Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 4 of 13 1 2 3 4 5 6 12 13
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
HYALINE

PRONUNCIATION: (HY-uh-lin/leen)

MEANING: adjective: Like glass: transparent or translucent.
noun: A substance that is transparent or translucent.

ETYMOLOGY: From Greek hualos (glass). Earliest documented use: 1661.
_________________________

HYALIE - nickname for a Forida racetrack

HYALIE - or a former Emperor of Ethiopia

SHY A LINE - how to describe my incomplete script

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
BALSAM

PRONUNCIATION: balsam

MEANING: noun
1. Something that soothes or heals.
2. An aromatic resinous substance from certain trees and plants.
3. A preparation, for example an ointment, made with such a substance.
4. Such a tree or a plant.

ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin balsamum, from Greek balsamon, of Semitic origin. Earliest documented use: before 1150

(BAWL-suhm)

MEANING: noun
1. Something that soothes or heals.
2. An aromatic resinous substance from certain trees and plants.
3. A preparation, for example an ointment, made with such a substance.
4. Such a tree or a plant.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin balsamum, from Greek balsamon, of Semitic origin. Earliest documented use: before 1150.
__________________________

BAWL, SAM - if you're gonna play such sad songs on your piano, that's what I'm gonna do

BALSA "OM" - a talisman carved out of soft wood, for purposes of meditation

BALI SAM - the consort of Bloody Mary, in South Pacific

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
EXULTATION

PRONUNCIATION: (eg-zuhl-TAY-shuhn)

MEANING: noun: The act or state of triumphant joy.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin exsultare (to exult, to leap up), from ex- (out) + saltare (to leap), frequentative of salire (to leap). Earliest documented use: 1425.
_____________________________

EXCULTATION - counteracting the brainwashing practiced by some extreme groups

LEXULTATION - the joy of reading a dictionary

EXUSTATION [pronounced "eks-you-STA-shən"] - former name of the tube connecting the oropharynx with the middle ear

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
BALDERDASH

PRONUNCIATION: (BAWL-duhr-dash)

MEANING: noun: Nonsense.

ETYMOLOGY: Origin unknown. Earliest documented use: 1596.
____________________________

BALDER CASH - remuneration for selling your hair to a wig-making company

BALD END ASH - what's left after you burn your hairless wood baseball bat

BALD, DER DACH - today the walls; soon, the roof!

wofahulicodoc #232990 06/20/2024 1:11 AM
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,454
Likes: 9
Pooh-Bah
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,454
Likes: 9
BALLSOME - having cojones

BALL SUM - the number of spheres that will fit into a given volume

BALHAM - a London suburb, near the proverbial 'man on the Clapham omnibus'

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
AMIABLE amiable

PRONUNCIATION: (AY-mee-uh-buhl)

MEANING: adjective: Pleasant; friendly.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin amicus (friend), which also gave us amity, amicus curiae, amigo, inimical, and enemy. Earliest documented use: 1375.
__________________________

ACIABLE - ful of oxidant berries

ARIA BLÉ - song about French wheat

ACMIABLE - Wile E. Coyote can order this item from the catalog

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
PALOOKA

PRONUNCIATION: (puh-LOOK-uh)

MEANING: noun:
1. Someone incompetent or inexperienced, especially as a boxer.
2. A clumsy or foolish person.

ETYMOLOGY: Of unknown origin. The word was popularized by the comic strip Joe Palooka, which debuted in 1930. Earliest documented use: 1920.
____________________________

PA, LOOK ! - See, Dad? No hands!

POLO OKA - a gourd which when dried is used for a ball in the gentlemen's sport involving ponies and mallets

PALOOMA - a Spanish bird, "doove" in English

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
LYCANTHROPY

PRONUNCIATION: (ly-KAN-thruh-pee)

MEANING: noun:
1. A delusion that one has transformed into a wolf.
2. The process of or ability to transform into a wolf.

ETYMOLOGY: From Greek lykos (wolf) + -anthropy (human). Earliest documented use: 1584.
_____________________________

SLYCANTHROPY - becoming a clever and deceptive critter every full moon

LYCANTH ROPE - a thick cable made from lycanth stems and leaves

LYSANTHROPY - transforming into a disinfectant

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
HELIOPHOBIA

PRONUNCIATION: (hee-lee-uh-FO-bee-uh)

MEANING: noun: Fear of sunlight or bright light.

ETYMOLOGY: From Greek helio- (sun) + -phobia (fear). Earliest documented use: 1885.
______________________________________________

HELIOPHORIA - the glorious sense of the warm sun on your skin

HELICOPHOBIA - fear of screwing

HELIOPROBIA - sending exploratory instruments to examine the sun

wofahulicodoc #232998 06/28/2024 3:47 PM
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,454
Likes: 9
Pooh-Bah
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 2,454
Likes: 9
EXHALATION – it takes my breath away!

EXULATION – exterior insulation

EXILLARATION – strict association of cause and effect (from Latin ex illa re, 'from that fact')

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
PIZZAIOLO

PRONUNCIATION: (peet-suh-YO-lo)

MEANING: noun: A pizza maker.

ETYMOLOGY: From Italian pizzaiolo (pizza maker). Earliest documented use: 1956.
________________________________

PINZAIOLO - an actor who does impressions of an operatic bass

PIZZACOLO - a cheesy very high-pitched musical instrument

PIZZAIOLIO - pizza with a mixture of toppings

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
SCIAMACHY or SCIOMACHY

PRONUNCIATION: (sy-AM-uh-kee) (Also skiamachy (sky-))

MEANING: noun: A mock fight or a fight with an imaginary enemy.

ETYMOLOGY: From Greek skiamachia, from skia (shadow) + -machia (battle). Earliest documented
_______________________

SCI-AMOCHY - indulging in a cup of coffee as you read your science magazine
SCI-AMACHY - fighting over the just-arrived issue; also, my magazine hurts

SCIATACHY - pain in the low back radiating down one or both legs

SOCIAMACHY - a flame war on a social internet platform

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
CRACKER-BARREL

PRONUNCIATION: (KRAK-uhr bar-uhl)

MEANING: adjective: Plain, rustic, homespun, direct, or unsophisticated.

ETYMOLOGY: From cracker (wafer), from crack, from Old English cracian (to resound) + barrel, from Old French baril, from Latin barriclus (small cask). Also see pork barrel and double-barreled. Earliest documented use: 1877.
______________________________

CRANKER-BARREL - how the gasoline-air mixture gets from the carburetor into the cylinders of your Model T

CRACKLER BARREL - a whole lot of bubble-wrap

CRACKER-BARRED - no Ritz saltines permitted

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
JAMBOREE

PRONUNCIATION: (jam-buh-REE)

MEANING: noun: A large rally, assembly, celebration, etc. characterized by festive activities and a sense of community.

ETYMOLOGY: Of unknown origin. Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the Scouting Movement, popularized the term by using it for the first World Scout Jamboree in 1920. However, the term existed even before the movement was founded. Earliest documented use: 1868.
_________________________________

LAMBOREE - Springtime celebration when the first pregnant ewe delivers

JUMBOREE - a festival of elephants

JA, MORE E - yes, Concertmeister, play louder on your open first string (about 330 Hz)

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
LICKETY-SPLIT

PRONUNCIATION: (lik-uh-tee-SPLIT)

MEANING: adverb: At great speed.

ETYMOLOGY: A fanciful formation from lick (fast) + split. Earliest documented use: 1859.
__________________________________

CLICKETY-SPLIT - timing he individual laps in a long track race

LINKETY-SPLIT - how my watchband broke

LICKETY-SPLINT - instant first-aid for broken bones

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
RIPSTAVER

PRONUNCIATION: (RIP-stay-vuhr)

MEANING: noun: Something or someone remarkable.

ETYMOLOGY: From rip (to tear) + stave (to break or crush). The combination of these verbs suggests a forceful energy or a breaking of boundaries, implying something exceptional. Earliest documented use: 1828. A synonym is ripsnorter.
_____________________________________

RIP-STAYER - a stitch placed at the end of a tear so it won't extend further

RIP-STAVER - one who tears barrels open with his bare hands

TRIP-STAVER - an event that makes planned travels unnecessary

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
HUNKY-DORY

PRONUNCIATION: (HUHNG-kee DOR-ee)

MEANING: adjective: Very satisfactory; fine.

ETYMOLOGY: From hunky (satisfactory), from hunk (in a good position), from Dutch honk + dory (of unknown origin). Earliest documented use: 1866.
________________________________

HUNNY-DORY - how Pooh transports his jars of sweets up and down the stream

HUNKY-DORA - the tomboy explorer

HUN SKY-DORY - small amphibious German warplane, ca. 1917

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
ADULTERATE

PRONUNCIATION: (uh-DUHL-tuh-rayt)

MEANING: verb tr.: To add a cheaper or inferior substance to something.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin adulterare (to corrupt), from ad- (toward) + alter (other). Earliest documented use: 1526.
_____________________________

ADULTER AGE - how old you have to be to buy alcohol or tobacco products (usually 18 but may vary by state)

ADULTERITE - what people consider you a grown-up after you do it

ADULATE RATE - speed at which flattering remarks issue from your obsequious mouth

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
METROMANIA

PRONUNCIATION: (met-ruh-MAY-nee-uh)

MEANING: noun: A mania for writing poetry.

ETYMOLOGY: From Greek metro- (measure, meter) + -mania (excessive enthusiasm or craze). Earliest documented use: 1791.
________________________________

METROMANIC - giddy over riding on the subway

MELT ROMANIA - what will happen in Bucharest if global warming continues unabated

METEROMANIA - the parking-limit enforcers are going crazy

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
SEXENNIAL

PRONUNCIATION: (sek-SEN-ee-uhl)

MEANING: noun: An event occurring every six years.
adjective: Happening every six years; lasting for or relating to six years.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin sex (six) + annus (year). Earliest documented use: 1646.
_____________________________

HEXENNIAL - like a six-carbon unsaturated hydrocarbon with a low flash point

SELENNIAL - moonstruck

SEXENONIAL - characterized by fifteens, like the game of cribbage

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
PLACER

PRONUNCIATION: (for 1 & 2: PLAS-uhr, for 3 & 4: PLAY-suhr)

MEANING: noun:
1. A deposit of valuable minerals found in sand or gravel.
2. A place where such a deposit is washed to extract the valuable minerals.
3. One who finishes in a particular place in a contest.
4. One who arranges something.

ETYMOLOGY: For 1 & 2: From Spanish placer (sandbank), from Catalan placer (shoal), from Latin platea (street), from Greek plateia hodos (broad street). Earliest documented use: 1829.
For 3 & 4: From place, from Latin platea (street), from Greek plateia hodos (broad street). Earliest documented use: 1578.
__________________________

UPLACER - one who fastens footwear firmly on the feet

POL-ACER - a Canadian (maple-leaf) politician

P.R. ACER - one who pulls off a public-relations riumph

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
PSYCHROPHOBIA

PRONUNCIATION: (sy-kruh-FO-bee-uh)

MEANING: noun: An abnormal fear of cold.

ETYMOLOGY: From Greek psychro- (cold) + -phobia (fear). Earliest documented use: 1727.
___________________________

PSYCHROPHONIA - the noise made by very cold ice as it shrinks further

PSYCHROPROBIA - micro-mapping the temperature gradients in vessels of liquid helium

POSY-CHRO-PHOBIA - fear of bright-colored flowers

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
CHEKHOV'S GUN

PRONUNCIATION: (chek-ofs GUHN)

MEANING: noun:
1. The literary principle that if an element is introduced in a story, it must be shown to have a purpose.
2. An element introduced in a story that is revealed to have a purpose later on.

ETYMOLOGY: After the playwright and doctor Anton Chekhov (1860-1904) who espoused this principle. Earliest documented use: 1951.
__________________________________

CHEKHOV'S GUN - a special removable adhesive devised by Dr Chekov for attaching moustache and beard to the actors' faces, as needed, as part of their costume

CHECK-H.O.V. GUN - for when traffic enforcers encounter road rage while verifying compliance with the High-Occupancy Vehicle regulations

CHEKHOV'S NUN - unexpected cast member in The Three Sisters

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
PARKINSON'S LAW

PRONUNCIATION: (PAHR-kin-suhnz law)

MEANING: noun: The observation that work expands to fill the time available.

ETYMOLOGY: After C. Northcote Parkinson (1909-1993), author and historian, who first articulated this observation in 1955 in an article in The Economist. Earliest documented use: 1955.
_____________________________

PARKINSON'S LAWN - Grassy expanses grow to fill time available for watering, mowing, fertilizing, weeding, grub treatments, aerating, and other things you haven't even thought of

PARKING SON'S LAW - start turning the steering wheel back when you're even with the tail ight

PARKINSON SLAM - see https:// www.facebook.com/watch/?v=485244885181880

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
BARNEY'S BULL

PRONUNCIATION: (bar-neez-BUL)

MEANING: noun: Someone or something in a very bad condition or situation.

ETYMOLOGY: Apparently from a popular 19th-century pantomime in which an escaped bull is chased by various characters until the exhausted animal
s captured by a farmhand. Earliest documented use: 1834.
_______________________________

BLARNEY'S BULL - Yes, it is

BARN EYES BULL - Ferdinand gets looked at by an owl

BARNEY SKULL - ...and all this time Hamlet's been using the wrong name

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
JOHN THOMSON'S MAN

PRONUNCIATION: (jon THOM-suhnz man)

MEANING: noun: A man excessively submissive to his woman.

ETYMOLOGY: Of uncertain origin. Perhaps the original form was Joan Thomson’s man. Earliest documented use: 1513. Some other adjectives to describe such a man are uxorious and henpecked.
______________________________

JOINT: HOMSON'S MAN - Funny name, but it's a reasonably good pub

JOHN THOMSON'S MANE - J.T. has quite the head of hair, doesn't he?!

JOHN THOMSON'S MOAN - cain't tell whether he's in misery or ecstasy

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
COLLIER'S FAITH

PRONUNCIATION: (KAHL-yuhrz fayth)

MEANING: noun: Unreasonable faith; blind faith.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin fides carbonarii (collier’s faith), from German köhlerglaube (collier’s faith). The term may have arisen from the dangerous and uncertain nature of coal mining. Earliest documented use: 1680.
________________________________

COLLIE'S FAITH - Timmy will always be there to save Lassie. Or the other way 'round.

COLLIER'S FAINT "H" - coal-miner's distinct Cockney accent

COLLIDER'S FAITH - the physicist's confidence that his cyclotron will behave as expected

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Originally Posted by wofahulicodoc
CHEKHOV'S GUN - a special removable adhesive devised by Dr Chekhov for attaching moustache and beard to the actors' faces, as needed, as part of their costume

edit: That should be CHECKHOV'S GUM above, of course - July 20, 2024 1:37 PM

Last edited by wofahulicodoc; 07/20/2024 5:39 PM.
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
GRUNTLED

PRONUNCIATION: (GRUHN-tuhld)

MEANING: adjective: Contented; happy.

ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from disgruntled, from dis- (intensifier) + gruntle (to grumble), frequentative of grunt. Earliest documented use: 1938.
__________________________

GAUNTLED - put through a series of [usually unpleasant] experiences administered by a line of people consecutively

GRANT-LED - 1. the Union armies in the later stages of the U. S. Civil War; 2. most scientific research these days, unfortunately

GRUNT-LEAD - (verb) to make an inadvertent sound of reluctance as one plays the first card in a Bridge hand; (noun) the card so led

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
EPT

PRONUNCIATION: (ept)

MEANING: adjective:
1. Competent; skillful.
2. Effective; appropriate.

ETYMOLOGY: Back-formation from inept, from Latin ineptus (unsuitable or absurd), from in- (not) + aptus (apt). Earliest documented use: 1938.
_______________________

LE PT - physical therapy school in Québec

EPOT - marijuana for vaping

ERT - what flowers grow in, on Flatbush Avenue

Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,971
Likes: 3
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,971
Likes: 3
Sorry to be gone so long,my browser company was migrating to yahoo for some reason and I got lost.


----please, draw me a sheep----
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Ah. Well, welcome back!

Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,971
Likes: 3
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,971
Likes: 3
I appreciate the sentiment. Thanks, wofa.


----please, draw me a sheep----
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
RUTH

PRONUNCIATION: (rooth)

MEANING: noun:
1. Compassion.
2. Contrition.

ETYMOLOGY: From Middle English ruthe, from ruen (to rue). Earliest documented use: 1200. The common affixed form is ruthless.
__________________________

RITH - one of the three Rs, according to modern "shorthand" parlance 9cf "rents" for parents and "shrooms" for mushrooms)

DRUTH - if you had yours you'd prefer comparatively more than one of them

WRUTH - what God did when he invented the telegraph (sorta) according to the first message ever sent, in 1884 opening the Baltimore–Washington line

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
RECK

PRONUNCIATION: (rek)

MEANING: noun: Care or concern.
verb tr., intr.: To care or concern.

ETYMOLOGY: From Old English reccan (to care). Earliest documented use: 1150. The common affixed form is reckless.
__________________________________

GRECK - past tense of "GREEK"

MR ECK - pitcher Dennis Eckersley, formally

ZECK - Nero Wolfe's nemesis

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
DESCRIPT

PRONUNCIATION: (di-SKRIPT)

MEANING: adjective: Having distinctive features or qualities.

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin descriptus, past participle of describere (to describe), from de- (off) + scribere (to write). Earliest documented use: 1665. The opposite, more common affixed form is nondescript.
_____________________

DESCRIPT - take away a doctor's license to order medicines

DECRIPT - translate code into plaintext

DISC RIPT - my Frisbee® is torn

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
GEE-WHIZ

PRONUNCIATION: (jee-WIZ/HWIZ)

MEANING: adjective: 1. Marked by wonder, surprise, enthusiasm, etc.
2. New; impressive; exciting.
interjection: Expressing surprise, dismay, enthusiasm, annoyance, etc.

ETYMOLOGY: Euphemism for Jesus, with the second syllable replaced by whiz, a playful exclamation evoking surprise and wonder. Earliest documented use: 1872.
___________________________

BEE-WHIZ - apiarist

GEE-WHIP - to increase the speed of a spacecraft by sending it in a carefully calculated path around a large massive object

GEE-WHIZ - 1) one who knows all the words beginning with the seventh letter of the alphabet;
2) one who can control a horse using only verbal commands

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
SACRE BLEU

PRONUNCIATION: (sah-kruh/kray BLUH/BLOO)

MEANING: interjection: An expression of surprise, dismay, annoyance, etc.

ETYMOLOGY: From French sacrebleu (sacred blue), from sacré bleu, minced oath for sacré dieu (holy god). The term is no longer used in contemporary French. Earliest documented use: 1869.
_______________________

SABRE BLEU - an anodized sword wielded by the French Foreign Legion

S.A. TREBLE U. - where Salvation Army workers go to learn high-pitched songs

SAC-REBEL, E.U. - protesters in the European Union who carry their meager possessions with them in a bag

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
TARNATION

PRONUNCIATION: (tar-NAY-shuhn)

MEANING: interjection: Used to express surprise, anger, irritation, annoyance, etc.
noun: Damnation; hell.
adjective: Damned.
adverb: Damnably.

ETYMOLOGY: Alteration of darnation (influenced by tarnal) which itself is a euphemism for damnation, from Latin damnare (to condemn), from damnum (damage). Earliest documented use: 1790.

USAGE: “Speaking of ignorance, what in tarnation is going on with the Miss USA pageant?”
Dianne Williamson; It’s Kind of a Wacky Li’l World; Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Massachusetts); Jun 10, 2012.
_______________________

TEAR NATION - when a country becomes when everyone has a ripping good time

TAR NOTION - Br'er Fox's idea of how to catch Br'er Rabbit with a baby doll

TARNATHON - twenty-four solid hours of people taking tarns

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 11,066
Likes: 2
BALLYHACK

PRONUNCIATION: (BAL-ee-hack)

MEANING: noun: Hell.

ETYMOLOGY: Of uncertain origin. Perhaps after the Irish village Ballyhack, where a castle was the holding place for confederates caught in a rebellion before they were expelled. Earliest documented use: 1843.

USAGE: “‘But what about the Sorbonne?’
‘The Sorbonne can go to Ballyhack.’”
John Dos Passos; Three Soldiers; George H. Doran Company; 1921.
_____________________

BULLY HACK - when the victim takes bloody revenge

BALLSY HACK - brazenly gaining unauthorized access to someone else's computer

BALL YACK - trash-talk in the sports arena

Page 4 of 13 1 2 3 4 5 6 12 13

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2025 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 8.0.0