A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Mon Jan 1 00:01:04 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--voluntourism X-Bonus: What really knocks me out is a book that, when you're all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it. -J.D. Salinger, writer (1 Jan 1919-2010) What does an 'infomercial' have in common with a 'motel'? Or a 'workaholic' with a 'paratrooper'? Each of these words is coined by fusing two words together. Portmanteaux, as these blend words are called, are a bringing together of two or more words. Sometimes the union is perfect (motor + hotel = motel). At other times, it's more like a shotgun marriage, as in today's word, voluntourism. What portmanteaux have you coined? Share them at https://wordsmith.org/words/voluntourism.html or email us at words@wordsmith.org. Many times a word is coined by two people independently -- make sure to google to see if the word you have coined already exists. voluntourism (vah-luhn-TOOR-i-zuhm) noun Tourism in which travelers do volunteer work. [A blend of volunteer + tourism. Earliest documented use: 1991.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/voluntourism_large.jpg Photo: Jonathan Assink https://www.flickr.com/photos/flyingdutchphotos/2296649021/ NOTES: Many years ago, fresh out of college, I was traveling for a job interview and started chatting with an old man sitting next to me on the train. Somehow the discussion went to volunteer work and when I claimed that sometimes I do selfless work, he said, "Well, son, everything I do is for myself." Years later, I realized the truth of his words. While voluntourism may be well-intentioned, it may not always be the best way to help. See here http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/jk-rowling-twitter-voluntourism-volunteering-in-orphanages-risks-a7204801.html and here http://www.newsweek.com/exploitative-selfishness-volunteering-abroad-363768, for example. Consider volunteering with specialized organizations such as Doctors Without Borders https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/, Translators without Borders https://translatorswithoutborders.org/, Engineers Without Borders https://www.ewb-usa.org/, etc. or donating to them. "'We're all voluntourists,' smiled Carrie, brandishing her pitchfork. 'Came down to see what we can do.'" Tim Lott; Under the Same Stars; Simon & Schuster; 2012. -------- Date: Tue Jan 2 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hokum X-Bonus: There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge." -Isaac Asimov, scientist and writer (2 Jan 1920-1992) This week's theme: Blend words hokum (HO-kuhm) noun 1. Nonsense. 2. Trite material introduced to evoke an emotional response from an audience. [A blend of hocus-pocus + bunkum. Earliest documented use: 1917.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hokum "I don't see how Mr. Niles expects me to spin 400 more pages of this 'Little Women' hokum, but I suppose I must." Elise Hooper; The Other Alcott: A Novel; William Morrow; 2017. -------- Date: Wed Jan 3 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--squirl X-Bonus: Not all those who wander are lost. -J.R.R. Tolkien, novelist and philologist (3 Jan 1892-1973) This week's theme: Blend words squirl (skwuhrl) noun A flourish or curve, especially in handwriting. [Perhaps a blend of squiggle + twirl or whirl. Earliest documented use: 1843.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/squirl_large.jpg Photo: Richard https://www.flickr.com/photos/rich701/10249833275/ "Some of [the suits] came decorated in an elaborate squirl of crayon-like art." Liza Foreman; The Week Men Went Unisex in Paris; The Daily Beast (New York); Jan 27, 2015. -------- Date: Thu Jan 4 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--satisfice X-Bonus: People who demand neutrality in any situation are usually not neutral but in favor of the status quo. -Max Eastman, journalist and poet (4 Jan 1883-1969) This week's theme: Blend words satisfice (SAT-uhs-fys) verb intr. To satisfy the minimum requirements in a given situation. [Coined by the scientist Herbert A. Simon (1916-2001) in 1956, apparently as a blend of satisfy + suffice. Earliest documented use: 1561 (as a synonym of the word satisfy).] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/satisfice NOTES: While it may appear that satisficing is taking the easy way out, there are times when it's the right thing to do. It can be bewildering to consider all the options that are available. Often it's best to pick one or two important criteria and weed out the options, especially when stakes are low. Sometimes making a suboptimal decision is best, when the alternative is decision paralysis because there are so many options. To satisfice is OK, we don't always have to maximize or optimize. Sometimes good enough is more than good enough. Herbert A. Simon who coined the word satisfice: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/satisfice_large.jpg Art: Richard Rappaport/Wikimedia "A person can maximize when it comes to some decisions and satisfice on others." Elizabeth Bernstein; Decide to Be Happy; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Oct 7, 2014. -------- Date: Fri Jan 5 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--scrouge X-Bonus: Fear prophets and those prepared to die for the truth, for as a rule they make many others die with them, often before them, at times instead of them. -Umberto Eco, philosopher and novelist (5 Jan 1932-2016) This week's theme: Blend words scrouge (skrouj, skrooj) verb tr., intr. To squeeze, press, or crowd. [Alteration of scruze (to squeeze), a blend of screw + squeeze. Earliest documented use: 1755.] "I was 'most mashed to a slab in pushing to get in among 'em, they was all scrouging so thick one upon t'other." Frances Trollope; Domestic Manners of the Americans; Whittaker, Treacher & Co.; 1832. -------- Date: Mon Jan 8 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--senectitude X-Bonus: A society that presumes a norm of violence and celebrates aggression, whether in the subway, on the football field, or in the conduct of its business, cannot help making celebrities of the people who would destroy it. -Lewis H. Lapham, editor and writer (b. 8 Jan 1935) Recently, when I featured the word "exeleutherostomize" (meaning "to speak out freely") https://wordsmith.org/words/exeleutherostomize.html several readers noted that the word itself is longer than its definition. Another example is the word "abbreviation", which is described as a long word to describe a short word. What other words are like this, words that take more letters to spell than to define? I was intrigued. What other words are like this -- words that take more letters to spell than to define? This week's words are the result of that investigation. What word have you found that has a spelling longer than its definition? Share it at https://wordsmith.org/words/senectitude.html or email us at words@wordsmith.org. senectitude (si-NEK-ti-tood, -tyood) noun Old age. [From Latin senectus (old age), from senex (old). Ultimately from the Indo-European root sen- (old), which is also the ancestor of senior, sir, sire, senate, senile, Spanish seńor, and surly (which is an alteration of sirly, as in sir-ly). Earliest documented use: 1796.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/senectitude_large.jpg Image: Damian Gadal https://www.flickr.com/photos/23024164@N06/9353043471/ "While the life span of man undoubtedly had been prolonged, the problem of senectitude had by no means been conquered, and that aged men in positions of public trust could constitute a definite hazard." Edwin O'Connor; The Last Hurrah; Little, Brown; 1956. -------- Date: Tue Jan 9 00:01:05 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--weltanschauung X-Bonus: I tore myself away from the safe comfort of certainties through my love for truth -- and truth rewarded me. -Simone de Beauvoir, author and philosopher (9 Jan 1908-1986) This week's theme: Long words with short definitions weltanschauung (VELT-ahn-shou-oong) noun World view. [From German Weltanschauung (world view), from Welt (world) + Anschauung (perception). Earliest documented use: 1868.] Notes: When we bring in a word from another language, sometimes we borrow it as it is and at other times make a literal translation, also known as a loan translation. The word weltanschauung appears so useful that English has borrowed the original form and also made a loan translation: world view. See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/Weltanschauung https://wordsmith.org/words/images/weltanschauung_large.jpg Image: Christopher Wunz https://www.flickr.com/photos/wunztwice/3252243134/ "By the end of the decade he had reeled off a dozen more hits ... which tapped into the teenage weltanschauung, articulating adolescent passions." Chuck Berry (obituary); The Times (London, UK); Mar 20, 2017. -------- Date: Wed Jan 10 00:01:04 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--infundibuliform X-Bonus: The most certain test by which we can judge whether a country is really free is the amount of security enjoyed by minorities. -Lord Acton (John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton), historian (10 Jan 1834-1902) This week's theme: Long words with short definitions infundibuliform (in-fuhn-DIB-yuh-luh-form) adjective Funnel-shaped. [From Latin infundibulum (funnel), from infundere (to pour in), from fundere (to pour). Ultimately from the Indo-European root gheu- (to pour), which is also the source of funnel, font, fuse, diffuse, gust, gush, and geyser. Earliest documented use: 1752.] Morning Glory https://wordsmith.org/words/images/infundibuliform2_large.jpg Photo: PipeStone https://www.flickr.com/photos/pipestone/155896843/ "The orifice was infundibuliform in shape; a wide circular depression several hundred meters in diameter that tapered down to depths deeper than anything Jake had dived before." john g rees; Halocline; Black Water Books; 2010. -------- Date: Thu Jan 11 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--floccinaucinihilipilification X-Bonus: Our lives are like islands in the sea, or like trees in the forest. The maple and the pine may whisper to each other with their leaves ... But the trees also commingle their roots in the darkness underground, and the islands also hang together through the ocean's bottom. -William James, psychologist and philosopher (11 Jan 1842-1910) This week's theme: Long words with short definitions floccinaucinihilipilification (FLOK-si-NO-si-NY-HIL-i-PIL-i-fi-KAY-shuhn) noun Estimating as worthless. [From Latin flocci, from floccus (tuft of wool) + nauci, from naucum (a trifling thing) + nihili, from Latin nihil (nothing) + pili, from pilus (a hair, trifle) + -fication (making). Earliest documented use: 1741.] NOTES: This word was coined by combining four Latin terms flocci, nauci, nihili, pili, all meaning something of little or no value, which were listed in the well-known "Eton Latin Grammar" of Eton College in the UK. The word seems to be popular in the US government. It has been heard from the mouths of White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry, Senator Robert Byrd, and Senator Jesse Helms, among others. During hyperinflation in Germany in 1923, it was cheaper to use currency notes as wallpaper https://wordsmith.org/words/images/floccinaucinihilipilification_large.jpg Photo: German Federal Archives/Wikimedia "I have been gathering relevant state public investment data since 2000 and in that time have provided a consistent approach to calculating Our Fair Share. I hope I avoid the floccinaucinihilipilification." Colin Dwyer; Region Has Missed Out on Due Wealth; Townsville Bulletin (Townsville, Australia); Jun 10, 2014. "She tells me that Floccinaucinihilipilification is the name she wants our first child to have. I say the name is terribly long." Craig Stone; The Squirrel that Dreamt of Madness; Troubador; 2016. -------- Date: Fri Jan 12 00:01:04 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis X-Bonus: The people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country. -Hermann Göring, Nazi military leader (12 Jan 1893-1946) This week's theme: Long words with short definitions pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis (NOO-muh-noh-UL-truh-MY-kruh-SKOP-ik-SIL-i-koh-vol-KAY-no-KOH-nee-O-sis, nyoo-) noun A lung disease caused by silica dust. [From New Latin, from Greek pneumono- (lung) + Latin ultra- (beyond, extremely) + Greek micro- (small) + -scopic (looking) + Latin silico (like sand) + volcano + Greek konis (dust) + -osis (condition). Earliest documented use: 1935.] NOTES: Even though we have included the pronunciation of this word, we advise caution lest you may have to avail the services of an otorhinolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat specialist). https://wordsmith.org/words/otorhinolaryngology.html At 45 letters, it's the longest word in any English language dictionary. It's a trophy word -- its only job is to serve as the longest word. In day-to-day use, its nine-letter synonym "silicosis" works just as well. Whatever you call it, it is deadly. Here's the story of an incident: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawk's_Nest_incident And what's the shortest word in the English language? There are a number of them: A, I, O, but we'll have to give it to I which is the skinniest as well. https://wordsmith.org/words/images/pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis_large.jpg Image: https://memegenerator.net/instance/42064444 "If someone can't breathe that well, why give the illness a name that they'll struggle saying in one breath? It can only be so that when a doctor says you have it, it makes you think you're in safe, intelligent hands. I suppose if they said, 'Ya lungs are buggered' you'd be after a second opinion. Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis." Karl Pilkington; Karlology; DK; 2008. -------- Date: Mon Jan 15 00:01:04 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--copper-bottomed X-Bonus: It is a convenient trick to rob a person of all they have, even their own body, and then mock them for their poverty, and blame it on their nature. -Adam Serwer, writer and editor https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/01/trump/550454/ The economy class in an airplane is called steerage even though passengers do not have to steer the jumbo jet. That's because earlier the lowest deck on a ship was the cheapest. It was called steerage because it was located above the steerage gear. These days you may not board a boat for years, but chances are you use nautical terminology every day. When you say that someone is "adrift" or "unmoored", when you are "taken aback", when you find someone is "under the weather" -- in all cases, you are invoking nautical lingo. This week we'll see five terms of nautical origins, now used metaphorically. Enough talking! All aboard! Let's get under way. copper-bottomed (kop-uhr-BOT-uhmd) adjective Reliable, genuine, or trustworthy. [From the practice of covering a ship's hull with copper (or alloy) to protect it from salt water and marine organisms. Earliest documented use: 1795. Don't confuse this term with copperplate https://wordsmith.org/words/copperplate.html .] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/copper-bottomed Copper-bottomed British clipper ship Cutty Sark, built in 1869: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/copper-bottomed_large.jpg [Psst... it's actually brass (copper + zinc)] Photo: Richard https://www.flickr.com/photos/rbanks/8338250059/ "In those circumstances, even copper-bottomed facts become contentious." Alex Massie; Breaking News: There Are Such Things as Facts; The Times (London, UK); Feb 22, 2017. -------- Date: Tue Jan 16 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--flotsam X-Bonus: Be kind to thy father, for when thou wert young, / Who loved thee so fondly as he? / He caught the first accents that fell from thy tongue, / And joined in thy innocent glee. -Margaret Courtney, poet (1822-1862) This week's theme: Words of nautical origins flotsam (FLOT-suhm) noun 1. Goods found floating after a shipwreck. 2. People or things considered useless or unimportant. [From Old French floter (to float). Ultimately from the Indo-European root pleu- (to flow), which is also the source of flow, float, flit, fly, flutter, pulmonary, pneumonia, pluvial https://wordsmith.org/words/pluvial.html , and fletcher https://wordsmith.org/words/fletcher.html . Earliest documented use: 1607.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/flotsam https://wordsmith.org/words/images/flotsam_large.jpg Photo: Ludvigem https://www.flickr.com/photos/146149831@N02/38294591135/ "Lawrence momentarily regretted having damaged the book, but he didn't bother picking it up. It could join the collection of flotsam on the floor." Cat Sebastian; The Lawrence Browne Affair; Avon; 2017. -------- Date: Wed Jan 17 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--leeway X-Bonus: If you or your parents are immigrants, know that you are part of a proud American tradition -- the infusion of new cultures, talents and ideas, generation after generation, that has made us the greatest country on earth. -Michelle Obama, lawyer, First Lady of the US (b. 17 Jan 1964) This week's theme: Words of nautical origins leeway (LEE-way) noun The amount of freedom to do something: margin or latitude. [In nautical terminology, leeway is the sideways drift of a ship to leeward (away from wind). From Old English hleo (shelter) + way. Earliest documented use: 1669.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/leeway "And a lack of standard practices gives some firms leeway to cut corners." Companies' Green Strategies; The Economist (London, UK); Jul 30, 2016. -------- Date: Thu Jan 18 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--jetsam X-Bonus: Only the madman is absolutely sure. -Robert Anton Wilson, novelist (18 Jan 1932-2007) This week's theme: Words of nautical origins jetsam (JET-suhm) noun 1. Goods thrown overboard to lighten a ship in distress. 2. Discarded material, debris, etc. [An alteration of the word jettison. Earlier, jettison was the act of throwing goods overboard to lighten a ship in distress. From Latin jactare (to throw), frequentative of jacere (to throw). Earliest documented use: 1491.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/jetsam https://wordsmith.org/words/images/jetsam_large.jpg Photo: Carlo Err https://www.flickr.com/photos/carloerr/14638118907/ "I yearn to be of the stars. We are all stardust, after all, having been created from jetsam of the Big Bang." A.J. Ullman; Drifting Falling; Moonshine Cove Publishing; 2017. -------- Date: Fri Jan 19 00:01:04 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--groggy X-Bonus: On stage, I make love to 25,000 different people, then I go home alone. -Janis Joplin, singer-songwriter (19 Jan 1943-1970) This week's theme: Words of nautical origins groggy (GROG-ee) adjective Dazed, weak, or unsteady, as from lack of sleep, tiredness, sickness, intoxication, etc. [After Old Grog, nickname of Admiral Edward Vernon (1684-1757), who ordered diluted rum to be served to his sailors. The admiral earned the nickname from his habit of wearing a grogram cloak. Grogram is a coarse fabric of silk, wool, mohair, or a blend of them. The word grogram is from French gros grain (large grain or texture). Earliest documented use: 1770.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/groggy https://wordsmith.org/words/images/groggy_large.jpg Image: Beth Jusino https://www.flickr.com/photos/zenobia_joy/2474538655/ "It kept the kids awake at night and left them groggy all the next day at school." William B. McCloskey; Warriors: A Novel; Skyhorse Publishing; 2017. -------- Date: Mon Jan 22 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fabian X-Bonus: No man is an Island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friends or of thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee. -John Donne, poet (22 Jan 1573-1631) It's a big job to be the CEO of any country and if it's the US, well, it's a bigly job. America is the Walmart of countries. Its policies affect not only its own business, but that of others, near and far. American presidents leave their mark for generations to come. Among other things, Teddy Roosevelt is known for conservation of public lands, Nixon for helping establish the Environmental Protection Agency, and so on. Presidents leave their mark on language too. Teddy Roosevelt gave us teddy bear, Nixon brought us Watergate https://wordsmith.org/words/watergate.html (and the suffix -gate, meaning a scandal), Reagan had Reaganomics, Obama Obamacare. Will the current president leave his name in the language? Only time will tell. There's already a word trumpery https://wordsmith.org/words/trumpery.html , which may appear to be coined after him, but isn't. Meanwhile, we'll look at words coined after other people. A word coined after a person is known as an eponym, from Greek ep- (after) + -onym (name). This week we've rounded up characters from history, medicine, mythology, legend, and beyond, people whose names have become fossilized in the English language. fabian (FAY-bee-uhn) adjective Avoiding direct confrontation; cautious; delaying. [After the Roman general Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus (c. 280-203 BCE), from his guerrilla tactics in not engaging the enemy directly. Instead, he chose the war of attrition, avoiding direct confrontation, disrupting the enemy's supply lines, etc. For this, he also earned the nickname Cunctator https://wordsmith.org/words/cunctator.html . Earliest documented use: 1598.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/fabian Fabius Maximus https://wordsmith.org/words/images/cunctation_large.jpg Photo: Schurl50/Wikimedia "But how could I confront Charlie with a letter which I had ferreted out from among his not-too-clean underwear? So instead I adopted a Fabian policy of watchful waiting." Erica Jong; Fear of Flying; Holt, Rinehart, and Winston; 1973. "David Hicks has yet to face prosecution largely because of the fabian strategy of delay adopted by his own legal team. The numerous requests for a postponement of proceedings filed by his lawyers make complaints about their client's detention without trial ring rather hollow." Brett Mason; Critics of the US tribunals turn a blind eye to the UN; The Age (Melbourne, Australia); Dec 8, 2006. -------- Date: Tue Jan 23 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stent X-Bonus: The shepherd always tries to persuade the sheep that their interests and his own are the same. -Stendhal (Marie-Henri Beyle), novelist (23 Jan 1783-1842) This week's theme: Eponyms stent (stent) noun A tube inserted into a blocked vessel to keep it open. [After the dentist Charles R. Stent (1845-1901). Stent did pioneering work in coming up with a compound that made better molds for dentures. Later, the compound was used to make casts of other body parts and cavities. Stents correct stenosis (narrowing) https://wordsmith.org/words/stenosis.html . Earliest documented use: 1878. The word stentorian is also an eponym, https://wordsmith.org/words/stentorian.html but it came from someone else.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/stent https://wordsmith.org/words/images/stent_large.png Image: Wikimedia/Blausen.com Animation showing the installation of a stent: https://blausen.com/en/video/angioplasty/ "Dr. Zeeterman patted Charles's lower leg. 'Charles, can I interest you in a stent today? It would appear that your heart is hungry for a bit more blood than those clogged pipes are giving it.'" Gary B. Boyd; One Particular Patriot III; AuthorHouse; 2013. -------- Date: Wed Jan 24 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hymeneal X-Bonus: As the pain that can be told is but half a pain, so the pity that questions has little healing in its touch. -Edith Wharton, novelist (24 Jan 1862-1937) This week's theme: Eponyms hymeneal (hy-muh-NEE-uhl) adjective: Relating to a wedding or marriage. noun: A wedding song or poem. [After Hymen, the god of marriage in Greek mythology. Earliest documented use: 1602.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hymeneal Torch-bearing Hymen, in the center, holds Psyche's hand as Cupid places a ring on her finger https://wordsmith.org/words/images/hymeneal_large.jpg Detail from "The Marriage of Cupid and Psyche" Art: Pompeo Batoni, 1756 "There must be no love interest in the story. ... The business in hand is to bring a criminal to the bar of justice, not to bring a lovelorn couple to the hymeneal altar." S.S. Van Dine; Twenty Rules for Writing Detective Stories; American Magazine; Sep 1928. http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7932401/Van%20Dine%27s%20Twenty%20Rules%20for%20Writing%20Detective%20Stories "In those uncivilised days, the Marriage Act had not been passed, and there was no convenient hymeneal registrar in England to change a vagabond runaway couple into a respectable man and wife at a moment's notice." Wilkie Collins; A Rogue's Life; Richard Bentley; 1879. -------- Date: Thu Jan 25 00:01:02 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--euhemerism X-Bonus: Like all weak men he laid an exaggerated stress on not changing one's mind. -William Somerset Maugham, writer (25 Jan 1874-1965) This week's theme: Eponyms euhemerism (yoo-HEE-muh-riz-uhm, -HEM-) noun The idea that gods are based on historical heroes whose stories became exaggerated in retelling. [After Euhemerus, a fourth-century BCE Greek writer, who proposed that the gods of mythology were based on real heroes whose accounts became exaggerated with time. Earliest documented use: 1846.] NOTES: In India, fans of some politicians and movie actors have built temples for them https://www.inuth.com/india/narendra-modi-sonia-gandhi-and-5-other-indian-politicians-who-have-temples-dedicated-to-them/ But those are all lightweight deities. Look for the First Church of Stable Genius opening a place of worship near you. See here https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/mark-lee-donald-trump-jesus-christ_us_5a1319b6e4b0c335e9964d7c and here https://www.salon.com/2016/04/30/donald_trump_thinks_hes_a_god_even_worse_his_supporters_agree/. Council of the gods, 1517/1518 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/euhemerism_large.jpg Art: Raphael "I suspect that the scholarly assumption that somewhere beneath the legend there must lurk a real historical founder is a modern case of Euhemerism." Robert Price; Of Myth and Men; Free Inquiry (Buffalo, New York); Winter 1999/2000. -------- Date: Fri Jan 26 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--roland X-Bonus: Catch-and-release, that's like running down pedestrians in your car and then, when they get up and limp away, saying -- Off you go! That's fine. I just wanted to see if I could hit you. -Ellen DeGeneres, comedian, television host, and actress (b. 26 Jan 1958) This week's theme: Eponyms Roland (RO-lund) noun Someone who is an equal match for another. Typically used in the expression "to give a Roland for an Oliver" meaning "to give as good as one gets" (tit for tat). [After Roland, the legendary hero of the 11/12th century epic poem "Chanson de Roland" (Song of Roland). His tale was inspired by Charlemagne's nephew and military leader. Oliver was friends with Roland and his equal. They fought each other but neither won. Earliest documented use: 1525. A related word is rounceval https://wordsmith.org/words/rounceval.html .] Orlando's Column (Roland's Column), Dubrovnik, Croatia https://wordsmith.org/words/images/roland_large.jpg Photo: Alena Kucharenka https://www.flickr.com/photos/15598715@N05/3785260236/ "My little lord, who was surrounded by savage women, poor thing, had the immense satisfaction of giving a Roland for an Oliver to an especially obnoxious young twit." Samara Al-Darraji; Eclipse; PublishAmerica; 2005. -------- Date: Mon Jan 29 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--olid X-Bonus: It is my belief that the writer, the free-lance author, should be and must be a critic of the society in which he lives. It is easy enough, and always profitable, to rail away at national enemies beyond the sea, at foreign powers beyond our borders who question the prevailing order. But the moral duty of the free writer is to begin his work at home; to be a critic of his own community, his own country, his own culture. If the writer is unwilling to fill this part, then the writer should abandon pretense and find another line of work: become a shoe repairman, a brain surgeon, a janitor, a cowboy, a nuclear physicist, a bus driver. -Edward Abbey, naturalist and author (29 Jan 1927-1989) Put the right hat on someone and sometimes you can make them look very different. The same goes with words. Add an initial letter and you can turn them into something else. A cop turns into a poet (scop https://wordsmith.org/words/scop.html), a logger turns into an unpaid writer (blogger), and an usher into a dog racer (musher). What hats can you put on (or take off) this week's words to turn them into different beasts? olid (O-lid) adjective Foul-smelling. [From Latin olere (to smell), which also gave us the opposite of today's word: redolent https://wordsmith.org/words/redolent.html . Earliest documented use: 1680.] Hotel Olid https://wordsmith.org/words/images/olid_large.jpg Photo: Iglesia en Valladolid https://www.flickr.com/photos/archivalladolid/22497236437/ "It was dark and musty, the carpet giving off an olid smell of mildew." Chris R. Jamison; The Chesler Legacy; Writer's Showcase; 2000. -------- Date: Tue Jan 30 00:01:04 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--latitudinarian X-Bonus: No business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country ... and by living wages I mean more than a bare subsistence level -- I mean the wages of decent living. -Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd US President (30 Jan 1882-1945) This week's theme: Words that turn into another when a letter is added or removed at the top latitudinarian (lat-i-tood-uh-NAY-ree-uhn, -tyood-) adjective: Holding broad and tolerant views, especially on matters of religion. noun: One who is broadminded and tolerant, especially concerning religion. [From Latin latitudo (breadth), from latus (broad). Earliest documented use: 1662.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/latitudinarian "The Principles and Practices of Certain Moderate Divines of the Church of England, Abusively Called Latitudinarians (Greatly Misunderstood)" https://wordsmith.org/words/images/latitudinarian_large.jpg Photo: David Brass Rare Books https://www.davidbrassrarebooks.com/pages/books/01357/edward-fowler/principles-and-practices-of-certain-moderate-divines-of-the-church-of-england-abusively-called/?soldItem=true "Contrary to the popular view of Muslims as dogmatic, however, a large majority of those living in America take a latitudinarian approach to Islam and the Koran. Pew found that nearly two-thirds (64 percent) 'openly acknowledge that there is room for multiple interpretations' of their religion, and just over half of all US Muslims agree that 'traditional understandings of Islam must be reinterpreted to reflect contemporary issues.'" Jeff Jacoby; When America's Melting Pot Works; Boston Globe; Sep 3, 2017. -------- Date: Wed Jan 31 00:01:03 EST 2018 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fuliginous X-Bonus: To blame the poor for subsisting on welfare has no justice unless we are also willing to judge every rich member of society by how productive he or she is. Taken individual by individual, it is likely that there's more idleness and abuse of government favors among the economically privileged than among the ranks of the disadvantaged. -Norman Mailer, author (31 Jan 1923-2007) This week's theme: Words that turn into another when a letter is added or removed at the top fuliginous (fyoo-LIJ-uh-nuhs) adjective Sooty; dusky; obscure. [From Latin fuligo (soot). Earliest documented use: 1574.] Sooty Oystercatcher (Haematopus fuliginosus) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/fuliginous_large.jpg Photo: Pursuedbybear https://www.flickr.com/photos/pursuedbybear/25935317704/ "Each morning of her life, the City had been filmed in this airborne soot, a fuliginous mist." Mary Novik; Conceit; Doubleday; 2007.