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Cram vs Rote - What's the difference?

cram | rote |

As nouns the difference between cram and rote

is that cram is the act of cramming while rote is the process of learning or committing something to memory through mechanical repetition, usually by hearing and repeating aloud, often without full attention to comprehension or thought for the meaning.

As verbs the difference between cram and rote

is that cram is to press, force, or drive, particularly in filling, or in thrusting one thing into another; to stuff; to crowd; to fill to superfluity; as, to cram anything into a basket; to cram a room with people while rote is to go out by rotation or succession; to rotate.

As an adjective rote is

by repetition or practice.

cram

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • The act of cramming.
  • Information hastily memorized; as, a cram from an examination.
  • A warp having more than two threads passing through each dent or split of the reed.

    • Verb

    (cramm)
  • To ; as, to cram anything into a basket; to cram a room with people.
  • To fill with food to ; to stuff.
  • To put through an extensive course of memorizing or study, as in preparation for an examination; as, a pupil is crammed by his tutor.
  • .
  • To , and to satiety; to stuff.
  • To make crude or study.

    • Derived terms

    * cram school

    Anagrams

    * *

    rote

    English

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl), origin uncertain. Likely from the phrase (see (rotary)), but the calls both suggestions groundless.

    Noun

    (-)
  • The process of learning or committing something to memory through mechanical repetition, usually by hearing and repeating aloud, often without full attention to comprehension or thought for the meaning.
    • They didn’t have copies of the music for everyone, so most of us had to learn the song by rote .
  • * 2009 , Jim Holt], ''[http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/05/books/review/Holt-t.html?_r=2&8bu&emc=bub1 Got Poetry?
    • But memorize them we did, in big painful chunks, by rote repetition.
  • Mechanical routine; a fixed, habitual, repetitive, or mechanical course of procedure.
    • The pastoral scenes from those commercials don’t bear too much resemblance to the rote of daily life on a farm.
    Usage notes
    * Commonly found in the phrase "by rote" and in attributive use: "rote learning", "rote memorization", and so on. * Often used pejoratively in comparison with "deeper" learning that leads to "understanding".
    Derived terms
    * rotelike * rotely
    See also
    * muscle memory

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • By repetition or practice.
  • *

    • Verb

    (rot)
  • (obsolete) To go out by rotation or succession; to rotate.
    • (Zane Grey)
  • To learn or repeat by rote.
    • (Shakespeare)

    Etymology 2

    c. 1600, from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (-)
  • (rare) The roar of the surf; the sound of waves breaking on the shore.

    • Etymology 3

    (etyl) rote, probably of German origin; compare Middle High German (rotte), and English .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A kind of guitar, the notes of which were produced by a small wheel or wheel-like arrangement; an instrument similar to the hurdy-gurdy.
  • * Sir Walter Scott
    • extracting mistuned dirges from their harps, crowds, and rotes

    Anagrams

    * ----