A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Thu Nov 1 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pauldron X-Bonus: We saw men haying far off in the meadow, their heads waving like the grass which they cut. In the distance the wind seemed to bend all alike. -Henry David Thoreau, naturalist and author (1817-1862) This week's theme: Words that appear to have been coined after the 2012 US presidential candidates pauldron (PAWL-druhn) noun A piece of plate armor to protect the shoulder. [From French épaule (shoulder), from Latin spatula (blade). Earliest documented use: before 1396.] "The influence is most obvious in the rather silly haute couture designs of John Galliano for Christian Dior, with their exaggerated pauldrons ... over their svelte models' right shoulders." Richard Nilsen; Middle Ages and High Fashion; The Arizona Republic (Phoenix); May 31, 2009. https://wordsmith.org/words/images/pauldron_large.jpg Photo: Kevin Baird http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevlar/5615764160/ -------- Date: Fri Nov 2 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--barrack X-Bonus: Be humble for you are made of Earth. Be noble for you are made of stars. -Serbian proverb This week's theme: Words that appear to have been coined after the 2012 US presidential candidates barrack (BAR-uhk, the first syllable is the same as in barrel) verb tr., intr.: 1. To shout in support: to cheer. 2. To shout against: to jeer. [Perhaps from Northern Ireland dialectal barrack (to brag). Earliest documented use: 1885.] noun: A building used to house soldiers. verb tr., intr.: To provide with accommodation. [From French baraque, from Italian baracca or Spanish barraca (hut, tent). Earliest documented use: 1686.] "Raphael Clarke said: Every kid wants to play for the team they barrack for." Lyall Johnson; Clarkes Praise the Saints; The Age (Melbourne, Australia); Nov 23, 2003. "During the debate, then Socred leader Rita Johnston and NDP leader Mike Harcourt were barracking away at each other about corruption." Ross Howard; TV Debate; The Globe and Mail (Toronto, Canada); May 16, 1996. -------- Date: Mon Nov 5 00:01:04 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--emulous X-Bonus: We all have to rise in the end, not just one or two who were smart enough, had will enough for their own salvation, but all the halt, the maimed and the blind of us which is most of us. -Maureen Duffy, poet, playwright, and novelist (b. 1933) In olden times, people were named according to what they did: Potter, Smith, Miller, and so on. Sometimes they were named for their qualities: Goodman, Wise, etc. Some of the well-known historical personalities have earned nicknames like that: Charles the Great, Erik the Red, Ivan the Terrible. But why leave that to the past? You could name your friends, family, and co-workers in that manner even today. This week we'll look at five uncommon adjectives to describe people to help you get started. emulous (EM-yuh-luhs) adjective 1. Eager to imitate, equal, or to surpass another. 2. Jealous or envious. [From Latin aemulus. Ultimately from the Indo-European root aim- (copy), which also gave us emulate, imitate, image, and imagine. Earliest documented use: 1398.] "This show feels assembled by an emulous shopaholic who looked around at the tourist-drawing hits of the last decade and said: 'I want some of that. And that. Ooh, and can I have that, too?'" Ben Brantley; Sisterhood vs. Boss; The New York Times; May 1, 2009. -------- Date: Tue Nov 6 00:01:05 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vegete X-Bonus: A decent provision for the poor is the true test of civilisation. -Samuel Johnson, lexicographer (1709-1784) This week's theme: Words to describe people vegete (vuh-JEET) adjective Lively; active; vigorous. [From Latin vegere (to enliven). Ultimately from the Indo-European root weg- (to be strong or lively), which also gave us vigor, velocity, and vegetable. Earliest documented use: 1639.] Kids, etymology gives you another reason to eat your veggies! "I love to be my own master, when my spirits are prompt, when my brain is vegete and apt for thought." Ralph Waldo Emerson's Journal; Jul 10, 1828. -------- Date: Wed Nov 7 01:26:50 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--nonesuch X-Bonus: Truth never damages a cause that is just. -Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) This week's theme: Words to describe people nonesuch also nonsuch (NUN-such) noun A person or thing without an equal. [From Old English nan, from ne (not) + swelce/swylc. Earliest documented use: 975.] "Tell me, Margaret, who is this paragon, this nonesuch, this nonpareil." Jane Odiwe; Willoughby's Return; Sourcebooks; 2009. -------- Date: Thu Nov 8 00:01:08 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pervicacious X-Bonus: When two opposite points of view are expressed with equal intensity, the truth does not necessarily lie exactly halfway between them. It is possible for one side to be simply wrong. -Richard Dawkins, biologist and author (b. 1941) This week's theme: Words to describe people pervicacious (puhr-vi-KAY-shuhs) adjective Very stubborn. [From Latin pervicax (stubborn). Earliest documented use: 1633.] "Your grandmother had spunk, bless her pervicacious soul. ... She had a stubborn streak, you see, very stubborn." David Curry Kahn; Her Mother's Diary; Wheatmark; 2010. -------- Date: Fri Nov 9 00:01:06 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--cautelous X-Bonus: If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people. -Virginia Woolf, writer (1882-1941) This week's theme: Words to describe people cautelous (KOT-uh-luhs) adjective 1. Cautious. 2. Crafty. [From French cauteleux (cunning). Earliest documented use: 1384.] "Boeotian* and cautelous people should not read this ad! You're reading on? Great! You're obviously bright, adventurous, and game enough for Belvoir St Theatre." The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia); Feb 25, 1987. * https://wordsmith.org/words/boeotian.html -------- Date: Mon Nov 12 00:01:06 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--wunderkind X-Bonus: The trees that are slow to grow bear the best fruit. -Moliere, actor and playwright (1622-1673) Mark Twain once said, "My philological studies have satisfied me that a gifted person ought to learn English (barring spelling and pronouncing) in thirty hours, French in thirty days, and German in thirty years." Well, how hard it is to learn a language depends on what language you speak to begin with. If you speak English you have a head start as it's a Germanic language. English father and German vater are not that different. But there's a nugget of truth in Twain's claim. German doesn't try to make it any easier. It has three genders, four cases, six ways of writing the definite article, 12 ways of forming plurals ... and we have only scratched the surface. Well, we can't help you with everything if you're learning the language, but we can help you with the vocabulary. This week we'll see five German words English has borrowed. wunderkind (VOON-duhr-kind, wun-) noun, plural wunderkinder (-kin-duhr) 1. A child prodigy. 2. A person who achieves great success early in the career. [From German Wunderkind, from Wunder (wonder) + Kind (child). Earliest documented use: 1891.] "Miguel Angel Sano is the wunderkind, one of the best young players the Dominican Republic has ever produced." David Malitz; The Big Leagues' Hits and Errors; The Washington Post; Jul 13, 2012. -------- Date: Tue Nov 13 00:01:08 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gemutlichkeit X-Bonus: The sense of wishing to be known only for what one really is is like putting on an old, easy, comfortable garment. You are no longer afraid of anybody or anything. You say to yourself, 'Here I am --- just so ugly, dull, poor, beautiful, rich, interesting, amusing, ridiculous -- take me or leave me.' And how absolutely beautiful it is to be doing only what lies within your own capabilities and is part of your own nature. It is like a great burden rolled off a man's back when he comes to want to appear nothing that he is not, to take out of life only what is truly his own. -David Grayson, journalist and author (1870-1946) This week's theme: Words borrowed from German gemutlichkeit (guh-myoot-likh-KYT, -lish-, -MOOT-) noun Warm friendliness; comfortableness; coziness. [From German Gemütlichkeit, from gemütlich (comfortable, cozy). Earliest documented use: 1892.] "The establishment's gemutlichkeit is fueled by a low-key, funky decor and the friendliness of the staff." Christopher Brooks; Cozy With Comfort Food; The New York Times; Jan 4, 2009. -------- Date: Wed Nov 14 00:01:05 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--blitzkrieg X-Bonus: It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly unless one has plenty of work to do. There is no fun in doing nothing when you have nothing to do. Wasting time is merely an occupation then, and a most exhausting one. Idleness, like kisses, to be sweet must be stolen. -Jerome K. Jerome, humorist and playwright (1859-1927) This week's theme: Words borrowed from German blitzkrieg (BLITS-kreeg) noun: 1. A swift, sudden military attack, especially aerial bombardment. 2. An intense campaign, for example, an ad blitz. verb tr. To attack or destroy in a sudden campaign. [From German Blitzkrieg, from Blitz (lightning) + Krieg (war). Earliest documented use: 1939.] "It's an engineering blitzkrieg meant to awe the Chinese people and show off the nation's new industrial might." Ian Johnson; China Advances High-Speed Rail Amid Safety, Corruption Concerns; National Geographic (Washington, DC); Oct 5, 2012. "It was a blitzkrieg of love, an admiration avalanche." Lenore Taylor; Hold on to Your Bonnets; The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia); Oct 6, 2012. -------- Date: Thu Nov 15 00:01:05 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--kulturkampf X-Bonus: To learn who rules over you, simply find out whom you are not allowed to criticize. -Voltaire, philosopher (1694-1778) This week's theme: Words borrowed from German Kulturkampf (kool-TOOR-kahmpf) noun A cultural conflict, especially one religious in nature. [From German Kulturkampf, from Kultur (culture) + Kampf (conflict). Earliest documented use: 1879.] NOTES: The original Kulturkampf took place in the 1880s between the German government and the Roman Catholic Church over control of education, laws related to marriage, etc. "Rabbi Michael Melchior: 'The settlers have succeeded in making [the withdrawal] a story of Judaism versus emptiness. They have turned it into a Kulturkampf.'" Waiting for a Miracle; The Economist (London, UK); Aug 15, 2005. -------- Date: Fri Nov 16 02:15:05 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--kaffeeklatsch X-Bonus: In our world of big names, curiously, our true heroes tend to be anonymous. In this life of illusion and quasi-illusion, the person of solid virtues who can be admired for something more substantial than his well-knownness often proves to be the unsung hero: the teacher, the nurse, the mother, the honest cop, the hard worker at lonely, underpaid, unglamorous, unpublicized jobs. -Daniel J Boorstin, historian, professor, attorney, and writer (1914-2004) This week's theme: Words borrowed from German kaffeeklatsch (KAH-fee-klach) noun An informal social gathering for coffee and conversation. [From German Kaffeeklatsch, from Kaffee (coffee) + Klatsch (gossip). Earliest documented use: 1888.] NOTES: The word has many spelling variants: kaffeeklatch, kaffee klatch, kaffee klatsch, coffeeklatsch, coffeeklatch, coffee klatsch, coffee klatch. "I can always count on my monthly kaffeeklatsches with my fellow scribes to surface the news items that really matter." Ruth Walker; The Real Regular and the New Normal; The Christian Science Monitor (Boston, Massachusetts); Jun 8, 2010. -------- Date: Mon Nov 19 00:01:06 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--serendipity X-Bonus: Men are often capable of greater things than they perform. They are sent into the world with bills of credit, and seldom draw to their full extent. -Horace Walpole, novelist and essayist (1717-1797) There are thousands and thousands of them. In medicine, botany, chemistry, athletics, and other walks (and runs) of life. We use them all the time without even realizing it. They come with a whole story about themselves. They are words derived from places or people, real and fictional, from history and mythology. They are known as toponyms and eponyms, from Greek topo- (place) + -onym (name), and epi- (upon) + -onym (name). This week we'll see five words coined after the names of people and places. serendipity (ser-uhn-DIP-i-tee) noun The faculty of making fortunate discoveries by chance. Also, an instance of such a discovery. [Coined by novelist Horace Walpole based on the fairy tale "The Three Princes of Serendip". The Princes were supposedly making these happy discoveries they were not looking for. From Persian Sarandip (Sri Lanka), from Arabic sarandib. Earliest documented use: 1754.] "To maximise serendipity, Yossi Vardi cleverly mixes specialised conferences with the more eclectic kind." In Search of Serendipity; The Economist (London, UK); Jul 22, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Nov 20 00:01:05 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--mithridatism X-Bonus: Mere parsimony is not economy. Expense, and great expense, may be an essential part in true economy. -Edmund Burke, statesman and writer (1729-1797) Toponyms and eponyms mithridatism (MITH-ri-day-tiz-uhm) noun The developing of immunity to a poison by gradually increasing the dose. [After Mithridates VI, king of Pontus (now in Turkey) 120-63 BCE, who is said to have acquired immunity to poison by ingesting gradually larger doses of it. Earliest documented use: 1851.] NOTES: Mithridates VI's father was poisoned. No wonder VI wanted to develop tolerance to poison. The story goes that after VI's defeat by Pompey, he didn't want to be captured alive. So he tried to end his life by taking poison. That didn't work, so he had a servant stab him with a sword. Mithridates VI https://wordsmith.org/words/images/mithridatism_large.jpg Louvre Museum Photo: Eric Gaba "Some monks resorted to the direct ingestion of mercury and cinnabar, small quantities at first, but gradually building up the dosage as the body's tolerance increased -- an alchemical mithridatism." Alexander Goldstein; The Foundling; Trafford Publishing; 2009. -------- Date: Wed Nov 21 00:01:04 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--rhadamanthine X-Bonus: No man, for any considerable period, can wear one face to himself and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to which may be true. -Nathaniel Hawthorne, writer (1804-1864) Toponyms and eponyms rhadamanthine (rad-a-MAN-thin, -thyn) adjective Inflexibly just or severe. [In Greek mythology, Rhadamanthus was the son of Zeus and Europa. He was a judge of the underworld and known for his strict justice. Earliest documented use: 1778.] "Antoine Christophe Saliceti returned to his home island in the role of inflexible ideologue ... dispensing rhadamanthine justice." Steven Englund; Napoleon: A Political Life; Scribner; 2003. -------- Date: Thu Nov 22 00:03:06 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--elysian X-Bonus: I would rather be able to appreciate things I can not have than to have things I am not able to appreciate. -Elbert Hubbard, author, editor, printer (1856-1915) Toponyms and eponyms Elysian (i-LIZH-uhn) adjective Blissful; delightful. [From Latin Elysium, from Greek elysion pedyon (Elysian plain/fields). In Greek mythology, Elysium (or the Elysian Fields) was the final resting place for the souls of heroes and the virtuous after their death. Earliest documented use: 1579.] "Our neighbour stuck his head over the fence one arvo* and regaled me with Elysian illusions involving the company he worked for." Doug Anderson; Summer Job: Toilet Assembler; The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia); Jan 10, 2012 * Australian slang for 'afternoon' -------- Date: Fri Nov 23 00:03:03 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--icarian X-Bonus: This above all: to thine own self be true, / And it must follow, as the night the day, / Thou canst not then be false to any man. -William Shakespeare, poet and dramatist (1564-1616) Toponyms and eponyms Icarian (i-KAR-ee-uhn, eye-) adjective Of or relating to an over-ambitious attempt that ends in ruin. [After Icarus in Greek mythology who flew so high that the sun melted the wax holding his artificial wings. Icarus plunged to his death into the sea. Earliest documented use: 1595.] The Lament for Icarus: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/icarian_large.jpg Art: H.J. Draper (1863-1920) "But the film is a warning about flying too high. Philippe Petit may have succeeded in the high wire walk, but he suffers an Icarian fall in his personal life." Monica Heisey; Masterwork on Wire; The Queen's Journal (Kingston, Canada); Nov 14, 2008. -------- Date: Mon Nov 26 00:03:08 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bursiform X-Bonus: His mother had often said, When you choose an action, you choose the consequences of that action. She had emphasized the corollary of this axiom even more vehemently: when you desired a consequence you had damned well better take the action that would create it. -Lois McMaster Bujold, writer (b. 1949) Common wisdom says: Show, not tell. Usually we only tell you about the words, but this week we can show you as well. Artist Leah Palmer Preiss (curiouser at mindspring.com) has illustrated this week's words with vivid colors and imagination. To see more of her work, check out the week of words she illustrated for AWAD last year https://wordsmith.org/words/redolent.html . Also, don't forget to visit her blog Oddments & Curiosities http://oddments.blogspot.com/ . bursiform (BUHR-suh-form) adjective Shaped like a pouch or a sac. [From Latin bursa (bag, pouch), from Greek byrsa (skin, hide). Earliest documented use: 1835.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/bursiform_large.jpg [Illustration: Leah Palmer Preiss http://oddments.blogspot.com/] "Our results indicated that mononuclear cells ... developed a bursiform shape." Bone Research; Obesity, Fitness & Wellness Week; Jun 9, 2012. -------- Date: Tue Nov 27 00:03:04 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--concinnity X-Bonus: Permanent good can never be the outcome of untruth and violence. -Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) This week's theme: Illustrated words concinnity (kuhn-SIN-i-tee) noun A harmonious arrangement of various parts. [From Latin concinnare (to put in order). Earliest documented use: 1531.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/concinnity_large.jpg [Illustration: Leah Palmer Preiss http://oddments.blogspot.com/] "There was a moment of inner peace in which belief and doubt merged into a strangely comforting concinnity." Thomas Dulski; To Emily on the Ecliptic; Analog Science Fiction & Fact; Jul/Aug 2004. -------- Date: Wed Nov 28 00:03:04 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--lachrymal X-Bonus: Everybody, soon or late, sits down to a banquet of consequences. -Robert Louis Stevenson, novelist, essayist, and poet (1850-1894) This week's theme: Illustrated words lachrymal or lacrimal (LAK-ruh-muhl) adjective: Relating to or inducing tears. [From Latin lacrima (tear). Earliest documented use: 1541.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/lachrymal_large.jpg [Illustration: Leah Palmer Preiss http://oddments.blogspot.com/] "She wiped his tears with the edge of her garment, but that made him more lachrymal." Udai Rathor; Kojia, the Ugly; Strategic Book Publishing; 2012. -------- Date: Thu Nov 29 00:03:05 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--wassail X-Bonus: When money speaks, the truth keeps silent. -Russian proverb This week's theme: Illustrated words wassail (WOS-uhl, wo-SAYL) verb tr.: To toast. verb intr.: To go from house to house singing carols at Christmas. noun: 1. A toast to someone's health. 2. A festivity with much drinking. 3. A drink for toasting, especially spiced ale. 4. The singing of Christmas carols going from house to house. [From Old Norse ves heill (be well). Earliest documented use: 1275.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/wassail_large.jpg [Illustration: Leah Palmer Preiss http://oddments.blogspot.com/] "Cows and oxen used to be wassailed too for the same reason, to bring luck and encourage good health in the coming year." Days Lengthen, Cold Strengthens; Beverley Guardian (UK); Jan 16, 2012. -------- Date: Fri Nov 30 00:03:10 EST 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--phantasmagoria X-Bonus: Nothing ruins a face so fast as double-dealing. Your face telling one story to the world. Your heart yanking your face to pieces, trying to let the truth be known. Jessamyn West, novelist (1902-1984) This week's theme: Illustrated words phantasmagoria (fan-taz-muh-GOR-ee-uh) noun 1. A shifting scene made up of many elements. 2. A sequence of fantastic imagery, illusions, etc. [From French fantasmagorie, from fantasme (phantasm) perhaps combined with Greek agora (assembly). Earliest documented use: 1802.] NOTES: In the late 18th and 19th century, use of a magic lantern (an early form of slide projector) to display fantastic images was popular. It was known as a phantasmagoria and was first exhibited in London in 1802. https://wordsmith.org/words/images/phantasmagoria_large.jpg [Illustration: Leah Palmer Preiss http://oddments.blogspot.com/] "We are increasingly immersed in a phantasmagoria of screens and streams and tunes." Tom & Jeanne Lombardo; Mind Flight: A Journey Into the Future; Xlibris; 2011.