nyms:

annoy, bore, busy, disquiet, distract, disturb, tire, weary.

* * * * *

ENTERTAINMENT.

Synonyms:

amusement, diversion, fun, pleasure,
cheer, enjoyment, merriment, recreation,
delight, frolic, pastime, sport.

_Entertainment_ and _recreation_ imply thought and mental occupation,
tho in an agreeable, refreshing way; they are therefore words of a high
order. _Entertainment_, apart from its special senses of a public
performance or a social party, and predominantly even there, is used of
somewhat mirthful mental delight; _recreation_ may, and usually does,
combine the mental with the physical. _Amusement_ and _pastime_ are
nearly equivalent, the latter probably the lighter word; many slight
things may be _pastimes_ which we should hardly dignify by the name of
_amusements_. _Sports_ are almost wholly on the physical plane, tho
involving a certain grade of mental action; fox-hunting, horse-racing,
and baseball are _sports_. Certain _sports_ may afford _entertainment_
or _recreation_ to certain persons, according to their individual
tastes; but _entertainment_ and _recreation_ are capable of a meaning so
high as never to be approached by any meaning of _sport_. _Cheer_ may be
very quiet, as the _cheer_ of a bright fire to an aged traveler;
_merriment_ is with liveliness and laughter; _fun_ and _frolic_ are apt
to be boisterous. _Amusement_ is a form of _enjoyment_, but _enjoyment_
may be too keen to be called _amusement_. Compare synonyms for
ENTERTAIN.

Antonyms:

ennui, fatigue, labor, lassitude, toil, weariness, work.

* * * * *

ENTHUSIASM.

Synonyms:

ardor, excitement, frenzy, transport,
devotion, extravagance, inspiration, vehemence,
eagerness, fanaticism, intensity, warmth,
earnestness, fervency, passion, zeal.
ecstasy, fervor, rapture,

The old meaning of _enthusiasm_ implies a pseudo-_inspiration_, an
almost frantic _extravagance_ in behalf of something supposed to be an
expression of the divine will. This sense remains as the controlling one
in the kindred noun _enthusiast_. _Enthusiasm_ has now chiefly the
meaning of an earnest and commendable _devotion_, an intense and eager
interest. Against the hindrances of the world, nothing great and good
can be carried without a certain _fervor_, _intensity_, and _vehemence_;