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GOLDEN CALF
PRONUNCIATION: (GOL-den KAHF)
MEANING: noun: Someone or something unworthy that is excessively esteemed.
ETYMOLOGY: In the biblical story Moses came down from Mount Sinai carrying stone tablets with the Ten Commandments only to find Israelites worshiping a calf made of gold. Earliest documented use: 1575.
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GOODEN CALF - what the NY Mets pitching star got his power from
GOLDEN CALIF - 1. tale of the 615th Arabian NIght ((Westerners may recognize the story of King Midas) 2. the Gate where the Bridge is
GOLDEN RALF - King Midas just barfed
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SILVER SPOON
PRONUNCIATION: (SIL-vuhr spoon)
MEANING: noun: Inherited wealth.
ETYMOLOGY: The phrase is often used in the construction “to be born with a silver spoon in one’s mouth” meaning one’s born in privilege and wealth. The association of silver with riches is obvious, so why not a gold spoon? Nobody knows, though it may have something to do with silver’s biocidal properties. Earliest documented use: 1719.
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SILVER SPOOL - where to get the thread to weave among the gold
SALVER SPOON - what haute societé takes sugar and cream from
SOLVER SPOON - cruciverbalist's trophy
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TINHORN
PRONUNCIATION: (TIN-horn)
MEANING: noun: Someone who pretends to have money, skill, influence, etc.
adjective: Inferior or insignificant, while pretending to be otherwise.
ETYMOLOGY: The word has its origin in gambling, from the use of a cone-shaped container used to shake the dice. A tinhorn gambler was someone who pretended to be a big player, but actually played for small stakes. Earliest documented use: 1885.
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EINHORN - German word for "unicorn"
TINSHORN - deprived of all can-making material
TENHORN - a LARGE orchestral brass section
VINHORN - a cornucopia full of French wine
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BRASS TACKS
PRONUNCIATION: (bras taks)
MEANING: noun: Practical details; essentials; realities.
ETYMOLOGY: The term is typically used in the phrase “to get down to brass tacks”. There are many conjectures about the origins of the term, but it’s not confirmed why we say brass tacks, instead of, say iron tacks, or for that matter iron nails. Earliest documented use: 1863.
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BRA STACKS - the stock room in Victoria's Secret
BASS TACKS - how the fish swims upstream
BRASS TANKS - used in stills in place of copper to make a higher-class moonshine
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IRONCLAD
PRONUNCIATION: (EYE-uhrn-klad)
MEANING: adjective:
1. Covered with iron.
2. Inflexible, unbreakable, or indisputable.
ETYMOLOGY: From iron, from Old English iren + clad (clothed), from Old English clathod. Earliest documented use: 1752.
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IRON CLAY - not very good soil, but great ore
IRONIC LAD - Marvel's latest Superhero; always has something wry to say
IRON CHAD - how to make a ballot look unused
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ONYMOUS
PRONUNCIATION:(AHN-uh-muhs)
MEANING: adjective: Bearing the author’s name; named.
ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from Latin anonymus, from Greek anonymus, from an- (not) + onyma (name). Earliest documented use: 1775. Anonymous is from 1601.
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ONYXOUS - like a black semi-precious jewel
ONYMPUS - one letter away from the home of the Greek Gods
NYMOUS - uninvited denizen of many Manhattan apartments
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SWASHBUCKLE
PRONUNCIATION: (SWASH-buhkl)
MEANING: verb intr.: To swagger, bluster, behave recklessly, etc.
ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from swashbuckler (one who makes a noise by striking a sword on a shield), from swash (of imitative origin) + buckler (a small round shield), from boucle (a boss on a shield), from Latin buccula, diminutive of bucca (cheek). Earliest documented use: 1897. Swashbuckler is from 1560.
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SWISHBUCKLE - a special buckle designed to make intimidating sounds when the belt is whirled around the head, to be used as a weapon
SW ASHBUCKLE - the southwest quadrant of Ashbuckle, West Virginia, where wooden belt accessories are manufactured
SWASH BOUCKLÉ - woven wrist-watch bands
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ZIG
PRONUNCIATION: (zig)
MEANING: noun: A sharp turn or angle in a zigzag course.
verb intr.: To make a sharp turn.
ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from zigzag, from French zigzag, from ziczac, from German Zickzack (zigzag), perhaps a reduplication of Zacke (peak, tooth, or nail). Earliest documented use: 1969. Zigzag is from 1712.
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ZING - twit-speak for "snoozing"
ZYG - a fertilized egg
ZIGH - taking a long, deep breath and then letting it out, while asleep
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(It went from Baltimore to Washington, DC, in 1844, though it sounds like it started in Boston)
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RORT
PRONUNCIATION: (rort)
MEANING: noun:
1. A fraudulent scheme or practice.
2. A wild party.
ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from rorty (boisterous, lively, jolly), of uncertain origin. Earliest documented use: 1926. Rorty is from 1868.
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ROIT - a correct Cockney, yes?
AORT - a very short main artery leaving the Left Ventricle
RORO - what you do gently to your boat when you go down the stream
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COUTH
PRONUNCIATION: (kooth)
MEANING: adjective: Cultured; refined; sophisticated.
noun: Refinement; sophistication.
ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from uncouth, from Old English uncuth (unknown), from un- (not) + cuth (known), past participle of cunnan (to know, to be able). Ultimately from the Indo-European root gno- (to know), which also gave us know, recognize, acquaint, ignore, diagnosis, notice, normal, anagnorisis, prosopagnosia, agnosia , cognize, gnomon, kenning, and unco. Earliest documented use: 1896. Uncouth is from 1732.
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CORUTH - what sings Hallelujah! in Handel's Methiah
HOUTH - where the Lispers live
COUTY - a poorly-defined, intermediate-sized political region, somewhere between a city and a county
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REDSHIRT
PRONUNCIATION: (RED-shuhrt)
MEANING: noun: A college athlete who practices with the team, but does not take part in official games.
verb tr., intr.: 1. To extend eligibility by a year by making an athlete practice, but not participate, official games.
2. To delay enrolling a child by a year to avoid their being one of the youngest in the class.
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"REEDS" HIRT - nickname of the trumpet player's brother; he played clarinet and sax
REDSHIFT - astronomers' tool for determining galactic speeds and distances
REDSHIRE - where Diggory Venn, Thomas Hardy's reddleman, lived
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SMARTY-PANTS
PRONUNCIATION: (SMAR-tee-pants)
MEANING: noun: Someone who presents as being obnoxiously clever.
ETYMOLOGY: From smart, from Old English smeart + pants, short for pantaloons, plural of pantaloon. St. Pantaleone/Pantalone was a popular saint in Venice. As a result, it was also a common name among the Venetians. As a result, a comic character in the Italian commedia dell’arte was named Pantalone. The leggings this character wore became known as pantalone (plural pantaloni). And that became pantaloons in English. Earliest documented use: 1932.
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SMARTY-PANT - covering for one leg, worn by a half-wit
SMARTY-RANTS - even Albert Einstein lost his cool sometimes
SMARTY-PINTS - ale promoted as improving one's intelligence
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SANSCULOTTE
PRONUNCIATION: (sanz-kyoo-LOT)
MEANING: noun: A radical or revolutionary.
ETYMOLOGY: From French, literally, without knee breeches. In the French Revolution, this was the aristocrats’ term of contempt for the ill-clad volunteers of the Revolutionary army who rejected knee breeches as a symbol of the upper class and adopted pantaloons. As often happens with such epithets, the revolutionaries themselves adopted it as a term of pride. Earliest documented use: 1790.
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SAM'S CULOTTE - Murray's Pants Store, only owned by Sam
ANS: CULOTTE - reply to Qu: What are those things women wear that look like a skirt but are divided into pantlegs at the bottom?
SAN SCULPTTE - stone statuette of a saint
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DESCAMISADO
PRONUNCIATION: (des-ka-mee-SAH-doh)
MEANING: noun: A very poor person.
ETYMOLOGY: From Spanish descamisado (shirtless), from des- (dis-, un-) + camisa (shirt). Earliest documented use: 1821.
NOTES: Over the years, the term has been applied to various people, such as a revolutionary in the Spanish Revolution of 1820-23 and a supporter of Argentinian President Juan Perón.
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DECCA MISADO - a shellac recording of a Catholic Mass
ODES CAMISADO - poems to be read in your shirtsleeves
PESCA MISADO - a traditional Japanese soup made from fish in a dashi stock with softened miso paste mixed in
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BLOODY SHIRTPRONUNCIATION: (BLUHD-ee shuhrt) MEANING: noun: A symbol used to incite people to partisan outrage or animosity. ETYMOLOGY: The term is typically used as “to wave the bloody shirt” and alludes to the literal or metaphorical symbol of a supposed injury that needs to be avenged. Earliest documented use: 1586. NOTES: In modern times, masks are apparently the new bloody shirt. ____________________________________ BLOODY SHIFT - night work at the slaughterhouse, when the dirty deed is done "BLOODY" HIRT - the trumpet player's brother (the sax player) who likes to spout pirate lingo BROODY SHIRT - the outfit worn by Edward Lear's Old Man with a Beard
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SCANSORIAL
PRONUNCIATION: (skan-SOHR-ee-uhl)
MEANING: adjective: Related to climbing.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin scandere (to climb). Ultimately from the Indo-European root skand- (to leap or climb), which also gave us ascend, descend, condescend, transcend, echelon, scale, and scandent. Earliest documented use: 1804.
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SCANTORIAL - it's hard to find a good singer for services these days
SCANSOCIAL - I keep an eye on facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and all of those
SCANSTORIAL - cash registers in Saudi Arabia
SCANS TRIAL - suing the MRI for damages
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STRIDOR
PRONUNCIATION: (STRY-duhr)
MEANING: noun: A harsh, grating or creaking sound.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin stridere (to make a harsh sound). Earliest documented use: 1632.
NOTES: The word is often used for the harsh vibrating sound produced when breathing with an airway obstruction.
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STRIDOL - somebody made a graven image of Saint R.
S'TRIGOR - It's Roy Rogers' horse!
ASTRID OR - the Swedish starlet with the golden hair
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DISQUISITION
PRONUNCIATION: (dis-kwuh-ZISH-uhn)
MEANING: noun: A formal discussion on a subject: discourse or dissertation.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin disquirere (to investigate), from dis- (intensive prefix) + quaerere (to seek or ask). Earliest documented use: 1605.
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DISQUE "IS IT I" ON - playing the Berlitz "English Made Easy" record discussing the case of the direct object after the verb être
DIS QUISTION - what I want yez ta answer
DICQUISITION - obtaining two of them
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SANGUINARY
PRONUNCIATION: (SANG-gwuh-ner-ee)
MEANING: adjective:
1. Relating to blood.
2. Blood-red.
3. Involving bloodshed.
4. Bloodthirsty.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin sanguis (blood). Earliest documented use: 1540.
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PANGUINARY - preserve for egg-laying Antarctic animals that are very graceful under water; come in Adelie, Emperor, Rock-hopper, and a few other varieties
SANS GUINARY - my old violin is missing and I'm bereft
SAN QUINARY - pertaining to a California prison
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CONCUPISCENCE
PRONUNCIATION: (kon-KYOO-pih-suhns)
MEANING: noun: Strong desire; lust.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin concupiscere (to desire ardently), from con- (intensive prefix) + cupere (to desire). Earliest documented use: 1340.
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CONCULPISCENCE - sharing the blame
CONCU-PISCENE - there's something fishy about this harem
CONCUPISCIENCE - prize-winning manipulation of the facts and distortion of the logical process
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GOLDILOCKS
PRONUNCIATION: (GOL-dee-lahks)
MEANING: adjective: Just right; a happy medium; optimal; not at either extreme.
ETYMOLOGY: After Goldilocks, a golden-haired girl in the fairy tale “Goldilocks and the Three Bears”. In the story, she visits a bear house and chooses Baby Bear’s chair, bed, and porridge because they are just right. Papa Bear’s porridge is too hot, Mama Bear’s too cold, for example. Earliest documented use: 1949. The story was first published in 1837. The earliest documented use in the literal sense of the word is from 400 years earlier.
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GOLDILOOKS - King Midas' glance
GOLF i LOCKS - Lesson 1: secure your equipment between rounds
GOLDILOCHS - the Scottish lakes glow in light of the summer-evening sun
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CINDERELLA
PRONUNCIATION: (sin-duh-REL-luh)
MEANING: noun:
1. One who deserves success or recognition, but instead suffers from neglect or obscurity.
2. One who achieves sudden triumph or recognition, especially after a long period of neglect or obscurity.
ETYMOLOGY: After Cinderella, the fairy-tale character who is mistreated by her stepmother and stepsisters. With a little help from a fairy godmother, she attends a royal ball thrown by a prince. Ultimately, she marries the prince and lives happily ever after. What’s behind the name Cinderella? It’s a pseudo-translation of the French name of the girl, Cendrillon, from cendre (cinder), perhaps an allusion to her day-to-day existence, tending to the fireplace and hearth, and as a result she has cinders all over her. It may also be a hint to the hidden spark in her otherwise dismal life. Earliest documented use: 1840.
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CINQERELLA - one of a set of quintuplets
CINDERELBA- when Napoleon escaped from exile he left the island in flames
CHINDERELLA - many years laterour charming Princess has put on a lot of weight
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UGLY DUCKLING
PRONUNCIATION: (UHG-lee DUHK-ling)
MEANING: noun: One that seems unattractive or unpromising at first but has great potential and later turns out to be quite attractive or successful.
ETYMOLOGY: From the protagonist of the story “The Ugly Duckling” by Hans Christian Andersen, in which a young bird believes himself to be a duck and is unhappy because he doesn’t look like a duck, only to later learn that (spoiler alert) he is a beautiful swan. Earliest documented use: 1877.
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UGLI DUCKLING - a Jamaican variant of canard à l'orange
TUGLY DUCKLING - an immature duck who won't let go of a particularly tasty crumb
UGLY DUNKLING - a falling-apart doughnut (dipped in coffee too long)
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SLEEPING BEAUTY
PRONUNCIATION: (SLEE-ping BYOO-tee)
MEANING: noun: Someone or something that lies dormant for a long time.
ETYMOLOGY: After the princess of a fairy tale who is cursed by a wicked fairy. The princess pricks her finger on a spindle and sleeps for 100 years until awakened by the kiss of a prince. Earliest documented use: 1729.
NOTES: In finance, a sleeping beauty is an asset, for example, a startup, that is an attractive target for takeover, but that has not yet been approached by someone. Also see Rip Van Winkle
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SLEEPING BEATTY - Shh! Warren is napping
STEEPING BEAUTY - making tea from rose hips
BLEEPING BEAUTY - methinks the Lady needs to have her mouth washed out with soap
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PRINCE CHARMING
PRONUNCIATION: (prins CHAR-ming)
MEANING: noun: A suitor who fulfills the expectations of his beloved.
ETYMOLOGY: After Prince Charming, the fairy-tale hero of many stories, such as, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. Earliest documented use: 1850.
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PRINCE CHARRING - The Artist Formerly Known As [Squiggle] certainly likes his meat well done
PRINNE CHARMING - Hester deserves her Scarlet Letter
PRINCE CHARTING - when Harry flies in his helicopter he needs to know where he's going
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CORROBORATE
PRONUNCIATION: (kuh-ROB-uh-rayt)
MEANING: verb tr.: To confirm or support a claim, theory, etc.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin corroborare (to strengthen), from com/cor- (together) + roborare (to make strong), from robur (oak, strength). Ultimately from the Indo-European root reudh- (red), which also gave us red, rouge, ruby, ruddy, rubella, robust, rambunctious, roborant, and russet. Earliest documented use: 1530.
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ZORRO BORATE - while protecting the poor against injustice he also developed and marketed a treatment for yeast and other groin infecitions
CORRO BERATE - to scold the voice parts for being out of tune
CORE ROBO-RATE - basic fee for 100,000 unwanted telephone calls
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PALMARY
PRONUNCIATION: (PAL-muh-ree)
MEANING: adjective: Of supreme importance; outstanding; praiseworthy.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin palmarius (deserving or carrying the palm), from palma (palm). The branches of the palm tree were carried as symbols of victory in ancient times. The name of the palm tree derives from the resemblance of the shape of its frond to the palm of a hand. Earliest documented use: 1646. Two related words are palmy and palmer.
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PALMDRY - some folks' hands get sweaty when they're anxious, but not theirs
PALMART - friends for hire or sale
PAYMARY - what to do when paying Peter or Paul doesn't work
PALMARRY - to marry your best friend (VT and VI)
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WILLOWY
PRONUNCIATION: (WIL-oh-ee)
MEANING: adjective
1. Of or related to a willow tree. For example, bordered, shaded, or covered by willows.
2. Gracefully tall, slender, and lithe.
ETYMOLOGY: Gracefully drooping branches of a willow have, for more than two centuries, inspired people to evoke the tree when describing a woman. The word willow is from Old English welig, ultimately from the Indo-European root wel- (to turn or roll), which also gave us waltz, revolve, valley, walk, vault, volume, wallet, helix, voluble, welter, and devolve. Earliest documented use: 1766.
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HILLOWY - Mrs Rodham Clinton, to her next-door-neighbor's toddler
WILCO, WY - the military accedes to the request to pull the troops out of Cheyenne
WILLO. WHY? - Is that a mapl tree?
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BIRCH
PRONUNCIATION: (buhrch)
MEANING: noun: 1. Any of various hardy trees or shrubs of the genus Betula.
2. A birch twig or a bundle of them.
verb tr.: 1. To beat with (or as if with) a birch.
2. To admonish or to punish.
ETYMOLOGY: From Old English berc/beorc. Earliest documented use: 700.
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bi-RUCH - (-U- as in "put;" guttural -ch) - a loose pronunciation of "blessed" in both Hebrew and Arabic
PIRCH - where a bird sits; also, a kind of fish
BIORCH - 1. a Swedish tennis player, 2. trying to find and make a vaccine
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FIG
PRONUNCIATION: (fig)
MEANING: noun: 1. A tree or shrub of the genus Ficus or its fruit.
2. Something of little value.
3. A gesture of contempt.
verb tr.: To dress up.
noun: Dress or array.
ETYMOLOGY: For noun 1-3: From Old French fige, from Provencal figa, from Latin fica (fig, ficus). Earliest documented use: 1225. Also see fig leaf.
For the rest: Of uncertain origin. Earliest documented use: 1839.
NOTES: It’s not clear why the fig has suffered such an undervaluation, historically speaking. The OED lists the first citation in this sense from “The Court of Love” (1450): “A Figge for all her chastite!” The word is also used for the obscene gesture of a fist with the thumb sticking out between two fingers. Another word given to us by the lowly fig is sycophant.
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FING - a euphemistic expression meant to convey an obscene adjective, is also variously spelled "effing" or "f---ing"
FIRG - presumptuousy familiar name for Sarah, Duchess of York (born Sarah Margaret Ferguson), ex-wife of Prince Andrew
FIG - a representation of some reviled person or object, often subjected to burning
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IRON-HEARTED
PRONUNCIATION: (EYE-uhrn-har-tid)
MEANING: adjective: Cruel; unfeeling.
ETYMOLOGY: From iron, from Old English iren + heart, from Old English heorte. Earliest documented use: 1570.
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IRON-HEATED - when you should strike
L.RON-HEARTED - believing in Dianetics
IRONY-HEARTED - pretending to believe in Dianetics, knowing its origin
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PUGNACIOUS
PRONUNCIATION: (puhg-NAY-shuhs)
MEANING: adjective: Having a quarrelsome nature; belligerent.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin pugnare (to fight), from pugnus (fist). Ultimately from the Indo-European root peuk- (to prick) which is also the source of point, puncture, pungent, punctual, poignant, pounce, poniard, oppugn, repugn, impugn, pugilist, and repugnant. Earliest documented use: 1642.
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PUGRACIOUS - being courteous to small dog with squished-in faces
PUNNACIOUS - addicted to wordplay
BUG NACIÒ US - the insect was born in the United States
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Carpal Tunnel
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ITHYPHALLIC
PRONUNCIATION: (ith-uh-FAL-ik)
MEANING: adjective:
1. Lewd or salacious.
2. Having an erect phallus.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin ithyphallicus, from Greek ithyphallikos, from ithyphallos, from ithys (straight) + phallos (phallus). Earliest documented use: 1795.
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ITCHYPHALLIC - horny
THY PHALLIC - how his subjects address Pan Priapus
IT HYPE ALL I.C. - integrated circuits are to be encouraged
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Carpal Tunnel
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CHICKEN-LIVERED
PRONUNCIATION: (CHIK-en-LIV-uhrd)
MEANING: adjective: Cowardly; easily frightened.
ETYMOLOGY: The word chicken has traditionally been used to describe a coward. Also, earlier people believed that the liver was the seat of courage. But chicken-livered or chicken-hearted, it’s all the same. Earliest documented use: 1616.
NOTES: The English language hasn’t been very kind to the domestic fowl. Some similar terms are chicken hawk and Chicken Little. Also see lily-livered and white-livered.
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CHICKEN-LIVERIED - 1. dressed chicken, suitable for serving on formal occasions
2. dressed chicken, suitable for serving on formal occasions
THICKEN-LIVERED - hepatic cirrhosis
CHICKEN-LOVERED - the betrothed of Miles Standish (just ask John Alden)
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HYSTERICPRONUNCIATION: (his-TER-ik) MEANING: adjective: Exhibiting an uncontrolled or overly emotional state, volatility, attention-seeking behavior, etc. noun: An overly emotional or unstable person. ETYMOLOGY: Via Latin from Greek hystera (uterus), from the former belief that disturbances in the uterus resulted in such behavior. Earliest documented use: 1652. ________________________________ SHYSTERIC - like a less-than-principled lawyer WHY STERIC? - Is there a reason for the three-dimensional configuration? HYSTERICA - Alice's description of the US (see Edward Hope, Alice in the Delighted States: "...the continents are Aphasia, Paprika, North Hysterica, South Hysterica, Stirrup, and Nostalgia. Or something like that.")
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JIM CROW
PRONUNCIATION: (jim kroh)
MEANING: noun: The systematic practice of discriminating against Black people.
ETYMOLOGY: From Jim Crow, the name of a Black character in a 19th-century minstrel show. Earliest documented use: 1832.
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JAM CROW - Knotts Berry Farm advertising
TIM CROW - Wee Cratchit says, "God Bless us, every one!"
JIM CROWN - orthographically-challenged champion body-builder's title
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SIMON LEGREE
PRONUNCIATION: (SY-muhn li-GREE)
MEANING: noun: A harsh taskmaster.
ETYMOLOGY: After Simon Legree, a brutal slaveholder in the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896). Simon Legree has Uncle Tom, an enslaved man, whipped to death for refusing to divulge the whereabouts of two enslaved women who had escaped to freedom. Earliest documented use: 1857.
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SIMON DEGREE - an MBA in Shopping Mall management
SIMON LE TREE - a simple French arbre
I'M ON LE GREEN - pretty good golf shot, non?
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UNCLE TOM
PRONUNCIATION: (UHNG-kuhl tom)
MEANING: noun: A person regarded as betraying their cultural allegiance by being subservient to another.
ETYMOLOGY: After Uncle Tom, an enslaved man in the novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-96). Earliest documented use: 1852.
NOTES: The term is considered disparaging and offensive, especially when applied to a Black person seen as being subservient to White people. In the book, Uncle Tom is a heroic figure. For example, he disobeys the orders to beat other enslaved people. In minstrel shows he was depicted as a passive figure and that image has taken root in the language.
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UNCLEFT OM - the mantra is uniform and in one piece
NUNC LE TOM - Here we are in Ancient Rome, and Brady takes the field...
UNCLE ATOM - J Robert Oppenheimer was considered by many to be the "Father of the Atomic Bomb." What does that make his younger brother Frank?
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TOPSY
PRONUNCIATION: (TOP-see)
MEANING: noun: Something growing without intention or direction.
ETYMOLOGY: After Topsy, a young enslaved girl, in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Earliest documented use: 1885.
NOTES: Topsy, a young girl, is purchased by the slaveholder Augustine and she becomes friends with his daughter Eva. When Eva asks Topsy who made her, she replies, “Nobody, as I knows on. I s’pect I growed. Don’t think nobody never made me.” The cute reply became popular in the English language to refer to an unplanned or an enormous growth.
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STOPSY - alternative name for the urban game "Red Light"
TOPS'L - just below the Crows' Nest
TOPHY - full of gouty lumps on fingers, hands, toes, and feet, and in the skin
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Carpal Tunnel
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AUNT TOM
PRONUNCIATION: (ant tom)
MEANING: noun: A woman considered to be a traitor to a cause.
ETYMOLOGY: Coined as a feminine version of Uncle Tom. Earliest documented use: 1956.
NOTES: There’s no such character as Aunt Tom in the book Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Uncle Tom’s wife is actually named Chloe. The term Aunt Jemima is also used sometimes as a synonym for Aunt Tom. The term could be derogatory and offensive, applied to a Black woman who is seen as servile to White people.
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TAUNT TOM - what non-NE fans liked to do when he was a Patriot
QUANTTOM - a weird mechanics about to descend upon the Tampa football team
GAUNT TOM what he looks like after he develops anorexia
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