A.Word.A.Day --buttle

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buttle

PRONUNCIATION:

(BUT-l)

MEANING:

verb intr.: To do a butler's work.

ETYMOLOGY:

Back-formation from butler, from Old French bouteillier (cup-bearer), from bouteille (bottle). Originally, a butler was in charge of the wine. Earliest recorded use: 1867.

USAGE:

"The top hotels in Saudi Arabia are staffed by foreign men -- something I realized must be the case when my butler at the Al Faisaliah folded my underwear unprompted. If I were buttled by a Saudi, we'd probably be shuttled to Deera Square -- or Chop Chop Square, as it's better known -- where the public beheadings occur."
Maureen Dowd; A Girls' Guide to Saudi Arabia; Vanity Fair (New York); Aug 2010.

See more usage examples of buttle in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Insanity - a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world. -RD Laing, psychiatrist and author (1927-1989)

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