Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2007

linq936 wrote:

Noble, fearless, gallant, spirited, dauntless, brave, bold, spunky,
daring, stout, confident, unyielding, determined, gutsy, tenacious
along with dozens of other words of same or similar meaning.

"The boy has spirit, alright."

Purl Gurl

On Jan 26, 11:54 am, linq...@hotmail.com wrote:

Vital, full of vitality

Weak and decrepit apply to the latter, but there is no single word that
means "decrepit but vital on the surface"

As you define the task:
1.  You want to find a single word that condemns
the business model as currently successful but fatally flawed
and uneconomically difficult to maintain.
2.  Then you want to convince your employer:
2a.    -- to adopt this particular meaning for the word;
2b.    -- that this word applies particularly to this model.

You may not need to pin your presentation on any
special word.  This task seems extraneous to convincing
your employer that although this product is good and sells
well its business model is fatally flawed. Your main difficulty
may be distinguishing between the product and its
business model, in the light of current market success.

"The man is only human, after all."
or
"He's just a man."

But I don't have any idea if your employer is an English-speaking
person, or if the marketing of the product is to be directed to
English-speaking customers, or if the campaign is to be presented in an
inter-office memo or in broadcast media.

On Jan 26, 11:54 am, linq...@hotmail.com wrote:

Products, like organisms, have a life cycle. You may want to say it
that way. "Nearing the end of its life-span".

Not what it seems = deceptive / delusive.

There is the stock phrase "(an idol with) feet of clay".  It might
make an acceptable title.

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/14/messages/386.html

-----------------
"Whited sepulcher?"

DianeE

On Jan 26, 9:54 pm, linq...@hotmail.com wrote:

You might say that it is 'flash but lacks bottom'