A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Mon Mar 3 00:01:03 EST 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gallivant X-Bonus: Man needs to go outside himself in order to find repose and reveal himself. -José Martí, revolutionary and poet (1853-1895) If verbs ever needed a spokesperson, they'd find the perfect candidate in the naturalist and author Terry Tempest Williams, who once said: This is my living faith, an active faith, a faith of verbs: to question, explore, experiment, experience, walk, run, dance, play, eat, love, learn, dare, taste, touch, smell, listen, argue, speak, write, read, draw, provoke, emote, scream, sin, repent, cry, kneel, pray, bow, rise, stand, look, laugh, cajole, create, confront, confound, walk back, walk forward, circle, hide, and seek. To seek: to embrace the questions, be wary of answers. Williams said it well. Verbs make sentences come alive. Verbs are *the* words, literally, from Latin verbum (word). This week we'll look at five specimens from this tribe of words. gallivant or galavant (GAL-uh-vant) verb intr. To roam about in search of pleasure. [Perhaps alteration of gallant, from Old French galer (to rejoice). Earliest documented use: 1823.] "Lady Gaga, Kyle Richards, and Carlton Gebbia gallivant around the streets of Amsterdam in thigh-high boots and trench coats just past midnight." Bradley Stern; Jewels n' Wives; Time (New York); Feb 12, 2014. -------- Date: Tue Mar 4 00:01:04 EST 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vituperate X-Bonus: There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest. -Elie Wiesel, writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1928) This week's theme: Verbs vituperate (vy-TOO-puh-rayt, -TYOO-, vi-) verb tr., intr. To use harsh or abusive language. [From Latin vituperare (to blame), from vitium (fault) + parare (to make or prepare). Earliest documented use: 1542.] See more usage examples of vituperate in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/vituperate "In debate, Thaddeus Stevens vituperates with relish -- You fatuous nincompoop, you unnatural noise! -- at foes of the 13th amendment." Roy Blount; Mr. Lincoln Goes to Hollywood; Smithsonian (Washington, DC); Nov 2012. https://wordsmith.org/words/fatuous.html https://wordsmith.org/words/nincompoop.html -------- Date: Wed Mar 5 00:01:03 EST 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--scrutate X-Bonus: If you wish to make an apple pie truly from scratch, you must first invent the universe. -Carl Sagan, astronomer and writer (1934-1996) This week's theme: Verbs scrutate (SKRU-tayt) verb tr. To investigate. [From Latin scrutari (to examine). Earliest documented use: 1882.] "Philosophers have too often thought that they can learn more about human nature by scrutating the murky depths of substance and faculties than by interpreting the obvious evidence." John Lachs; The Relevance of Philosophy to Life; Vanderbilt University Press; 1995. -------- Date: Thu Mar 6 00:01:03 EST 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--distend X-Bonus: Fame is very agreeable, but the bad thing is that it goes on 24 hours a day. -Gabriel García Márquez, novelist, journalist, Nobel laureate (b. 1927) This week's theme: Verbs distend (di-STEND) verb tr., intr. To swell, inflate, or extend. [From Latin dis- (away, apart) + tendere (to stretch). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ten- (to stretch), which is also the source of tense, tenet, tendon, tent, tenor, tender, pretend, extend, tenure, tetanus, hypotenuse, tenable https://wordsmith.org/words/tenable.html , tenuous https://wordsmith.org/words/tenuous.html , extenuate https://wordsmith.org/words/extenuate.html , countenance https://wordsmith.org/words/countenance.html , pertinacious https://wordsmith.org/words/pertinacious.html , and detente https://wordsmith.org/words/detente.html . Earliest documented use: 1400.] See more usage examples of distend in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/manducate A male frog with a distended vocal sac during its call https://wordsmith.org/words/images/distend_large.jpg Photo: Brian Gratwicke http://www.flickr.com/photos/19731486@N07/4567965511/ "My lungs felt inefficient, distended, like balloons full of water." Edwin Cameron; Was I Ready to Be a Judge with HIV?; Mail and Guardian (Johannesburg, South Africa); Feb 7, 2014. -------- Date: Fri Mar 7 00:01:04 EST 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--manducate 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: Verbs manducate (MAN-joo-kayt) verb tr. To chew or eat. [From Latin mandere (to chew). Ultimately from the Indo-European root menth- (to chew), which also gave us masticate, mandible, and manger. Earliest documented use: 1623.] See more usage examples of manducate in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/manducate "Flem literally manducates, chewing over his surroundings." Michael Wainwright; Darwin and Faulkner's Novels; Palgrave Macmillan; 2008. -------- Date: Mon Mar 10 00:01:04 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--polyphiloprogenitive X-Bonus: In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends imprisoned by an enchanter in paper and leathern boxes. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (1803-1882) It's true. Time flies when you are having fun. Twenty years ago, on March 14, 1994, I started what became Wordsmith.org. This week we celebrate our vicennial. Thanks to all the readers, supporters, and everyone here at Wordsmith.org for being a part of this journey. 1994 was the year (based on the earliest documented use) when words such as dotcom, spammer, and cybercafe entered the English language. That was also the year when benjamin https://wordsmith.org/words/benjamin.html and Toronto blessing https://wordsmith.org/words/toronto_blessing.html became part of the language. To celebrate, this week we'll feature terms that are 20 letters long and have a contest. CONTEST: Can you define this week's words in exactly 20 letters? For example, today's word, polyphiloprogenitive, can be defined as "Generating abundantly" or "Nineteen Kids & Counting" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/19_Kids_and_Counting . PRIZES: Winners will receive their choice of any of these prizes: o A signed copy of any of my books https://wordsmith.org/awad/books.html o A copy of the word game One Up! http://www.oneupmanship.com/oneup.shtml o The T-shirt "AWAD to the wise is sufficient" http://www.uppityshirts.com/awad.shtml HOW TO ENTER: Send your entries to (contest AT wordsmith.org) by Friday. Results will be announced over the weekend. Be sure to include your location (city/state/country). polyphiloprogenitive (pol-ee-fi-luh-pro-JEN-uh-tiv) adjective Extremely prolific. [From Greek poly- (many) + philo- (loving) + Latin progenitive (producing offspring), from pro- (toward) + past participle of gignere (to beget). Earliest documented use: 1919, in a poem by T.S. Eliot.] "Polyphiloprogenitive Joe Fallon, the needy, breedy father of seventeen, or was it nineteen? I was never sure, any more than Joe himself." Aidan Higgins; Dog Days; Secker & Warburg; 1998. "All spring and summer my parents ricochet from garden to garden, mulching, watering, pulling up the polyphiloprogenitive weeds, 'until', my mother says, 'I'm bent over like a coat hanger.'" Margaret Atwood; Bluebeard's Egg; McClelland & Stewart; 1983. -------- Date: Tue Mar 11 00:01:02 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Little Lord Fauntleroy X-Bonus: Humans think they are smarter than dolphins because we build cars and buildings and start wars, etc., and all that dolphins do is swim in the water, eat fish, and play around. Dolphins believe that they are smarter for exactly the same reasons. -Douglas Adams, writer, dramatist, and musician (1952-2001) This week's theme: 20-letter words Little Lord Fauntleroy (lit-l lord FONT-luh-roi) noun An innocent child; also a very polite and well-dressed child. [From Frances Hodgson Burnett's novel Little Lord Fauntleroy (1885). Earliest documented use: 1942.] Little Lord Fauntleroy with his mom in the 1936 eponymous film: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/little_lord_fauntleroy_large.jpg Photo: Wikimedia "As for you in the back, Little Lord Fauntleroy, get used to it, to the real world. And maybe tell them Daddy'll be coming in the Dacia tomorrow." Sam Wollaston; On the Road; The Guardian (London, UK); Feb 7, 2014. -------- Date: Wed Mar 12 00:01:04 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--anthropomorphization X-Bonus: In order that people may be happy in their work, these three things are needed: they must be fit for it; they must not do too much of it; and they must have a sense of success in it. -John Ruskin, author, art critic, and social reformer (1819-1900) This week's theme: 20-letter words anthropomorphization (an-thruh-puh-mor-fy-ZAY-shuhn) noun Attribution of human qualities to things not human. [From Greek anthropo- (human) + morph (form). Earliest documented use: 1880.] See more usage examples of anthropomorphization in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/anthropomorphization "But for the most part she simply relished the anthropomorphization. That the word pencil was masculine lent each pencil a boyish mischievousness. That flower was feminine endowed flowers with a maternal dignity." Craig Boyko; Blackouts; McClelland & Stewart; 2008. -------- Date: Thu Mar 13 00:01:02 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--silk-stocking district X-Bonus: In this world, you must be a bit too kind to be kind enough. -Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux, dramatist and novelist (1688-1763) This week's theme: 20-letter words silk-stocking district (SILK-STOK-ing dis-trikt) noun A part of a city inhabited by the rich and powerful. [From the fact that only the rich could afford expensive silk hosiery. Earliest documented use: 1893.] "In New York years ago, cops in the silk-stocking district of the Upper East Side knew how to tie a bow tie for a young man without the experience to do it himself." James & Kay Salter; Life Is Meals; Knopf; 2010. -------- Date: Fri Mar 14 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--secret of Polichinelle X-Bonus: Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from that of their social environment. -Albert Einstein, physicist, Nobel laureate (1879-1955) This week's theme: 20-letter words secret of Polichinelle (SEE-krit uv po-LISH-i-nel) noun A supposed secret that's widely known: an open secret. [From French secret de Polichinelle. Polichinelle (English Punch or Punchinello https://wordsmith.org/words/punchinello.html ) was a stock character in Italian puppetry. Earliest documented use: 1828.] Polichinelle: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/secret_of_polichinelle_large.jpg Image: Wikimedia "The tsar waited until after the memorial services on the fortieth day after the empress's death ... and announced that he had decided to marry Katya. The games between the tsar and the minister, the secret of Polichinelle, were over." Edvard Radzinsky; Alexander II: The Last Great Tsar; Free Press; 2005. "How often has she taunted me with lack of dignified reserve and needful caution! How many times has she saucily insinuated that all my affairs are the secret of Polichinelle!" Charlotte Brontë; Villette; Smith, Elder & Co.; 1853. -------- Date: Mon Mar 17 00:01:04 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--acuity X-Bonus: You've got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was. -Irish Proverb I put my hand in the sand on a beach and pick up a handful. The sand particles look the same on the surface, but a closer look shows each to be unique. Some with streaks, some longish, others round. Some have a smooth texture, others feel like, well, sandpaper. Some are large, others tiny. [Sand under a microscope https://wordsmith.org/words/images/sand-grain-by-gary-greenberg-large.jpg Photo: Dr. Gary Greenberg http://sandgrains.com/ ] It's somewhat like that this week, except I put my hand in a dictionary and pick up a few words. On the surface, words might look like just an assemblage of letters, but looking deeper we see that each has its own texture and color. The words this week have nothing in common, except that they are all words in the English language. acuity (uh-KYOO-i-tee) noun Sharpness; keenness. [Via French from Latin acuere (to sharpen). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ak- (sharp), which is also the source of acrid, vinegar, acid, acute, edge, hammer, heaven, eager, oxygen, mediocre, paragon, and acescent https://wordsmith.org/words/acescent.html . Earliest documented use: 1400.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/acuity "Birds seek out their own food and build nests for their eggs, some have the mental acuity to know of approaching storms and they may huddle together for warmth when it is cold." L. Sue Boggler; Four Legs of the Stool; Abbott Press; 2012. -------- Date: Tue Mar 18 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--desuetude X-Bonus: Art is like baby shoes. When you coat them with gold, they can no longer be worn. -John Updike, writer (1932-2009) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words desuetude (DES-wi-tood, -tyood) noun A state of disuse. [From Latin de- (away from) + suescere (to become accustomed). Earliest documented use: 1623.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/desuetude "Far from being a high-tech wonder, the Earth Station had a sad, neglected air about it, a feeling of desuetude and abandonment." Douglas Preston; Impact; Forge Books; 2010. -------- Date: Wed Mar 19 00:01:04 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--turgid X-Bonus: It's best to give while your hand is still warm. -Philip Roth, novelist (b. 1933) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words turgid (TUR-jid) adjective 1. Swollen; congested. 2. Pompous; high-flown. [From Latin turgere (to swell). Earliest documented use: 1620.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/turgid "It's not surprising that [Norm Macdonald] would take the wind out of the sails of peers who write turgid, self-important autobiographies ... he has earned attention for his deflating Twitter responses to various celebrity tweets." Eric Volmers; Norm Macdonald Still Working at His First Love of Standup Comedy; Calgary Herald (Canada); Feb 4, 2014. -------- Date: Thu Mar 20 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sciolism X-Bonus: Life cannot be classified in terms of a simple neurological ladder, with human beings at the top; it is more accurate to talk of different forms of intelligence, each with its strengths and weaknesses. This point was well demonstrated in the minutes before last December's tsunami, when tourists grabbed their digital cameras and ran after the ebbing surf, and all the 'dumb' animals made for the hills. -B.R. Myers, author (b. 1963) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words sciolism (SY-uh-liz-uhm) noun Pretentious display of superficial knowledge. [From Late Latin sciolus (smatterer), diminutive of Latin scius (knowing), from scire (to know). Ultimately from the Indo-European root skei- (to cut or split), which also gave us schism, ski, shin, science, conscience, nice, scienter https://wordsmith.org/words/scienter.html , nescient https://wordsmith.org/words/nescient.html , exscind https://wordsmith.org/words/exscind.html , and adscititious https://wordsmith.org/words/adscititious.html . Earliest documented use: 1810.] See more usage examples of sciolism in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/sciolism "This consists of some of the dullest sciolism in the history of prose, a standardized academic jargon and rhetoric, the dutiful rehearsal of received theory, and the deliberate misrepresentation of anything challenging or rejecting academic postmodernism." Michael Donaghy; The Shape of the Dance; Picador; 2009. -------- Date: Fri Mar 21 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--edacity X-Bonus: An ounce of mother is worth a pound of clergy. -Spanish proverb This week's theme: Miscellaneous words edacity (i-DAS-i-tee) noun Greediness; good appetite. [From Latin edere (to eat). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ed- (to eat, to bite) that has given other words such as edible, comestible, obese, etch, fret, and postprandial https://wordsmith.org/words/postprandial.html . Earliest documented use: 1626.] See more usage examples of edacity in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/edacity "Allender is still undaunted, but hungry, not with the reckless experience appetite of a kid, but rather with the edacity of an older gourmand who wants as much of what he loves as possible." Alan Tennant; The Guadalupe Mountains of Texas; U of Texas Press; 1980. -------- Date: Mon Mar 24 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--euchre X-Bonus: The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it. -Jean Paul Richter, writer (1763-1825) Popular wisdom says it's not the cards that you hold, but how you play them that makes the difference. Or as I like to say, it's not the tiles on your rack, it's what words you make with them that counts. Playing cards have been around for much longer -- they have had a thousand-year lead over Scrabble. Understandably, they also have a head start when it comes to being a part of the language. Many terms from card games have entered the English language. This week we'll deal with five of them. (Also see a week of terms from poker https://wordsmith.org/words/poker-faced.html ) euchre (YOO-kuhr) verb tr.: To cheat, trick, or outwit. noun: A card game for two to four players usually played with the 32 highest cards in the pack. [Of uncertain origin. Perhaps from the Alsatian game of Juckerspiel as the two top trumps are Jucker (jack). The verb sense of the word arises from the fact that the failure to win three tricks is known as being euchred and results in the opponent scoring two points. Earliest documented use: 1846.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/euchre "You got euchred. The company lied to you about its status and you foolishly bought its lie." Colin Barrett; A Harsh Lesson on Due Diligence; Journal of Commerce (New York); May 23, 2013. -------- Date: Tue Mar 25 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vole X-Bonus: Ultimately, literature is nothing but carpentry. ... With both you are working with reality, a material just as hard as wood. -Gabriel García Márquez, novelist, journalist, Nobel laureate (b. 1927) This week's theme: Words derived from card games vole (vohl) noun: The winning of all the tricks in some card games. verb intr.: 1. To risk everything in the hope of great rewards. Typically used in the phrase "go the vole". 2. To try every possibility. [From French voler (to fly), from Latin volare (to fly), which also gave us volatile and volley. Earliest documented use: 1680.] noun: Any of various rodents of the genus Microtus and related genera. [Short for volemouse, from Norwegian vollmus, from voll (field) + mus (mouse). Earliest documented use: 1805.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/vole "Don't blame me if you go the vole!" https://wordsmith.org/words/images/vole.jpg Photo: Jason Ahrns http://www.flickr.com/photos/37564545@N04/6296838045/ "So, as I was determined to go the vole, I have taken care you shall dip as deep as I." Sir Walter Scott; Tales of My Landlord; 1819. -------- Date: Wed Mar 26 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--house of cards X-Bonus: Mistakes are part of the dues that one pays for a full life. -Sophia Loren, actress (b. 1934) This week's theme: Words derived from card games house of cards (hous uv kardz) noun Something insecure or insubstantial that is subject to imminent collapse. [Alluding to a flimsy structure made with playing cards. Earliest documented use: 1645.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/house%20of%20cards Bryan Berg, who makes houses of cards for a living https://wordsmith.org/words/images/house_of_cards_large.jpg Photo: Kevin Woods http://www.flickr.com/photos/14005737@N00/1167649588/ "'We have to find a new balance,' the pope said. 'Otherwise even the moral edifice of the church is likely to fall like a house of cards.'" Michael Gerson; Francis the Troublemaker; The Washington Post; Sep 24, 2013. -------- Date: Thu Mar 27 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--spoof X-Bonus: A pedestal is as much a prison as any small space. -Gloria Steinem, activist, editor (b. 1934) This week's theme: Words derived from card games spoof (spoof) noun: 1. A light, good-humored imitation; parody. 2. A hoax or a prank. verb tr.: 1. To satirize gently. 2. To fool using a hoax or a prank. [After Spoof, a card game invented by the comedian Arthur Roberts (1852-1933). Earliest documented use: 1884.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/spoof "Some hilarious videos doing the rounds on the Internet show people pretending to take photos with invisible iPhones and hold conversations on them. These spoofs are meant to poke fun at Apple and its legion of fans." Five Out of Ten; The Economist (London, UK); Sep 15, 2012. -------- Date: Fri Mar 28 00:01:02 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--trump card X-Bonus: The mind is the effect, not the cause. -Daniel C. Dennett, philosopher (b. 1942) This week's theme: Words derived from card games trump card (trump kard) noun 1. In card games, a suit chosen to rank above the others. 2. Something that gives an overriding, decisive advantage. [An alteration of the word triumph, which was the name of an old card game. Earliest documented use: 1823.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/trump%20card "How big a factor might home advantage be for Kilkenny? Potentially, it could be their trump card." Vincent Hogan; Kilkenny v Tipperary; Irish Independent (Dublin); Jul 2, 2013. -------- Date: Mon Mar 31 00:01:03 EDT 2014 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--interregnum X-Bonus: Whenever anyone has offended me, I try to raise my soul so high that the offense cannot reach it. -Rene Descartes, philosopher and mathematician (1596-1650) A school principal may not behave in an autocratic manner, but he or she is a prince or princess, etymologically speaking. Both have descended from the same parents: Latin prime (first) + capere (to take). The antiquated custom of royalty, with inherited offices, divine rights, and privy purses is thankfully becoming rare. Yet they live on in the language. Things royal are big, such as a royal pain. In chemistry, we have aqua regia (literally, royal water), a highly corrosive liquid. A king's ransom is a very large sum of money. A royalty was a right granted by a king to a person or corporation, especially the right to mine an area. From there the term extended to payments made to authors, composers, etc. This week we'll regale you with five other words tracing their lineage to royalty. PS: If you see someone confusing the words principal and principle, cut them a little slack. The two words differ by only a letter and have the same (princely) heritage. interregnum (in-tuhr-REG-nuhm) noun The period between the end of a reign and the beginning of the next; a time when there is no ruler. [From Latin, from inter- (between) + regnum (reign). Ultimately from the Indo-European reg- (to move in a straight line, lead, or rule), which also gave us regime, direct, rectangle, erect, rectum, alert, source, surge, recto, regular, abrogate https://wordsmith.org/words/abrogate.html , arrogate https://wordsmith.org/words/arrogate.html , prorogue https://wordsmith.org/words/prorogue.html , regent https://wordsmith.org/words/regent.html , and supererogatory https://wordsmith.org/words/supererogatory.html . Earliest documented use: 1579.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/interregnum "Janet Yellen was acting chairwoman during the weekend interregnum." Binyamin Appelbaum; Bernanke Starts New Role as Yellen Takes Fed Helm; The New York Times; Feb 3, 2014.