Literary notes about solid (AI summary)
In literature, the word "solid" is used with remarkable versatility, serving as a descriptor for both physical materials and abstract qualities. It often conveys physical toughness and durability, as seen in phrases that depict sturdy walls, granite structures, or tightly knit constructions [1, 2, 3, 4]. At the same time, it is employed metaphorically to denote reliability, sound reasoning, and steadfast character, whether referring to a man of integrity or a well-founded argument [5, 6, 7, 8]. Authors also use "solid" to evoke the security of grounded terrain or the dependable nature of relationships and reputations, linking concrete descriptions with deeper emotional or philosophical truths [9, 10, 11, 12]. This range—from tangible matter to the figurative expression of stability—illustrates how "solid" enriches narrative texture and reinforces themes of durability and trustworthiness across various literary contexts [13, 14, 15, 16].
- Hence, I have shown by what methods the parts which are not considered solid can be rendered durable, and how they are constructed.
— from The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius Pollio - He moved slowly along the firm and solid granite wall.
— from A Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne - The whole house looked like a block of solid marble, for it was covered with marble without as well as within, and must have cost immense sums.
— from The Memoirs of Jacques Casanova de Seingalt, 1725-1798. Complete by Giacomo Casanova - And the solid brick walls are seven feet through.
— from The Innocents Abroad by Mark Twain - However, I loved Campbell: he was a solid orthodox man: he had a reverence for religion.
— from Boswell's Life of Johnson by James Boswell - He had studied the characters of the two chiefs of the senate; but he attached himself to Basilius, as the more solid and disinterested friend.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon - He had a greatness of soul which nothing could shock; his passions were delicate, his judgment solid, and his taste exquisite.
— from Letters of Abelard and Heloise by Peter Abelard and Héloïse - “Let’s get away from hollow arguments, from empty phrases, and get on the solid ground of facts,”—this with an elegant gesture.
— from The Reign of Greed by José Rizal - However, by carefully picking their way, they got safely along until they reached solid ground.
— from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum - For instance, let us take the solid earth.
— from Amusements in Mathematics by Henry Ernest Dudeney - I know him partic'lar; he's a solid man, an' got a family
— from The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot - There is nothing like a good, solid, substantial reputation, a clean record, an untarnished past.
— from Pushing to the Front by Orison Swett Marden - These undo false religions, and even the true one, if they do not find solid arguments.
— from Pascal's Pensées by Blaise Pascal - Deep in the solid earth, then cast the mould All back again, and stamp the surface smooth.
— from The Georgics by Virgil - In the side of what had seemed to be a snow-bank stood a solid-looking little door, painted a dark green.
— from The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame - If circumstances are in our favor, between ten and eleven this evening we'll be landing on some piece of solid ground, or we'll be dead.
— from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas: An Underwater Tour of the World by Jules Verne
