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Temerity vs Tenacity - What's the difference?

temerity | tenacity | Related terms |

As nouns the difference between temerity and tenacity

is that temerity is reckless boldness; foolish bravery while tenacity is the quality or state of being tenacious; as, tenacity, or retentiveness, of memory; tenacity, or persistency, of purpose.

temerity

English

Noun

  • (not countable) Reckless boldness; foolish bravery.
  • * 1569 , Thomas Pearson, trans., "The Second Paradox," in The booke of Marcus Tullius Cicero entituled Paradoxa Stoicorum , T. Marshe (London),
    • Neyther the spightfull temerity and rashnes of variable fortune, nor the envious hart burning and in iurious hatred of mine enemies shold be able once to damnify me.
  • * 1837 , , The Pickwick Papers , ch. 17,
    • One day when he knew old Lobbs was out, Nathaniel Pipkin had the temerity to kiss his hand to Maria Lobbs.
  • * 1886 , , The Mayor of Casterbridge , ch. 21
    • Elizabeth trotted through the open door in the dusk, but becoming alarmed at her own temerity , she went quickly out again by another which stood open in the lofty wall of the back court.
  • * 1913 , , The Return of Tarzan , ch. 21,
    • I am surprised that you, sir, a man of letters yourself, should have the temerity so to interrupt the progress of science.
  • (countable) An act or case of reckless boldness.
  • * 1910 , , "The Blond Beast," Scribner's Magazine , vol. 48 (Sept),
    • Draper, dear lad, had the illusion of an "intellectual sympathy" between them.... Draper's temerities would always be of that kind.
  • (not countable) Effrontery; impudence.
  • * 1820 , , Precaution , ch. 30,
    • He had very nearly been guilty of the temerity of arrogating to himself another title in the presence of those he most respected.

    Synonyms

    * (reckless boldness): audacity, foolhardiness, rashness, recklessness * (effrontery): brashness, cheek, gall, chutzpah

    Related terms

    * temerarious * temerary * temerous

    References

    * * * * * " temerity" in the Wordsmyth Dictionary-Thesaurus (Wordsmyth, 2002) * " temerity" in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (Cambridge University Press, 2007) * * Oxford English Dictionary , second edition (1989) * Random House Webster's Unabridged Electronic Dictionary (1987-1996) * *

    tenacity

    English

    Noun

    (tenacities)
  • The quality or state of being tenacious; as, tenacity, or retentiveness, of memory; tenacity, or persistency, of purpose.
  • * 2009 , , PHD Comics: Softball: younger and faster
    • — Our opponents may be younger, faster and less out of shape than we are, but we have something they’ll never have!
    — Tenure?
    — Tenacity!
  • The quality of bodies which keeps them from parting without considerable force; cohesiveness; the effect of attraction; – as distinguished from brittleness, fragility, mobility, etc.
  • The quality of bodies which makes them adhere to other bodies; adhesiveness; viscosity.
  • The greatest longitudinal stress a substance can bear without tearing asunder, – usually expressed with reference to a unit area of the cross section of the substance, as the number of pounds per square inch, or kilograms per square centimeter, necessary to produce rupture.

    • Synonyms

    * (state of being tenacious) retentiveness, persistency * (quality keeping bodies together) cohesiveness * (quality making bodies adhere) adhesiveness, viscosity

    Antonyms

    * (quality keeping bodies together) brittleness, fragility, mobility