-ful
fəl
-ful is a bowl filled to the rim
The picture A bowl filled right up to its rim, the contents trembling as if about to spill. -ful is full to the rim; -less is a bowl you turn over and nothing falls out.
Where the picture shows up in -ful
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a bowl full of help
Your advice was very helpful.
jʊr ədˈvaɪs wəz ˈveri ˈhelpfəl
What you told me really did me good.
A head that was an empty bowl fills to the rim with the words it was handed.
help + -ful.
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a hand full of care
Be careful with the hot plate.
biː ˈkerfəl wɪð ðə hɑːt pleɪt
Watch out for the hot plate.
The hand reaching for the hot plate fills with tension right to the fingertips.
care + -ful.
-
a tool full of uses
This is a useful tool for small repairs.
ðɪs ɪz ə ˈjuːsfəl tuːl fɔːr smɔːl rɪˈperz
This one is good for small repairs.
One small tool is so full of jobs it is the first thing your hand grabs in the box.
use + -ful.
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a voice full of beauty
She has a beautiful voice.
ʃiː hæz ə ˈbjuːtɪfəl vɔɪs
You have a lovely voice.
One person's voice fills the room up to its edges and trembles there.
beauty + -ful.
-
a moment full of pain
The injection was a little painful.
ði ɪnˈdʒekʃən wəz ə ˈlɪtəl ˈpeɪnfəl
The shot stung a bit.
The one spot where the needle went in fills with pain up to the shoulder.
pain + -ful.
All of it in one picture
-ful is one bowl filled to the rim. Fill the bowl with help and you get helpful; fill it with care and you get careful. Fill it with use and it is useful, with beauty and it is beautiful, with pain and it is painful. So with a strange -ful word, look at the front half and ask one thing: what is this bowl full of?