Literary notes about Measured (AI summary)
The term “measured” appears in literature in a variety of contexts, ranging from the literal quantification of physical dimensions to a metaphor for deliberate, thoughtful action. It is used to indicate exactness when describing architectural features or natural phenomena, as when structures or distances are precisely gauged ([1], [2], [3]). At the same time, “measured” often conveys a sense of restraint or deliberation in behavior or tone, whether in the careful cadence of a character’s speech ([4], [5], [6]) or the scrupulous evaluation of a person’s worth ([7], [8]). In this way, the word bridges physical measurement with abstract judgment, enhancing both narrative precision and thematic depth ([9], [10], [11]).
- It measured about a hundred feet in diameter, which made about three hundred in circumference.
— from A Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne - Hence, if the columns are to be of the Doric order, let their height, including the capital, be measured off into fifteen parts.
— from The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio - The famous Artemisium (temple of Artemis or Diana) measured 342 by 163 feet.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - “I cannot give you any dinner.” This declaration, made in a measured but firm tone, struck the stranger as grave.
— from Les Misérables by Victor Hugo - John Canty replied, in a stern and measured voice— “It is plain thou art mad, and I am loath to punish thee; but if thou provoke me, I must.
— from The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain - I spoke in slow, measured tones, keeping my face composed in a suitably mystical expression, and thinking mystical thoughts.
— from Little Brother by Cory Doctorow - The worth of a man should not be measured by any one isolated act.
— from The Will to Power: An Attempted Transvaluation of All Values. Book III and IV by Nietzsche - The excellence of societies is measured by what they provide for their members.
— from The Life of Reason: The Phases of Human Progress by George Santayana - They both laughed, and he knelt by the table to light the lamp under the kettle, while she measured out the tea into a little tea-pot of green glaze.
— from The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton - These forces consist of the situations, the passions, the ideas, and the wills of each group of actors, and which can be defined and almost measured."
— from Introduction to the Science of Sociology by E. W. Burgess and Robert Ezra Park - Several minutes passed thus, then a sound of footsteps, measured, heavy, and numerous, became distinctly audible in the direction of Saint-Leu.
— from Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
