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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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