A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Mon May 3 00:01:08 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--preposterous X-Bonus: To give pleasure to a single heart by a single kind act is better than a thousand head-bowings in prayer. -Saadi, poet (c. 1200 AD) preposterous (pri-POS-tuhr-uhs) adjective Nonsensical, absurd. [From Latin praeposterus (inverted, literally: first coming last), from prae (before) + posterus (coming after).] "Sane and rational people have been willing to overlook the obvious and believe the most preposterous things, rather than face the truth." Do We Need a Recount or a Shrink?; Taipei Times (Taiwan); Mar 29, 2004. "This could be further evidence that the call by the opposition for the funding of political parties is not preposterous. After all the practice is an accepted norm in older and mature democracies around the world." Time To Fund Political Parties; Mmegi (Gaborone, Botswana); Mar 22, 2004. This week's guest wordsmith, Dr. Mardy Grothe (drmgrotheATaol.com) writes: I've been systematically collecting self-contradictory words, phrases, and quotations for more than twenty years. The precise term for a concise self-contradictory expression, of course, is oxymoron. In an oxymoron (like pretty ugly, old news, or sweet sorrow), words that are incompatible or that contradict one another are joined together in a way that ends up making a lot of sense. A little known fact about an oxymoron is that it is a paradox (technically, a condensed paradox). Paradoxes are fascinating in large part because they are false at one level and true at another. Someone once wisely said, "A paradox is a truth standing on its head to get our attention." In general, when we come across a paradoxical notion, it arrests out attention and sets our brain cells into motion. I have over 10,000 of these perception-altering gems in my personal collection, all of which I include under the rubric "Oxymoronica." This week we examine words and phrases that are false yet true. (Dr. Mardy Grothe is a psychologist, author, and avid quotation collector. His new book "Oxymoronica: Paradoxical Wit and Wisdom from History's Greatest Wordsmiths" was recently published by HarperResource http://amazon.com/o/asin/0060536993/ws00-20 For more, go to: http://oxymoronica.com ) -------- Date: Tue May 4 00:01:09 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--idiot savant X-Bonus: Love is like war; easy to begin but very hard to stop. -H.L. Mencken, writer, editor, and critic (1880-1956) idiot savant (ID-ee-uht sa-VAHNT) noun A person with autism or some other mental disability who is exceptionally gifted in a highly specialized field, such as math (rapid mental calculation) or music (ability to play a complex piece of music after hearing it only once). This term is now outdated. Autistic savant is the current term. [From French, literally learned idiot.] "I thought of him as a kind of idiot-savant - a man who had flashes of insight and brilliance. And he also had a great spirit." Dan Harper; Save the Eccentrics; Santa Cruz Sentinel (California); Mar 21, 2004. "The author, a self-proclaimed idiot savant, explains his motivation for the book on its back cover." Drawing From Life; National Post (Canada); Mar 2, 2004. This week's theme: Words that appear contradictory. -------- Date: Wed May 5 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--spendthrift X-Bonus: The bicycle is the most civilized conveyance known to man. Other forms of transport grow daily more nightmarish. Only the bicycle remains pure in heart. -Iris Murdoch, writer (1919-1999) spendthrift (SPEND-thrift) noun One who spends money extravagantly or wastefully. adjective Wasteful with money. [A spendthrift is literally one who spends his or her wealth, from Middle English thrift (prosperity), from Old Norse thrifask (thrive).] Two colorful synonyms of today's word are dingthrift and scattergood. "Actress Reema says she would like to marry a man who is compassionate towards others, is neither a spendthrift nor a miser." Reema Searches 'Ideal'; Pakistan Times (Rawalpindi, Pakistan); Mar 17, 2004. "Quebec, the document points out, is both poorer and more spendthrift, which is a recipe for bankruptcy." Konrad Yakabuski; Charest Turns to the Public to Take on Fiscal Pickle; Globe and Mail (Toronto, Canada); Mar 26, 2004. This week's theme: Words that appear contradictory. -------- Date: Thu May 6 00:01:08 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pianoforte X-Bonus: It (marriage) may be compared to a cage, the birds without try desperately to get in, and those within try desperately to get out. -Michel de Montaigne, essayist (1533-1592) pianoforte (pee-AN-uh-fort, pee-an-o-FOR-tay) noun A piano. [From Italian, literally soft-loud. The term pianoforte is a contraction of Italian gravecembalo col piano e forte (harpsichord with soft and loud).] The piano was invented by Florence instrument-maker Bartolomeo Cristofori (1655-1731), as an improvement over its precursor, the harpsichord. Invention of the piano allowed a player greater expression with precise control over the volume, duration, etc. of a note, as compared with the unvarying tone of the harpsichord. "Recital program with violinist Rachel Barton, pianist Valentina Lisitsa, David Schrader on pianoforte and sopranos Jonita Lattimore and Elizabeth Norman." Wynne Delacoma; Grant Park Trumpets New Home With Top-notch Concert Season; Chicago Sun Times; Mar 18, 2004. "Classical instrumental performances dominated the day, featuring pianoforte, saxophone, oboe, flute, clarinet, bassoon and guitar." Stacey Shackford; Tempo Rises at Music Festival; The Press and Journal (Aberdeen, Scotland); March 16, 2004. This week's theme: Words that appear contradictory. -------- Date: Fri May 7 00:01:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--passive-aggressive X-Bonus: Learning is like rowing upstream: not to advance is to drop back. -Chinese proverb passive-aggressive (PAS-iv uh-GRES-iv) adjective Relating to a personality disorder characterized by expression of aggressive behavior in a passive way, such as procrastination, stubbornness, or inefficiency. [From Latin passivus (submissive) and aggredi (to attack). The term was first introduced to describe uncooperative soldiers, in a 1945 US War Department technical bulletin. Passive-Aggressive Personality Disorder is no longer recognized as a proper diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association.] "Redford's passive-aggressive style of oppression ­ he used to sneak into and out of his office from a back door so as not to have to encounter his staff ­ is simply not as sexy as Weinstein's androgen-propelled tyranny." Deborah Hill Cone; Books: It's Right Down And Dirty in Tinsel Town; The National Business Review (Auckland, New Zealand); Mar 5, 2004. "The author's voice is brisk and purposeful, yet the reader's imagination is never cheated. There is still ample room for one to picture and relate to the bittersweet scenarios from the passive-aggressive meetings in Caris's parents' living room and the spats between Caris and her combative elder sister, Stella ..." Izuan Shah; Family Troubles; The Star (Petaling Jaya, Malaysia); Feb 27, 2004. This week's theme: Words that appear contradictory. -------- Date: Mon May 10 01:31:08 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--polyhistor X-Bonus: All know that the drop merges into the ocean but few know that the ocean merges into the drop. -Kabir, reformer, poet (late 15th century) polyhistor (pol-ee-HIS-tuhr) noun, also polyhistorian A person of great or wide learning. [From Latin polyhistor, from Greek polyistor (very learned), from poly- (much, many) + histor (learned). Ultimately from the Indo-European root weid- (to see) that is also the source of words such as guide, wise, vision, advice, idea, story and history.] "For this extraordinary combination of clearness and ease will not come by observation, or even by reading the fourteen thousand books which constituted (Robert) Southey's library. Such a polyhistor, for variety, for excellence of matter and for excellence of form, it may be doubted whether any other language possesses." A.W. Ward, et al; The Cambridge History of English and American Literature: Putnam; 1907-21. "Since the middle of the last century, Hryhorii Savych Skovoroda, the eighteenth century Ukrainian polyhistor, has been hailed by Russian and Ukrainian scholars as, correspondingly, the Russian or the Ukrainian Socrates." John Fizer; Skovoroda's and Socrates' Concepts of Self-cognition; Journal of Ukrainian Studies (Toronto, Canada); Jul 1, 1998. A polyhistor is a person with encyclopedic knowledge, and so is a polymath. These two words are perfect synonyms but are really exceptions. There are not a lot of words where you could replace one with another without at least a slight change in the shade of meaning. On the surface, two words may appear similar but look deeper and you will surely find subtle nuances, each word carrying its own flavor of meaning, as if created to fulfill its destiny where no other word can. In this sense, the words are like humans, where no two are alike. No wonder we have so many words to describe people. This week AWAD features five of them. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue May 11 00:01:16 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--heteroclite X-Bonus: Promises are like the full moon: if they are not kept at once they diminish day by day. -German proverb heteroclite (HET-uhr-uh-klyt) adjective 1. Deviating from the ordinary rule; eccentric. 2. (In grammar) Irregularly inflected. noun 1. A person who is unconventional; a maverick. 2. A word that is irregularly formed. [From Middle French, from Late Latin heteroclitus, from Greek heteroklitos, from hetero- + klinein (to lean, inflect). Ultimately from the Indo-European root klei (to lean). Other words derived from the same root are decline, incline, recline, lean, client, climax, and ladder.] "They (candidates) are a heteroclite bunch." Philip Revzin; Will Italians Vote To Send a Scotsman To EC Parliament?; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Jun 16, 1989. "I might have imagined. Nor could I have dreamed the heteroclite crew - men I had met aboard Tzadkiel's ship ..." Gene Wolfe; The Urth of the New Sun; Tor Books; 1997. This week's theme: words to describe people. -------- Date: Wed May 12 00:01:07 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--apostate X-Bonus: Men cannot see their reflection in running water, but only in still water. -Chuang Tzu, philosopher (c. 4th century BCE) apostate (uh-POS-tayt, -tit) noun One who abandons his or her religion, principles, political party, or some other allegiance. [From Middle French, from Late Latin apostata, from Greek aposta (to stand off).] "These independent artists rue the perfidy of apostate millionaires, and moan about pop stars who abandoned the true faith." Sasha Frere-Jones; Madvillain Redeems the Pretensions of Independent Hip-hop; New Yorker; Apr 12, 2004. "Publicly, Saudis will be of two minds: Some will see Ferial as an apostate (in addition to being a woman of doubtful loyalty) because she has entered political life and claims to hold sway over men; and because she lives in a different environment and supports American values that permit equality between the sexes and open the doors to ethnic and religious minorities." Hatoon Al-Fassi; A Saudi Woman Uses American Elections to Break All the Taboos; The Daily Star (Beirut, Lebanon); Apr 24, 2004; -------- Date: Thu May 13 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--polyvalent X-Bonus: Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race. -H.G. Wells, writer (1866-1946) polyvalent (pol-ee-VAY-luhnt) adjective 1. Having many layers, meanings, values, etc.; multifaceted. 2. (In chemistry) Having multiple valences. 3. (In medicine or biology) Effective against multiple agents. [From poly- (many) + -valent (having a valence), from Latin valere (to be strong). Ultimately, it derives from the same Indo-European root wal- (to be strong) as the words valiant, avail, valor, and value.] "A native of Port-au-Prince, he (Jean-Claude Garoute) began his career as a child. He developed as a polyvalent artist, working in various media and developing teaching techniques." Alva James-Johnson; Haitian Renders Nation's History And Culture in Art; South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Florida); Apr 29, 2004. "A team of polyvalent German women has won in all four World Cup disciplines, with Seizinger alone winning eight races in downhill, super-G and giant slalom." Philip Hersh; The Contenders Tribune; Chicago Tribune; Feb 6, 1998. -------- Date: Fri May 14 00:01:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--clodhopper X-Bonus: Conscience is thoroughly well-bred and soon leaves off talking to those who do not wish to hear it. -Samuel Butler, writer (1835-1902) clodhopper (KLOD-hop-uhr) noun 1. A clumsy, awkward fellow. 2. A strong, heavy work shoe. [Apparently modeled after grasshopper: clod + hopper.] "They (drugs) cannot make a champion athlete out of a clodhopper. Winners still need the legs, the lungs and, above all, the heart to succeed." Mick Hume; Let's Inject Some Sense Into This; The Times (London, UK); Oct 27, 2003. "Acts of creation are ordinarily reserved for gods and poets, but humbler folk may circumvent this restriction if they know how. To plant a pine, for example, one need be neither god nor poet; one need only own a good shovel. By virtue of this curious loophole in the rules, any clodhopper may say: Let there be a tree--and there will be one." Aldo Leopold, conservationist (1887-1948). -------- Date: Mon May 17 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--paterfamilias X-Bonus: Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent than the one derived from fear of punishment. -Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) paterfamilias (pay-tuhr-fuh-MIL-ee-uhs) noun The male head of a family or a household; father figure. [From Latin paterfamilias (father of the household), from pater (father) + familias, from familia (household), from famulus (servant, slave).] The feminine equivalent of the word is materfamilias. "The Burton children are forever falling out with their gaunt, grim, illiterate and ultimately one-eyed (a spark from the anvil having gone the wrong way) paterfamilias." DJ Taylor; The Blacksmith's Progress; The Guardian (London, UK); Apr 17, 2004. "He (Isaac Stern) taught formally, gave master classes worldwide, and was the paterfamilias of a generation of illustrious American musicians, including cellist Yo-Yo Ma and violinists Pinchas Zuckerman, and Itzhak Perlman." Virtuoso With a Heart; The Australian (Sydney, Australia); Sep 25, 2001. Here's a quick question: What do the words "perpetrate" and "patriot" have in common, other than the fact that both begin with the letter p? The two words originated from the Latin root pater (father). When we perpetrate something, we cause to bring it about or, in other words, we father it. A patriot is a fellow country-man, one having the same forefathers. Other words derived from the same Latin root are expatriate (ex- + patria, literally out of the father land), patron (literally, one who is like father, a protector or advocate). Here are a few more: patriarch, paternal, patrician, and patrimony. It's fascinating how the same root gives birth to such a diverse range of words - not unlike children of a father, where each child has much in common yet each has different interests and temperament. Ah, the joy of words! When we consider their derivations, we are, in fact, tracing their lineage and drawing their genealogical chart, identifying their fathers and forefathers. This week we'll trace the origin of words about relations. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue May 18 00:01:15 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--novercal X-Bonus: To kill time is not murder, it's suicide. -William James, psychologist and philosopher (1842-1910) novercal (NO-vur-kuhl) adjective Of or relating to a stepmother; stepmotherly. [From Latin novercalis, from noverca (stepmother), ultimately from Indo-European root newo- (new). Other words derived from this root are new, neo-, novice, novel, novelty, innovate, and renovate.] "Guido's old lady-mother Beatrice, Who since her husband, Count Tommaso's death, Had held sole sway i' the house, -- the doited crone Slow to acknowledge, curtsey and abdicate, -- Was recognized of true novercal type, Dragon and devil." Robert Browning; The Ring and the Book: Book 2; 1868. "Her novercal guardian observed Nana Yaa waddle and limp like a duck and did not quite seem to understand the cause." Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe; New York Beacon; Aug 20, 2003. This week's theme: words about relations. -------- Date: Wed May 19 00:01:12 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--filial X-Bonus: The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact than a drunken man is happier than a sober one. -George Bernard Shaw, writer, Nobel laureate (1856-1950) filial (FIL-ee-uhl) adjective Of or relating to an offspring. [From Middle English, from Late Latin filialis, from Latin filius (son).] "Don't let your social and filial relations unwillingly be scarified through the use of the Internet and online friendships." Iran Police Warn Against 'Dangerous Sharks' of Internet; Tehran Times (Iran); Apr 26, 2004. "After commercialism reared its inevitable head, Miss Jarvis (who started Mother's Day) rued that filial urge and battled those who 'would undermine Mother's Day with their greed.'" Hubert B. Herring; But Will They Make You Breakfast Again Tomorrow?; The New York Times; May 9, 2004. This week's theme: words about relations. -------- Date: Thu May 20 00:01:08 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--materteral X-Bonus: The eyes of others our prisons; their thoughts our cages. -Virginia Woolf, writer (1882-1941) materteral (muh-TUHR-tuhr-uhl) adjective, also materterine Characteristic of, or in the manner of, an aunt. [From classical Latin matertera (maternal aunt), from mater (mother).] This word is the feminine counterpart of the word avuncular (like an uncle). The word materteral has its origin in maternal aunt, but now it could be applied to aunts on both sides, just as the word aunt originally meant paternal aunt, from Latin amita (father's sister), from amare (to love), but now applies to aunts of all kinds. "K and P's (Katharina and Petruchio's) first kiss, at the end of 5.1, started out merely dutiful on both sides but turned evidently passionate and went on for what seemed a very long time, and was repeated for even longer at the end of the play, as the other actors not only left the stage but cleared it of the banquet furniture and props and left the couple still glued to one another as the lights came down. Most of us smiled on with avuncular or materteral approval." David Evett; Shrew Productions; Shakesper; Oct 3, 1994. "With maternal and materteral anxiety." W. Taylor; Monthly Review; 1823. (Quoted in the OED) This week's theme: words about relations. -------- Date: Fri May 21 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--enate X-Bonus: I once wanted to become an atheist, but I gave up - they have no holidays. -Henny Youngman, comedian, actor (1906-1998) enate (EE-nayt, i-NAYT) noun Someone related on the mother's side. adjective Related on one's mother's side. Also enatic. Growing outward. [From Latin enatus, past participle of enasci (to issue forth), from e-, from ex- (out) + nasci (to be born).] Agnate is the term for someone related on the father's side. Cognate is the generic term meaning having a common ancestor. "Never was a writer so blessed (or cursed?) with so many interactive relatives. Garner likes to label them as Enates or Agnates; but whether on his mother's side or his father's, these collateral branch members of the family tree were often in contact with Melville and his immediate family, and sometimes on a daily basis." Gerald R. Griffin; The Civil War World of Herman Melville; Studies in American Fiction (Boston, Massachusetts); Sep 22, 1995. This week's theme: words about relations. -------- Date: Mon May 24 00:01:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--momism X-Bonus: We can put television in its proper light by supposing that Gutenberg's great invention had been directed at printing only comic books. -Robert M. Hutchins, educator (1899-1977) momism (MOM-iz-ehm) noun 1. Excessive attachment towards one's mother. 2. Excessive mothering; overprotection. [Coined by author Philip Wylie (1902-1971).] "I, who grew up as a 'motherless' minister's son and hence was smothered in multimomism for a decade and a half, had an unusual opportunity to observe the phenomenon at zero range." Philip Wylie; Generation of Vipers; 1942. "Rhona arrives home with a load of guilt and dirty laundry. The first act consists mostly of Rhona trying to break through her parent's impenetrable wall of momism. Rhona blunders about in her mother's well-ordered life trying desperately to find out why she never grew up..." Colin Maclean; Strong Performances in Homesick; The Edmonton Sun (Canada); Feb 27, 2000. If you move a meeting forward, what would you call it? How does "prepone" (an opposite of postpone) sound? The word makes perfect sense and fills a need. It's listed in many dictionaries including the OED (Oxford English Dictionary). But for some reason it has not caught on outside India where it happens to be an everyday word. I wonder why. Necessity is the mother of invention, they say, and that's one of the ways new words are coined in the language. In fact, all words are coined words. Someone used them for the first time, in writing or speech, and thus gave birth to them. This week's we'll look at words coined by known authors. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue May 25 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--slice-of-life X-Bonus: It is surprising what a man can do when he has to, and how little most men will do when they don't have to. -Walter Linn, businessman (1878-1961) slice-of-life (SLYS ov LYF) noun Realistic portrayal of life, especially everyday life, in a book, movie, etc. [Translation of French tranche de la vie, coined by playwright Jean Jullien (1854-1919).] "'The Accident' is a slice-of-life account of a fatal bicycle accident that turns into a heavy-handed literary sermon on the workings of fate, and the relationship between life's raw material and artistic creation." Julia Lovell; Shrink to Fit; The Guardian (London, UK); May 15, 2004. "An ambitious TV producer (Tom O'Sullivan) is trying to make an in-the-streets slice of life with hard-boiled detective Jerry, who winds up on the paths of all of the criminals." Jeff Farance; 'Intermission' Breaks Out in Poetry, Robbery; Daytona Beach News-Journal (Florida) Apr 30, 2004. This week's theme: coined words. -------- Date: Wed May 26 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--phraseology X-Bonus: Man and his deed are two distinct things. Whereas a good deed should call forth approbation, and a wicked deed disapprobation, the doer of the deed, whether good or wicked always deserves respect or pity as the case may be. -Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) phraseology (fray-zee-OL-uh-jee) noun 1. The manner or style of expression in words. 2. The set of expressions used by a person or group. [Erroneously coined by humanist Michael Neander (1525-1595). The correct Modern Greek form is phrasiologia (phrasiology).] "Ask Hitchcock about that and he'll give a simple shrug and then fill everyone's tape recorders with numbing phraseology about learning curves and team building and focus." Rob Parent; With Words, Hitch Has the Flyers Ready; Delaware County Daily Times (Pennsylvania); Apr 17, 2004. "Mr Chernomyrdin said that 'NATO will command the NATO force, Russia the Russian forces' in Kosovo in any peacekeeping deal. ... The Russian's phraseology immediately fuelled speculation about a virtual partition of Kosovo." Europe: Breakthrough in Kosovo?; The Economist (London, UK); Jun 5, 1999. This week's theme: coined words. -------- Date: Thu May 27 00:01:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--heebie-jeebies X-Bonus: He who sings scares away his woes. -Miguel de Cervantes, novelist (1547-1616) heebie-jeebies (HEE-bee JEE-bee-z) noun Extreme nervousness; jitters, creeps. [Coined by cartoonist Billy DeBeck (1890-1942) in his comic strip Barney Google. He also coined the term hotsy-totsy: https://wordsmith.org/words/hotsy-totsy.html ] "This year, for the first time, the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schroeder, will attend the official D-Day remembrance ceremonies along with the Allied heads of state. His inclusion is not without controversy. Some say it is too soon, even after decades of Franco-German economic ties and student exchanges, and even though it is US foreign policy which is giving the French the heebie-jeebies these days." Janet Mcallister; D-Day 60 Years On; New Zealand Herald (Auckland); Apr 20, 2004. "If this guy is giving you the heebie-jeebies, by all means, bring in the big guns (Read: parents)." Paper Dolls; Unwanted Suitor's Love Letters, Calls Bother Teenager; The Daily News (Longview, Washington); May 3, 2004. This week's theme: coined words. -------- Date: Fri May 28 00:01:12 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--whodunit X-Bonus: There are three ingredients to the good life; learning, earning, and yearning. -Christopher Morley, writer (1890-1957) whodunit (hoo-DUN-it) noun A story about the solving of a crime, especially a murder. [Alteration of "Who done it?". Coined in 1930 by Donald Gordon in an ad ("A satisfactory whodunit") for a murder mystery.] "Best Served Cold is a formulaic whodunit comedy with a cast of characters that includes a cook, another cook, a third cook (did we mention there are a lot of cooks in the show?), her twin sister, a fast food tycoon and perhaps most despicable of all, a food critic." Geoffrey Eu; Dishing up Humour; The Business Times (Singapore); Apr 19, 2004. "'This case is not a whodunit,' defense attorney Robert Richman said in opening statements. 'This is a whydunit.'" Joshua Freed; Navy Hero Goes on Trial for Armed Robbery; Associated Press (New York); Apr 27, 2004. This week's theme: coined words. -------- Date: Mon May 31 00:02:09 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--causerie X-Bonus: The notes I handle no better than many pianists. But the pauses between the notes -- ah, that is where the art resides. -Artur Schnabel, pianist (1882-1951) causerie (ko-zuh-REE) noun 1. Chat. 2. A piece of informal writing. [From French, from causer (to chat), from Latin causari (to plead, discuss), from causa (case, cause). Other words derived from the same root are accuse, rush, and excuse.] "One usually observes that during causeries between friends, relatives, colleagues and even his mother (mostly not Westerly or Englishly educated), words of English oftentimes creep into one's utterances so much so that it is now an accepted norm in our tradition that it has gained an appellate of ingausa (meaning an admixture of English and Hausa) in our expressions." Suleiman Zailani; Africa.. And the Colour of English; The Guardian (Lagos, Nigeria); Sep 24, 2001. "Dolphins do not appear to hold out much hope for human-beast causerie either, despite our romanticized view of them as floating hobbits. Mr. Bright does see a bright side to all this, however. If we could converse with animals, he points out, we would have a lot of explaining to do for the terrible way we treat them." Jim Holt; Bookshelf: Adorable Pit Bulls, Chimps Who Won't Chat; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Dec 2, 1991. In Lewis Carroll's "Through the Looking Glass", Red Queen tells Alice, "Speak in French when you can't remember the English for a thing." That's perhaps not bad advice considering that beaucoup words in the English language have arrived via French. While French is considered a Romance language and English a Germanic language, thanks to the twists and turns of history the two have much in common. English borrowed from French and vice versa. This borrowing often resulted in English having two near-synonyms to describe something (e.g. freedom/liberty, answer/respond). Sometimes the borrowed word is lent back. English budget came via French bougette (little bag), and was then exported back to French with its new sense. Over the last ten years, we have had weeks of words from Italian, Greek, Sanskrit, Spanish and many other languages in AWAD, but not a whole week of words from French. This week we'll make up for it and feature words borrowed from French. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org)