What's the difference between possess and wield?

Possess


Definition:

  • (v. t.) To occupy in person; to hold or actually have in one's own keeping; to have and to hold.
  • (v. t.) To have the legal title to; to have a just right to; to be master of; to own; to have; as, to possess property, an estate, a book.
  • (v. t.) To obtain occupation or possession of; to accomplish; to gain; to seize.
  • (v. t.) To enter into and influence; to control the will of; to fill; to affect; -- said especially of evil spirits, passions, etc.
  • (v. t.) To put in possession; to make the owner or holder of property, power, knowledge, etc.; to acquaint; to inform; -- followed by of or with before the thing possessed, and now commonly used reflexively.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) These results indicate that astrocytes possess bradykinin receptors and that these are predominantly of the B2 subtype.
  • (2) Escherichia enterotoxigenic strains, Yersinia enterocolitica and Salmonella typhimurium virulent strains, Campylobacter jejuni clinical isolates possess more pronounced capacity for adhesion to enteric cells of Peyer's plaques than to other types of epithelial cells, which may be of importance in the pathogenesis of these infections.
  • (3) Cop rats, however, possess a single 'suppressor' gene which confers complete resistance to mammary cancer.
  • (4) I would immediately look askance at anyone who lacks the last and possesses the first.
  • (5) The blockade of H2 receptors is the primary action of these drugs; however, they possess also secondary actions which may represent untoward effects but in some cases may be actually useful (increase in prostaglandin synthesis, inhibition of LTB4 synthesis, etc.)
  • (6) The E. coli used did not possess collagenolytic activity nor did a variety of common aerobic clinical isolates.
  • (7) These results indicate that both the renal brush-border and basolateral membranes possess the Na(+)-dependent dicarboxylate transport system with very similar properties but with different substrate affinity and transport capacity.
  • (8) This suggests that the latter group does not possess the genetic equipment (Ir genes) to recognize the antigenic determinants and to synthesize the corresponding antibodies.
  • (9) 2-(4'-Isobutylphenyl)propionic acid, ibuprofen, is an antiinflammatory agent which possesses moderate platelet aggregation inhibitory activity.
  • (10) Thallium-201, a radiopharmaceutical that possesses many of the characteristics of potassium analogues, at present is receiving the greatest attention as a regional blood flow indicator.
  • (11) In contrast, strains carrying the substitutions Ile-30----Phe, Gly-33----Leu, Gly-58----Leu, and Lys-34----Val and the Lys-34----Val, Glu-37----Gln double substitution were found to possess a coupled phenotype similar to that of the wild type.
  • (12) These findings indicate an association between HLA-B7 and ankylosing spondylitis in American blacks and suggest that these patients who lack B27 but possess B7 represent a subgroup of patients with this disease.
  • (13) As Heseltine himself argued, after the success of last summer's Olympics, "our aim must be to become a nation of cities possessed of London's confidence and elan" .
  • (14) Rhesus monkey BAT mitochondria (BATM) possess an uncoupling protein that is characteristic of BAT as evidenced by the binding of [3H]GDP, the inhibition by GDP of the high Cl- permeability or rapid alpha-glycerol-3-phosphate oxidation.
  • (15) These preliminary experiments suggest that oSm is similar to IGF-I in its binding characteristics and that primary cultures of skeletal muscle satellite cells possess type I and type II IGF receptors.
  • (16) Acetylcholinesterase is a key enzyme in cholinergic neurotransmission for hydrolyzing acetylcholine and has been shown to possess arylacylamidase activity in addition to esterase activity.
  • (17) Moloney murine sarcoma virus ts110 possesses a thermosensitive splicing defect.
  • (18) Two group G streptococcal cultures (G 10187, G 11122) with surface antigen T4 possess surface receptors for human haptoglobin (Hp).
  • (19) The fact that the security service was in possession of and retained the copy tape until the early summer of 1985 and did not bring it to the attention of Mr Stalker is wholly reprehensible,” he wrote.
  • (20) A series of hierarchical multiple regressions revealed the effects of Surgency, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability, and Intellect on evoking upset in spouses through condescension (e.g., treating spouse as stupid or inferior), possessiveness (demanding too much time and attention), abuse (slapping spouse), unfaithfulness (having sex with others), inconsiderateness (leaving toilet seat up), moodiness (crying a lot), alcohol abuse (drinking too much alcohol), emotional constriction (hiding emotions to act tough), and self-centeredness (acting selfishly).

Wield


Definition:

  • (v. t.) To govern; to rule; to keep, or have in charge; also, to possess.
  • (v. t.) To direct or regulate by influence or authority; to manage; to control; to sway.
  • (v. t.) To use with full command or power, as a thing not too heavy for the holder; to manage; to handle; hence, to use or employ; as, to wield a sword; to wield the scepter.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) He argued that it was vital that we “should give the people of this country a chance to decide”, and that “[the nation was witnessing] a continuation of that old and disastrous system where a few men in charge of the state, wielding the whole force of the state, make secret engagements and secret arrangements, carefully veiled from the knowledge of the people…” This, and a lot more little-known information on the road to the first world war is given in Douglas Newton’s book The Darkest Days .
  • (2) It's hard to imagine a more masculine character than Thor, who is based on the god of thunder of Norse myth: he's the strapping, hammer-wielding son of Odin who, more often than not, sports a beard and likes nothing better than smacking frost giants.
  • (3) For all their supposed power, companies feel vulnerable to the power wielded both by their consumers and by the government.
  • (4) He explains that the violence began after the demo overran its official cut-off time: Violence flared on Tuesday in the centre of Madrid as baton-wielding police charged crowds and fired rubber bullets at demonstrators who had tried to surround the country's parliament building.
  • (5) The most consistently sensational evidence from Icac has been around former Labor member Eddie Obeid and the influence he wielded in the NSW Labor government to feather his own nest.
  • (6) Baton-wielding police detained dozens of people, with Malaysian media reports saying as many as 100 were arrested.
  • (7) In an era when consumers get their news from a greater variety of sources, the Sun may not wield the power and influence it once did.
  • (8) A machine gun-wielding provincial governor took part in tackling a team of Taliban suicide bombers on Sunday when insurgents launched another brazen attack on a government facility in Afghanistan .
  • (9) As managing editor of the paper over the past eight years, working alongside the current executive editor, Bill Keller, she has had to wield the knife and cut 100 newsroom jobs, but says: "It's not been the same kind of deep muscle cuts that other news- rooms have made."
  • (10) From the typed letters on Clarence House notepaper underlined in his own hand, to the clever blend of courteousness and implied threat used in his own correspondence and by his righthand man, Sir Michael Peat, the case has revealed in detail how the prince wields his power.
  • (11) France has overtaken the US and Britain as the world’s top soft power, according to an annual survey examining how much non-military global influence an individual country wields.
  • (12) The TV ad campaign features the Sapeurs – men who make the transformation from farmers, taxi drivers and labourers to cigar-wielding gentlemen dressed to the nines in bowler hats and tailored suits – of the Republic of the Congo capital Brazzaville coming together after a day's work.
  • (13) A group of “knife-wielding suspects” attacked a colliery in Asku prefecture, about 650km south-west of Urumqi, according to Radio Free Asia (RFA), a US-funded news group.
  • (14) But not long after the plea for calm, police in nearby St Louis said they had shot dead a man wielding a knife outside a convenience store.
  • (15) When President Obama stands up and says - as he did when he addressed the nation in February 2011 about Libya - that "the United States will continue to stand up for freedom, stand up for justice, and stand up for the dignity of all people", it should trigger nothing but a scornful fit of laughter, not credulous support (by the way, not that anyone much cares any more, but here's what is happening after the Grand Success of the Libya Intervention: "Tribal and historical loyalties still run deep in Libya, which is struggling to maintain central government control in a country where armed militia wield real power and meaningful systems of law and justice are lacking after the crumbling of Gaddafi's eccentric personal rule").
  • (16) It’s a surprisingly simple answer: as David Klinger, an associate professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Missouri–St Louis and a former officer with the Los Angeles police department, says, “Officers aren’t required to risk their lives unnecessarily.” Officers are trained to use deadly force on suspects wielding weapons, Klinger said.
  • (17) Leave voters, including a soldier, a mother expecting a “Brexit baby” due nine months after the vote, a rare chicken breeder, a witch, and a hammer-wielding Nigel Farage fan, have all been chosen to represent the various faces of Brexit on a new vase by the artist Grayson Perry .
  • (18) But those really free are the minority who wield economic and financial power.
  • (19) But he always agonised over his dissent - during a particularly fraught debate about selling the government-owned telecommunications company Telstra in 2009 – where he wielded a decisive vote, he took himself to hospital with chest pains.
  • (20) Linyi City authorities have imprisoned his 33-year-old nephew Chen Kegui for defending himself against stick-wielding officials and security agents on the night of Chen's escape .