Wednesday, March 4, 2020
Words That Include Dur
Words That Include Dur  Words That Include Dur  Words That Include Dur                                      By Mark Nichol                                            	  If a word begins with or includes the element dur, itââ¬â¢s likely to be part of the word family derived from the Latin verb durare, meaning ââ¬Å"hardenâ⬠ or ââ¬Å"last.â⬠ This post defines the members of this family.  Durable means ââ¬Å"able to last a long timeâ⬠ (the noun forms are durability and, rarely, durableness), and a little-known intensifier of that word, perdurable, employs the ââ¬Å"throughoutâ⬠ sense of the prefix per- to mean ââ¬Å"everlastingâ⬠ or ââ¬Å"very durable.â⬠ To endure is to accept or tolerate, though the word may refer to suffering a condition or experience, and it also pertains to continuation of a state or to putting up with the continuation.  Something that can be endured is endurable, and the noun form is endurance, which means ââ¬Å"an act or instance of enduringâ⬠ and sometimes refers to any of several types of competitive events involving long distances and/or arduous conditions the participants must endure. (The mostly obsolete word durance is still used occasionally in legal contexts to refer to physical restraint or confinement.) Enduro is an off-road motorcycle sport.  During means ââ¬Å"at a point in the course ofâ⬠ or ââ¬Å"throughout,â⬠ so the context of a sentence in which during is employed must clarify whether something done during a visit, for example, was done at some time while the visit occurred or all through the visit. Duration, meanwhile, is a noun referring to a length or span of time.  The adjective obdurate is a synonym for ââ¬Å"stubborn,â⬠ while the less common word indurate refers to figurative or literal hardening and serves also as a verb meaning ââ¬Å"establishâ⬠ or ââ¬Å"inure,â⬠ or ââ¬Å"make hardâ⬠ or ââ¬Å"make stubborn.â⬠ (Obdurate, however, does not have a verb form; the verb indurate does double duty.)  Interestingly, the medieval poet Danteââ¬â¢s full name is Durante degli Alighieri; his birth name comes from durare and survived into modern Italian as a surname used, among others, by twentieth-century entertainer Jimmy Durante.  Today is the last day to join our Freelance Writing Course. Dont miss out!                                          Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily!                Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:What is the Difference Between "These" and "Those"?50 Idioms About Meat and Dairy ProductsFew vs. Several    
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