oper-, opus

(Latin: work)

co-operate, cooperate
To work together, act in conjunction (with another person or thing, to an end or purpose, or in some kind of work).
co-operation, cooperation
co-operative, cooperative; co-operatively, cooperatively
1. Done in cooperation with others: "They tried to make a cooperative effort."
2. Marked by willingness to cooperate; compliant: "She was a cooperative patient."
3. Of, relating to, or formed as an enterprise or organization jointly owned or managed by those who use its facilities or services: "The residents lived in cooperative apartment buildings."
co-operativeness, cooperativeness
ignioperation
Any surgical procedure in which a cautery is used to perform all or part of the operation.
inoperable (adjective) (not comparable)
1. Too far advanced for effective surgery: An inoperable medical condition is one that has advanced to a stage at which surgical intervention would serve no useful purpose.
2. Neither practical nor workable: The old toaster in Mary's kitchen was inoperable and did not function anymore, even after her brother tried to fix it.
inoperative
1. Not working: not functioning properly or as usual.
2.Ineffective or unenforceable: not effective or no longer valid or able to be enforced.
inure, enure (verb), inures, enures; inured, enured; inuring, enuring
1. To cause a person to be less sensitive to something unpleasant: Does violence on TV inure some people to violence in real life?
2. Etymology: "in practice" from obsolete ure, "work, practice, exercise", or "use"; said to be from Old French uevre, oeuvre "to work"; from Latin "opera" or "opus".
To get used to something unpleasant or painful.
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inured (adjective), more inured; most inured
A reference to causing someone to be less affected by something unpleasant: Ralph became inured to Bruce's sarcastic remarks.
Adapted to certain conditions or disciplined.
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magnum opus (s) (noun) (no plural)
An artist's, writer's, or composer's greatest individual work: Tom's last novel was his magnum opus and masterpiece!
Magnus opus, nulli secundus, optimus cognito, ergo sum! (from Latin)

A Masterpiece, second to none, The best; Therefore, I am!

The grammatical structure is not correct: Magnus should be Magnum, secundus should be secundum and optimus should be optimum.

This was a hand-lettered sign in George E. Ohr's pottery shop (BILOLXI ART POTTERY) in Biloxi, Mississippi (1895-1905).

Ohr made pottery that featured rims that had been crumpled like the edges of a burlap bag and pitchers that seemed deliberately twisted and vases warped as if melted in the kiln.

The colors of his works exploded with color; vivid reds juxtaposed with gunmetal grays, olive greens splattered across bright oranges, and royal blues mottled on mustard yellows and he created fantastic shapes glazed with wild colors in his "Pot-Ohr-E".

Ohr once said, "I am the apostle of individuality, the brother of the human race, but I must be myself and I want every vase of mine to be itself."

In 1909, claiming he hadn't sold even one of his mud babies in more than 25 years, Ohr closed his shop.

Although he was just 52, he never threw another pot. When he inherited a comfortable sum after his parents died, he devoted the rest of his life to enhancing his reputation as a "looney".

Still confident that the time would come when his work would be recognized, Ohr died of throat cancer at the age of 60 in 1918. Now, the same pots scorned a century ago sell from $20,000 to $60,000 each. Today, Ohr is hailed as a "clay prophet" and "the Picasso of art pottery."

—Compiled from excerpts in "The Mad potter of Biloxi"
by Bruce Watson in the Smithsonian; February, 2004; pages 88-94.
office
1. A place in which business, clerical, or professional activities are conducted and which may a small room with one desk for one or two people or a room with several desks where people work.

The administrative personnel, executives, or staff working in such a place.

2. The quarters in which a commercial, professional, or government organization carries out its activities.
3. A duty or function assigned to or assumed by a person.
4. A position of authority, duty, or trust given to someone, as in a government or corporation; such as, the office of vice president.
5. A major executive division of a government or subdivision of a governmental department; for example, the U.S. Patent Office.
6. The prescribed order or form of a Christian church service, or of daily prayers.

A religious rite or service prescribed by ecclesiastical authorities.

7. Etymology: from about the mid-13th century, "a post, an employment to which certain duties are attached"; from Latin officium, "service, duty, function, business"; literally, "work-doing", from ops, opis, "power, might, abundance, means" (related to opus, "work") + the stem of facere, "to do, to perform".
opera
A drama in which the text is set to music and staged. The texts of operas are sung, with singing and stage action nearly always given instrumental accompaniment. Many operas also feature instrumental interludes (called intermezzi) and dance scenes; even extended ballets that interrupt the action.
operable (adjective), more operable, most operable
1. Regarding a situation in which the functionality is possible: After the fire in the building, there was only one operable machine left while all the others had been destroyed.

The salesman told Jim that the car radio would be operable even if the engine was turned off.
2. Pertaining to the possibility of putting something into practice: doable: After talking about the day's activities, Jill and Thomas figured out an operable plan of getting everything done without stress.
3. Relating to the treatment by a surgical procedure with a reasonable degree of safety and chance of success: Dr. Hathaway told Mrs. Green that the kind of cancer she had was operable and very simple to remove and that she shouldn't be frightened or worried at all.

operate, operates, operated, operating
1. To perform a function; to work: The motor operates smoothly.
2. To perform surgery.
3. To exert an influence; such as, forces operating on the economy.
4. To produce a desired or proper effect;for example, a drug that operates quickly.
5. To carry on a military or naval action or campaign.
6. To conduct business in an irregular or devious manner; such as, drug dealers operating in residential and school areas.

Cross references related to "work, toil" word families: argo-; ergasio-; ergo-; labor-; pono-; urg-.