All 8 Uses of
focus
in
The Poisonwood Bible
- He said he needed a focal point to get the church geared up.
Chpt 1 (definition 1) *focal = area where attention is concentrated
- There stood my own little sister in the center of our yard, the focal point of a gleaming black arc of children strung from here to there, silently sucking their sugarcane sticks, not even daring to blink.
Chpt 2 (definition 1)focal = center of attention
- Rachel and Adah were assigned any number of hope-chest projects to work on, but the domestic arena was never my long suit, so I was to focus on a single, big project: a cross-stitch tablecloth.
Chpt 2 (definition 2)focus = concentrate
- I narrowed my eyes to a hard focus on Patrice Lumumba and tried to understand his words.
Chpt 2 (definition 2) *focus = look
- "Nkondo and Gabriel, more than the others?" he said, slowly bringing his focus onto the present conversation, and me.
Chpt 3 (definition 2)focus = attention
- Well, the palm trees in our courtyard were ripped and flattened from the wind of the helicopters, and looked far too defeated by war to accept my prayers. So I focused on the sturdy walls of the compound and prayed straight to the black stones.
Chpt 5 (definition 2)focused = looked
- But the picture is so small I have to hold it practically at the end of my nose to make out who is who. It hurts my eyes to focus on it, so mostly it stays in the drawer.
Chpt 5 (definition 3) *focus = adjust vision to see something clearly
- You focus on getting your own one little place set up perfect, as I have done, and you'll see.
Chpt 6 (definition 2)focus = concentrate
Definitions:
-
(1) (focus as in: The focus of our study is...) where attention is concentrated or directed
-
(2) (focus as in: Turn your focus to question #2.) verb: to concentrate, look at, or pay attention to
noun: the act of concentration, or the ability to concentrate
(to concentrate is to direct attention or effort towards a single thing)
-
(3) (focus as in: bring into focus; or out of focus) a state where something has come into view or can be seen clearly; or an adjustment made to permit a clear view