AI for Breakfast

Chris Witham • May 22, 2024

Post 126 - Word Wednesday - Adumbratism


Interestingly it seems that ChatGPT may of made this word up! Although there is a verb 'Adumbrate' on asking Perplexity I got this answer:


I could not find a definition for the term "Adumbratism" in the provided search results or in my own knowledge base. The search results focus on defining the verb "adumbrate", but do not mention "Adumbratism".


  • The verb "adumbrate" means:To outline or give a faint indication of something
  • To foreshadow or suggest something that will happen in the future
  • To produce a faint image or resemblance of something
  • To overshadow or obscure


However, the search results do not contain any information about "Adumbratism" as a concept or philosophy. It's possible this is a very obscure term that is not commonly defined. Without more context about where you encountered this term or what you believe it refers to, I do not have enough information to provide a confident definition. My apologies I could not fully answer your query based on the given search results. Let me know if you have any other details that could help clarify the meaning of "Adumbratism".


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Adumbratism is the tendency to give an outline or shadowy representation of something. It involves hinting at or suggesting something rather than fully revealing or explaining it. The word originates from the Latin 'adumbrare,' which means 'to shade' or 'to foreshadow.'


Examples of adumbratism in use:


Literature:

In many classic novels, authors use adumbratism to create suspense. For instance, in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the creature is often described in vague terms, leaving much to the reader’s imagination and heightening the sense of mystery.


Art:

Artists like J.M.W. Turner often employed adumbratism in their paintings. Turner’s use of light and shadow in his seascapes adumbrates the forms of ships and landscapes, creating a sense of ethereal beauty.


Film:

Alfred Hitchcock was a master of adumbratism in cinema. His film Psycho is a prime example, where the suspense and horror are intensified by what is suggested rather than what is explicitly shown.


Communication:

In political speeches, leaders sometimes use adumbratism to address sensitive topics. By providing only a shadowy outline of their stance, they leave room for interpretation and avoid committing to specifics that might be controversial.


In everyday conversation:

"The CEO’s speech was full of adumbratism, leaving employees wondering about the future direction of the company."

"Her poetry is rich with adumbratism, hinting at deeper meanings without ever stating them outright."

"The detective’s adumbratism about the case kept the media in suspense, eager for more details."

Lines of colorful computer code on a dark background.
By Chris Witham December 11, 2025
Where AI really helps your Business If you spend any time on LinkedIn or X, you’ll have seen bold claims about how AI can help you build software in a matter of days. There’s a lot of excitement, a lot of big promises, and a fair bit of confusion for business owners trying to work out what’s real. A new term doing the rounds is “Vibe Coding” —the idea of describing what you want to an AI assistant and having it generate the code for you. It’s becoming popular because it can move things forward quickly and help people explore ideas they wouldn’t have been able to create alone. And the truth is, it does have its place. The challenge isn’t the technique. It’s the expectation that AI will automatically deliver finished, reliable, production-ready tools without any real design or thinking behind them. AI accelerates the work you already do well Used properly, AI can: • Remove huge amounts of repetitive work • Speed up drafting and iteration • Generate working prototypes in hours • Help non-technical people explore ideas • Improve documentation, planning and communication This is where it shines. But it still needs clarity, structure, and well-designed processes around it. It’s like having a very fast assistant rather than a fully formed development team. Why many AI projects don’t deliver what people expect Independent research this year showed a clear pattern: • Many early AI initiatives failed to produce measurable business value • Companies abandoned AI ideas because they couldn’t scale or integrate them • The gap between an impressive demo and a reliable tool is larger than people thought This doesn’t mean AI is overhyped. It means teams jumped straight to execution without the groundwork. The technology isn’t the issue. It’s the approach. Small businesses don’t need Enterprise Platforms Most UK small businesses don’t need to build a full software product. What they actually need is: • Better workflows • Faster content generation • Clearer communication • Improved customer support • Tools that reflect the way they work • Consistency and repeatability AI is perfect for this. A custom GPT trained on your tone, your documents and your processes can become: • A writing assistant • A customer support helper • A knowledge base navigator • An internal guide for staff • A quality-control layer • A process automator No engineering team needed. No complex infrastructure. No stress. Where AI builds real value right now AI works best when it’s part of a thoughtful, guided approach: • Define the outcome you want • Build a lightweight prototype (AI helps here) • Add structure, rules and guardrails • Connect it to your real workflow • Test it with real users or staff • Iterate until it feels natural You can still move fast. You just avoid building something brittle that breaks the moment it’s needed. The key insight: AI doesn’t replace expertise, it amplifies it AI is at its strongest when someone knowledgeable decides: • What it should do • What it shouldn’t do • How it should behave • What tone it should use • How it fits into the business • What checks and constraints matter That’s where tools like custom GPTs genuinely shine. They’re not software products in the traditional sense. They’re flexible assistants shaped around your business. With the right design, they can save huge amounts of time and deliver consistent, practical value without any of the complexity of building a full system. A more useful way to think about AI in 2026 Instead of “AI will build everything for you”, a healthier mindset is: AI speeds up the work, but you set the direction. For small businesses, that’s more than enough to make a real difference.
By Chris Witham August 21, 2025
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