The words condescending and patronizing present a fine example of this. At first glance these words appear to be defined somewhat circularly: condescending often has the word patronizing in its definition, and patronize is defined, in part, as âto adopt an air of condescension toward.â But both of these words have specialized senses that lend a shade of meaning to their synonymous senses. Patronizing can mean giving support to or being a customer of, suggesting that the condescending sense implies superiority gained through a donor-dependent relationship. The verb condescend used to be free of any hint of the offensive superiority it usually suggests today.
A company's worth - its total value - is its market capitalization, and it is represented by the company's stock price. Market cap (as it is commonly referred to) is equal to the stock price multiplied by the number of shares outstanding. For example, a stock with a $5 stock price and 10 million shares outstanding/trading is worth $50 million ($5 x 10 million).
The mean value of stock holdings for those who held them hit $269,000 in 2013, up 18 percent from $228,000 in 2010 and up from $137,000 in 1995. Among the top 10 percent, the mean value of stock holdings soared to $975,600 in 2013, up from $834,800 in 2010. For those whose net worth puts them in the bottom 20 percent to 40 percent of Americans, the mean value of their holdings rose to $51,000 from $44,000 in 2010.