A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Mon Jan 3 00:01:04 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--dendroid X-Bonus: You must have been warned against letting the golden hours slip by. Yes, but some of them are golden only because we let them slip by. -James M. Barrie, novelist and playwright (1860-1937) A happy 2011 to all! The United Nations has declared 2011 as the International Year of Forests http://www.un.org/en/events/iyof2011/ . Well, every year should be the year of forests. We start the new year with words related to the plant kingdom. dendroid (DEN-droid) adjective Resembling, branching like, or shaped like a tree. [From Greek dendron (tree). Earliest documented use: 1846.] "Above, branches spread a dendroid filigree across the sky." Angus Wells; Dark Magic: The Godwars; Bantam; 1992. -------- Date: Tue Jan 4 00:01:06 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ligneous X-Bonus: Trying to determine what is going on in the world by reading newspapers is like trying to tell the time by watching the second hand of a clock. -Ben Hecht, journalist, screenwriter, playwright, novelist, director, and producer (1894-1964) This week's theme: Words related to trees and plants ligneous (LIG-nee-uhs) adjective Having the texture or appearance of wood. [From Latin lignum (wood). Ultimately from the Indo-European root leg- (to collect), which is also the source of lexicon, legal, dialogue, lecture, logic, legend, logarithm, intelligent, diligent, sacrilege, elect, and loyal. Earliest documented use: 1626.] "With Boris Johnson lumbering onto the Queen Vic set recently (and 'lumber' is the only appropriate word for his sturdily ligneous performance) ..." Tom Sutcliffe; An Age-Old Problem That Affects Us All; The Independent (London, UK); Jan 26, 2010. -------- Date: Wed Jan 5 00:01:10 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--primrose path X-Bonus: Nothing is so firmly believed as what is least known. -Michel de Montaigne, essayist (1533-1592) This week's theme: Words related to trees and plants primrose path (PRIM-rohz path) noun 1. An easy life, especially devoted to sensual pleasure. 2. A path of least resistance, especially one that ends in disaster. [From Latin prima rosa (first rose). Earliest documented use: 1604.] Notes: It's not clear why "primrose" was picked for naming this metaphorical path. Perhaps Shakespeare chose the word for alliteration -- the word is first attested in his Hamlet where Ophelia says to her brother Laertes: "Do not, as some ungracious pastors do, Show me the steep and thorny way to heaven, Whilst, like a puff'd and reckless libertine, Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads, And recks not his own rede." [Heeds not his own counsel.] Primroses: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/primrose_path_large.jpg [Photo: David J Glaves http://www.flickr.com/photos/davejglaves/2363632291/] "Meanwhile, Katich clung on; the primrose path is not for him. The road is strewn with rocks." Peter Roebuck; Victory in Sight, But Punter's Job Far From Over; The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia); Oct 5, 2010. -------- Date: Thu Jan 6 00:01:08 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sylvan X-Bonus: Every burned book or house enlightens the world; every suppressed or expunged word reverberates through the earth from side to side. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (1803-1882) This week's theme: Words related to trees and plants sylvan or silvan (SIL-vuhn) adjective: Related to the woods; wooded. noun: One who inhabits or frequents the woods. [From Latin silva (forest). Earliest documented use: 1565.] "Tree lovers will be keen to check out a spacious detached home in the desirable sylvan setting of Alverstone Garden Village." Mary McBride; Delight for Lovers of Sylvan Settings; Isle of Wight County Press (UK); Dec 18, 2009. -------- Date: Fri Jan 7 00:01:05 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--wormwood X-Bonus: Habit with him was all the test of truth, / It must be right: I've done it from my youth. -George Crabbe, poet and naturalist (1754-1832) This week's theme: Words related to trees and plants wormwood (WUHRM-wood) noun 1. A plant of the genus Artemisia, used in making absinthe and medicines. 2. Something that brings bitterness or grief. [From alteration of wermod, of obscure origin. Earliest documented use: 1400.] Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium): https://wordsmith.org/words/images/wormwood_large.jpg Photo: Doug Waylett http://www.flickr.com/photos/dougcwaylett/1279115877/] "It is gall and wormwood for a leader already politically crippled by Britain's commitment in Iraq to find himself now also engaged in a confrontation with Iran." Max Hastings; Iran, the Vicious Victim; The New York Times; Mar 30, 2007. -------- Date: Mon Jan 10 00:01:07 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--maw X-Bonus: I realize that patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone. -Edith Cavell, nurse and humanitarian (1865-1915) Has a short quotation you read somewhere ever made you think more than you would have thought after spending several weeks with a heavy tome? Perhaps that's what Friedrich Nietzsche had in mind when he said, "It is my ambition to say in ten sentences what others say in a whole book." In this spirit, this week we'll feature five single-syllable words -- words that are short yet potent. maw (maw) noun 1. The mouth, throat, or stomach of an animal, especially a carnivore. 2. A gaping hole. [From Old English maga. Earliest documented use: 1150.] "Xiaobo Liu's wife said the toughest time for her was after he was arrested in 2008 but before he was indicted. He basically disappeared, she said, into the maw of China's security state." John Pomfret; China's Liu Xiaobo wins Nobel Peace Prize; The Washington Post; Oct 8, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Jan 11 00:01:05 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--limn X-Bonus: It is more often from pride than from ignorance that we are so obstinately opposed to current opinions; we find the first places taken, and we do not want to be the last. -Francois de La Rochefoucauld, moralist (1613-1680) This week's theme: Short words limn (lim) verb tr. 1. To portray in words. 2. To draw or paint, especially in outline. [Via French, from Latin luminare (to illuminate), from lumen (light). Ultimately from the Indo-European root leuk- (light), which is also the source of words such as lunar, lunatic, light, lightning, lucid, illuminate, illustrate, translucent, lux, lynx, and lucubrate https://wordsmith.org/words/lucubrate.html . Earliest documented use: 1440.] "'And if they put Jews into gas chambers in the Soviet Union, it is not an American concern,' Mr. Kissinger insists. 'Maybe a humanitarian concern.' More than limning Nixon's place in history, the line reveals Mr. Kissinger's genius for playing the lackey to power." 400 Hours and Counting; The New York Times; Dec 18, 2010. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/opinion/19sun4.html -------- Date: Wed Jan 12 00:01:04 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--kip X-Bonus: Everyone, in some small sacred sanctuary of the self, is nuts. -Leo Rosten, author (1908-1997) This week's theme: Short words kip (kip) noun: Sleep; a place to sleep; a bed. verb intr.: To sleep or nap. [Perhaps from Danish kippe (cheap tavern). Earliest documented use: 1766.] noun: The hide of a young or small animal or a bundle of such hides. [Perhaps from Middle Dutch kip/kijp (a bundle, especially of hides). Earliest documented use: 1530.] noun: A unit of weight equal to 1000 lb (453.6 kg). [An acronym formed from kilo- + pound. Earliest documented use: 1915.] noun: The basic unit of currency in Laos. [From Thai. Earliest documented use: 1955.] "When Charles and Diana married in 1981, PM David Cameron kipped on the pavement the night before to ensure he got a great view on the Mall. This time he'll have a ringside seat." Sarah Turner; Royal Wedding hotels; The Daily Mirror (London, UK); Dec 12, 2010. "Indian Head, Anderson said, exerts 440 kips of pressure on the boulder." Robert Wilson; Indian Head Rock Getting a Face-lift; The Knoxville News Sentinel (Tennessee); May 8, 2008. -------- Date: Thu Jan 13 00:01:04 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gest X-Bonus: It is better to prevent crimes than to punish them. -Cesare Beccaria, philosopher and politician (1738-1794) This week's theme: Short words gest or geste (jest) noun A tale, especially of someone's notable adventures or exploits. [From Old French geste (exploit), from Latin gesta (exploits), past participle of gerere (to carry on, perform). The word jest (joke) arose as a spelling variant of gest. Earliest documented use: Before 1300.] "It is one of the highlights of the gest of the hero Ardasir." Kinga Ilona Markus-Takeshita; From Iranian Myth to Folk Narrative; Asian Folklore Studies; Jan 2001. "We have beat him to his camp: run one before, And let the queen know of our gests." William Shakespeare; Antony and Cleopatra; Act IV, Scene VIII. -------- Date: Fri Jan 14 00:01:04 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--dun X-Bonus: Society is like a lawn, where every roughness is smoothed, every bramble eradicated, and where the eye is delighted by the smiling verdure of a velvet surface; he, however, who would study nature in its wildness and variety, must plunge into the forest, must explore the glen, must stem the torrent, and dare the precipice. -Washington Irving, writer (1783-1859) This week's theme: Short words dun (duhn) verb tr.: To make persistent demands for payment, especially for a debt. noun: 1. Someone who duns. 2. A demand for payment. [Origin unknown. Earliest documented use: Early 17th century.] noun: 1. A dull grayish brown color. 2. A horse in dun color. adjective: Of dun color. [From Old English dun, perhaps from dusk. Earliest documented use: 953.] "National artist and film director Carlo J. Caparas has been dunned for P540 million in income tax." Tax Evasion Charges Hound Caparas; Malaya (Manila, Philippines); Oct 22, 2010. -------- Date: Mon Jan 17 00:01:04 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--intromit X-Bonus: If a rabbit defined intelligence the way man does, then the most intelligent animal would be a rabbit, followed by the animal most willing to obey the commands of a rabbit. -Robert Brault, writer (b. 1938) "God, to me, it seems, is a verb, not a noun, proper or improper," designer and architect R. Buckminster Fuller once said. And it makes sense. As long as we do our work honestly and not hurt others, what does it matter if we believe in some invisible superman in the sky, who happens to have such a fragile ego so as to condemn people for not believing in him, no matter how good they might be? Do the best job I can, not hurt our fellow beings on this planet, that's my religion. Here's to verbs! [See you in Portland, Oregon. I'll be at the 2011 Northwest Freethought Conference, Mar 25-27, http://www.nwfreethought.org/ presenting a keynote titled: 330 Million Gods and You Can't Find One to Suit You?.] intromit (in-truh-MIT) verb tr. To enter, send, or admit. [From Latin intromittere, from intro- (inwardly) + mittere (to send). Earliest documented use: 1600.] "I never tire of intromitting a hardboiled egg into a milk bottle, shell and all." Raymond Sokolov; Playing With Our Food; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Nov 3, 2007. -------- Date: Tue Jan 18 00:01:04 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--remonstrate X-Bonus: Shake off all the fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call on her tribunal for every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of a God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear. -Thomas Jefferson, third US president, architect and author (1743-1826) This week's theme: Verbs remonstrate (ri-MON-strayt, REM-uhn-) verb intr. To reason or plead in protest. [From Latin remonstrare (to exhibit, demonstrate), from re- + monstrare (to show). Ultimately from the Indo-European root men- (to think), which is the source of mind, mnemonic, mosaic, music, mentor, money, mandarin, and mantra https://wordsmith.org/words/mantra.html . Earliest documented use: 1601.] "Ricky Ponting felt the need to remonstrate with the vigour of an innocent man sentenced to the electric chair." Andrew Webster; Captain on His Knees as Tourists Gloat; The Daily Telegraph (Sydney, Australia); Dec 28, 2010. -------- Date: Wed Jan 19 00:01:05 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--execrate X-Bonus: Useless laws weaken the necessary laws. -Charles de Montesquieu, philosopher and writer (1689-1755) This week's theme: Verbs execrate (EK-si-krayt) verb tr. To detest, denounce, or curse. [From Latin execrari (to curse), from ex- + sacrare (to consecrate). Ultimately from the Indo-European root sak- (to sanctify), which is also the source of other words such as saint, consecrate, sacred, execrable https://wordsmith.org/words/execrable.html, and sacrilegious https://wordsmith.org/words/sacrilegious.html . Earliest documented use: 1561.] "[Edward Said was] adored or execrated with equal intensity by many millions of readers." The Rootless Cosmopolitan; The Nation (New York); Jul 19, 2004. -------- Date: Thu Jan 20 00:01:05 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--betide X-Bonus: There is not less wit nor less invention in applying rightly a thought one finds in a book, than in being the first author of that thought. -Pierre Bayle, philosopher and writer (1647-1706) This week's theme: Verbs betide (bi-TYD) verb tr., intr. To happen. [From Old English tidan (happen), from tid (time). Earliest documented use: 1297.] "Whatever betided at the end of Mitt Romney's term and whatever betides in the future, that shouldn't be forgotten." David A. Mittell Jr.; As the Good Times Roll; Providence Journal (Rhode Island); May 17, 2007. -------- Date: Fri Jan 21 00:01:05 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--expostulate X-Bonus: Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own, which is the chief reason for that kind of reception it meets in the world, and that so very few are offended with it. -Jonathan Swift, satirist (1667-1745) This week's theme: Verbs expostulate (ik-SPOS-chuh-layt) verb intr. To reason earnestly with someone in order to dissuade. [From Latin expostulare (to require), from ex- (intensive prefix) + postulare (to demand). Ultimately from the Indo-European root prek- (to ask), which is also the source of words such as pray, precarious, deprecate, postulate, and precatory https://wordsmith.org/words/precatory.html . Earliest documented use: 1548.] "'Oh come on,' I expostulated, a shade too loudly. 'That's not fair.'" Sarabjit Jagirdar; Amar's Little Secret; Hindustan Times (New Delhi, India); Feb 7, 2010. -------- Date: Mon Jan 24 00:01:07 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--benthic X-Bonus: Among men, it seems, historically at any rate, that processes of co-ordination and disintegration follow each other with great regularity, and the index of the co-ordination is the measure of the disintegration which follows. There is no mob like a group of well-drilled soldiers when they have thrown off their discipline. And there is no lostness like that which comes to a man when a perfect and certain pattern has dissolved about him. There is no hater like one who has greatly loved. -John Steinbeck, novelist, Nobel laureate (1902-1968) Recently I came across this book titled Never Again http://amazon.com/o/asin/0971248567/ws00-20 . It's the story of a gambler who wants to correct the mistakes of his past by not doing (or saying) anything again. It's a fine topic for a novel, but that's not what makes the book noteworthy. It's written with the constraint that no word would be used again in the book. It starts off nicely. Here's the first sentence: "When the racetrack closed forever I had to get a job." And then it quickly goes downhill. Here's a sentence from a randomly opened page of the book: "Environmental breakdown hillsides, counterpotentially, demonstrate stumps bristling clear-cut floodplain backdrop." But what would you expect when you can't use any word -- including nut-and-bolt words as: in, on, to, for, is, are, he, she, said -- more than once. The writer cheats a little with the use of contractions ("Juicier diversions're proposed.") in an effort to make use of words that have appeared earlier, but that doesn't help much. In spite of the general unreadability of the book, I applaud the author for the extremely difficult challenge he tackled (as if writing wasn't hard enough by itself). And if you think it's easy to write with such a constraint, try your hand at crafting a paragraph, let alone a 200-page work that uses no articles, no prepositions, and no pronouns more than once. There's a long tradition of writing with self-imposed constraints. A group called Oulipo has tried many things with constrained writing, often with admirable results. Some examples of constrained writing are lipogram https://wordsmith.org/words/lipogram.html and univocalic https://wordsmith.org/words/univocalic.html . This week we'll feature five isograms, words with no letters repeated. These are words that say: Never again. benthic (BEN-thik) adjective Of or relating to the bottom of a sea or lake. [From Greek benthos (depth of the sea). Earliest documented use: 1902.] "Tuesday night, despite benthic scores once again, Brissie and partner Mark Ballas survived another week on Dancing with the Stars." Your Daily Dose of Gossip; Philadelphia Inquirer (Pennsylvania); Nov 18, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Jan 25 00:01:10 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--captious X-Bonus: Moderate giftedness has been made worthless by the printing press and radio and television and satellites and all that. A moderately gifted person who would have been a community treasure a thousand years ago has to give up, has to go into some other line of work, since modern communications put him or her into daily competition with nothing but world's champions. -Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., novelist (1922-2007) This week's theme: Words with no repeating letters captious (KAP-shuhs) adjective Having an inclination to find faults, especially of a trivial nature. [Via French from Latin capere (to seize). Ultimately from the Indo-European root kap- (to grasp), which is also the root of captive, capsule, capable, capture, cable, chassis, occupy, and deceive. Earliest documented use: 1380.] "Simon Cowell, the breathtakingly captious judge on American Idol, has dashed more dreams than an alarm clock." David Hiltbrand; 'Idol' Hands are This Devil's Workshop, As He Rakes Teen Dreams Over the Coals; The San Diego Union-Tribune; Aug 4, 2002. -------- Date: Wed Jan 26 00:01:05 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--guerdon X-Bonus: human wandering through the zoo / what do your cousins think of you. -Don Marquis, humorist and poet (1878-1937) This week's theme: Words with no repeating letters guerdon (GUHR-duhn) noun: A reward or recompense. verb tr.: To reward or recompense. [Via French from Latin widerdonum, alteration (by influence of Latin donum: gift) of Old High German widarlon (repayment). Earliest documented use: Before 1366.] "The report claims Furse will also pick up a one-off payment of almost double her annual salary in 2005 -- as part of a special guerdon." Chris Noon; LSE Merger Talk Drive Up Value Of Furse's Holdings; Forbes (New York); Mar 20, 2006. -------- Date: Thu Jan 27 00:01:06 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--procumbent X-Bonus: I have learnt silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers. -Kahlil Gibran, mystic, poet, and artist (1883-1931) This week's theme: Words with no repeating letters procumbent (pro-KUM-buhnt) adjective 1. Lying face down; prone; prostrate. 2. Of a plant: Growing along the ground without putting new roots. [From Latin procumbent- (bending forward), present participle of procumbere (to lean forward), from pro- (forward) + cumbere (to lie down). Earliest documented use: 1668.] "You could lie procumbent on the beach, spot whales and dolphins at some remote shore or daydream of nasty officemates tripping and falling into that lovely volcano." Aloha Tales; American Theatre (New York); May 2004. "Ground covers and procumbent shrubs are ideal for embankments and low garden borders." Valerie and Gerry Zwart; Tourism Blossoms; Sunshine Coast Daily (Australia); Aug 14, 2009. -------- Date: Fri Jan 28 00:01:07 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--inosculate X-Bonus: The least pain in our little finger gives us more concern and uneasiness than the destruction of millions of our fellow-beings. -William Hazlitt, essayist (1778-1830) This week's theme: Words with no repeating letters inosculate (in-AWS-kyuh-layt) verb tr., intr. To join or unite. [From Latin in- (within) + osculare (to provide with a mouth), from osculum (little mouth), from os (mouth) https://wordsmith.org/words/os.html . Also see osculate https://wordsmith.org/words/osculate.html . Earliest documented use: 1683.] "The frozen images of delicate leaves and inosculating branches. The still street, the black windows of the other houses! What a time to be awake!" Stephen C Sutcliffe; Atom; Writer's Showcase Press; 2002. -------- Date: Mon Jan 31 00:01:17 EST 2011 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gasconade X-Bonus: We sometimes congratulate ourselves at the moment of waking from a troubled dream; it may be so the moment after death. -Nathaniel Hawthorne, writer (1804-1864) Do you wish to travel, but don't want TSA http://tsapics.com/ groping you or taking your unclothed picture? Well, you've come to the right place. With this week's words we'll take you to Europe. We'll explore words derived from the names of places, and the places we'll visit are Italy, Greece, and France. We'll even travel back in time and visit Ancient Greece, making three stops to pick up words along the way. gasconade (gas-kuh-NAYD) noun: Boastful talk. verb intr.: To boast extravagantly. [From French gasconnade, from gasconner (to boast), after Gascon, a native of the Gascony region in France. First recorded use: 1709.] Notes: Were people from Gascony full of boast and bravado? Not necessarily. Historical rivalries lead one people to generalize others' names as having some shortcoming and some of those names become part of the language. Other examples of such words are solecism https://wordsmith.org/words/solecism.html , Boeotian https://wordsmith.org/words/boeotian.html , and fescennine https://wordsmith.org/words/fescennine.html . "Stanley Hauerwas's explanation is not appreciated in an era of instant broadcast and electronic gasconade." Irony at UVa; The Richmond Times-Dispatch (Virginia); Aug 2, 2010.