A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Fri May 1 00:01:02 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--id X-Bonus: Content thyself to be obscurely good. When vice prevails, and impious men bear sway, the post of honor is a private station. -Joseph Addison, essayist and poet (1 May 1672-1719) Duoliteral words id (id) noun The unconscious, instinctive part of the psyche in Freudian theory. [From Latin id (it), translation of German es (it). Ultimately from the Indo-European root i- (a stem relating to pronouns), which also gave us ilk, item, yet, yonder, iterate, and identity. Earliest documented use: 1924.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/id "'No one would ever argue that we're all angels...,' says Mr. Rollins. 'It's difficult to justify to someone raised on the more traditional North American fan experience. It's loud, it's crude, but that's the point. Six days a week I'm a normal guy, but for games your inner id comes out.'" Michael Grange; Toronto the Rowdy; The Globe and Mail (Toronto, Canada); Apr 11, 2009. -------- Date: Mon May 4 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--scop X-Bonus: A teacher who is attempting to teach, without inspiring the pupil with a desire to learn, is hammering on a cold iron. -Horace Mann, educational reformer (4 May 1796-1859) What happens when you remove the letter "a" from the front of the alphabet? You b-head it. Each of this week's words sprouts another word when you behead it. Go ahead, try it. Decapitate these words. Decollate them. You won't hurt a thing. Nor will the word-police arrest you for verbicide -- destroying (the meaning of) a word -- for in each instance you'll be generating another word, a 100% guaranteed dictionary word. scop (shop, skop) noun A poet or minstrel. [From Old English scop (poet, minstrel). Earliest documented use: 888.] "The modern poet's vision would be more ambiguous, and much less happy, than that of the medieval scop." Adam Kirsch; Back to Basics; The New Yorker; May 11, 2009. -------- Date: Tue May 5 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--junto X-Bonus: When you sell a man a book you don't sell him just twelve ounces of paper and ink and glue--you sell him a whole new life. -Christopher Morley, writer (5 May 1890-1957) This week's theme: Words that turn into another word when beheaded junto (JUHN-to) noun A small, usually secret group of people united for a common purpose. [Alteration of Spanish/Portuguese junta (committee, association), from Latin jungere (to join). Ultimately from the Indo-European root yeug- (to join), which also gave us yoke, junction, jugular, adjust, syzygy https://wordsmith.org/words/syzygy.html , subjugate https://wordsmith.org/words/subjugate.html , rejoinder https://wordsmith.org/words/rejoinder.html , jugulate https://wordsmith.org/words/jugulate.html , and Sanskrit yoga. Earliest documented use: 1641.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/junto "A small clique of interrelated local families, whom Smith labeled a junto, controlled both the community and the armory for much of its history." Roger Simon; The Machine in Context; Technology and Culture (Baltimore, Maryland); Oct 2010. -------- Date: Wed May 6 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hauteur X-Bonus: The first human who hurled an insult instead of a stone was the founder of civilization. -Sigmund Freud, neurologist, founder of psychoanalysis (6 May 1856-1939) This week's theme: Words that turn into another word when beheaded hauteur (hoh-TUHR) noun Haughtiness. [From French hauteur (haughtiness, height), from Latin altus (high). Ultimately from the Indo-European root al- (to grow or to nourish), which also gave us adolescent, adult, old, alumnus, altitude, enhance, coalesce, and prolific. Earliest documented use: 1628.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hauteur After beheading, you get the word auteur https://wordsmith.org/words/auteur.html "A critic of immense hauteur, Jonathan Miller enjoys dishing it out, but is acutely sensitive to any whiff of criticism." The Miller's Tale; The Economist (London, UK); Dec 15, 2012. -------- Date: Thu May 7 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--astringent X-Bonus: The sparrow is sorry for the peacock at the burden of his tail. -Rabindranath Tagore, poet, philosopher, author, songwriter, painter, educator, composer, Nobel laureate (7 May 1861-1941) This week's theme: Words that turn into another word when beheaded astringent (uh-STRIN-juhnt) adjective: 1. Contracting or constricting. 2. Caustic; pungent. 3. Stern; austere. noun: A substance that constricts body tissues. [From Latin astringere (to bind fast), from ad- (toward) + stringere (to bind). Ultimately from the Indo-European root streig- (to stroke or press), which is also the source of strike, streak, strict, stress, strain, and strait https://wordsmith.org/words/strait.html . Earliest documented use: 1541.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/astringent "However, unlike the apple and its other cousin the pear, quince flesh is hard and astringent and cannot be eaten raw." Jan Bilton; Quinces, the Perfect Accompaniments; Hawke's Bay Today (New Zealand); Apr 25, 2014. "Young Ajay Mishra, whose family carries with it a wound that will not heal, reads Ernest Hemingway and finds in that astringent language a way out." Amrita Dutta; Remains of the Day; The Indian Express (New Delhi); May 10, 2014. -------- Date: Fri May 8 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--futilitarian X-Bonus: No two persons ever read the same book. -Edmund Wilson, critic (8 May 1895-1972) This week's theme: Words that turn into another word when beheaded futilitarian (fyoo-til-i-TAR-ee-uhn) adjective: 1. Devoted to futile pursuits. 2. Holding the belief that human striving is useless. noun: 1. A person devoted to futile pursuits. 2. One who believes that human striving is useless. [A blend of futile and utilitarian https://wordsmith.org/words/utilitarian.html . Earliest documented use: 1827.] "'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.' Dante was the First Futilitarian." Brad Blanton; Futilitarianism; Tikkun (Berkeley, California); Nov/Dec 2004. "Owner Jerry Reinsdorf had promised an all-out effort to improve, but the team seems to have adopted a futilitarian attitude." Bob Verdi; Only Flag Over Comiskey Park Is White; Chicago Tribune; Jul 9, 1989. -------- Date: Mon May 11 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--shadchan X-Bonus: It doesn't matter how beautiful your theory is, it doesn't matter how smart you are. If it doesn't agree with experiment, it's wrong. -Richard Feynman, physicist, Nobel laureate (11 May 1918-1988) If variety is the spice of life, exotic words might be the spice of language. The English language has a big pantry, overflowing with spices from all parts of the world. In fact, we have borrowed, stolen, and pilfered words from more than a hundred languages. Some of the more pungent among these are words from Yiddish. We have featured Yiddish borrowings many times in the past, but we aren't going to run out any time soon. This week we'll feature five words to describe people, words that are borrowed from Yiddish and are now part of the English language. shadchan (SHAHT-khuhn) noun A matchmaker or a marriage-broker. [From Yiddish shadkhan, from Hebrew. Earliest documented use: 1890.] Also, shadkhan, schatchen, etc. "Moss became a highbrow shadchan, matching freewheeling directors with willing musicians to graft new theater onto old scores." Justin Davidson; A Director Melds Classic Poetry and Music; New York; Jan 4, 2010. -------- Date: Tue May 12 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gunsel X-Bonus: Neither genius, fame, nor love show the greatness of the soul. Only kindness can do that. -Jean Baptiste Henri Lacordaire, preacher, journalist, and activist (1802-1861) This week's theme: Yiddish words to describe people gunsel (GUHN-suhl) noun 1. A gun-carrying criminal. 2. A tramp's young intimate companion. [Alteration of the Yiddish genzel (gosling) influenced by the word gun. Ultimately from the Indo-European root ghans- (goose), which also gave us goose, gosling, and gander. Earliest documented use: 1914.] "An armored-car heist goes wrong, and the book's antihero, Parker, is forced to hole up in a closed amusement park as he tries to duck a rabid pack of gunsels, kingpins, and crooked cops." Dana Jennings; Newly Released Books; The New York Times; Dec 26, 2013. -------- Date: Wed May 13 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--tummler X-Bonus: How simple life becomes when things like mirrors are forgotten. -Daphne du Maurier, novelist (13 May 1907-1989) This week's theme: Yiddish words to describe people tummler (TOOM-luhr) noun 1. A comedian, social director, or entertainer who encourages an audience or guests to participate in entertainment activities. 2. One who incites others to action. 3. A lively, mischievous man. [From Yiddish tumler (one who makes a racket), from tumlen (to make a racket), from German tummeln (to stir). Earliest documented use: 1930s.] NOTES: Catskill resorts in the Catskill Mountains in New York State were a popular vacation destination for Jews during the last century. They were known as the Borscht Belt, after borscht, a type of beet soup popular with Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants. Tummlers were a standard fixture in these resorts. "And when Lou Goldstein proved adept at other forms of entertainment, the hotel signed him up as its tummler." Joseph Berger; Lou Goldstein; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Apr 29, 2012. "An advance man is the tummler of American politics. He is the guy who gets out the crowds, creates a sense of excitement around the candidate, and generates the smell of victory at every stop." Burt Glinn; The Wit and Wisdom of a Political Barnum; New York; May 31, 1971. -------- Date: Thu May 14 00:01:06 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--shicker X-Bonus: Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence. -Hal Borland, author and journalist (14 May 1900-1978) This week's theme: Yiddish words to describe people shicker (SHIK-uhr) noun: A drunkard; alcoholic liquor. adjective: Drunk. verb intr.: To drink or to get drunk. [From Yiddish shiker, from Hebrew shikkor, from shakar (to be drunk). Earliest documented use: 1892.] "Do you think I'm shicker?" "Right now I would say yes. After four drinks, yes." Dan Pope; In the Cherry Tree; Picador; 2003. -------- Date: Fri May 15 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--heimisch X-Bonus: I feel fairly certain that my hatred harms me more than the people whom I hate. -Max Frisch, architect, playwright, and novelist (15 May 1911-1991) This week's theme: Yiddish words to describe people heimisch or heimish or haimish (HAY-mish, HY-) adjective Homely; unpretentious. [From Yiddish heymish (domestic), from Old High German heim (home). Ultimately from the Indo-European root tkei- (to settle or dwell), which also gave us home, haunt, hangar, site, situate, and hamlet https://wordsmith.org/words/hamlet.html . Earliest documented use: 1964.] "Most of his deal-making takes place over the heimisch cuisine of Gilda." Spencer Bright; Michael Levy; The Guardian (London, UK); Aug 18, 1997. -------- Date: Mon May 18 00:01:04 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--devolve X-Bonus: I found one day in school a boy of medium size ill-treating a smaller boy. I expostulated, but he replied: 'The bigs hit me, so I hit the babies; that's fair.' In these words he epitomized the history of the human race. -Bertrand Russell, philosopher, mathematician, author, Nobel laureate (18 May 1872-1970) There are eight (or nine, depending on how you count) parts of speech in the English language, but this week we'll focus on one: the verb. You can say the halls of A.Word.A.Day will be reverberating with verbs. The rest are verboten. Are we going overboard? Are we overbooking or overburdening the verb? Nah, it's just the next five days. devolve (di-VOLV) verb tr., intr.: To transfer or be passed (duties, rights, powers, etc.) on to another. verb intr.: To deteriorate or degenerate. [From Latin devolvere (to roll down), from de- (down) + volvere (to roll). Ultimately from the Indo-European root wel- (to turn or roll), which also gave us waltz, revolve, valley, walk, vault, volume, wallet, helix, and voluble https://wordsmith.org/words/voluble.html . Earliest documented use: 1420.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/devolve "Indonesia has devolved much authority to local government." Fanfare for the Common Man; The Economist (London, UK); Jul 26, 2014. "The event devolved into violence on both sides." Nick Pinto; The Point of Order; The New York Times Magazine; Jan 18, 2015. -------- Date: Tue May 19 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--edify X-Bonus: Red roses for young lovers. French beans for longstanding relationships. -Ruskin Bond, author (b. 19 May 1934) This week's theme: Verbs edify (ED-i-fy) verb tr. To instruct in order to improve the mind or character. [Via French from Latin aedificare (to build), from aedis (building) + facere (make). Earliest documented use: 1340.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/edify "If [translator Jay Rubin's] suggestion [not to read literature in translation] were to be heeded, most of us would not be edified by the works of Fyodor Dostoevsky, Albert Camus, Italo Calvino, and Saadat Hasan Manto." G. Seetharaman; Despite Pitfalls, Publishers Bet on Translated Vernacular Indian Literature; The Economic Times (New Delhi, India); Dec 16, 2013. -------- Date: Wed May 20 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--parlay X-Bonus: When women love us, they forgive us everything, even our crimes; when they do not love us, they give us credit for nothing, not even our virtues. -Honore de Balzac, novelist (20 May 1799-1850) This week's theme: Verbs parlay (PAHR-lay) verb tr.: 1. To use an initial asset to achieve something more valuable. 2. To gamble an initial stake and winnings on a subsequent bet, race, contest, etc. noun: A bet that uses the earlier bet and its winnings as the new bet. [An alteration of paroli (staking the double of the sum staked before), from French, from Italian paroli, plural of parolo, perhaps from paro (equal), from Latin par (equal). Earliest documented use: 1828.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/parlay "Pacquaio has also parlayed his enormous popularity at home into a political career." Victor Mather; A Boxer Who Can Sing, Dance, and Legislate; The New York Times; Apr 17, 2015. -------- Date: Thu May 21 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--espouse X-Bonus: In words as fashions the same rule will hold, / Alike fantastic if too new or old; / Be not the first by whom the new are tried, / Nor yet the last to lay the old aside. -Alexander Pope, poet (21 May 1688-1744) This week's theme: Verbs espouse (i-SPOUZ) verb tr. 1. To adopt or support a cause, idea, belief, etc. 2. To take as spouse: marry. [From Old French espouser, from Latin sponsare (to betroth), from sponsus (betrothed). Ultimately from the Indo-European root spend- (to make an offering or perform a rite), which is also the source of sponsor, spouse, respond, and riposte https://wordsmith.org/words/riposte.html . Earliest documented use: 1477.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/espouse "Chevy Eugene's research focuses on the arts as a key tool for Caribbean integration -- an idea he not only espouses, but actively pursues." Time for a New Kind of Black Activism; Toronto Star (Canada); Apr 19, 2015. -------- Date: Fri May 22 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--acerbate X-Bonus: It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data. Insensibly one begins to twist facts to suit theories, instead of theories to suit facts. -Arthur Conan Doyle, physician and writer (22 May 1859-1930) This week's theme: Verbs acerbate (AS-uhr-bayt) verb tr. To irritate or to aggravate. [From Latin acerbus (bitter). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ak- (sharp), which is also the source of acrid, vinegar, acid, acute, edge, hammer, heaven, eager, oxygen, mediocre, paragon https://wordsmith.org/words/paragon.html , acuity https://wordsmith.org/words/acuity.html , and acidic https://wordsmith.org/words/acidic.html . Earliest documented use: 1657.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/acerbate "The status quo will clearly acerbate the intolerable conditions under which the average reserve resident survives." Don Weisbeck; Politically speaking; Weekend Regional (Brooks, Canada); Jan 31, 2013. -------- Date: Mon May 25 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--politesse X-Bonus: An institution is the lengthened shadow of one man. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (25 May 1803-1882) The head of a Chinese company has taken 6,400 of his employees to France for a vacation. http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/11/asia/china-france-company-holiday/index.html Chances are your employer isn't going to charter dozens of planes and take you and your colleagues on a French fling. But don't lose heart. We're bringing France to you, in the form of words from French. This week we'll feature words from French that are now part of the English language. And we'll do it for a whole week -- those employees went for only four days. Obligatory note about the pronunciation: The indicated pronunciation is how a term would be pronounced in English. Once a word is adopted into a language, it usually plays by its new language's rules. politesse (pol-i-TES, po-lee-) noun Formal politeness or courtesy. [From Old French politesse (cleanness, polished state), from Italian politezza (polish, smoothness), from Latin polire (to polish). Ultimately from the Indo-European root pel- (skin or hide), which also gave us pelt, pillion, and film. Earliest documented use: 1683.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/politesse "How did the loud, fast-talking James Haskell fit in amid the politesse of Japanese culture, with its bowing and eye-lowering?" Jonathan McEvoy; James Haskell, Written Off as a Loudmouth, Travelled the Globe to Transform His Game; Mail on Sunday (London, UK); Mar 1, 2015. -------- Date: Tue May 26 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--laissez-faire X-Bonus: Dying is not a crime. -Jack Kevorkian, pathologist, euthanasia activist, painter, author, and composer (26 May 1928-2011) This week's theme: Terms borrowed from French laissez-faire or laisser-faire (les-ay-FAIR) noun 1. The practice of noninterference in the affairs of others. 2. The economic policy allowing businesses to operate with little intervention from the government. [From French, literally "allow to do". Earliest documented use: 1825.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/laissez-faire "Perhaps we need to reappraise our laissez-faire attitude to domestic cats and be more proactive in trying to contain the burgeoning feral population." James Parry; Britain's Burgeoning Feral Cats; The Independent (London, UK); Oct 25, 2012. -------- Date: Wed May 27 00:01:02 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--de rigueur X-Bonus: Compassion is not weakness and concern for the unfortunate is not socialism. -Hubert Humphrey, US Vice President (27 May 1911-1978) This week's theme: Terms borrowed from French de rigueur (duh ree-GUHR) adjective Required by fashion, custom, or etiquette. [From French de rigueur (literally, of strictness), from Latin rigor. Ultimately from the Indo-European root streig- (to stroke or press), which also gave us strait, strike, streak, strict, stress, and strain. Earliest documented use: 1850.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/de%20rigueur "Glitz, glamour, and sleek metal are de rigueur at automobile exhibitions." India as Small Car Hub; The Economic Times (New Delhi, India); Jan 7, 2010. "Once upon a time, it was de rigueur for American professional golfers to visit Ireland to practice on links courses ahead of the British Open." Philip Reid; Cink Honed His Game on Irish Links Courses; The Irish Times (Dublin); Jul 21, 2009. -------- Date: Thu May 28 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--soi-disant X-Bonus: Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves. -William Pitt, British prime minister (28 May 1759-1806) This week's theme: Terms borrowed from French soi-disant (swa-dee-ZAN) [the last syllable is nasal] adjective Self-styled; so-called. [From French soi-disant (self-styled, so-called) from soi (oneself) + disant (saying). Earliest documented use: 1752.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: http://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/soi-disant "For some reason, the soi-disant 'entertainment capital of the world' has never been able to sustain a resident [ballet] company." Patt Diroll; A Step Ahead for Ballet; Pasadena Star-News (California); May 25, 2009. "Hannah turns to the suspiciously handsome soi-disant geek." Virginia Heffernan; Really, Mom, We're Just Going Out for Ice Cream; The New York Times; Feb 16, 2004. -------- Date: Fri May 29 00:01:03 EDT 2015 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--laissez-aller X-Bonus: War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today. -John F. Kennedy, 35th US president (29 May 1917-1963) This week's theme: Terms borrowed from French laissez-aller or laisser-aller (les-ay-ah-LAY) noun Unrestrained freedom. [From French laisser-aller (to allow to go). Earliest documented use: 1842.] "Throughout the concert, O'Carroll struck a delicate balance between order and laissez-aller that yielded crisp ensembles." Reviews; Irish Times (Dublin); Jul 8, 2005. "In the laissez-aller atmosphere of 1960s' Manhattan, an MBA or a five-year plan was hardly required." Guy Trebay; A Man of Another, Cooler City; The New York Times; Aug 4, 2013.