See Also: INTELLIGENCE
See Also: RARITY
Pope’s Moral Essays can be credited with the first of many “Charity begins at home” comparisons.
See Also: CHANGE, EDUCATION, PEACEFULNESS, SENSE
rhyme or reason Sense, justification, explanation, cause, motivation; reasonableness, reason. The rhyme of the phrase remains as a superfluous alliterative element, providing added emphasis. Apparently it originally referred to amusement or entertainment, since works written in verse were considered aimed toward those ends; the reason of the phrase meant instruction or enlightenment, the supposed province of prose. Today the words usually appear in negative structures or contexts denoting their absence: without rhyme or reason, neither rhyme nor reason, what possible rhyme or reason? The expression was used in this sense of ‘reasonableness’ only as early as 1664 by Henry More:
Against all the laws of prophetic interpretation, nay indeed against all rhyme and reason. (Mystery of Iniquity)
An anecdote frequently recounted about Sir Thomas More, however, indicates that the phrase may have been in common parlance by the 15th century. A budding author, on requesting the learned man’s opinion of a work, was told to convert it to rhyme. Having done so, he submitted it to Sir Thomas’ judgment once again, upon which the scholarly wit devastatingly remarked, “That will do. ’Tis rhyme now, anyway, whereas before ’twas neither rhyme nor reason.”
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| sense |
| Noun | 1. | sense - a general conscious awareness; "a sense of security"; "a sense of happiness"; "a sense of danger"; "a sense of self" awareness, cognisance, cognizance, knowingness, consciousness - having knowledge of; "he had no awareness of his mistakes"; "his sudden consciousness of the problem he faced"; "their intelligence and general knowingness was impressive" sense of direction - an awareness of your orientation in space sense of responsibility - an awareness of your obligations |
| 2. | sense - the meaning of a word or expression; the way in which a word or expression or situation can be interpreted; "the dictionary gave several senses for the word"; "in the best sense charity is really a duty"; "the signifier is linked to the signified" meaning, signification, import, significance - the message that is intended or expressed or signified; "what is the meaning of this sentence"; "the significance of a red traffic light"; "the signification of Chinese characters"; "the import of his announcement was ambiguous" | |
| 3. | sense - the faculty through which the external world is apprehended; "in the dark he had to depend on touch and on his senses of smell and hearing" sensitivity, sensitiveness, sensibility - (physiology) responsiveness to external stimuli; the faculty of sensation; "sensitivity to pain" | |
| 4. | sense - sound practical judgment; "Common sense is not so common"; "he hasn't got the sense God gave little green apples"; "fortunately she had the good sense to run away" sagaciousness, sagacity, discernment, judgement, judgment - the mental ability to understand and discriminate between relations logic - reasoned and reasonable judgment; "it made a certain kind of logic" nous - common sense; "she has great social nous" road sense - good judgment in avoiding trouble or accidents on the road | |
| 5. | sense - a natural appreciation or ability; "a keen musical sense"; "a good sense of timing" appreciation, grasp, hold - understanding of the nature or meaning or quality or magnitude of something; "he has a good grasp of accounting practices" | |
| Verb | 1. | sense - perceive by a physical sensation, e.g., coming from the skin or muscles; "He felt the wind"; "She felt an object brushing her arm"; "He felt his flesh crawl"; "She felt the heat when she got out of the car" perceive, comprehend - to become aware of through the senses; "I could perceive the ship coming over the horizon" feel - be felt or perceived in a certain way; "The ground feels shaky"; "The sheets feel soft" |
| 2. | sense - detect some circumstance or entity automatically; "This robot can sense the presence of people in the room"; "particle detectors sense ionization" | |
| 3. | sense - become aware of not through the senses but instinctively; "I sense his hostility"; "i smell trouble"; "smell out corruption" perceive - become conscious of; "She finally perceived the futility of her protest" | |
| 4. | sense - comprehend; "I sensed the real meaning of his letter" understand - know and comprehend the nature or meaning of; "She did not understand her husband"; "I understand what she means" |