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This week's theme Animal terms This week's words running dog Kilkenny cats stool pigeon charley horse guinea pig Give a gift that ... keeps on giving, all year long: A gift subscription of AWAD or give the gift of books Discuss Feedback RSS/XML A.Word.A.Day--charley horse charley horse (CHAR-lee hors) noun Cramp or stiffness in a muscle, especially in the leg, typically caused by overstrain or injury. [Originally baseball slang, of unknown origin.] "I swam a ton of laps Tuesday, but was forced to stop after I received a charley horse in my calf." Alisha A. Pina; Work Pays Off, Just Not on Scale; The Providence Journal (Rhode Island); Jun 27, 2004. "Coyotes winger Shane Doan has missed two games with a charley horse." NHL Notebook; Vancouver Sun (Canada); Mar 16, 2004. This week's theme: expressions derived from pet animals. X-Bonus Irreverence is the champion of liberty and its only sure defense. -Mark Twain, author and humorist (1835-1910)

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