To be under the tutelage of another is to receive careful guidance and instruction from that person. A promising young violinist might be lucky enough to come under the tutelage of a world-renowned musician, receiving expert training and support in a manner that sets her up for future success. Tutelage comes from Latin tūtēla “guardianship,” and its earliest uses in English referred to the act of guarding or protecting, or to the office or function of a guardian. While the meaning of the term has broadened, it still suggests a degree of watchful protectiveness or personal interest on the part of the teacher or guide.

The adjective slow describes things characterized by a lack of speed (slow pace) or moving with less than usual speed (slow train). Sluggish, calling to mind everyone’s favorite shell-less gastropod, captures this as well. But sluggish also suggests a lack of activity, as in laziness or lethargy, or stagnant growth as in an industry or economy. You might feel sluggish after a grand feast, for instance. After your meal, perhaps while lounging about and browsing headlines, you might encounter news of sluggish sales in a retail sector or a sluggish economic recovery.

The noun device often refers to a smartphone or tablet, but if you're looking for more general term for brilliant doohickey or contraption, gadget is an excellent option. A gadget, properly defined, is a mechanical contrivance or device. It is the slightly more dignified cousin of such catchall terms as thingamajig, whatsit, and gizmo. Typically, the noun gadget implies some ingenuity and possible complexity. One might call something a gadget when one does not quite understand how it works but appreciates its utility.

To give thanks is to express appreciation for something—in other words, to express gratitude. But the noun gratitude goes a little deeper. Gratitude is defined as the quality or feeling of being grateful or thankful. The key difference is one of feeling versus expressing. Gratitude implies a warm or deep appreciation of personal kindness (a feeling). Grateful and thankful are, of course, both wonderful things to be, and fortunately they are not mutually exclusive. Go ahead, give thanks loudly as an expression of your deep gratitude—there's ample room at the table for both!

The verb eat, though tremendously useful, says very little about the manner in which one partakes in a meal. Slowly? Quickly? With gusto? That’s where big, flavorful verbs like gormandize come in handy: to gormandize is to eat greedily or ravenously. Gormandize comes from the noun of the same spelling, which originally skewed negative to refer to excessive eating, but in the 1800s picked up a degree of refinement, suggesting unrestrained enjoyment of fine foods, wines, and the like. When not gobbling up food, gormandize may be found devouring books, knowledge, or gossip.

The adjective serene means calm, peaceful, or tranquil. It is most commonly used to describe people who display a notably unruffled manner, or natural surroundings that are fair and calm. When applied to people, serene suggests dignity, composure, and graciousness. When applied to nature, it suggests mellowness. Unlike peaceful, serene is not used to describe relations, as between nations, or processes, such as transitions of power. In fact, serene, when not describing an individual's expression or demeanor, is more likely to turn up in descriptions of settings where people are scarce!

Someone who is intrepid stays their course regardless of obstacles that arise. This bold adjective is a close synonym for fearless, but intrepid suggests a degree more resolve and daring. Adventurers, explorers, and travelers are all commonly described as intrepid; reporters, too, though not scaling mountains and traversing seas, are often described as intrepid, surmounting obstacles of a different variety. The phrase intrepid soul is used to refer to an individual who dares to do something to the surprise, delight, or admiration of others.