| / English Dictionary |
EMPHASIS
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
Irregular inflected form: emphases
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Intensity or forcefulness of expression
Example:
his emphasis on civil rights
Synonyms:
emphasis; vehemence
Classified under:
Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects
Hypernyms ("emphasis" is a kind of...):
intensity; intensiveness (high level or degree; the property of being intense)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "emphasis"):
overemphasis (too much emphasis)
Derivation:
emphatic (forceful and definite in expression or action)
emphatic (spoken with emphasis)
Sense 2
Meaning:
The relative prominence of a syllable or musical note (especially with regard to stress or pitch)
Example:
he put the stress on the wrong syllable
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("emphasis" is a kind of...):
inflection; prosody (the patterns of stress and intonation in a language)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "emphasis"):
accentuation (the use or application of an accent; the relative prominence of syllables in a phrase or utterance)
pitch accent; tonic accent (emphasis that results from pitch rather than loudness)
word accent; word stress (the distribution of stresses within a polysyllabic word)
sentence stress (the distribution of stresses within a sentence)
Derivation:
emphatic (sudden and strong)
emphatic (spoken with emphasis)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Special and significant stress by means of position or repetition e.g.
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("emphasis" is a kind of...):
rhetorical device (a use of language that creates a literary effect (but often without regard for literal significance))
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "emphasis"):
topicalization ((linguistics) emphasis placed on the topic or focus of a sentence by preposing it to the beginning of the sentence; placing the topic at the beginning of the sentence is typical for English)
Derivation:
emphatic (forceful and definite in expression or action)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Special importance or significance
Example:
the room was decorated in shades of grey with distinctive red accents
Synonyms:
accent; emphasis
Classified under:
Nouns denoting stable states of affairs
Hypernyms ("emphasis" is a kind of...):
grandness; importance (a prominent status)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "emphasis"):
focus; stress (special emphasis attached to something)
Derivation:
emphasize (to stress, single out as important)
emphatic (forceful and definite in expression or action)
Context examples:
Particular emphasis is placed on encouraging interdisciplinary, population-based research focusing on the etiologic mechanisms underlying the interaction of genetic and epidemiologic risk factors for cancer susceptibility.
(Interdisciplinary Studies in the Genetic Epidemiology of Cancer, NCI Thesaurus)
The study of microorganisms with an emphasis on their role in the human disease process.
(Medical Microbiology, NCI Thesaurus)
“There never would have been anything the matter, if it hadn't been for that old Animal,” said my aunt, with strong emphasis.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
“But you tried to prevent it?” There was an emphasis on the “tried,” and a pleading little note in her voice.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
There was no special emphasis of his repetition of Martin's word.
(Martin Eden, by Jack London)
"I should have been quite disappointed if I had not found you here STILL," said she repeatedly, with a strong emphasis on the word.
(Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen)
These poor lads have chosen me cap'n, after your desertion, sir—laying a particular emphasis upon the word desertion.
(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)
The Center's research emphases include high-priority transdisciplinary initiatives, minority health and health disparities, and systems biomedicine initiatives.
(Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, NCI Thesaurus)
A Standards Developing Organization (SDO) operating in the healthcare arena with an emphasis on the domain of clinical and administrative data.
(Health Level Seven, NCI Thesaurus)
Provide a high level of professional nursing care with a special emphasis on the care of individuals with neurological diseases/diagnoses, such as stroke (CVA), brain injury, or spinal injury.
(Neurological Nursing, NCI Thesaurus)
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