💡 Short and wise 🗺️ About maps or sundials

gnomonic

9.9

Expressing ideas in short, wise statements

adjective
/nəˈmɒnɪk/

Literature

: gnómico

The philosopher's gnomonic remarks stayed with the audience long after the lecture ended.

Examples

He admired the gnomonic style of ancient proverbs for their clarity and wisdom.
Her speech was gnomonic, filled with brief but powerful insights.
His advice was very gnomonic and insightful.
The gnomonic sayings in the book resonated with many readers.
Her speech was gnomonic, filled with brief but powerful insights that lingered in the minds of her listeners.
The philosopher's gnomonic remarks provided the audience with concise wisdom that they could easily remember.
He admired the gnomonic style of ancient proverbs, noting how they communicated deep truths in just a few words.

Synonyms

pithy

vsgnomonic

18 6.5

Short and strong, expressing a clear idea

emphasizes short wise sayings rather than forceful blunt expression

succinct

vsgnomonic

18 6.4

Short and clear, using only a few words

prefers short wise sayings with memorable meaning rather than plain brevity

laconic

vsgnomonic

5 8.3

Using very few words, often sounding rude

values brief wise sayings rather than blunt or rude terseness

aphoristic

vsgnomonic

1 8.2

Expressing ideas in short, wise phrases that are easy to remember

is the identical sense used as a concise wise descriptor

epigrammatic

vsgnomonic

Literature

1 8.6

Said or written in a short, clever way

leans more toward lasting wisdom and meaning than cleverness

apothegmatic

vsgnomonic

Archaic

9.9

Expressing ideas in short, clever phrases that are easy to remember

is more about wisdom and maxim form than playful cleverness

apothegmatical

vsgnomonic

Archaic

9.9

Being short and clever like a wise saying

focuses on wise compact statements rather than simply being witty

How Aphoristic

sententious

Formal

1 9.9

aphoristic

1 8.2

gnomonic

Literature

9.9

pithy

18 6.5

terse

12 7.0

concise

37 4.2

Surface Forms

gnomonic positive

Morphology

gnomonic = gnomon (opaque) = gnomon + ic

Although the word is formally built from 'gnomon' + '-ic', the sense 'aphoristic or wise' is not predictably derived from the sundial-related base in modern English.

Etymology

The word gnomonic comes from the Greek gnōmē, meaning 'judgment' or 'opinion', and is related to the English word know. So a gnomonic remark is like a short, 'knowing' saying — a brief, wise sentence full of meaning.