Wilde

Meanings

1. 1proper nounproper

   The surname of Oscar Wilde, the nineteenth-century Irish author and playwright admired for his sharp wit, his comedies and his flamboyant public persona.

   Grammar: Always capitalized and used as a name: Wilde wrote plays, but a wilde is not a word on its own.

   Patterns

   • Wilde's plays
   • a quotation from Wilde
   • the wit of Wilde

   Wilde became the toast of London theatre in the 1890s.

   Our book club is reading a collection of short stories by Wilde.

   Few writers have been quoted as often as Wilde.

2. 2proper nounproper

   A surname shared by other people, used in the names of various writers, performers and public figures apart from Oscar Wilde.

   Grammar: Used with a first name to pick out one person: Kim Wilde is a singer, not the playwright.

   Patterns

   • first name + Wilde

   The singer Kim Wilde had a hit in the early 1980s.

   There are several people named Wilde in the local phone book.

   Check the first name, because more than one famous Wilde exists.

Common combinations

the plays of Wilde

The plays of Wilde still fill theatres more than a century after his death.

Wilde's wit

Wilde's wit shows in almost every line of the dialogue.

a quote from Wilde

She opened her speech with a quote from Wilde.

Wilde's epigrams

Wilde's epigrams are collected in many small gift books.

trial of Wilde

The trial of Wilde in 1895 ended his career in London society.

Word family

Wildean adjective

in the witty, paradoxical style of Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde proper noun

the full name of the Irish playwright and novelist

Commonly confused: Wilde or wild?

Practice

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