mindmap root((SIMIL/SIMUL)) simile A figure of speech, introduced by as or like, that makes a point of comparison between two things different in all other respects.
🌱He particularly liked the simile he'd thought of for the last line of the song's chorus, "It felt like a bullet in his heart." 🌳Fiction, poetry, and philosophy have been full of similes for centuries. In fact, the oldest literature known to us uses similes, along with their close relatives known as metaphors （See metaphorical.）This suggests that similes are an essential part of imaginative writing in all times and all cultures. When Tennyson, describing an eagle, writes "And like a thunderbolt he falls," he's using a simile, since the line makes a specific comparison. "The road was a ribbon of moonlight" could be called a metaphor, though "The road was like a ribbon of moonlight" would be a simile. assimilate 1、 To take in and thoroughly understand.
2、 To cause to become part of a different society or culture.
🌱One of the traditional strengths of American society has been its ability to assimilate one group of immigrants after another. 🌳Assimilate comes from the Latin verb assimulare,"to make similar," and it originally applied to the process by which food is taken into the body and absorbed into the system. In a similar way, a fact can be taken into the mind, thoroughly digested, and absorbed into one's store of knowledge. A newcomer to a job or a subject must assimilate an often confusing mass of information; only after it's been thoroughly absorbed can the person make intelligent use of it. An immigrant family assimilates into its new culture by gradually adopting a new language and the habits of their new neighbors—a process that's always easier for the children than for the parents. simulacrum A copy, especially a superficial likeness or imitation.
🌱As a boy he had filled his bedroom with model fighter jets, and these simulacra had kept his flying fantasies active for years. 🌳In its original meaning, a simulacrum is simply a representation of something else; so an original oil painting, marble statue, or plastic figurine could all be simulacra （notice the plural form） in the old sense. But today the word usually means a copy that's meant to substitute for the real thing—and usually a cheap and inferior copy, a pale imitation of the original. So in old Persia a beautifully laid out garden was a simulacrum of paradise. Some countries' governments are mere simulacra of democracy, since the people in power always steal the elections by miscounting the votes. And a bad actor might do a simulacrum of grief on the stage that doesn't convince anyone. simulate 1、 To take on the appearance or effect of something, often in order to deceive.
2、 To make a realistic imitation of something, such as a physical environment.
🌱The armed services have made extensive use of video games to simulate the actual experience of warfare for their recruits. 🌳The zircon, that favorite of home shopping channels, simulates a diamond—more or less. A skilled furrier can dye lower-grade furs to simulate real mink. A skilled actress can simulate a range of emotions from absolute joy to crushing despair. And an apparatus that simulates the hazards of driving while intoxicated is likely to provide some very real benefits.