"Protracted" (proh-TRAK-tid) – from the Latin for "to drag forth" – means drawn out or prolonged.
Example (as used by Terrence Rafferty in The New York Times): "[Bette Davis's] breakthrough role… came in John Cromwell’s 1934 adaptation of the W. Somerset Maugham novel Of Human Bondage, in which she plays the coldhearted Cockney temptress Mildred Rogers, a vile specimen who cruelly – and protractedly – abuses the affections of a sensitive, artistic, clubfooted young medical student."
Similar Articles:
- Word to the Wise: Durance – "Durance" (DUR-unts) – from the Latin for "to endure" – is imprisonment or restr…
- Word to the Wise: Tyro – A “tyro” (TY-roh) – from the Latin for “a young soldier” – is a novice, someone just beginning to le…
- Exilic – “Exilic” (eg-ZIL-ik) – from the Latin for “wanderer” – pertains to exile or banishment. It can descr…
- Why You Should Be Swearing at Work – A study by the U.K.-based Leadership and Organization Development Journal has found that so-called “…
- Word to the Wise: Shibboleth – "Shibboleth" (SHIB-uh-lith) – from the Hebrew – is a word, saying, custom, or belief ident…
- Getting E-Mails by Mistake – "Here’s the article we discussed," said the e-mail. It was from a writer I know. But I wra…
- It’s Fun to Know: Whale Milk – Newborn whales (calves) feast on their mothers’ milk after they’re born, just like every mammal does…