"The chairman spoke with gravity about the declining profits of the company's largest division."
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Wordwise:
You probably know the most common meaning of 'gravity', but this second interpretation is also important.
Etymology: French gravite, heaviness, from Old French, from Latin gravitas, from gravis, heavy.
Date: 1509
1. The natural force of attraction exerted by a celestial body, such as Earth, upon objects at or near its surface, tending to draw them toward the center of the body. The natural force of attraction between any two massive bodies, which is directly proportional to the product of their masses and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them. Gravitation.
2. Grave consequence; seriousness or importance.
3. Solemnity or dignity of manner.
GRAVITY If it weren't for gravity, we wouldn't know which way was was up or down. Without gravity to pull things "down," there would be no such thing as up or down. This is an excellent example of the yin/yang idea that nothing exists except in relation to its opposite. The opposite of gravity is weightlessness. A fair conclusion: Gravity is the soul of weight. - John Langdon