The Tipping Point: Chapters 5–6

by Malcolm Gladwell
How does a small idea become a global craze? In this work of nonfiction, Malcolm Gladwell analyzes how trends are set in motion.

Here are links to our lists for the book: Introduction–Chapter 2, Chapters 3–4, Chapters 5–6, Chapter 7–Afterword

Here are links to our lists for other works by Malcolm Gladwell: Outliers, Blink
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. susceptible
    yielding readily to or capable of undergoing a process
    Once we’re part of a group, we’re all susceptible to peer pressure and social norms and any number of other kinds of influence that can play a critical role in sweeping us up in the beginnings of an epidemic.
  2. ideology
    an orientation that characterizes the thinking of a group
    But the spread of any new and contagious ideology also has a lot to do with the skillful use of group power.
  3. cohesion
    the state of sticking together
    But at a bigger size you have to impose complicated hierarchies and rules and regulations and formal measures to try to command loyalty and cohesion.
  4. ethos
    the distinctive spirit of a culture or an era
    In the case of the Hutterites, people who are willing to go along with the group, who can be easily infected with the community ethos below the level of 150, somehow, suddenly—with just the smallest change in the size of the community—become divided and alienated.
  5. impediment
    something immaterial that interferes with action or progress
    Above that point, there begin to be structural impediments to the ability of the group to agree and act with one voice.
  6. unpretentious
    not showy or flashy
    Headquarters for the company is a low-slung, unpretentious red brick building.
  7. innovative
    introducing new ideas or creative methods
    It has been profitable for thirty-five consecutive years and has growth rates and an innovative, high-profit product line that is the envy of the industry.
  8. entrepreneur
    someone who organizes a business venture
    It is a classic stunt, a staple of traditional skateboarding, which is why when two entrepreneurs decided in the mid-1980s to start manufacturing athletic shoes aimed at hard-core skateboarders, they called the company Airwalk.
  9. alternative
    pertaining to unconventional choices
    They expanded their focus to include not just skateboarding but also surfing, snowboarding, mountain biking, and bicycle racing, sponsoring riders in all of those sports and making Airwalk synonymous with the active, alternative lifestyle.
  10. embody
    represent or express something abstract in tangible form
    In everyday life, however, the problems and situations we face don’t always embody the principles of epidemics so neatly.
  11. incremental
    increasing gradually by regular degrees or additions
    “If the goal of visionaries is to make a quantum leap forward, the goal of pragmatists is to make a percentage improvement—incremental, measurable, predictable progress,” Moore writes.
  12. idiosyncratic
    peculiar to the individual
    How is it that all the weird, idiosyncratic things that really cool kids do end up in the mainstream?
  13. quintessential
    representing the perfect example of a class or quality
    Tom Gau, the quintessential Salesman, takes the very arcane field of tax law and retirement planning and repackages it in terms that make emotional sense to his clients.
  14. palatable
    acceptable to the taste or mind
    Those kids make things more palatable for mainstream people.
  15. altruistic
    showing unselfish concern for the welfare of others
    What if they took those same savvy, socially connected, altruistic people and gave them condoms to hand out, or educated them in the kinds of health information that drug addicts desperately need to know?
Created on Tue Nov 26 13:56:37 EST 2013 (updated Mon Jul 14 15:39:43 EDT 2025)

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