different between extremity vs destitution

English

Etymology

From Middle English extremite, from Old French extremité, from Latin extr?mit?s (“extremity; border, perimeter; ending”), from extrem?s (“furthest, extreme”) + -it?s (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *-teh?ts (“suffix forming nouns indicating a state of being”); see extreme. Extrem?s is derived from exter (“external, outward”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h?e??s (“out”)) + -issimus (“suffix indicating a superlative”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *-is- (“suffix indicating a comparative”) + *-(t)m?mo- (“suffix indicating the absolutive case”)).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: ?kstr?'m?t?, IPA^(key): /?k?st??m?ti/, /?k-/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?k?st??m?ti/, /-?i/
• Hyphenation: ex?tre?mi?ty

Noun

extremity (countable and uncountable, plural extremities or extremitys) (obsolete)

1. The most extreme or furthest point of something. [from c. 1400]
2. An extreme measure.
3. A hand or foot. [from early 15th c.]
4. A limb (“major appendage of a human or animal such as an arm, leg, or wing”). [from early 15th c.]

Synonyms

• (furthest point): tip
• (major appendage of human or animal): appendage, limb

Derived terms

• extremital

Related terms

• extreme
• extremely
• extremeness
• extremism
• extremist

Translations

Further reading

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

English

Etymology

From Old French destitution, from Latin d?stit?ti? (“abandoning”), from d?stitu?.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /d?st??tu???n/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /d?st??tju???n/, /d?st??t?u???n/

Noun

destitution (countable and uncountable, plural destitutions)

1. (obsolete) The action of deserting or abandoning.
2. (now rare) Discharge from office; dismissal.
3. The condition of lacking something.
   • 1906, ‘Mark Twain’, in The Bible According to Mark Twain, 1996, p. 330:

     He requires of his fellow man obedience to a very creditable code of morals, but he observes without shame or disapproval his God's utter destitution of morals.

4. An extreme state of poverty, in which a person is almost completely lacking in resources or means of support.
   • 2009, Rahila Gupta, The Guardian, 4 Aug 2009:

     Destitution forces many asylum seekers to end up working for extremely low wages in catering, cleaning and construction, for example, without any protection against unscrupulous employers.

Related terms

• destitute

Translations

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin d?stit?ti?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d?s.ti.ty.sj??/

Noun

destitution f (plural destitutions)

1. discharge, dismissal
2. deposition (of a politician etc.)

Further reading

• “destitution” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).