3.1 Magnanimous

When and Where did I find the word: I found this word while reading the journal article, "Extraordinary," "tremendous," "exhilarating," "magnificent": Middle school at-risk students become avid word learners with the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy (VSS) (2002) by Ruddell and Shearer.  The authors provide their readers with Table that shows some of the VSS words that were collected for the purpose of their study.  I have to admit that some of the words that the students provided were even difficult for me.  The definitions were not provided for the words, which caused me to look up many of the words.


Full Citation: Ruddell, M.R. & Shearer, B.A. (2002).  "Extraordinary," "tremendous," "exhilarating," "magnificent": Middle School at-risk students become avid word learners with the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy (VSS). Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy, 45(5), 352-363.


What is means: According to dictionary.com magnanimous is defined as being "generous in forgiving an iunsult or injury." It is also described as being "free from petty resentfulness or vindictiveness." One that is described as magnanimous could be described as being "high-minded" or "noble."


Level of Familiarity: I was not familiar with this word when I encountered it in the journal article.  Up until now I had no idea what magnanimous meant. 


Do I Want to Know This Word Well and Why? Yes, I want to know this word.  As an English teacher, I love words and coming across a word I do not know, makes me stop and run to find the nearest dictionary.  I do not like to just ignore a word I do not know.  I like to figure it out. 


Do I Think Others Should Know This Word Well...if so WHO and WHY?:  I think that my future students and my fellow peers in LTED 625 should definitely learn this word.  I feel that if the word was included in the journal's word list that was comprised of words that students chose, that this word must be common in everday life.  Students must be hearing it in their daily lives and if they are hearing it, they should know what the word means.