Midnight at the Ball
I knew it was love.
When we danced, the world stood still.
Then the clock chimed once.
Suddenly she froze.
Timidly, I took her hand
As the clock chimed twice.
Just one kiss, I wished.
At the third chime, I leaned in…
But she turned and fled.
Four chimes in, I paused.
That was when I realized,
I don’t know her name.
Terror seized my heart.
No, I cannot lose her now.
Five chimes in, I ran.
Chasing after her,
I could hear the sixth chime ring.
Please come back, I begged.
At the seventh chime,
All I found upon the stairs
Was her glass slipper.
As the eighth chime rang,
I looked down and saw her there,
Running through the doors.
Glass slipper in hand,
I followed her down the path
To the clock’s ninth chime.
I stopped at the gate.
The tenth chime sent her carriage
Out into the night.
Eleven chimes in.
Desperately I called to her.
Just once, she looked back.
Midnight, she was gone.
Lovesick and alone I stood
As the clock struck twelve.
Accent on the Right Syllable: 20 English Words that Change with Pronunciation
English is a funny language. One of my favorite quirks about it is the way words can be changed completely with just a simple alteration. Sometimes you can add or subtract one letter (as in “peas”, “pleas”, and “please”). Sometimes you can swap letters in a word (as in turning a “dog” into a “god”) or between words (as in turning a “barn door” into a “darn boor”). And sometimes, all it takes to alter a word is to change the way you say it. I don’t know about you, but I think that’s pretty neat.
So just for fun, here’s a list of 20 words that completely change in meaning when pronounced differently. Enjoy!
1) Bass – A BAS is a type of freshwater fish. A BAYS is a sound, voice, or musical instrument of the lowest possible range.
2) Close – To be KLOHS is to be nearby. To KLOHZ is to shut something that’s open.
3) Content – To be kən-TENT is to be satisfied or peacefully happy. KAHN-tent is whatever is contained within something.
4) Defect – A DEE-fekt is a flaw or shortcoming. To di-FEKT is to switch sides in a conflict.
5) Desert – To də-ZƏRT is to abandon someone or something. A DE-zərt is a dry and barren area of land.
6) Dove – A DƏV is a type of seed- or fruit-eating bird. DOHV is the past tense of “dive”.
7) Entrance – An EN-trəns is an access point or the act of entering a place. To en-TRANS is to capture someone’s attention by filling them with wonder and delight.
8) Intimate – To be IN-tə-mit is to be closely acquainted and familiar with someone. To IN-tə-mayt is to imply or hint at something.
9) Invalid – An IN-və-lid is a person weakened by sickness or injury. To be in-VA-lid is to be void, untrue, or otherwise not valid.
10) Lead – To LEED is to show the way, to be in charge, or to be superior. LED is a type of soft metal.
11) Object – An AHB-jekt is a material thing. To əb-JEKT is to express disagreement or disapproval.
12) Polish – To be POH-lish is to be of or related to Poland. To PAH-lish is to rub the surface of something until it becomes smooth and shiny.
13) Present – To be PRE-zənt is to be in a particular place. A PRE-zənt is a gift; the PRE-zənt is the period of time happening now. To pri-ZENT is to give something to someone.
14) Project – A PRAH-jekt is an enterprise planned to achieve a particular goal. To prə-JEKT is to move or extend outward.
15) Refuse – To ri-FYOOZ is to express unwillingness to do something. RE-fyoos is matter discarded as trash.
16) Row – A ROH is a group of people or things in a straight line. To ROH is to propel a boat through water with oars. A ROW is a noisy quarrel.
17) Sow – To SOH is to plant seeds in the earth. A SOW is an adult female pig.
18) Tear – To TEHR is to rip something. A TEER is a drop of salty water secreted from the eyes.
19) Wind – WIND is the natural movement of air in the form of currents. To WYND is to move around something in a twisting or spiral course.
20) Wound – A WOOND is an injury typically involving cut or broken skin. WOWND is the past tense of “wind” (WYND).
What are your thoughts on these words? What other words would you add to this list?
Word of the Week: Effigy
Word: effigy
Pronunciation: E-fi-jee
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: a sculpture or model of a person
Source: Oxford Dictionaries
There’s a funny story to how today’s Word of the Week made it onto my vocabulary list. I actually learned the word “effigy” a long time ago from studying vocabulary flashcards, but I had forgotten it until recently when it came up in a conversation I had with my best friend. We were talking about the distant future, and he said that if aliens ever uncover his Minecraft Creeper plush toy, they might think it was an “effigy” of something humans believed was a divine being. It does, after all, look uncannily extraterrestrial.
An “effigy” is a likeness of someone in the form of a model or sculpture. The word comes from the Latin noun effigies, which stems from the verb effingere, meaning “to fashion artistically”. This verb is comprised of the preposition ex “out” and the verb fingere “to shape”.
Note that a common use for an “effigy” is as “a roughly made model of a particular person, made in order to be damaged or destroyed as a protest or expression of anger”. In this case, it’s normal to refer to the person whose likeness is being destroyed as being “burned in effigy”. There also seem to be certain restrictions for how to use the word “effigy”: for example, the term usually applies to lying statues for funerary art, but not necessarily standing statues or religious figures. If your stories contain any three-dimensional models made in the likeness of your characters, you may have a few “effigies” scattered throughout your fiction, though whether or not they should be labeled as such is up to you! Good luck!
What are your thoughts on this word? Any suggestions for future “Word of the Week” featured words?
Little Angel
Her eyes are like the stars
That twinkle in the night.
Her laughter is the sun
That makes our days so bright.
Her smile is like a light
That can brighten any place.
It’s my favorite feature
Of her pretty little face.
She has a songbird’s voice;
I love it when she sings.
She’s great at dancing, acting,
And a hundred other things.
She’s charming, sweet, and funny.
Her heart is full of love.
There really is no question:
She’s a gift sent from above!
If I could tell her one thing
Right now, it would be this:
“I love you, little angel!
Happy Birthday, baby sis!”
Happy Birthday to my awesome baby sister! Keep on being the little angel you are! I love you!
What If? Writing Prompts: Fantasy/Science Fiction IV
Here’s another set of “What If?” Writing Prompts for you! Since I love these genres so much, this week’s post features more prompts themed to fantasy and science fiction. See what stories you can write based on these ideas! Have fun!
What if… the human race were to colonize other planets?
What if… what you thought was a normal vehicle turned out to be a transporter into an alternate dimension?
What if… you discovered that changing the time on your watch changed the time in the real world?
What if… you trained dragons for a living?
What if… you woke up one morning to find your stuffed animals/action figures had come to life?
Enjoy writing some more fantasy and science fiction stories!
If you have any “What If?” writing prompt suggestions (for any theme), please feel free to share them in the comments below. Ideas I like may be featured in future “What If?” posts, with full credit and a link to your blog (if you have one)! Also, if you’ve written a piece based on an idea you’ve found here, be sure to link back to the respective “What If?” post. I would love to see what you’ve done with the prompt! Thank you!
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