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Permanent link for this word: obloquy

Jun 23, 2009

This week's theme
Miscellaneous words

This week's words
eleemosynary
obloquy
palliate
countervail
excoriate

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A.Word.A.Day

with Anu Garg

obloquy

PRONUNCIATION:

(OB-luh-kwee)

MEANING:

noun:
1. Censure or abusive language towards someone, especially when expressed by many.
2. Disgrace resulting from public condemnation.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin obloquium (talking against, contradiction), from ob- (against) + loqui (to speak). Ultimately from the Indo-European root tolkw- (to speak) that is also the source of somniloquy, loquacious, and allocution.

USAGE:

"Jimmy Carter is a man who is prepared to risk the obloquy and criticism of die-hard neocons and nervous fellow senior Democrats to break the chains of Washington's foolish Middle East peace policy."
Carter Mission; Arab News (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia); Apr 9, 2008.

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

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Evil is like a shadow - it has no real substance of its own, it is simply a lack of light. You cannot cause a shadow to disappear by trying to fight it, stamp on it, by railing against it, or any other form of emotional or physical resistance. In order to cause a shadow to disappear, you must shine light on it. -Shakti Gawain, teacher and author (b. 1948)

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