A.Word.A.Day Archives
from https://wordsmith.org/awad

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Date: Mon Sep  3 03:01:39 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--visceral
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)

visceral (VIS-er-uhl) adjective

   1. Related to viscera.

   2. Instinctive, not reasoning or intellectual.

   3. Dealing with base emotions; earthy, crude.

[From Medieval Latin visceralis, from Latin viscera (internal organs), plural
of viscus (flesh). From the belief that viscera were the seat of emotions.]

   "Helms will not remain to torment his legions of enemies. But the visceral
   brand of politics he pioneered will probably never go away."
   Eleanor Clift and Matt Bai, Senator No's Last Stand, Newsweek (New York),
   Sep 3, 2001.

Ever met a woman who gave her heart away and yet didn't turn heartless?
Or a man of short physique who was still big-hearted? Wonder how we may have
a change of heart without ever having to go to a heart surgeon? There are
people one could call lion-hearted, or those who have a chicken heart, yet
they never had heart replacement surgery. There are times when we are
warmhearted and on other occasions we might act with a cold heart, without
any reference to our body temperature. We may come across a bleeding heart
yet never call a cardiologist. Oh, how we use our heart as the metaphor for
actions, emotions, intentions, and feelings!

And heart is not the only part of anatomy we use in this way. This week
we'll look at more words for body parts that are used metaphorically. -Anu

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Date: Tue Sep  4 00:01:16 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--liverish
X-Bonus: I do not think there is any thrill that can go through the human heart like that felt by the inventor as he sees some creation of the brain unfolding to success... Such emotions make a man forget food, sleep, friends, love, everything. -Nikola Tesla, electrical engineer and inventor (1856-1943)

liverish (LIV-er-ish) adjective

   1. Resembling liver, especially in color.

   2. Ill-natured, grouchy.

[From Middle English, Old English lifer + -ish.  From the former belief that
such disposition was a symptom of excess secretion of bile due to liver
disorder.]

   "Even if you'd approached Sunday's Boston Chamber Music Society at
   Sanders in an absolutely liverish, adversarial state of mind ... it's
   hard to imagine that you would have stayed that way for long."
   Richard Buell, A Week's Wanton Chambering, The Boston Globe, Jan 15, 1991.

This week's theme: words for body parts that are used metaphorically.

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Date: Wed Sep  5 00:01:20 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--adrenalize
X-Bonus: You can discover what your enemy fears most by observing the means he uses to frighten you. -Eric Hoffer, philosopher and author (1902-1983)

adrenalize (a-DREEN-uh-lyz) verb

   To excite and stir to action.

[From adrenaline, a hormone produced by adrenal glands (above the kidneys),
secreted when a person is excited. From Latin renes, kidney.]

   "The money managers are playing defense, but I am skeptical that that game
   can carry the Dow to 6,000, or even hold it aloft until such time as
   high-tech mania could once again adrenalize equity averages."
   Rick Ackerman, Behind the Bull Rush, The San Francisco Examiner,
   Nov 21, 1995.

This week's theme: words for body parts that are used metaphorically.

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Date: Thu Sep  6 00:01:29 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--phlegmatic
X-Bonus: Reject your sense of injury and the injury itself disappears. -Marcus Aurelius, philosopher, writer, and Roman emperor (121-180)

phlegmatic (fleg-MAT-ik) adjective

   1. Having a sluggish temperament; apathetic.

   2. Calm or composed.

[From Middle English fleumatike, from Old French fleumatique, from Late Latin
phlegmaticus, from Greek phlegmatikos, from the humor phlegm, from phlegein,
to burn. From phlegm, one of the four body humors, ascribed to these
qualities.]

   "At these shows -- recorded last year -- Mr. Shepp, who has had his share
   of winded, phlegmatic performances in recent years, came to play, and you
   can feel Mr. Rudd's contributions hectoring him on."
   Ben Ratliff, Looking Backward to Keep Alive, The New York Times, Aug 27,
   2001.

This week's theme: words for body parts that are used metaphorically.

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Date: Fri Sep  7 00:01:27 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--jugular
X-Bonus: Few things can help an individual more than to place responsibility on him, and to let him know that you trust him. -Booker T. Washington, reformer, educator, and author (1856-1915)

jugular (JUG-uh-luhr) adjective

   Of or pertaining to the neck or throat.

noun

   1. A jugular vein

   2. The most important or vulnerable part of something.

[From Late Latin jugularis, from Latin jugulum (collarbone, throat),
from Latin jugum, yoke).]

   "Contrary to Survivor's scheming, the world of business demands a spirit
   of cooperation and congratulation, not envy and go-for-the-jugular
   ruthlessness."
   Michael Medved, 'Survivor' Tactics Would Flop in Real World,
   The USA Today, Feb 28, 2001.

This week's theme: words for body parts that are used metaphorically.

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Date: Mon Sep 10 02:01:23 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--cadmean victory
X-Bonus: They also serve who only stand and wait. -John Milton, poet (1608-1674)

Cadmean victory (kad-MEE-uhn VIK-tuh-ree) noun

   A victory won at as great a cost to the victor as to the vanquished.

[After Cadmus, a Phoenician prince in Greek mythology who introduced writing
to the Greeks and founded the city of Thebes. Near the site where Cadmus was
to build Thebes he encountered a dragon. Even though he managed to kill the
dragon, only five of his comrades survived with whom he founded the city.]

   "In the real, real world, governed by both the market and natural
   economies, all of life together is locked in a Cadmean struggle. Left
   unabated, the struggle will be lost, first by the biosphere, and then
   by us."
   Edward O. Wilson, The Ecological Footprint: The Biosphere And Man,
   Vital Speeches of the Day (New York), Feb 15, 2001.

A couple of months back we looked at the term Pyrrhic victory named after
Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, whose devastating losses in trying to defeat the
Romans made him lament, "One more such victory and we are lost." Today's
term Cadmean victory is a near synonym of the former. And this too is an
eponym, a word or phrase coined after a person's name whether from history
or fiction. This week, we'll meet more such words and phrases.       -Anu

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Date: Tue Sep 11 00:01:21 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--zelig
X-Bonus: Life is a long lesson in humility. -James M. Barrie, writer (1860-1937)

Zelig (ZEL-ig) noun

   A chameleon-like person who appears to be present everywhere.

[After Leonard Zelig, hero of the 1983 movie Zelig by Woody Allen.]

   "'Who Killed JonBenet Ramsey?' is written by Cyril Wecht and Charles
   Bosworth. Wecht is a forensic pathologist - the Zelig of medical
   detectives, apparently, as he seems to be involved in every high-profile
   case from Elvis Presley to O.J."
   Patti Thorn, JonBenet Books Speak Too Soon, Rocky Mountain News (Denver),
   Aug 23, 1998.

This week's theme: eponyms.

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Date: Wed Sep 12 00:01:20 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--tommy atkins
X-Bonus: Until lions have their historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter. -African proverb

tommy atkins (TOM-ee AT-kinz) noun

   1. A British soldier.

   2. One of the rank and file of any organization.

[From Thomas Atkins, a fictitious name used in sample forms in British army.]

   "On the other hand, there are our traditional allies, the Brits.
   Tommy Atkins and G.I. Joe historically have stood shoulder to shoulder.
   The rules, however, are changing, and in the next joint engagement Tommy
   could call time out to file a lawsuit."
   John Corry, Fort Happy Commune, The American Spectator (Great Barrington,
   Massachusetts), Jun 2000.

This week's theme: eponyms.

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Date: Thu Sep 13 00:01:26 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Benedict Arnold
X-Bonus: Fame is a vapor; popularity an accident; the only earthly certainty is oblivion. -Mark Twain, author and humorist (1835-1910)

Benedict Arnold (BEN-i-dikt AR-nuhld) noun

   A traitor.

[After Benedict Arnold (1741-1801), American general in the Revolutionary war,
who planned to surrender West Point to the British (1780) for 20,000 pounds.]

   "Autoimmune hepatitis is an attack by the immune system on its own
   liver, mistaking it as a Benedict Arnold traitor. Why it does so is
   an unanswered question."
   Dr. Paul Donohue, Panic Attack's Roots Are in Mind and Body,
   St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Mar 19, 1998.

This week's theme: eponyms.

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Date: Fri Sep 14 00:01:24 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--knickerbocker
X-Bonus: To love is to admire with the heart; to admire is to love with the mind. -Theophile Gautier, writer (1811-1872)

Knickerbocker (NIK-ehr BOHK-ehr) noun

   1. A descendant of the Dutch settlers of New York.

   2. A New Yorker.

[After Diedrich Knickerbocker, fictitious author of Washington
Irving's (1783-1859) History of New York (1809).]

   Today's word is dedicated to all the Knickerbockers who've shown amazing
   resilience in the face of tragedy. We join linguaphiles everywhere in
   prayers for those affected in New York City, Washington DC, and elsewhere.
   -Anu

This week's theme: eponyms.

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Date: Mon Sep 17 00:51:27 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--quid pro quo
X-Bonus: After I'm dead I'd rather have people ask why I have no monument than why I have one. -Cato the Elder, statesman, soldier, and writer (234-149 BCE)

quid pro quo (KWID pro kwo) noun, plural quid pro quos or quids pro quo

   Something given or taken in exchange for something else.

[From Latin quid (what) pro (for) quo (what), something for something.]

   "As is now known, `back-channel' negotiations achieved a quid pro quo.
   In return for Russian offensive missiles not being placed in Cuba,
   President Kennedy would remove Jupiter missiles from Turkey and promise
   not to topple Fidel Castro's communist regime militarily."
   Ronald H Carpenter, When the Right Words Counted, Naval History
   (Annapolis, Maryland), Oct 2001.

Although a "dead" language, Latin remains alive through its extensive
vocabulary used in fields such as medicine, science, and law, and also
via the numerous words that the English language has borrowed and built
upon. And it is still the official language of the Vatican.

We use Latin expressions for many purposes, sometimes to sound more
literary and at times for idioms that pack a concept in just a few words
that would otherwise take a few sentences. Today's term concisely tells
us in only three words the idea of "you scratch my back and I'll scratch
yours." This week AWAD presents terms from Latin that are often used in
the English language. -Anu

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Date: Tue Sep 18 00:01:32 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--rara avis
X-Bonus: We must believe in luck. For how else can we explain the success of those we don't like? -Jean Cocteau, author and painter (1889-1963)

rara avis (RAR-uh AY-vis) noun, plural rarae aves (RAR-ee AY-veez)

   A rare person or thing.

[From Latin rara (rare) avis (bird).]

   "But the Clipper (Joe DiMaggio) was a rara avis, not merely a player of
   inimitable style but also a winner ...."
   Jonathan Yardley, Idol Worship, The Washington Post, Oct 22, 2000.

This week's theme: Latin terms.

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Date: Wed Sep 19 00:01:25 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sine die
X-Bonus: Traveling is a fool's paradise... I pack my trunk, embrace my friends, embark on the sea and at last wake up in Naples, and there besides me is the stern fact, the sad self, unrelenting, identical, that I fled from. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, philosopher and writer (1803-1882)

sine die (SY-nee DY-ee, SIN-ay DEE-ay) adverb

   Without designating a future day for action or meeting; indefinitely.

[From Latin sine (without) die (day).]

   "... The trial was adjourned sine die because no prosecutors were
   present."
   Asia: Enveloped, The Economist (London), Jan 20, 2001.

This week's theme: Latin terms.

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Date: Thu Sep 20 00:01:34 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--annus mirabilis
X-Bonus: You can't turn back the clock. But you can wind it up again. -Bonnie Prudden, fitness trainer and author (1914-2011)

annus mirabilis (AN-uhs mi-RAB-uh-lis) noun, plural anni mirabiles (AN-i
   mi-RAB-uh-leez)

   A remarkable year.

[From Latin annus (year) mirabilis (wondrous).]

   "We suppose it's anti-climactic that consumer sentiment sank like a stone
   to a two-year low, and Xmas sales were not very cheery. So, all in all,
   sigh, Y2K wasn't exactly an annus mirabilis."
   Alan Abelson, Up & Down Wall Street: Unfond Farewell, Barron's (Chicopee,
   Massachusetts), Jan 1, 2001.

This week's theme: Latin terms.

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Date: Fri Sep 21 05:01:31 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sub rosa
X-Bonus: It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: "And this, too, shall pass away." How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction! -Abraham Lincoln, 16th U.S. President (1809-1865)

sub rosa (sub RO-zuh) adverb

   Secretly, privately, or confidentially.

[From Latin sub (under) rosa (rose). From the ancient practice of using a rose
as a symbol of secrecy.]

   "The ugly tone of the sub rosa attacks was in marked contrast to the
   public campaigns of the top candidate."
   James Rainey and Massie Ritsch, Mayoral Race Darkened by Negative Ads
   in Final Days, The Los Angeles Times, Apr 9, 2001.

This week's theme: Latin terms.

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Date: Mon Sep 24 02:01:37 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--assuage
X-Bonus: The more we live by our intellect, the less we understand the meaning of life. -Leo Tolstoy, author (1828-1910)

assuage (uh-SWAYJ, uh-SWAYZH) verb tr.

   1. To soften or relieve (a burden or pain).

   2. To pacify.

   3. To appease or satisfy.

[From Middle English aswagen, from Old French assouagier, from Vulgar Latin
assuaviare, from Latin ad- + suavis (sweet).]

   "As soon as Alliance Theatre Artistic Director Susan V. Booth heard about
   last week's terrorist assault, she began planning an event that would use
   drama and literature to assuage the grief."
   Speed Reads, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sep 21, 2001.

Eat, sleep, work, walk, shop, drive ... on a typical day, we do hundreds
of mundane things. But Tuesday, September 11, was far from typical. We
expressed our dismay at the tragic toll of the terrorist attack with verbs
like grieve, cry, hurt, etc. What makes us truly human is what we did in
the days that followed. This week AWAD looks at five verbs which helped
express our feelings.                                               -Anu

P.S. If you will be in or near Columbus, Ohio, on October 2, you are invited
to AWAD LIVE, where I'll be talking about words at Columbus Metropolitan
Library's downtown auditorium at 96 South Grant Avenue, at 7.30pm. For more
information, call 614-645-2ASK.

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Date: Tue Sep 25 00:01:29 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--commiserate
X-Bonus: When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece. -Charles Reade, writer (8 Jun 1814-1884)

commiserate (kuh-MIZ-uh-rayt) verb tr.

   To feel or express sympathy or compassion for.

verb intr.

   To sympathize with.

[From Latin commiseratus, past participle of commiserari, from com- +
miserari (to pity), from miser (pitiable, wretched).]


   "Even on his death bed, he had reached out to his extended family
   of friends by phone to joke and commiserate with them about their
   various problems, as if death weren't looking over his shoulder the
   whole time."
   Friendships Make the End of Life Bearable, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,
   Aug 21, 2001.

This week's theme: verbs.

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Date: Wed Sep 26 01:07:45 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ameliorate
X-Bonus: Never lend books -- nobody ever returns them; the only books I have in my library are those which people have lent me. -Anatole France, novelist, essayist, Nobel laureate (1844-1924)

ameliorate (a-MEL-yuh-rayt, uh-MEE-lee-) verb tr., intr., also meliorate

  To make or grow better; to improve.

[Alteration of meliorate, from Late Latin melioratus, past participle of
meliorare, from Latin melior (better).]

   "The tedium, discomfort, and confinement of an extended illness,
   ameliorated by warm surroundings and a compassionate and loving family,
   are well portrayed."
   Marie Orlando, When Vera Was Sick, School Library Journal (New York),
   Dec 1998.

This week's theme: verbs.

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Date: Thu Sep 27 00:33:40 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--resile
X-Bonus: In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments; there are consequences. -Robert Green Ingersoll, lawyer and orator (1833-1899)

resile (ri-ZYL) verb intr.

   1. To rebound or recoil.

   2. To shrink, withdraw, or retreat.

[From obsolete French resilir, from Latin resilire (to spring back).] 

   "Once there is such a respite, they could engage in a meaningful dialogue
   with the Andolan* on how both sides could resile from their hardened
   positions and strike a compromise."
   Darryl D'Monte, Storm in Narmada Valley, The Independent (Bangladesh),
   Aug 6, 1999.

   [* From Hindi Andolan (agitation, protest).]

This week's theme: verbs.

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Date: Fri Sep 28 00:33:28 EDT 2001
Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vivify
X-Bonus: I am no more humble than my talents require. -Oscar Levant, composer (1906-1972)

vivify (VIV-i-FY) verb tr.

   1. To endow with life; animate.

   2. To impart vitality or liveliness.

[From Latin vivus (alive) via Late Latin vivificare.]

   "Yet how could artists vivify culture with `sympathies and admirations'
   if they felt out of step with their place and time."
   Jackson Lears, The Golden Age, The New Republic (Washington), Aug 21,
   2000.

This week's theme: verbs.