Showing posts with label wild. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wild. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

wild, wiled

Wild or wild means not tame or domesticated, of an animal, or not cultivated, of a plant--
We saw a family of wild ducks in the pond.
There are some wild onions growing in the yard.

Wild may also mean in a rage; violent or unruly--
He went wild when he heard the good news; he ran around shouting and laughing.

Wiled or wiled ( rhymes with wild ) is the past tense ( yesterday, or some time ago ) of "wile", meaning to spend or pass time--
They wiled away the hours telling ghost stories.
The old people wiled away the evening playing cards, while the young people watched TV.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"He wiled away the afternoon picking wild flowers, until he had a nice bouquet."

Monday, January 28, 2013

while, wile

While or while means during, or for a span of time--
Pay attention while our guest is speaking.
Don't talk while the movie is playing.
While may also mean the span or period of time itself--
We will go home in a little while.
Try to stay busy for a while.

Wile or wile ( rhymes with while ) means a trick, or an artful bit of  behavior meant to fool or deceive--
She had a cunning wile of always seeming to agree with people, now matter what she though of their opinions.
His wile of seeming too helpless to fend for himself lured many young women to him.

Now that you know that, you can say--
"While he was talking, she used the classic wile of seeming to hang on his every word."

Note--"wiles" is the plural ( more than one ) of "wile", meaning tricks, or  artful or cunning behavior--
He was afraid that each female he met was out to snare him with her womanly wiles.
"Whiles" is the third person singular ( he, she, it ) form of the verb ( action word ) "while", meaning to pass time idly and pleasantly--
He whiles away every afternoon looking for butterflies.
Note # 2--"wild" means untamed or growing naturally--
There are some wild onions growing in the yard.
"Whiled" ( rhymes with wild ) is the past tense ( yesterday, or some time ago ) of "while"--
They whiled away each day doing nothing in particular.