Tsuwm's wwftd is "ambit" but the definition he gives does not fit his quotation well. Let's see if the Board can find a definition that does. I have never seen a dancing dog, but what would you call the area to which he has been taught to confine his act?

Subject:
today's wwftd is... ambit
Date:
Mon, 27 Aug 2001 10:23:21 -0500 (CDT)
From:
wwftd master <mikef3@cfsmo.honeywell.com>
To:
wwftd minions <tsuwm@aol.com>




the worthless word for the day is: ambit

sphere of influence; scope

All at once, out of the Murk, a dozen mirror'd Lanthorns have leapt
alight together, as into their Glare now strolls a somewhat dishevel'd
Norfolk Terrier, with a raffish Gleam in its eye - whilst from somewhere
less illuminate comes a sprightly Overture upon Horn, Clarinet, and Cello,
in time to which the Dog steps back and forth in his bright Ambit.
- Thomas Pynchon, _Mason & Dixon_

this week: Pynchon, redux

-tsuwm http://members.aol.com/tsuwm/

bill, Pynchon has a penchant for stretching the meanings of words to their <ahem> limits. but here are some more to consider:
1. A circuit, compass, or circumference.
2. esp. A space surrounding a house, castle, town, etc.; the precincts, liberties, ‘verge.’
3. The confines, bounds, limits of a district.
4. fig. Extent, compass, sphere, of actions, words, thoughts, etc.

Dear tsuwm: I was thinking of the oval that a spotlight might make on a stage.But just calling it an oval might not give everybody a visual picture of the scene. When I was small, and vaudeville was still alive, there were many animal acts, but I don't remember seeing but a few, and none of them involved dogs dancing. Maybe it would be easier to train the stage hand (grip?) to keep the spotlight on the dog.