Timeline for What's the nuances when using "modicum"? Can I say "a modicum of coffee"?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
13 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Dec 11, 2021 at 14:16 | comment | added | Tyl | @Greybeard Got it, thanks for your advice :-) | |
| Dec 11, 2021 at 14:14 | vote | accept | Tyl | ||
| Dec 9, 2021 at 13:42 | review | Close votes | |||
| Dec 16, 2021 at 7:12 | |||||
| Dec 9, 2021 at 12:14 | answer | added | Laurel♦ | timeline score: 2 | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 11:15 | comment | added | Greybeard | I would avoid "modicum". It sounds very old-fashioned and gives the impression of someone using a rare word when a perfectly common word would be normal - it is inappropriate in most circumstances for those reasons. | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 11:09 | answer | added | DjinTonic | timeline score: 0 | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 10:43 | comment | added | Stuart F | OED has quite a few literary examples with food like "a modicum of honey" (Unsworth) or "a small modicum of dry toast" (Trollope); not sure if this is slightly humorous or poetic. | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 8:11 | comment | added | user 66974 | @MarcInManhattan- you’re making an interesting point. Modicum is mainly associated with abstract concepts rather than physical things. Modicum of sugar, though, appears to be an exception google.com/… | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 3:29 | comment | added | MarcInManhattan | I think @DjinTonic is being facetious; the line is "a spoonful of sugar". I can't recall "modicum" ever being used for solid physical objects (though perhaps I haven't heard it enough). I usually hear it in phrases like "a modicum of quiet". A quick web search confirms: modicum of support, relief, attention, interest, power, courage, etc. | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 3:02 | comment | added | Tyl | @DjinTonic Thanks! That's a great example of its usage :-) | |
| Dec 9, 2021 at 2:29 | comment | added | DjinTonic | "Just a modicum of sugar helps the medicine go down." --Mary Poppins | |
| S Dec 9, 2021 at 2:22 | review | First questions | |||
| Dec 9, 2021 at 6:15 | |||||
| S Dec 9, 2021 at 2:22 | history | asked | Tyl | CC BY-SA 4.0 |