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“vain”
vain (adjective), more vain, most vain
1. Referring to something that is not yielding the desired outcome; fruitless; such as, a vain attempt.
2. Relating to the lack of any worth; for example, vain talk.
3. Excessively proud of one's appearance or accomplishments; conceited.
4. Etymology: "devoid of real value, idle, unprofitable", from Old French vein, "worthless"; from Latin vanus, "idle, empty", Latin vacare, "to be empty"; vastus, "empty, waste". The meaning "conceited" was first recorded in 1692, from the earlier sense of "silly, idle, foolish" (1390).
2. Relating to the lack of any worth; for example, vain talk.
3. Excessively proud of one's appearance or accomplishments; conceited.
4. Etymology: "devoid of real value, idle, unprofitable", from Old French vein, "worthless"; from Latin vanus, "idle, empty", Latin vacare, "to be empty"; vastus, "empty, waste". The meaning "conceited" was first recorded in 1692, from the earlier sense of "silly, idle, foolish" (1390).
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vane-, vani-
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vain, vane, vein
vain (VAYN) (adjective)
1. Excessively proud of one's appearance or accomplishments; conceited: "He was always so vain about his athletic accomplishments: he couldn't stop his bragging!"
2. Not yielding the desired outcome; fruitless: "He made a vain attempt to pass his chemistry test."
2. Not yielding the desired outcome; fruitless: "He made a vain attempt to pass his chemistry test."
vane (VAYN) (noun)
A device for indicating wind direction: "The weather vane was used to show which way the wind was blowing."
vein (VAYN) (noun)
Any of the membranous tubes that form a branching system and carry blood to the heart: "The doctor told her that she had a clogged blood vein."
When the newly graduated doctor wrote that his patient's blood vane needed medical attention, the head physician said that it was the first time he had ever heard of the wind influencing a vain blood vein.
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Confusing Words Clarified: Group V; Homonyms, Homophones, Homographs, Synonyms, Polysemes, etc. +
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(Latin: in vain, in error; to deceive, to disappoint)