Thwartwise for Dummies

Teacher: Hey there! I heard you're curious about the word "thwartwise." Don't worry, I'm here to help you understand it easily. Now, have you ever played a game of chess or watched a basketball player trying to dribble past their opponent? Well, that's kind of what "thwartwise" means. It's like when someone is trying to go in one direction, but someone else or something else is blocking their way. It's all about obstacles and getting in the way of someone's progress or plans.

Let me give you an example to make it clearer. Imagine you're trying to walk straight through a crowd to get to the ice cream truck and suddenly, a big balloon pops up right in front of you. It would block your way, right? That's like being thwarted - your plan to get some delicious ice cream is temporarily stopped because of the balloon in your path.

Student: Oh, I see! So, when something is thwartwise, it means it's blocking another thing's progress or plans, just like a balloon can block my way to the ice cream truck?

Teacher: Exactly! You got it! But, wait, there's another meaning of "thwartwise" too. It can also describe something that moves diagonally across something else. It's kind of like when a line starts at one point and moves in a diagonal direction.

Imagine drawing a line from the top-left corner of a piece of paper to the bottom-right corner. That line is moving thwartwise across the paper because it's going diagonally, right? It's not moving straight up and down or side to side, but at an angle. So, when something moves in a diagonal direction, we can describe it as moving thwartwise.

Student: So, "thwartwise" can mean both blocking someone's plans and also moving diagonally across something?

Teacher: Absolutely! You've got it spot on! "Thwartwise" has these two meanings - blocking someone or something and moving diagonally. It's a kind of sneaky word that can play two roles depending on the context. So, the next time you see or hear "thwartwise," remember it can be like a balloon blocking your path or a line moving diagonally across something. Pretty neat, huh?

And always remember, if you don't understand a word or concept, don't hesitate to ask for help. Learning is all about curiosity and growing our knowledge together, so keep those questions coming!