SITZKRIEG

PRONUNCIATION: (SITS-kreeg)

MEANING: noun: A period of war marked by little or no active hostilities.

ETYMOLOGY: Modeled after German blitzkrieg, from sitzen (to sit) + Krieg (war). Earliest documented use: 1940.

NOTES: In Sep 1939, France and Britain declared war on Germany, but didn't launch a major ground offensive until the next year. This phase, from Sep 1939 to May 1940, came to be known as sitzkrieg or the sitting war. It has also been called by other names, such as the Phony War, the Twilight War, and the Bore War (a pun on Boer Wars). Sitzkrieg needs Sitzfleisch.

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SITZKLIEG - a spotlight so big you have to sit in a seat to use the controls (see AWAD June 2004, here )

SPITZKRIEG - spit-ball battle in der Gymnasium