Saturday, September 26, 2015

Word of the Day

tenuity
\tuh-NOO-i-tee, -NYOO-, te-\,
adjective:

1. thinness of consistency; rarefied condition.
2. the state of being tenuous.
3. slenderness.

The exceeding tenuity of the object of our dread was apparent; for all heavenly objects were plainly visible through it.
-- Edgar Allan Poe, "The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion," 1839

There was no doubt left to me; the atmosphere of the moon was either pure oxygen or air, and capable therefore—unless its tenuity was excessive—of supporting our alien life.
-- H.G. Wells, "The First Men in the Moon," 1901

Tenuity is derived from the Latin word tenuitās meaning "thinness."

Dictionary.com