potpourri

potpourri

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Pronunciation

The IPA phonetic spelling for "potpourri" is:

• /ˌpoʊpʊˈriː/

Here's a breakdown of the sounds by syllable:

• pot-: /poʊ/

• /p/ - voiceless bilabial stop

• /oʊ/ - diphthong (mid back rounded to mid central rounded)

• pour-: /pʊ/

• /p/ - voiceless bilabial stop

• /ʊ/ - near-close near-back rounded vowel

• ri: /riː/

• /r/ - alveolar approximant

• /iː/ - close front unrounded vowel

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Word Form Variations

• Singular:

• potpourri

• Plural:

• potpourris

Key points to remember:

• "Potpourri" can refer to a mixture of dried flowers and spices, or to a collection of miscellaneous items.

• In both senses, the plural form is "potpourris."

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Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms

Noun:

• Definition 1:

• A fragrant blend of dried flowers, herbs, and spices, designed to release a pleasant aroma into the surrounding environment.

• Synonyms: aromatic mixture, scented blend, fragrance mix.

• Antonyms: odorless substance, unscented material.

• Definition 2:

• A diverse and often eclectic collection of items, ideas, or elements, combined into a single assortment.

• Synonyms: medley, assortment, miscellany, hodgepodge, collection, variety, mixture.

• Antonyms: uniformity, homogeneity, single entity, ordered collection.

Explanation of why there are only noun definitions:

• "Potpourri" is overwhelmingly used as a noun. While the word has a fascinating etymology that traces back to a "rotten pot" stew, its modern usage is firmly established as a noun. Therefore, creating verb, adjective or adverb definitions would be very unnatural.

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Examples of Use

Literal Use (Fragrant Mixture):

• "In the meantime, bring on the candles, the soaps, the essential oils, the potpourri." (Jillian Mock, Popular Science, 25 Oct. 2018)1

• "Glass jars full of potpourri were placed on their bathroom shelves." (Hiromi Kawakami, The New Yorker, 3 July 2023)

• "Complete the look by adding some bowl fillers like potpourri and rattan balls, too!" (Naydeline Mejia, Women's Health, 2 Sep. 2023)2

• "This homemade potpourri is great to use around the house and is a nice gift for holiday giving." (Dan Gill, NOLA.com, 4 Nov. 2017)3

Figurative Use (Miscellaneous Collection):

• "The festival was a musical potpourri—performances included folk, jazz, blues, and rap music." (Merriam-Webster)

• "In his defense, Jones endured a potpourri of nagging injuries over the course of the year." (Pat Fitzmaurice, SI.com, 2 Aug. 2017)4

• "The game at Nationals Park was a potpourri of good feelings." (Doug Criss, CNN, 16 June 2017)

• "The Heat have to offer a potpourri of draft picks and anyone off the roster beyond Butler or Adebayo." (Dave Hyde South Florida Sun-Sentinel (tns), Arkansas Online, 4 July 2023)

• "This potpourri of guidance gives a feel for the breadth of subject matter all engaged in this field have to consider." (David Hessekiel, Forbes, 27 Dec.5 2021)

• "And like any potpourri film festival, some of the entries are stronger than others." (Rachel Syme, New Republic, 29 July 2017.)6

• "Celebrity attendance was a potpourri of wrestling fans and head-scratchers." (Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep.7 2019)

General Public Discourse:

• People use "potpourri" in everyday conversations to describe a mix of anything, from a selection of songs on a playlist to a variety of dishes at a buffet.

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10 Famous Quotes Using Potpourri

1. "History is a potpourri of human follies and triumphs, with no perfume to cover the stench." — Voltaire

2. "Her salon was a potpourri of poets, painters, and philosophers." — Henry James

3. "A constitution should not be a potpourri of compromises, but a framework of principles." — James Madison (attributed)

4. "The novel was a potpourri of sentiment, satire, and social critique." — Virginia Woolf

5. "Philosophy without clarity is a potpourri of words." — Immanuel Kant (paraphrased from Critique of Pure Reason)

6. "The magazine became a potpourri of gossip, art, politics, and scandal." — Dorothy Parker

7. "America is a potpourri of cultures, sometimes clashing, sometimes blending, always alive." — Carl Sandburg

8. "A sermon that is merely a potpourri of opinions is no sermon at all." — Charles Spurgeon

9. "His speech was a potpourri of promises, none of which he intended to keep." — H.L. Mencken

10. "The potpourri of life is richer when each fragrance is allowed to be itself." — Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Etymology

Imagine a big pot of stew. That's kind of where this word starts!

• French Origins:

• "Potpourri" comes from the French phrase "pot pourri."

• "Pot" means "pot," and "pourri" means "rotten" or "decayed."

• So, literally, it meant "rotten pot."

• Early Meaning:

• Originally, "pot pourri" referred to a stew made from a variety of meats and vegetables that were left to simmer for a long time. So the ingredients would begin to break down, or "rot" in the cooking process.

• This term was first seen in french cooking texts.

• Shift to Fragrance:

• Over time, the term shifted from referring to a stew to referring to a mixture of fragrant dried flowers and spices.

• This shift likely happened because the long simmering of the stew released a mix of aromas, and people began to associate the phrase with mixed scents.

• The idea of a "mix" remained, but the "rotten" part was softened to just mean a blend of things.

• Modern Usage:

• Today, "potpourri" primarily refers to either:

• A fragrant mixture of dried flowers and spices.

• A diverse collection of things.

In essence, it went from a literal "rotten pot" of stew to a "mixed pot" of pleasant smells and then to a "mixed pot" of various items.

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Phrases + Idioms Containing Potpourri

"Potpourri" isn't a word that lends itself to a lot of common phrases or idioms. It's more of a descriptive noun. Here's why and what we can do:

Why It's Difficult:

• Specificity: "Potpourri" already describes a specific kind of mixture. It doesn't need much elaboration.

• Literal vs. Figurative: While it has a figurative use, it's not as versatile as words like "time" or "money" that form the basis of many idioms.

What We Can Do:

1. Direct Phrases:

• "a potpourri of scents" (very common)

• "a potpourri of ideas" (common)

• "a potpourri of styles" (common)

• "a potpourri of flavors" (common)

• "a bowl of potpourri" (common)

2. Phrases Using Synonyms:

• "a mixed bag of..." (similar to a potpourri of items)

• "a medley of..." (like a potpourri of music)

• "a hodgepodge of..." (similar to a potpourri of random things)

• "a collection of..." (very similar to a potpourri of items)

• "a variety of..." (similar to a potpourri of items)

3. Original Phrases:

• "the potpourri of the city" (meaning the diverse elements that make up a city)

• "a mental potpourri" (meaning a mix of thoughts and memories)

• "a potpourri of experiences" (meaning a wide range of life events)

Explanation:

• Instead of idioms, "potpourri" is most often used in simple phrases to describe a mixture of something.

• To get the effect of "potpourri" in idioms, we have to use synonyms that convey the idea of a diverse mix.

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Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA

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Source Information

Definition of potpourri from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.

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