All 4 Uses of
compose
in
Gone with the Wind
- He was so very large and male, and excessively male creatures always discomposed her.†
Chpt 5.57 *discomposed = unsettled (made nervous or uncomfortable)standard prefix: The prefix "dis-" in discomposed reverses the meaning of composed. This is the same pattern as seen in words like disagree, disconnect, and disappear.
- She tried to quiet her heart and fix her face into more composed lines, for she knew she must look like a crazy woman.†
Chpt 1.6 *
- And pray compose yourself.†
Chpt 3.19
- She sat down on the bottom step of the stairs and tried to compose herself, wondering again how yesterday's battle had gone, wondering how today's fighting was going.†
Chpt 3.21
Definitions:
-
(1)
(compose as in: compose a poem) to write or create something with care
-
(2)
(compose as in: composed of many parts) to create something by arranging parts
-
(3)
(compose as in: compose myself) to calm someone or settle something
-
(4)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Specialized senses of compose include typesetting (preparing text for printing). There are many specialized senses of composition where context tells what something is made up from. Finally, in classic literature, compose may have been used to indicate settling a dispute.