A.Word.A.Day Archives
from https://wordsmith.org/awad
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Date: Mon Jun 3 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stigma
X-Bonus: Follow your inner moonlight; don't hide the madness. -Allen Ginsberg, poet (3 Jun 1926-1997)
One cow, two cows. Also, two kine. Take your pick of either of the plurals.
I like kine more because it's weird* (weird is good) -- the spelling of the
plural has no letters in common with its singular form.
Can we find other such singular/plural word pairs that have no letters in
common? There are not a lot of such words in the English language, but I
just used a couple of such pairs, a few sentences ago (is/are, I/we; also
there's me/us). Know any others?
This week we'll feature words that have weird plurals in that they don't
follow the common English (-s/-es) method of pluralizing. OK, if you don't
like to call them weird, they are, at least, irregular.
*Kine is not as weird as it appears. It's from Old English cu (which gave
us cow). The plural was cy/cye which became ky/kye in Middle English. Then
we made it a plural again by sticking an -en (similar to ox/oxen) to get
kine. A double plural? Well, maybe it *is* weird.
stigma (STIG-mah) noun, plural stigmata (stig-MAH-tuh, STIG-muh-) or stigmas
1. A mark of shame or infamy.
2. A birthmark or scar.
3. An identifying mark of a disease.
4. The tip of the pistil of a flower where pollen is deposited.
5. A mark burned into the skin of a person.
[From Latin stigma, from Greek stigma (tattoo mark), from stizein (to prick).
Ultimately from the Indo-European root steig- (to stick; pointed), which is
also the source of ticket, etiquette, instinct, stigma, thistle, tiger, and
steak. Earliest documented use: 1596.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/stigma
"Her appearance has changed as well, and I don't mean just the intense
reticulation of lines and wrinkles, the true stigmata of life."
Rabih Alameddine; An Unnecessary Woman; Grove Press; 2014.
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Date: Tue Jun 4 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ala
X-Bonus: Live a balanced life. Learn some and think some, and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some. -Robert Fulghum, author (b. 4 Jun 1937)
This week's theme: Weird plurals
ala (AY-luh) noun, plural alae (AY-lee)
A wing or a winglike part, such as a bone, a petal of a flower, a small
room opening into a larger room, a Roman allied military unit, etc.
[From Latin ala (wing). Earliest documented use: 1634. A related word is alar
https://wordsmith.org/words/alar.html .]
Ala of the nose https://wordsmith.org/words/images/ala.jpg
Image: http://pngimg.com/download/25456
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/ala
"We have two alae, and the ironwork for some war machines that could be
assembled if needed."
Jo Walton; The King's Name; Tor; 2001.
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Date: Wed Jun 5 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stratum
X-Bonus: I'm sometimes asked "Why do you spend so much of your time and money talking about kindness to animals when there is so much cruelty to men?" I answer: "I am working at the roots." -George T. Angell, reformer (5 Jun 1823-1909)
This week's theme: Weird plurals
stratum (STRAY-tuhm, STRAT-uhm) noun, plural strata (STRAY-tuh, STRAT-uh) or stratums
A layer of something, as rock, tissue, people at an economic level, etc.
[From Latin stratum (cover), past participle of sternere (to spread).
Ultimately from the Indo-European root ster- (to spread), which also
gave us structure, industry, destroy, street, Russian perestroika,
stratagem, and stratocracy https://wordsmith.org/words/stratocracy.html .
Earliest documented use: 1599. Nowadays, the word is often seen in its
plural form used as a singular, similar to agenda, errata, etc.]
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/stratum_large.jpg
Photo: Bernard Tey https://www.flickr.com/photos/besar_bears/228208329/
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/stratum
"On the highway from Damascus to Aleppo, towns and villages lie desolate.
A new stratum of dead cities has joined the ones from Roman times."
Smaller, in Ruins, and More Sectarian; The Economist (London, UK);
Jun 30, 2018.
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Date: Thu Jun 6 00:01:04 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gutta
X-Bonus: It's impossible to be loyal to your family, your friends, your country, and your principles, all at the same time. -Mignon McLaughlin, journalist and author (6 Jun 1913-1983)
This week's theme: Weird plurals
gutta (GUHT-uh) noun, plural guttae (GUHT-ee)
1. A drop.
2. One of a series of ornaments, typically in the shape of a truncated
cone on buildings (in the Doric order in classical architecture).
[From Latin gutta (drop). Earliest documented use: 1398.]
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/gutta_large.jpg
Image: J. Matthew Harrington/Wikimedia
"Guttae occasionally are pyramid-shaped with flat sides rather than
cones or cylinders."
Stephen Mouzon & Susan Henderson; Traditional Construction Patterns;
McGraw-Hill; 2004.
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Date: Fri Jun 7 00:01:04 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--charisma
X-Bonus: Truth-tellers are not always palatable. There is a preference for candy bars. -Gwendolyn Brooks, poet (7 Jun 1917-2000)
This week's theme: Weird plurals
charisma (kuh-RIZ-muh) noun, plural charismata (kuh-RIZ-muh-tuh)
A personal charm or appeal that inspires devotion, loyalty, enthusiasm, etc.
[From Latin, from Greek kharisma, from kharis (favor, grace). Ultimately
from the Indo-European root gher- (to like or want), which also gave us
chrestomathy https://wordsmith.org/words/chrestomathy.html ,
hortatory https://wordsmith.org/words/hortatory.html ,
hortative https://wordsmith.org/words/hortative.html ,
yearn, greedy, and exhort. Earliest documented use: 1641.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/charisma
"The stigmata associated with dying unexpectedly at the age of forty-two
after making the difficult journey through the Alps from Paris, from
complications giving birth to her eighth child, only seems to have
enhanced her charismata, since the city of Lyon rallied around to give
her the unprecedented honour of a state funeral."
Rosalind Kerr; The Rise of the Diva on the Sixteenth-Century Commedia
dell'Arte Stage; University of Toronto Press; 2015.
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Date: Mon Jun 10 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Socratic method
X-Bonus: A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep. -Saul Bellow, writer, Nobel laureate (10 Jun 1915-2005)
The Nobel Prize is overrated. Obama appointed Steven Chu, a Nobel laureate
in physics, as his energy secretary. Trump's energy secretary, Rick Perry
has won the "The Top Cowboy of Texas" award.
Who do you think would be more energetic*, someone who whiled his energy
away in getting a physics PhD, or someone who frolicked on the stage in
"Dancing with the Stars"?
I know what some of you are thinking. How about two Nobel Prizes? OK, Marie
Curie won two Nobel Prizes, but let's keep things in perspective. How many
Twitter followers did she have? Zero! Compare that to Madam Kardashian who
has millions.
Some of you are mumbling to yourselves: Curie's family, her husband, their
daughter, and son-in-law, they all were Nobel Prize winners. That's nice,
but did you know every member of the Kardashian clan has millions of
Twitter followers each?
So what objective criterion can we use to determine who is more influential?**
How about this: how many words have been coined after a person? Having just
one word coined after someone is rare, how about two?
This week we'll see eponyms, words coined after people. Each of the five
people featured in this week's A.Word.A.Day have had multiple words coined
after them.
We'll revisit these same people next week to see other words coined after
them.
*Seriously though, the US Government's Department of Energy is the department
(read, ministry) that oversees the nuclear weapons program and energy research,
among other responsibilities. Also, a secretary around here is not someone
who cranks out letters on a typewriter, but is in a post equivalent to a minister
in other forms of government.
**To be more precise: who is more influential on the English language vocabulary.
Socratic method (suh-KRAT-ik meth-uhd) noun
A method of teaching in which, instead of giving the answer, the teacher
guides students to it by asking them a series of questions.
[After Greek philosopher Socrates (470?-399 BCE) who employed this method
in his teaching. Earliest documented use: 1741. Socrates's wife Xanthippe
has also given us an eponym https://wordsmith.org/words/xanthippe.html .]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/Socratic%20method
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/socratic_method_large.png
Cartoon: Reginald Graham/Wikimedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Greek_school_by_ziggyfin.png
"'I wait for no more than -- how many minutes?' she asks, dipping into
the Socratic method. 'Seven,' the room answers in unison."
Janelle Nanos; Joanne Chang Won't Rest Until Everything Is Perfect;
Boston Globe (Massachusetts); Nov 29, 2015.
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Date: Tue Jun 11 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Midas touch
X-Bonus: I never saw an ugly thing in my life: for let the form of an object be what it may, -- light, shade, and perspective will always make it beautiful. -John Constable, painter (11 Jun 1776-1837)
This week's theme: People who have had multiple words coined after them
Midas touch (MY-duhs tuhch) noun
The ability to easily make anything profitable.
[After the legendary King Midas who was given the power that anything he
touched turned into gold. Earliest documented use: 1652.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/Midas%20touch
NOTES: Be careful what you wish for. That's the moral of the story of
King Midas. He was given the power by Dionysus https://wordsmith.org/words/dionysian.html
that anything he touched would turn into gold. His happiness was momentary.
Soon he learned that he couldn't eat anything because as soon as he touched
food it would turn into gold and all that glitters is inedible. His
father Gordias https://wordsmith.org/words/gordian.html has an eponym coined
after him too.
Midas with the Pitcher https://wordsmith.org/words/images/midas_touch_large.jpg
Illustration: Walter Crane, from the book "A Wonder Book for Boys and Girls" (1892) by Nathaniel Hawthorne
"When it came to raising money, Wellfount Corp. had something of a Midas
touch. In the past decade, the Indianapolis-based pharmacy company raised
about $50 million."
John Russell; Once a Rising Star, Wellfount Collapses with Little Warning;
Indianapolis Business Journal (Indiana); Apr 12, 2019.
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Date: Wed Jun 12 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--philippic
X-Bonus: I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart. -Anne Frank, Holocaust diarist (12 Jun 1929-1945)
This week's theme: People who have had multiple words coined after them
philippic (fi-LIP-ik) noun
A bitter condemnation, usually in a speech.
[From Greek philippikos, the name given to orator Demosthenes's speeches
urging Athenians to rise up against Philip II of Macedon. Earliest
documented use: 1550.]
A bust of Philip II, a 1st-century Roman copy of a Greek original https://wordsmith.org/words/images/philippic2_large.jpg
Photo: Fotogeniss/Wikimedia
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/philippic
"It was from the front that he sent a letter -- a philippic, really --
home to his wife, Margaret, that is more than a raging description of
his feelings."
Michael Prodger; Old Gods, New Monsters; New Statesman (London, UK);
Oct 28-Nov 3, 2016.
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Date: Thu Jun 13 00:01:04 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--herm
X-Bonus: Out of the quarrel with others we make rhetoric; out of the quarrel with ourselves we make poetry. -William Butler Yeats, writer, Nobel laureate (13 Jun 1865-1939)
This week's theme: People who have had multiple words coined after them
herm (huhrm) noun, also herma (HUHR-muh), plural hermae (HUHR-mee) or hermai (HUHR-my) or herms
A square pillar topped with a bust.
[After Hermes, the god of roads, boundaries, eloquence, commerce, invention,
cunning, theft, and more, in Greek mythology. Earliest documented use: 1579.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/herm
NOTES: In ancient Greece, herm was a stone pillar with a square base. It
had a bust of Hermes at the top and a phallus at the appropriate height.
It was typically used as a boundary marker, milestone, or signpost.
A herm of Demosthenes https://wordsmith.org/words/images/herm_large.jpg
Sculpture: Polyeuktos, c. 280 BCE
Photo: Bibi Saint-Pol/Wikimedia
"Her head bows, again by accident, in its direction, as though to a totem,
or a herm."
Adam Gopnik; This Odyssey of Ours; Town and Country (New York); May 2017.
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Date: Fri Jun 14 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Achilles' heel
X-Bonus: The longest day must have its close -- the gloomiest night will wear on to a morning. An eternal, inexorable lapse of moments is ever hurrying the day of the evil to an eternal night, and the night of the just to an eternal day. -Harriet Beecher Stowe, abolitionist and novelist (14 Jun 1811-1896)
This week's theme: People who have had multiple words coined after them
Achilles' heel or Achilles heel (uh-KIL-eez heel) noun
A seemingly small but critical weakness in an otherwise strong position.
[After Achilles, a hero in the Greek mythology. When Achilles was a baby,
his mother Thetis dipped him into the magical river Styx https://wordsmith.org/words/stygian.html
to make him invincible. She held him by the heel which remained untouched
by the water and became his weak point. He was killed when the Trojan
prince Paris shot an arrow that pierced his one vulnerable spot: his heel.
After him, the tendon in the lower back of the ankle is also known as the
Achilles tendon. Earliest documented use: 1705.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/Achilles%27%20heel
Goddess Thetis dipping her son Achilles in the River Styx
http://wordsmith.org/words/images/achilles_heel2_large.jpg
Art: Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1625
NOTES: The tendon connecting the calf muscles of the leg to the heel bone
is called Achilles tendon. The actor Brad Pitt played Achilles in the 2004
film "Troy" and tore his left Achilles tendon during production. Talk about
taking a role seriously!
"The danger of being seen as courting noxious supporters is a long-standing
worry for right-of-centre politicians. Preston Manning ... has argued that
it is the Achilles heel of the conservative movement."
John Geddes & Jason Markusoff; Target Andrew Scheer; Maclean's (Toronto,
Canada); Jun 2019.
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Date: Mon Jun 17 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Socratic irony
X-Bonus: The ultimate sense of security will be when we come to recognize that we are all part of one human race. Our primary allegiance is to the human race and not to one particular color or border. I think the sooner we renounce the sanctity of these many identities and try to identify ourselves with the human race the sooner we will get a better world and a safer world. -Mohamed ElBaradei, diplomat, Nobel laureate (b. 17 Jun 1942)
Last week we featured five eponyms https://wordsmith.org/words/socratic_method.html --
words coined after people, real or fictional. People we picked were Midas,
Socrates, Philip II of Macedon, Achilles, and Hermes. There are hundreds
of people who have words coined after them, but we picked these five because
they have a special distinction -- they have had multiple words coined after
their names. This week we'll see another word that the people we met last week
have given us.
Socratic irony (suh-KRAT-ik EYE-ruh-nee) noun
A profession of ignorance in a discussion in order to elicit clarity
on a topic and expose misconception held by another.
[After Greek philosopher Socrates (470?-399 BCE) who employed this method.
Earliest documented use: 1721.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/Socratic%20irony
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/socratic_irony_large.jpg
Image: https://me.me/i/haims-to-know-nothing-demolishes-your-argument-4758941
"On two occasions, two former members of our federal government resorted
to Socratic irony in dealing with me regarding the Electric Map. Our
former US Representative 'simulated ignorance' when confronted with the
issue."
John Longanecker; Electric Map Impressive; Gettysburg Times (Pennsylvania);
Jun 10, 2016.
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Date: Tue Jun 18 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Midas-eared
X-Bonus: The ability of so many people to live comfortably with the idea of capital punishment is perhaps a clue to how so many Europeans were able to live with the idea of the Holocaust: Once you accept the notion that the state has the right to kill someone and the right to define what is a capital crime, aren't you halfway there? -Roger Ebert, film critic (18 Jun 1942-2013)
This week's theme: People with multiple eponyms coined after them
Midas-eared (MY-duhs eerd) adjective
1. Having poor judgment.
2. Having inability to appreciate something.
[After the legendary King Midas (of Midas touch https://wordsmith.org/words/midas_touch.html
fame) whose ears Apollo turned into a donkey's ears for suggesting that
Apollo's musical rival Marsyas played better music. Earliest documented
use: 1569.]
"The Judgment of Midas", 1870 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/midas-eared_large.jpg
Art: Ãmile Lévy
NOTES: The god Apollo https://wordsmith.org/words/apollo.html and the
satyr https://wordsmith.org/words/satyr.html Marsyas had a musical
contest (in another version of the story it was the god Pan instead
of Marsyas). The mountain-god Tmolus served as the judge and declared
Apollo the winner. King Midas, in his kibitzing wisdom https://wordsmith.org/words/kibitz.html ,
favored Marsyas as the winner. This upset Apollo who said that Midas's
musical judgment implied that he had donkey's ears and made his ears
those of a donkey's. (Don't confuse donkey's ears with donkey's years https://wordsmith.org/words/donkeys_years.html .)
Then, Apollo had his musical opponent Marsyas skinned alive. (Not that
serene, was he, as his reputation in the eponym apollonian
https://wordsmith.org/words/apollonian.html suggests?) Now you know why
back then they didn't have "Greece's Got Talent" on Mount Olympus. Who
would be foolish enough to sign up as a judge (Simon Cowell wasn't born
yet) and who would dare to be a contestant?
"The root cause of Triton's financial dilemma can be traced directly to
their Midas-eared actions."
William J. Dunne; Letters; News Journal (Chicago, Illinois); Nov 24, 1976.
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Date: Wed Jun 19 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--philippize
X-Bonus: Experience makes us see an enormous difference between piety and goodness. -Blaise Pascal, philosopher and mathematician (19 Jun 1623-1662)
This week's theme: People with multiple eponyms coined after them
philippize (FIL-uh-pyz) verb intr.
To behave, especially to speak or write, as if corruptly influenced.
[After Philip II of Macedon. It was believed that after Philip took
control of the shrine at Delphi, the seat of high priestess Pythia,
she began delivering oracles in his favor. Earliest documented use: 1597.]
Philip II on a victory medallion (detail), 3rd century CE https://wordsmith.org/words/images/philippize_large.jpg
Image: Jastrow/Wikimedia
"[Dr. Richard Price] naturally philippizes and chants his prophetic song
in exact unison with their designs."
Edmund Burke; Reflections on the Revolution in France; 1790.
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Date: Thu Jun 20 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hermeneutic
X-Bonus: Since when do we have to agree with people to defend them from injustice? -Lillian Hellman, playwright (20 Jun 1905-1984)
This week's theme: People with multiple eponyms coined after them
hermeneutic (hur-muh-NOO/NYOO-tik) adjective
Interpretive or explanatory.
[From Greek hermeneutikos (of interpreting), from hermeneuein (to interpret),
from hermeneus (interpreter). After Hermes in Greek mythology, who served
as a messenger and herald for other gods, and who himself was the god of
eloquence, commerce, invention, cunning, theft, and more. Earliest documented
use: 1678. Other words that Hermes has given us are
hermaphrodite https://wordsmith.org/words/hermaphrodite.html ,
hermetic https://wordsmith.org/words/hermetic.html , and
herm https://wordsmith.org/words/herm.html .]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hermeneutic
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/hermeneutic_large.jpg
Hermes, Roman copy after a Greek original
Photo: Jastrow/Wikimedia
"Sandra's descent into madness, in 'The Unmapped Country' (1973), takes
the form of a hermeneutic disease, whereby everything -- even birdsong
or 'the placing of twigs and leaves' in a park -- is construed as a
cosmic message."
Andrew Gallix; The Unmapped Country; The Guardian (London, UK); Jan 12,
2018.
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Date: Fri Jun 21 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--achillize
X-Bonus: Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does. -Jean-Paul Sartre, writer and philosopher (21 Jun 1905-1980)
This week's theme: People with multiple eponyms coined after them
achillize (UH-ki-lyz) verb tr.
To harass or chase.
[After Achilles, a hero in the Greek mythology. When his close friend
Patroclus is killed by Hector https://wordsmith.org/words/hector.html ,
a vengeful Achilles chases Hector around the wall of Troy three times.
Also, he causes great carnage among Trojans. Earliest documented use:
1672. Also see Achilles' heel https://wordsmith.org/words/achilles_heel.html .]
"Fury of Achilles", 1737 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/achillize_large.jpg
Art: Charles-Antoine Coypel
NOTES: Achilles is better known for his heel, but his anger is so prominent
that it's a popular subject in paintings.
"The Wrath of Achilles", 1630-1635 by Peter Paul Rubens https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Peter_Paul_Rubens/Mythology#/media/File:Peter_Paul_Rubens_164.jpg
"The Rage of Achilles", 1757 by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Wrath_of_Achilles#/media/File:The_Rage_of_Achilles_by_Giovanni_Battista_Tiepolo.jpeg
"La Colère d'Achille", 1810 by Michel Martin Drolling https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Wrath_of_Achilles#/media/File:Michel_Martin_Drolling_-_La_col%C3%A8re_d%27Achille.jpg
"The Wrath of Achilles", 1847 by Leon Benouville https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leon_Benouville_The_Wrath_of_Achilles.jpg
"La Colère d'Achille", 1810 by Alexandre-Denis Abel de Pujol https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Wrath_of_Achilles#/media/File:Abel_de_Pujol_col%C3%A8re_d%27Achille.jpg
"Parker 'hectors and achillizes all the noncomformists'."
Martin Dzelzainis & Edward Holberton; The Oxford Handbook of Andrew Marvell;
Oxford University Press; May 28, 2019.
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Date: Mon Jun 24 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hippodrome
X-Bonus: All men -- whether they go by the name of Americans or Russians or Chinese or British or Malayans or Indians or Africans -- have obligations to one another that transcend their obligations to their sovereign societies. -Norman Cousins, author, editor, journalist, and professor (24 Jun 1915-1990)
You may not be into horses, but chances are you still have a horse or two
(or at least their cousins) lying around the house. A bidet is, literally,
a pony (from French). An easel is, literally, an ass (from Dutch ezel).
Horses have served us for thousands of years, but today you're more likely
to own a four-wheeled 100-horsepower horseless carriage (also known as a
car) than a four-legged 1-horsepower version (also known as a horse).
Given their long association with humans, horses continue to lurk around
in our language. There's so much named after horses. If you are called
Philip, you are, literally speaking, a horse lover, from Greek philo-
(love) + hippos (horse). A hippopotamus is, literally, a river horse, from
Greek hippos (horse) + potamos (river). A walrus is, literally, a horse
whale, from Old Norse hrosshvalr (horse whale). Hippocampus, a part of the
brain, is named so because its cross-section looks like a sea-horse, from
Greek hippos (horse) + kampos (sea monster).
In each of this week's words, there is a horse hiding somewhere.
hippodrome (HIP-uh-drohm)
noun: A stadium for horse races, chariot races, horse shows, etc.
verb tr.: To manipulate or prearrange the outcome of a contest.
[From Greek hippos (horse) + dromos (running). Ultimately from the
Indo-European root ekwo- (horse), which also gave us equestrian and
equitant https://wordsmith.org/words/equitant.html . Earliest
documented use: 1549.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hippodrome
NOTES: Match fixing has been around for as long as humans have been
having matches. Today's word shows it going as far as ancient horse
racing.
A chariot race in a hippodrome in Puy du Fou, a historical theme park in France https://wordsmith.org/words/images/hippodrome_large.jpg
Photo: Midx1004/Wikimedia
"The smaller fairs were the backbone of the IMCA [International Motor
Contest Association] schedule and these were routinely hippodromed."
Don Radbruch; Dirt Track Auto Racing, 1919-1941; McFarland; 2004.
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Date: Tue Jun 25 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--horse race
X-Bonus: In our age there is no such thing as "keeping out of politics". All issues are political issues, and politics itself is a mass of lies, evasions, folly, hatred, and schizophrenia. -George Orwell, novelist (25 Jun 1903-1950)
This week's theme: Words originating in horses
horse race (HORS rays) noun
1. The treating of a contest, especially an election, as if a sport,
focusing on polls, perceptions, etc., instead of substantive issues,
such as policies.
2. A close contest.
[From horse, from Old English hors + race, from Old Norse (ras). Earliest
documented use: 1586.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/horse-race
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/horse_race_large.jpg
Photo: Mike LaChance https://www.flickr.com/photos/mjl816/5697772915/
Why horse racing is wrong https://horseracingwrongs.com/the-big-lie/
"The natural interest in the horse race of politics makes it easy to
overlook the problems for both sides this week with the detail of what
they offer Australian voters."
David Crowe; Doughnut Election; Sydney Morning Herald (Australia);
Apr 12, 2019.
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Date: Wed Jun 26 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--chivalry
X-Bonus: The truly creative mind in any field is no more than this: A human creature born abnormally, inhumanly sensitive. To him... a touch is a blow, a sound is a noise, a misfortune is a tragedy, a joy is an ecstasy, a friend is a lover, a lover is a god, and failure is death. Add to this cruelly delicate organism the overpowering necessity to create, create, create -- so that without the creating of music or poetry or books or buildings or something of meaning, his very breath is cut off from him. He must create, must pour out creation. By some strange, unknown, inward urgency he is not really alive unless he is creating. -Pearl S. Buck, novelist, Nobel laureate (26 Jun 1892-1973)
This week's theme: Words originating in horses
chivalry (SHIV-uhl-ree) noun
1. The ideal qualifications of a knight: courtesy, honor, bravery, gallantry, etc.
2. The institution of knighthood, a group of knights, a gallant deed, etc.
[Old French chevalerie, from chevalier (knight), from Latin caballus (horse).
Earliest documented use: 1297.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/chivalry
Chivalry is not dead :-) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73cdsqxghmE
NOTES: Chivalry sounds nice, but it hides a dark side. While pretending
to treat women with courtesy, we also treat them as if they are less
capable, in leadership, in intelligence, and so on. It took as late as
1919 for women to get the right to vote in the US, for example. As late
as 2016, some people voted for an incompetent over a highly accomplished
woman, because, in their view, a "man can do a better job than a woman".
https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/06/07/women-voters-pennsylvania-trump-marquez-pkg-vpx-newday.cnn
"If Ambler details the death of chivalry, she also exposes the dark
underbelly of that very culture -- a culture that feared outsiders
and prized violence, while purporting to embody the values of 'honour'
and bravery."
Reformer or Violent Thug?: A New Biography of Simon de Montfort Is
Enthralling and Horrifying in Equal Parts; Sunday Times (London, UK);
Jun 2, 2019.
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Date: Thu Jun 27 00:01:04 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--warhorse
X-Bonus: The idealists and visionaries, foolish enough to throw caution to the winds and express their ardor and faith in some supreme deed, have advanced mankind and have enriched the world. -Emma Goldman, social activist (27 Jun 1869-1940)
This week's theme: Words originating in horses
warhorse (WAR-hors) noun
1. A horse used in war. Also known as a charger.
2. An experienced, dependable person, thing, etc., one who has gone
through many contests, battles, struggles, etc.
3. Something, such as a play, a piece of music, etc., that has been
performed often to become hackneyed. https://wordsmith.org/words/hackney.html
[From war, from Old English (werre) + horse, from hors. Earliest documented use: 1586.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/war%2:horse
https://wordsmith.org/words/images/warhorse_large.jpg
Photo: Barry Skeates https://www.flickr.com/photos/31059504@N08/5771109777
"Ageless warhorse Petero Civoniceva says ending his highly decorated rugby
league career back in Brisbane Broncos' colours would be a fairytale
finish."
Wayne Heming; Petero Hasn't Ruled Out Broncos Farewell; Brisbane Times
(Australia); Oct 16, 2009.
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Date: Fri Jun 28 00:01:03 EDT 2019
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--wrangler
X-Bonus: The happiest is the person who suffers the least pain; the most miserable who enjoys the least pleasure. -Jean-Jacques Rousseau, philosopher and author (28 Jun 1712-1778)
This week's theme: Words originating in horses
wrangler (RANG-luhr) noun
1. A cowboy who takes care of horses.
2. A person who engages in debates, quarrels, or disputes.
3. A person who handles animals, puppets, babies, unruly humans, etc., especially on a film set.
[Probably partial translation of Mexican Spanish caballerango (groom or
stable boy), from caballo (horse), from Latin caballus (horse). Ultimately
from Indo-European root wer- (to turn or bend), which also gave us wring,
weird, writhe, worth, revert, universe, conversazione,
divers https://wordsmith.org/words/divers.html ,
malversation https://wordsmith.org/words/malversation.html ,
prosaic https://wordsmith.org/words/prosaic.html ,
versal https://wordsmith.org/words/versal.html ,
verso https://wordsmith.org/words/verso.html , and
wroth https://wordsmith.org/words/wroth.html .
Earliest documented use: 1518.]
See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/wrangler
Leo/Jackie the Lion (MGM) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/wrangler_large.jpg
Image: Wikipedia
"Whether Mr. Ryan would be a wrangler of House conservatives ... is a
subject of much debate."
Gabriel Trip; Ryan, Quiet for Now, Is Said to Be Planning for an Active
Role; The New York Times; Nov 4, 2012.