different between example vs touchstone

English

Etymology

From Middle English exaumple, example, from Old French essample (French exemple), from Latin exemplum (“a sample, pattern, specimen, copy for imitation, etc.”, literally “what is taken out (as a sample)”), from exim? (“take out”), from ex (“out”) + em? (“buy; acquire”); see exempt. Displaced native Middle English bisne, forbus, forbusen from Old English b?sen, and Middle English byspel from Old English b?spell. Doublet of exemplum and sample.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /???z??mpl?/
• (General New Zealand) IPA^(key): /???z??mp?/
• (General Australian, US, weak vowel merger) IPA^(key): /???zæmpl?/
• (US) IPA^(key): /???zæmpl?/
• Rhymes: -??mp?l, -æmp?l
• Hyphenation: ex?am?ple

Noun

example (plural examples)

1. Something that is representative of all such things in a group.
2. Something that serves to illustrate or explain a rule.
3. Something that serves as a pattern of behaviour to be imitated (a good example) or not to be imitated (a bad example).
4. A person punished as a warning to others.
5. A parallel or closely similar case, especially when serving as a precedent or model.
6. An instance (as a problem to be solved) serving to illustrate the rule or precept or to act as an exercise in the application of the rule.

Synonyms

• e.g.
• See also Thesaurus:model
• See also Thesaurus:exemplar

Derived terms

Translations

See also

• exemplar
• model
• pattern
• quotation
• template

Verb

example (third-person singular simple present examples, present participle exampling, simple past and past participle exampled)

1. To be illustrated or exemplified (by).

Further reading

• example in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• example in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• exempla

English

Etymology

touch +? stone

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?t?t?st??n/

Noun

touchstone (plural touchstones)

1. A stone used to check the quality of gold alloys by rubbing them to leave a visible trace.
2. (figuratively, by extension) A standard of comparison or evaluation.

   • The foregoing doctrine affords us also a touchstone for the trial of spirits.

Translations

See also

• bellwether
• benchmark
• model
• norm
• exemplar
• standard

Anagrams

• touch-tones, touchtones