Read full poem →The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Dictionary Entry
intensity
Part of SpeechnounPronunciation/ɪnˈtɛnsɪti/Word FrequencyCommon (5.05)Curriculum FrequencyLess common (1)Used In Literature ↓The quality of being intense.
In a Sentence
“The article includes intensity to support a careful argument.”
Published Usage Examples
“In the most complicated, as in the most simple instances, the sophism consists in this: _Judging of the utility of labor by its duration and intensity, and not by its results_, which leads to this economic policy, _a reduction of the results of labor, in order to increase its duration and intensity_.”
“I think the difference in intensity is at least in part due to the difference in scale between the two policies: on the one hand a ban on a tiny category of abortions that affects a very small number of people (partial birth abortions are a only an infinitesmal fraction of all abortions, and many of those who get them”
This entry also appears in ReadingWillow Year 12 word lists, so students can move between the dictionary and year-level study sets.
Origin
From Latin 'intensus' (stretched, strained) via French 'intensité'.
Common Phrases
. intensityintensity lightintensity signalintensity highintensity field
Poetry examples for “intensity”
Excerpts from the ReadingWillow English Library collection.
