rather, they are modest or humble.
If someone acts in an unobtrusive way, their actions are not easily noticed and do not stand out in any way.
Something that is voluminous is long, large, or vast in size.
If something—such as power, influence, or feeling—wanes, it gradually becomes weaker or less important, often so much so that it eventually disappears.
Noun
leviathan
li-VAHY-uh-thuhn
Context
The giant squid is a leviathan or true giant of the deep sea. This leviathan or enormous creature, whose existence was only confirmed in 2004 via camera footage, is thought to reach lengths of sixty-five feet. Architeuthis, the scientific name of the giant squid, is such a leviathan or very large creature that its eyes are the size of a human head or dinner plate—the biggest in the animal world. Giant squid are famous for battling another leviathan or titanic monster of the sea, the sperm whale, which itself can reach lengths of sixty feet. Scientists also now know that there is another type of really big squid, called the colossal squid; this leviathan, although somewhat shorter than the giant squid, has about twice its mass.
Quiz:Try again!
What is a leviathan?
Something that is huge and tremendously strong.
Something that controls and influences everyday life.
Nothing Bigger ThanLevi's I would rather wear Levi's than any other jeans; it's not because Levi's is a leviathan amongst clothes companies--it's just that I like the jeans that Levi Strauss makes more than any other jean.
Examples
That’s because the British had a force of 32,000 men against his 12,000. If Washington had not changed his thinking, the American Revolution almost surely would have failed because the Continental Army was no match for the British leviathan.
—
Los Angeles Times
These leviathans who live and migrate in waters along the East Coast of North America teeter closer to the brink of extinction than perhaps any other whale species.
—
The Christian Science Monitor
Two-second ads have been popping up anew—briefly, of course—on stations owned by Clear Channel Communications, the radio leviathan that developed the concept and began selling it to marketers last year.
—
The Washington Post
For Orpheus' lute was strung with poets' sinews,/ Whose golden touch could soften steel and stones,/ Make tigers tame, and huge leviathans/ Forsake unsounded deeps to dance on sands.
—
William Shakespeare, from "The Two Gentlemen of Verona"
Word Ingredients
The word leviathan originally referred to a huge and monstrous sea creature mentioned in the Bible.
origin: Hebrew
Knowing language of origin or etymology is not important; but is sometimes interesting enough to make the word memorable. Only such words have associated maps.
Word Theater
Godzilla The original Godzilla, a menacing leviathan.
The panel shows a small video clip of either the word in actual use or a scene that represents the meaning of a word. This not only breaks up the monotony of studying words but also provides another avenue to strengthen word meaning. Enjoy!
