extremity
/ɪkˈstreməti/ (bre, ipa) · /ɪkˈstreməti/ (ame, ipa) · /ik-ˈstre-mə-tē/ (ame, mw)
extremity — noun
- extremitysingular
- extremitiesplural
1. the point on something that lies furthest out from its middle or main body — the
the point on something that lies furthest out from its middle or main body — the very tip, edge, or end.
Minh built a small wooden hut at the northern extremity of the lake.
at the [direction] extremity of [place]
A red flag marked the eastern extremity of the farm where the road turned to dirt.
marked the extremity of [place]
Sahil walked all the way to the southern extremity of the island before sunset.
The lighthouse stood on the rocky extremity of the cape, visible from miles away.
At the western extremity of the garden, Esme had planted a row of cherry trees.
文法句型
the extremity of [noun]
at the extremity of
用法筆記
Subject is usually a geographic feature (island, coast, garden, valley). Often paired with a compass direction (northern, southern, eastern, western). Distinguish from sense 2, which refers specifically to body parts.
常見錯誤
2. the outer body parts that sit at the greatest distance from a person's heart — c
the outer body parts that sit at the greatest distance from a person's heart — chiefly the fingers, toes, hands, feet, and nose. Used most often in medical talk about cold or poor blood flow.
After hours in the snow, Sivan could no longer feel her extremities.
lose feeling in one's extremities
The doctor checked Mauricio for tingling or numbness in the extremities.
numbness/tingling in the extremities
Poor blood flow can make the extremities feel cold even in a warm room.
Frostbite often begins in the extremities, especially the fingers, toes, and nose.
The nurse wrapped Ingrid's extremities in warm blankets to help her body recover.
文法句型
the extremities
in the extremities
用法筆記
Almost always plural ('the extremities'). Strongly medical: appears in clinical notes about circulation, frostbite, diabetes, and shock. Outside medicine, prefer 'hands and feet' in everyday speech.
常見錯誤
3. the highest possible level that a feeling, situation, or condition can reach — f
the highest possible level that a feeling, situation, or condition can reach — for example, the deepest grief, the sharpest pain, the harshest weather.
Selim could not describe the extremity of his joy when his daughter came home safe.
the extremity of [emotion]
The extremity of the cold that winter killed many of the farmer's young animals.
the extremity of [condition]
Wei was shocked by the extremity of poverty he saw in some parts of the city.
Marco's letters describe the extremity of pain his mother felt in her final weeks.
The novel shows the extremity of fear that people feel during a long war.
- mildness
a low or gentle degree of the same quality
文法句型
the extremity of [noun]
to such an extremity
用法筆記
Subject of the 'of' phrase is usually a feeling (joy, grief, fear) or a difficult condition (cold, poverty, pain). Distinguish from sense 4, which refers to dangerous situations rather than the high degree of a feeling.
常見錯誤
4. a very dangerous or desperate situation in which a person feels they have no goo
a very dangerous or desperate situation in which a person feels they have no good choices left — also the drastic action someone takes when pushed into such a moment.
Driven to extremities by hunger, the villagers ate the last of their seed grain.
driven to extremities by [cause]
In such an extremity, Zola felt she had no choice but to ask her old enemy for help.
in such an extremity
Sven described the extremity of those days, when the family lived on bread and water for a month.
Soldiers in that extremity sometimes did things they would later find hard to forgive.
Selling the family farm was an extremity Rin's grandfather had hoped to avoid.
- crisis
a dangerous turning point; more common in modern English
- desperation
the feeling of having no options; sense 4 covers both feeling and act
- last resort
the drastic action itself, not the situation
文法句型
driven to extremities
in such an extremity
用法筆記
Often appears in the fixed phrase 'driven to extremities' (forced by circumstances into a drastic act). Distinguish from sense 3: sense 4 is about being trapped in a dangerous moment, while sense 3 is about the high degree of a feeling or condition.