How often does "impassionate" be written as a negative word?

Tacia

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Oct 12, 2008, 5:25:46 PM10/12/08

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Dear All,

In a question set of GRE (Graduate Record Examinations),
"impassionate" is opposite to "vehement."

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/impassionate
On this page, in the Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary part (in
the lower section),
It states "Without passion or feeling."

Most of the dictionaries say it means "impassioned."

I was wondering how often "impassionate" is written as a negative
word.

Thank you.

Bohgosity BumaskiL

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Oct 12, 2008, 5:42:56 PM10/12/08

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It could be done in a context where passion is wrong. "Level-headed
lover", perhaps. A killer could be impassionate, which would probably
make it a serial killer.

John Dean

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Oct 12, 2008, 6:03:05 PM10/12/08

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OED classes 'impassionate' as rare and I can attest to never seeing it until
just now. OED also points out that one version equates to impassioned and
one to dispassionate so the two meanings co-exist, something which is not
unusual in English.
--
John Dean
Oxford

bry...@attglobal.net

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Oct 12, 2008, 10:55:43 PM10/12/08

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"Tacia" <outof...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:3aa4533a-fbd0-492b...@w24g2000prd.googlegroups.com...

I don't know, until you asked the question I wasn't aware of that meaning.

Both meanings are in my two 19th century dictionaries.

From now on I will certainly look for it in writing from before 1900.

Jim

Alan Jones

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Oct 13, 2008, 4:05:56 AM10/13/08

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"John Dean" <john...@fraglineone.net> wrote in message
news:6lfafoF...@mid.individual.net...

Like John, I'd never seen "impassionate" before your enquiry: only
"impassioned", "dispassionate" and "impassive". It seems a strange word to
include in any examination question.

Alan Jones

Chuck Riggs

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Oct 13, 2008, 11:41:49 AM10/13/08

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Yes, I was about to say "impassionate" is a humdrum word meaning "not
passionate", but I had mixed it up with "dispassionate".
--

Regards,

Chuck Riggs
Near Dublin, Ireland

JimboCat

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Oct 13, 2008, 1:02:28 PM10/13/08

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On Oct 12, 5:42 pm, Bohgosity BumaskiL

So you're saying that someone who is impassionate is someone whose
passions are *not* inflammable?

Jim Deutch (JimboCar)
--
"Never let it be denied that I couldn't help but fail to disagree with
you less." [R H Draney]

Paul Wolff

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Oct 13, 2008, 2:02:56 PM10/13/08

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Alan Jones <a...@blueyonder.co.uk> wrote

The phrase "impassionate plea" seemed familiar to me, so I asked Google
to have a look, and it came up with 157 (that was the count when I went
to the last of "about 600"). Some of those were the same texts at
different URLs.
--
Paul

Mike Lyle

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Oct 13, 2008, 4:54:39 PM10/13/08

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It was quite new to me until now. Not a clear word, in my opinion, and I
don't think it's remotely fair to expect anybody to know it or to guess
it. Exceptions would be those who were reasonably expected to have read
a specific text which contained it (I may regret saying that...).

--
Mike.

Paul Wolff

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Oct 13, 2008, 5:59:12 PM10/13/08

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Mike Lyle <mike_l...@REMOVETHISyahoo.co.uk> wrote

The more I think of it -- and I could make better use of my time -- the
more I think that 'impassioned plea' was what I was recalling. Even
'empassioned plea' comes up more often than the impassionate variety.
Forget I spoke back there.
--
Paul

Bohgosity BumaskiL

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Oct 14, 2008, 10:44:24 AM10/14/08

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> you less." [R H Draney]- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Not enflamed. Dispassionate would be a synonym, so as in
"dispassionate observer", it's typically a good thing. The only
negative contexts I can think of are "Level-headed lover." and
"Methodical killer".