All 3 Uses of
consequence
in
And Then There Were None
- "It's of no consequence," said the judge.
p. 37.9 *consequence = importance
- If amyl nitrite were withheld—well, the consequences might easily be fatal.
p. 114.1 *consequences = results
- Would the consciousness of her own guilt, the state of nervous tension consequent on having just shot a man, be sufficient, together with the hypnotic suggestion of the surroundings, to cause her to take her own life? I thought it would.
p. 298.3consequent = following as a result
Definitions:
-
(1)
(consequence as in: a direct consequence of) a result of something (often an undesired side effect)
-
(2)
(consequence as in: of little consequence) importance or relevance
-
(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
In classic literature, consequential may refer to someone with too much feeling of self-importance as when Dickens wrote "Because he's a proud, haughty, consequential, turned-up-nosed peacock."
Self-consequence was used in a similar manner, but is more easily understood by modern readers since important is one of the modern senses of consequence.
Another classic sense of consequent that is similar to importance or significance refers to "material wealth or prominence" as when Jane Austen wrote: "They had each had money, but their marriages had made a material difference in their degree of consequence."