{{youtube-timestamp 0}} Everybody feels lonely from time to time When we have no one to sit next to at lunch When we move to a new city or when nobody has time for us at the weekend. But over the last few decades, this occasional feeling has become chronic for millions. In the UK, 60% of 18 to 34 year old say they often feel lonely. In the US, 46% of the entire population feel lonely regularly. We are living in the most connected time in human history, and yet, an unprecedented number of us feel isolated. Being lonely and being alone are not the same thing. You can be filled by bliss by yourself, and hate every second surrounded by friends. Loneliness is a purely subjective, individual experience. If you feel lonely, you are lonely. A common stereotype is that loneliness only happens to people who don’t know how to talk to people, or how to behave around others. But population-based studies have shown that social skills make
occasional
The word occasional is an adjective meaning occurring, appearing, or done infrequently and irregularly¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 偶尔⁵ or other synonyms depending on the context. The word occasional is formed by adding two suffixes to the base word occasion. A suffix is an affix that is added to the end of a base word to change its meaning or class⁹. The first suffix is -al, which turns a noun into an adjective with the meaning of “relating to” or “characterized by”.[^10^] The second suffix is -ly, which turns an adjective into an adverb with the meaning of “in a certain manner” or “to a certain degree”.[^10^] The base word occasion comes from Latin occasio, which means “opportunity” or “chance”¹¹.
Some tricks to remember this word are:
Think of how occasion rhymes with season, and both words can be used as adjectives with -al (seasonal, occasional).
Think of how -ly often makes words into adverbs that describe how something is done (quickly, slowly, occasionally).
The word chronic is pronounced as /ˈkrɒnɪk/³. It means (of an illness) persisting for a long time or constantly recurring¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 慢性⁵ or 长期⁷.
The word chronic comes from late Middle English: from French chronique, via Latin from Greek khronikos ‘of time’, from khronos ‘time’¹. It has no prefixes or suffixes. It is a root word that can form new words by adding affixes. For example, chronically is formed by adding -ly to chronic.
A trick to remember chronic is to associate it with time. Chronic illnesses last for a long time and are hard to cure. You can also think of words that have similar roots, such as chronology (the study of time) or synchronize (to make things happen at the same time).
The word unprecedented is pronounced as /ʌnˈprɛsɪdɛntɪd/¹. It means never done or known before¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 史无前例⁵ or 前所未有⁵.
The word unprecedented is formed by adding two prefixes to a root word. The root word is precedent, which means an earlier event or action that is regarded as an example or guide to be considered in subsequent similar circumstances². The prefix un- means not³, and the prefix pre- means before⁴. So unprecedented literally means not before preceded.
A trick to remember unprecedented is to think of something that has never happened before in history, such as a global pandemic or a moon landing. You can also think of words that have similar prefixes, such as unpredictable (not able to be predicted) or prehistoric (before recorded history).
The word bliss is pronounced as /blɪs/². It means perfect happiness; great joy¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 幸福⁵ or 极乐⁶.
The word bliss comes from Old English blīths, of Germanic origin; related to blithe¹. It has no prefixes or suffixes. It is a root word that can form new words by adding affixes. For example, blissful is formed by adding -ful to bliss.
A trick to remember bliss is to think of something that makes you very happy, such as a beautiful sunset or a warm hug. You can also think of words that have similar meanings, such as joy, delight, or ecstasy.
{{youtube-timestamp 68}} practically no difference for adults when it comes to social connections. Loneliness can affect everybody. Money, fame, power, beauty, social skills, a great personality— nothing can protect you against loneliness, because it’s part of your biology. Loneliness is a bodily function, like hunger. Hunger make you pay attention to your physical needs; loneliness makes you pay attention to your social needs. Your body cares about your social needs, because millions of years ago, it was a great indicator of how likely you were to survive. Natural selection rewarded our ancestors for collaboration, and for forming connections with each other. Our brains grew and became more and more fine-tuned to recognize what others thought and felt, and to form and sustain social bonds. Being social became part of our biology You were born into groups of 50 to 150 people, which you usually stayed with for the rest of your life. Getting enough calories, staying safe and warm,
collaboration
The word collaboration is pronounced as /kəlabəˈreɪʃn/¹. It means the action of working with someone to produce something¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 协作⁶ or 合作⁶.
The word collaboration is formed by adding a suffix to a root word. The root word is collaborate, which means to work jointly on an activity or project². The suffix -ion means a process or result³. So collaboration literally means a process or result of working jointly.
A trick to remember collaboration is to think of something that requires teamwork, such as a group project or a musical performance. You can also think of words that have similar meanings, such as cooperation, partnership, or teamwork.
The word fine-tuned is pronounced as /ˈfʌɪntjuːnd/¹. It means precisely adjusted for the highest level of performance, efficiency, or effectiveness³. In Chinese, it can be translated as 微调⁵.
The word fine-tuned is formed by adding a prefix and a suffix to a root word. The root word is tune, which means a musical sound with reference to its pitch or quality². The prefix fine- means very well or very high⁴. The suffix -ed indicates past tense or past participle⁶. So fine-tuned literally means very well tuned in the past.
A trick to remember fine-tuned is to think of something that requires precise adjustment, such as a musical instrument or a machine. You can also think of words that have similar meanings, such as refined, calibrated, or optimized.
{{youtube-timestamp 139}} or caring for offspring was practically impossible alone. Being together meant survival, being alone meant death. So it was crucial that you got along with others. For you ancestors, the most dangerous threat to survival was not being eaten by a lion, but not getting the social vibe of your group and being excluded. To avoid that, your body came up with “social pain”. Pain of this kind is is an evolutionary adaptation to rejection. A sort of early warning system to make sure you stop behaviour that would isolate you. Your ancestors who experienced rejection as more painful were more likely to change their behaviour when they got rejected, and thus stayed in the tribe, while those who did not got kicked out and most likely died. That’s why rejections hurt, and even more so, why loneliness is so painful. These mechanisms for keeping us connected worked great for most of our history, until humans began building a new world for themselves
offspring
Offspring is a noun meaning a person’s child or children, or an animal’s young¹. It is pronounced as /ˈɒfsprɪŋ/³. In Chinese, it can be translated as 后代 (hòu dài) or 子代 (zǐ dài)⁵. It comes from Old English ofspring, meaning “those who spring off (someone)“.[^10^] It is composed of two parts: off and spring. Off is an adverb meaning away from something¹, and spring is a verb meaning to jump or move suddenly¹. So offspring literally means those who jump or move away from someone.
Some tricks to remember it are:
Think of a kangaroo with its offspring in its pouch. The offspring can spring off from its mother anytime.
Think of a rhyme: “My offspring are my everything, they make my heart sing.”
Evolutionary is an adjective meaning relating to or denoting the process by which different kinds of living organism are believed to have developed from earlier forms¹. It is pronounced as /ˌiːvəˈluːʃ(ə)n(ə)ri/ or /ˌɛvəˈluːʃ(ə)n(ə)ri/¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 进化 (jìn huà) or 演化 (yǎn huà)⁵. It comes from Latin evolutionem, meaning “unrolling (of a book)“⁹. It is composed of two parts: evolution and -ary. Evolution is a noun meaning the gradual development of something¹, and -ary is a suffix meaning relating to or connected with something¹. So evolutionary literally means relating to or connected with evolution.
Some tricks to remember it are:
Think of a word association: evolutionary - biology - Darwin - natural selection.
Think of a rhyme: “Evolutionary changes are not always scary, they can make us more fit and vary.”
Tribe is a noun meaning a social group comprising numerous families, clans, or generations together with slaves, dependents, or adopted strangers (奴隶、家属或被收养的陌生人).[^10^] It is pronounced as /trʌɪb/¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 部落 (bù luò) or 部族 (bù zú)⁶. It comes from Old French tribu or Latin tribus, meaning “a political division of the Roman people”¹¹. It may be related to tri- “three” and referring to the three original tribes of ancient Rome¹¹.
Some tricks to remember it are:
Think of a word association: tribe - vibe - tribe has a vibe.
Think of a rhyme: “A tribe is a group that shares a common scribe.”
{{youtube-timestamp 209}} The loneliness epidemic we see today really only started in the late Renaissance. Western culture began to focus on the individual. Intellectuals moved away from the collectivism of the Middle Ages, while the young Protestant theology stressed individual responsibility. This trend accelerated during the Industrial Revolution. People left their villages and fields to enter factories. Communities that had existed for hundreds of years began to dissolve, while cities grew. As our world rapidly became modern, this trend sped up more and more. Today, we move vast distances for new jobs, love, and education, and leave our social net behind. We meet fewer people in person, and we meet them less often than in the past. In the US, the mean number of close friends dropped from 3 in 1985 to 2 in 2011. Most people stumble into chronic loneliness by accident. You reach adulthood and become busy with work, university, romance, kids, and Netflix.
epidemic
The word epidemic is pronounced as /ˌɛpɪˈdɛmɪk/¹². It can be a noun meaning a widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time¹, or an adjective meaning of the nature of an epidemic¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 流行 (liú xíng) or other words depending on the context⁵.
The word epidemic comes from early 17th century French épidémique, from épidémie, via late Latin from Greek epidēmia ‘prevalence of disease’, from epidēmios ‘prevalent’, from epi ‘upon’ + dēmos ‘the people’¹. The word root is dēm-, meaning people. The prefix epi- means upon or over. The suffix -ic means relating to.
A possible trick to remember this word is to think of an epidemic as something that affects many people upon a certain area. You can also use mnemonics like Every Person Is Dying Every Minute In Crisis.
The word Protestant is pronounced as /ˈprɒtɪst(ə)nt/¹². It can be a noun meaning a member or follower of any of the Western Christian Churches that are separate from the Roman Catholic Church¹, or an adjective meaning relating to or belonging to any of the Protestant Churches¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 新教徒 (xīn jiào tú) or other words depending on the context⁵.
The word Protestant comes from mid 16th century French épidémique, from épidémie, via late Latin from Greek epidēmia ‘prevalence of disease’, from epidēmios ‘prevalent’, from epi ‘upon’ + dēmos ‘the people’¹. The word root is protest-, meaning to declare publicly. The prefix pro- means forward or for. The suffix -ant means one who does something.
A possible trick to remember this word is to think of a Protestant as someone who declares publicly their support for a certain form of Christianity. You can also use mnemonics like People Really Object To Every Single Thing About New Teachings.
{{youtube-timestamp 278}} There’s just not enough time. The most convenient and easy thing to sacrifice is time with friends. Until you wake up one day and you realise that you feel isolated, that you yearn for close relationships. But it’s hard to find close relationships as adults, and so, loneliness can become chronic. While humans feel pretty great about things like iPhones and spaceships, our bodies and minds are fundamentally the same they were 50,000 years ago We are still biologically fine-tuned to being with each other. large scale studies have shown that the stress that comes from chronic loneliness is among the most unhealthy things we can experience as humans it makes you age quicker it makes cancer deadlier Alzheimer’s advance faster your immune systems weaker loneliness is twice as deadly as obesity and as deadly as smoking a pack of ciggarettes a day the most dangerous thing about it is that once it becomes chronic it can become self sustaining
yearn
Yearn is a verb meaning to have an intense feeling of longing for something¹. It is pronounced as /jəːn/¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 渴望 (kě wàng) or 向往 (xiàng wǎng)⁵. It comes from Old English giernan, meaning “to strive, be eager, desire”.[^10^] It has no prefixes or affixes.
Some tricks to remember it are:
Think of a word association: yearn - burn - fire - passion.
Think of a rhyme: “I yearn for your return, my heart is like a furnace that burns.”
{{youtube-timestamp 348}} physical and social pain use common mechanisms in your brain both feel like a threat and so social pain leads to immediate and defensive behaviour when it’s inflicted on you when loneliness becomes chronic your brain goes into self preservation mode it starts to see danger and hostility everywhere but that’s not all some studies found that when you’re lonely your brain is much more receptive and alert to social signals while at the same time it gets worse at gets worse at interpreting them correctly you pay more attention to others but you understand them less the part of you brain that recognises faces get out of tune and becomes more likely to categorise neutral faces as hostile which makes it distrustful of others loneliness make you assume the worst about others intentions towards you because of this perceived hostile world you can become more self-centred to protect yourself which can make you appear more cold unfriendly and
inflicted
The word inflicted is pronounced as /ɪnˈflɪktɪd/¹³. It is a verb meaning to cause (something unpleasant or painful) to be suffered by someone or something¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 造成 (zào chéng) or other words depending on the context⁵.
The word inflicted comes from mid 16th century Latin inflictus, past participle of infligere, from in- ‘into’ + fligere ‘to strike’¹. The word root is flig-, meaning to strike. The prefix in- means into or on. The suffix -ed indicates past tense.
A possible trick to remember this word is to think of inflicted as something that strikes into someone or something with pain. You can also use mnemonics like I Never Feel Like I Can Take Damage.
The word neutral is pronounced as /ˈnjuːtr(ə)l/¹². It is an adjective meaning not supporting or helping either side in a conflict, disagreement, etc.; impartial¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 中性 (zhōng xìng) or other words depending on the context⁵.
The word neutral comes from late Middle English (as a noun): from Latin neutralis ‘of neuter gender’, from Latin neuter (see neuter)¹. The word root is neutr-, meaning neither. The suffix -al means relating to.
A possible trick to remember this word is to think of neutral as someone who does not take sides or have a preference. You can also use mnemonics like No Extra Use To Really Anyone Left.
The word hostile is pronounced as /ˈhɒstʌɪl/¹². It is an adjective meaning showing or feeling opposition or dislike; unfriendly¹. In Chinese, it can be translated as 敌对的 (dí duì de) or other words depending on the context⁵.
The word hostile comes from late 16th century French épidémique, from épidémie, via late Latin from Greek epidēmia ‘prevalence of disease’, from epidēmios ‘prevalent’, from epi ‘upon’ + dēmos ‘the people’¹. The word root is host-, meaning stranger or enemy. The suffix -ile means having a certain quality.
A possible trick to remember this word is to think of hostile as someone who acts like a stranger or an enemy to you. You can also use mnemonics like He Often Shows Terrible Irritation Like Eeyore.
OK, I will try to help you with your word study. The word intentions is a noun meaning a thing intended, an aim or plan¹. It is pronounced as /ɪnˈtɛnʃ(ə)n/². In Chinese, it can be translated as 意图 (yì tú)⁶ or other synonyms depending on the context.
The word intentions is derived from the Latin word intentio(n-) meaning stretching, purpose¹. It consists of a root word intend, which means to have a plan or purpose in mind, and two suffixes -tion and -s. A suffix is a word part that is added to the end of a root word to change its meaning.[^10^] The suffix -tion turns a verb into a noun, indicating an action or condition. The suffix -s makes a noun plural, indicating more than one.
A trick to remember this word is to think of it as something that you stretch your mind towards, like a goal or a target. You can also use mnemonics, such as making sentences with words that rhyme with intentions, such as:
{{youtube-timestamp 412}} socially awkward than you really are if loneliness has become a strong presence in your life the first thing you can do is to try to recognise vicious cycle you may be trapped in it usually goes something like this an initial feeling of isolation leads to feelings of tension and sadness which makes you focus you attention selectively on negative interactions with others this makes your thoughts about yourself and others more negative which then changes your behaviour you begin to avoid social interaction which leads to more feelings of isolation this cycle becomes more severe and harder to escape each time loneliness make you sit far away from others in class not answer the phone when friends call declineinvitations until the invitations stop each and every one of us has a story about ourselves and if your story becomes that people exclude you others pick up on that and so the outside world can become the way you feel about it
vicious
The word vicious is an adjective meaning deliberately cruel or violent³. It is pronounced as /ˈvɪʃəs/². In Chinese, it can be translated as 恶性 (è xìng)⁵ or other synonyms depending on the context.
The word vicious is derived from the Middle English word vicious or Latin vitiosus, from vitium ‘vice’¹. It has no prefixes or suffixes.
A trick to remember this word is to think of it as something that has a lot of vice or evil in it. You can also use mnemonics, such as making sentences with words that have similar sounds, such as:
The state of having the muscles stretched tight, especially as causing strain or discomfort¹
A strained state or condition resulting from forces acting in opposition to each other¹³
Mental or emotional strain¹³
A strained political or social state or relationship¹³
It is pronounced as /ˈtɛnʃ(ə)n/². In Chinese, it can be translated as 张力 (zhāng lì) or other synonyms depending on the context⁵.
The word tension is derived from the Latin word tensio(n-) meaning ‘stretch’¹. It has no prefixes or suffixes.
A trick to remember this word is to think of it as something that makes you feel tight or stretched. You can also use mnemonics, such as making sentences with words that rhyme with tension, such as:
The word selectively is an adverb meaning in a way that involves intentionally choosing some people or things and not others¹³. It is pronounced as /sɪˈlɛktɪvli/¹². In Chinese, it can be translated as 选择性 (xuǎn zé xìng)⁵.
The word selectively is derived from the adjective selective, which means tending to choose carefully or characterized by careful choice¹³. Selective is formed by adding the suffix -ive to the verb select, which means to choose from a number of alternatives¹. Select comes from the Latin word seligere meaning ‘choose out’¹.
A trick to remember this word is to think of it as something that requires you to make choices based on certain criteria or preferences. You can also use mnemonics, such as making sentences with words that have similar sounds, such as:
The word decline can be a noun or a verb with different meanings depending on the context¹. It is pronounced as /dɪˈklʌɪn/¹²⁴. In Chinese, it can be translated as 下降 (xià jiàng) or other words depending on the meaning⁵.
As a noun, decline means a gradual and continuous loss of strength, numbers, quality, or value¹. For example:
The company reported a sharp decline in sales.
He suffered from a rapid decline in health.
As a verb, decline has several meanings:
To become smaller, fewer, or less; decrease¹. For example:
The population declined by 10% over five years.
Her interest in music declined as she grew older.
To politely refuse something or someone¹. For example:
He declined their invitation to dinner.
She declined to comment on the rumors.
To move downwards; descend¹. For example:
The sun began to decline behind the hills.
The road declines steeply towards the river.
To state the forms of a word corresponding to case, number, and gender¹. This is a grammatical term that is used for languages that have different forms for nouns, pronouns, or adjectives depending on their function in a sentence. For example:
In Latin, puella is declined as puellae in the genitive case singular.
In German, der Mann is declined as den Mann in the accusative case singular.
The word decline comes from Old French decliner meaning ‘bend down’ or ‘turn aside’, which comes from Latin declinare meaning ‘bend down’ or ‘turn aside’¹.
A trick to remember this word is to think of it as something that goes down or away from something else. You can also use mnemonics, such as making sentences with words that rhyme with decline, such as:
He had to decline wine because he was driving.
She saw her grades decline after she skipped class.
OK, I will try my best to help you with your word study. Here is some information about invitations:
The pronunciation of invitations is /ɪnvɪˈteɪʃ(ə)n/¹². You can listen to the audio pronunciation here³⁴.
The Chinese meaning of invitations is 邀请⁶. There are some other words that can also mean invitation, such as 请柬, 邀请函, 请帖, 喜帖⁶.
The word root of invitations is invite, which comes from Latin invitare meaning “to invite” or “to summon”¹. Invite is also a word in its own right meaning “a written or verbal request inviting someone to go somewhere or to do something” or “the action of inviting someone to go somewhere or to do something”¹.
The prefixes and affixes of invitations are:
In-, which means “into” or “toward” and changes invite into a verb meaning “to cause someone to enter or join something”.[^10^]
-tion, which means “the act of” or “the state of being” and changes invite into a noun meaning “an invitation” or “the act of inviting someone”[10].
-s, which means “more than one” and changes invitation into a plural noun meaning “invitations”[10].
A trick to remember invitations is to think of it as an action that involves sending out requests (in-) for people (vite) to join something (-tion), such as a party or a wedding. You can also associate it with some common phrases that use invitations, such as:
Invitation only: something that only people who have been invited can attend
Extend an invitation: offer someone an invitation
Accept/decline an invitation: agree/disagree to attend something that someone has invited you to
{{youtube-timestamp 479}} this is often a slow creeping process that takes years and can end in depression and a mental state that can prevent connections even if you yearn for them the first thing you can do to escape it is to accept that loneliness is a totally normal feeling and nothing to be ashamed of literally everybody feels lonely at some point in their life its a universal human experience you can’t eliminate or ignore a feeling until it goes away magically but you can accept that you feel it and get rid of its cause you can self examine what you focus your attention on and check if you are selectively focusing on negative things was this interaction with a colleague rarely negative or was it really mutual or even positive what was the actual content of an interaction? what did the other person say? did they say something bad or did you add extra meaning to their words maybe another person was not really reacting negatively but just short on time
eliminate
OK, I will try to help you with your word study. Here is some information about the word eliminate:
The pronunciation of eliminate is /ɪˈlɪmɪneɪt/¹.
The Chinese meaning of eliminate is 消除⁵, which means to completely remove or get rid of something.
The word eliminate comes from Latin eliminat-, which means ‘turned out of doors’, from the verb eliminare, which means ‘to drive out’.¹
The word eliminate has a prefix e-, which means ‘out’, and ==a root limen, which means ‘threshold’==.¹
The word eliminate has a suffix -ate, which is used to form verbs from nouns or adjectives.⁹
Some tricks to remember it are:
Think of e-liminate as ‘out-limit’, meaning to remove something that limits you or others.
Associate it with similar words that have the same prefix and suffix, such as eradicate (e-radicate), evacuate (e-vacuate), and activate (act-ivate).
The pronunciation of mutual is /ˈmjuːtʃʊəl/¹². You can listen to the audio pronunciation here²⁴.
The Chinese meaning of mutual is 互⁵. There are some other words that can also mean mutual, such as 相互, 共同, 互相⁶⁷.
The word root of mutual is mutu-, which comes from Latin mutuus meaning “reciprocal” or “done in exchange”[9]. Mutuus is derived from PIE root *mei- (1) meaning “to change” or “to move”[9].
The prefixes and affixes of mutual are:
-al, which means “relating to” or “of the kind of” and changes mutu- into an adjective meaning “reciprocally given and received” or “having the same specified relationship to each other”[9].
A trick to remember mutual is to think of it as an adjective that describes something that involves two or more parties changing (mutu-) something with each other (-al). You can also associate it with some common phrases that use mutual, such as:
Mutual respect: respect that is given and received by each party
Mutual benefit: benefit that is shared by two or more parties
Mutual friend: friend that is common to two or more parties
{{youtube-timestamp 544}} then there are your thoughts about the world are you assuming the worst about others intentions do you enter a social situation and have already decided how it will go? do you assume others don’t want you around? are you trying to avoid being hurt and not risking opening up and if so can you try to give others the benefit of the doubt can you just assume that they’re not against you can you risk being open and vulnerable again? and lastly your behaviour are you avoiding opportunities to be around others are you looking of oppertunites to decline invitations or are you pushing away others preemptively to protect yourself are you acting as if you are getting attacked are you really looking for new connections or have you become complacent with your situation of course every person in each situation is unique and different and just in introspection alone might not be enough LEGAL DISCLAIMER if you feel unable to solve your situation alone by yourself
{{youtube-timestamp 606}} please try to reach out and get professional help its not a sign of weakness but of courage however we look at loneliness as a purely individual problem that needs solving to create happiness or as a public health crisis it is something that deserves more attention humans have build a world that is nothing short of amazing and yet not of the shiny things we have made is able to satisfy or substitute our fundamental and biological need for connection most animals get what they need from their physical sourroundings we get what we need from each other and we need to build our artificial human world based on that (giggling) lets try something together lets reach out to someone today regardless if you feel a little bit lonely or want to make someone else day better maybe write a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while call a family member who has become estranged invite a work buddy for a coffee or just go to something you are usually to afraid to go to
{{youtube-timestamp 674}} or too lazy to go to like a DMD event or a sports club everybody is different so you know whats good for you maybe nothing will come of it and that’s okay don’t do this with any expectations the goal is just to open up a bit to exercise your connection muscles so that they can grow stronger over time or to help others exercise them we want to recommend two of the books we read while researching this video a book that addresses among other topics how to deal with loneliness in a way that we found helpful and actionable and loneliness, social nature and the need for social connection by John T. Cacloppo & William Patrick it’s an entertaining and scientific exploration as to why we experience loneliness on a biological level how it’s spread in society and what science has to say on how to escape it links for both books in the video description