A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Fri Jun 1 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--cunctator X-Bonus: I would have made a good Pope. -Richard M. Nixon, 37th president of US (1913-1994) This week's theme: Insults cunctator (kungk-TAY-tuhr) noun One who hesitates; a procrastinator or delayer. [From Latin cunctari (to hesitate, delay). Earliest documented use: 1654.] "No cunctator, James quickly provided his wife with the surefire ammunition to divorce him -- adultery." Richard Kepler Brunner; With Marriage Penalty, It Can Pay to Get Divorced; The Morning Call (Allentown, Pennsylvania); Oct 3, 1999. -------- Date: Mon Jun 4 00:01:04 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--enjoin X-Bonus: You must have been warned against letting the golden hours slip by. Yes, but some of them are golden only because we let them slip by. -James M. Barrie, novelist and playwright (1860-1937) We all have a bit of Jekyll and Hyde in us, a bit of yin and yang. So do the words for this week. They have split personalities. They are words with opposite meanings. These words with contradictory meanings may appear to hinder, as opposed to aid, the conversation, but they don't really pose a problem. It becomes clear in the context which of the two opposing meanings applies: A fireman fights fire in a city, but stokes fire in a steam locomotive. These words with contrary meanings are known as contranyms. Sometimes the meanings are as diverse as black and white (cleave: to split, to stick), but often they are in shades of gray. enjoin (en-JOIN) verb tr. 1. To order or prescribe a course of action. 2. To forbid or restrain. [From Old French enjoindre, from Latin injungere (to join), from in- (towards) + jungere (to join). Ultimately from the Indo-European root yeug- (to join), which is also the ancestor of junction, yoke, yoga, adjust, juxtapose, junta https://wordsmith.org/words/junta.html , syzygy https://wordsmith.org/words/syzygy.html , jugular https://wordsmith.org/words/jugular.html , and rejoinder https://wordsmith.org/words/rejoinder.html . Earliest documented use: around 1225.] "Ajanlekoko enjoined the members of the Building Collapse Prevention Guild (BCPG) to continue the struggle." Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie; Group Advises Govt on Building Failures; The Nation (Lagos, Nigeria); May 22, 2012. "It asks a court to declare the ordinance invalid and enjoin the city from enforcing it." Bruce Vielmetti; Hispanic Group Sues Over Milwaukee Contracting Rule; The Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee, Wisconsin); May 1, 2012. -------- Date: Tue Jun 5 00:01:03 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--liege X-Bonus: Seek not to follow in the footsteps of men of old; seek what they sought. -Matsuo Basho, poet (1644-1694) This week's theme: Contranyms liege (leej, leezh) noun 1. A feudal lord. 2. A vassal or subject. adjective 1. Pertaining to the relationship between a feudal vassal and lord. 2. Loyal; faithful. [From Old French lige, from Latin laetus (serf). Earliest documented use: 1297.] "I am not worthy to buckle your shoe, my liege. Please would you spit on me?" Nathan Bevan; If It's On, He's On It; Wales On Sunday (Cardiff); Feb 28, 2010. "AT&T is demanding that repair crews from the regional Bell telephone companies place Velcro patches bearing the AT&T emblem on their uniforms. 'We told them, "We are not your liege,"' recalled Thomas Hester, the general counsel of the Ameritech Corporation." Mark Landler; After the Bells and Their New Rivals Have It Out; The New York Times; Jul 15, 1996. -------- Date: Wed Jun 6 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--nickel-and-dime X-Bonus: I find bowing to people who occasionally wear crowns rather odd. I'll reserve my deference for achievement rather than bloodline. -Robin Ince, comedian, actor, and writer (b. 1969) This week's theme: Contranyms nickel-and-dime or nickel and dime (NIK-uhl an DYM) verb tr.: 1. To drain gradually: for example, by many charges for small amounts. 2. To accumulate gradually. adjective: Inexpensive or unimportant. [Nickel (five cents) and dime (ten cents) are nicknames of the coins of the smallest value, except penny (one cent), in the US. The nickel coin gets its nickname because it's made of the metals nickel and copper. A dime gets its name from Latin decima (tenth part). Earliest documented use: 1879.] Nickel and dime https://wordsmith.org/words/images/nickel-and-dime_large.jpg Photo: US Mint "Both airlines still offer free snacks and drinks. 'We don't like to nickel and dime our customers,' says Chris Mainz, a spokesman for Southwest." Will Sullivan; Flying on the Cheap; US News & World Report (Washington, DC); Mar 26, 2007. "Luke literally nickel and dimed his way to 12 grand." Gina Ford; Project Springboard; WEEK-TV; Jul 15, 2010. -------- Date: Thu Jun 7 00:01:04 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--prodigious X-Bonus: "Do you ever read any of the books you burn?" "That's against the law!" "Oh. Of course." -Ray Bradbury, science-fiction writer (1920-2012) This week's theme: Contranyms prodigious (pruh-DIJ-uhs) adjective 1. Remarkable in size, quantity, strength, etc. 2. Marvelous. 3. Abnormal; monstrous. [From Latin prodigiosus (marvelous, portentous), from prodigium (portent). Earliest documented use: around 1487.] "Kurtley Beale just cannot wait to display his prodigious talents at his first World Cup." Beale Anxious to Parade Prodigious Talents in First; The Star (Malaysia); Sep 3, 2011. "The rodents have prodigious appetites and ability to multiply." Deerslayers; Houston Chronicle (Texas); Feb 4, 2010. -------- Date: Fri Jun 8 00:01:08 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--cull 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 (1842-1910) This week's theme: Contranyms cull (kuhl) verb tr. 1. To select the best. 2. To select inferior items for removing. 3. To reduce the size of a herd. [From Old French cuillir (to pick), from Latin colligere (to collect). Ultimately from the Indo-European root leg- (to collect), which is also the source of lexicon, legal, dialog, lecture, logic, legend, logarithm, intelligent, diligent, sacrilege, elect, and loyal. Earliest documented use: 1330.] "Susan Kelly is interested in culling the best ideas from all over the world." Eleanor Clift; Fresh Eyes on Medical Care; Newsweek (New York); Oct 29, 2009. "Lacklustre performances by New Zealand teams have led to calls to cull one of them." Adrian Seconi; NZ Officials Oppose Dropping Team; Otago Daily Times (New Zealand); May 16, 2012. -------- Date: Mon Jun 11 01:01:07 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ratiocinate X-Bonus: May my silences become more accurate. -Theodore Roethke, poet (1908-1963) In English the verb goes in the middle of a sentence (I love you), while some languages relegate it to the end (I you love). This may sound preposterous to those not familiar with such a language (Hindi, Japanese, among others), but it's quite common. In fact, the largest percentage of languages prefer the verb at the end (45%), followed by the middle placement (43%). The remaining 12% of the languages stick the verb out front (Fijian, Irish, etc.). Like much in a language, there is no particular reason behind these varied placements. A front placement for a verb doesn't imply that speakers of that language give more importance to the action compared to those who put it at the end. Sometimes things just are. But wherever the verb sits, it brings life to a sentence. And this week we'll bring five verbs to life in A.Word.A.Day. ratiocinate (rash-ee-OS-uh-nayt, rat-ee-) verb intr. To reason, especially in a methodical manner. [From Latin ratiocinari (to reckon), from ratio (reason, calculation). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ar- (to fit together), which also gave us army, harmony, article, order, read, adorn, arithmetic, and rhyme. Earliest documented use: 1643.] "But we're here to see Downey [playing Sherlock Holmes] ratiocinate his way in and around the movie." Ty Burr; Movie Review: Sherlock Holmes; The Boston Globe; Dec 25, 2009. -------- Date: Tue Jun 12 00:01:04 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--redound X-Bonus: We are on the cusp of this time where I can say, "I speak as a citizen of the world" without others saying, "God, what a nut." -Lawrence Lessig, professor and activist (b. 1961) This week's theme: Verbs redound (ri-DOUND) verb intr. 1. To contribute to (someone's credit, honor, etc.). 2. To come back upon. [From Old French redonder (to overflow), from Latin redundare (to overflow), from red-/re- (back) + undare (to surge). Ultimately from the Indo-European root wed- (water, wet), which also gave us water, winter, hydrant, redundant, otter, and vodka. Earliest documented use: before 1382.] "The Prime Minister stated that such an arrangement could redound to the benefit of Barbadians." Pipeline Link With T&T Soon?; The Barbados Advocate; Mar 11, 2012. "MIT officials fear that the explosion in the harbor will redound badly on Tech." Janet Maslin; 'The Technologists' by Matthew Pearl; The New York Times; Feb 22, 2012. -------- Date: Wed Jun 13 00:01:03 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--daunt X-Bonus: You've got to have something to eat and a little love in your life before you can hold still for any damn body's sermon on how to behave. -Billie Holiday, jazz singer and songwriter (1915-1959) This week's theme: Verbs daunt (dahnt) verb tr. To intimidate; to dishearten or discourage. [From Old French danter, from Latin domitare (to tame), frequentative of domare (to tame). Earliest documented use: around 1300.] "Constant attacks by the Dolphins didn't daunt the Eagles' defensive line." Jan Aquino; Dolphins, Friars to Face Off for Title; Pacific Daily News (Hagatna, Guam); May 17, 2011. -------- Date: Thu Jun 14 00:01:06 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--exculpate X-Bonus: The vine that has grown old on an old tree falls with the ruin of that tree and through that bad companionship must perish with it. -Leonardo da Vinci, painter, engineer, musician, and scientist (1452-1519) This week's theme: Verbs exculpate (EK-skuhl-payt, ek-SKUHL-) verb tr. To clear of guilt or blame. [From Latin ex- (from) + culpa (blame). Earliest documented use: 1656.] "It did not exculpate a killer from responsibility, but it did save them from the gallows." A Provocation to Change; The Age (Melbourne, Australia); Sep 24, 2003. -------- Date: Fri Jun 15 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--perdure X-Bonus: On the mountains of truth you can never climb in vain: either you will reach a point higher up today, or you will be training your powers so that you will be able to climb higher tomorrow. -Friedrich Nietzsche, philosopher (1844-1900) This week's theme: Verbs perdure (puhr-DOOR, -DYOOR) verb intr. To continue to exist; endure. [From Latin per- (through) + durare (to last), from durus (hard). Earliest documented use: 1475.] "The regime is gone; the images perdure." William Meyers; Shades of Reality; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Mar 10, 2012. -------- Date: Mon Jun 18 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--adulate X-Bonus: If you write to impress it will always be bad, but if you write to express it will be good. -Thornton Wilder, writer (1897-1975) Which came first, the chicken or the egg? We can ponder endlessly without ever solving that paradox. But we do know the origins of this week's words. They all are made by a process known as back-formation. In this process a word is coined by removing an actual or supposed affix. For example, we coined the verb emote after the noun emotion (which is from Latin movere: to move). But, come to think of it, we may be able to solve the unanswered question with the help of etymology. The first documented use of the word egg is from the year 805, while chicken is attested from 950. The answer remains the same even if we use the word hen instead. That too is from 950. adulate (AJ-uh-layt) verb tr. To flatter or admire slavishly. [Back-formation from adulation, from Latin adulari (to flatter, to fawn upon, like a dog wagging its tail). Earliest documented use: 1777; adulation is from around 1400.] "Media will continue to adulate and fawn before celebrities' feet, like abject courtiers in an imperial palace." Kevin Myers; The Words 'Celebrity' and 'Ireland' Belong in the Same Sentence; Irish Independent (Dublin, Ireland); Sep 30, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Jun 19 00:01:04 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sere X-Bonus: I don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve. -Albert Schweitzer, philosopher, physician, musician, Nobel laureate (1875-1965) This week's theme: Back-formations sere (seer) noun: An intermediate stage or a series of stages in the ecological succession of a community. Example: forest, forest destroyed by fire, grass, brush, young trees, mature trees. [Back-formation from series, from Latin serere (to connect). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ser- (to line up), that is also the source of words such as assert, desert (to abandon), desert (a dry region with little vegetation), sort, consort, and sorcerer. Earliest documented use: 1916; series is from 1611.] adjective: dry; withered. [Variant spelling of Old English sear (dry). Earliest documented use: 824.] "The duration of an organism's presence in a sere depends on its ability to persist, even as the environment is changing." Lawrence Walker; The Biology of Disturbed Habitats; Oxford University Press; 2012. -------- Date: Wed Jun 20 00:01:03 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ablate X-Bonus: When one guy sees an invisible man, he's a nut case; ten people see him, it's a cult; ten million people see him, it's a respected religion. -Richard Jeni, comedian and actor (1957-2007) This week's theme: Back-formations ablate (a-BLAYT) verb tr.: To remove by melting, vaporizing, erosion, etc. verb intr.: To become ablated. [Back-formation from ablation, from Latin ab- (away) + ferre (to carry). Earliest documented use: before 1475; ablation is from 1425.] "My anger scoured my insides, burned my love for him out of me, ablated my heart's interior walls." Arthur Phillips; The Tragedy of Arthur; Random House; 2012. -------- Date: Thu Jun 21 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--esthesia X-Bonus: Without the freedom to criticize, there is no true praise. -Pierre Beaumarchais, playwright (1732-1799) This week's theme: Back-formations esthesia or aesthesia (es-THEES-zhuh) noun The capacity for sensation. [Back formation from anesthesia (loss of sensation), from Greek an- (not) + aisthesis (sensation). Earliest documented use: 1829; anesthesia is from 1721.] "Choo began to experience a dearth of aesthesia." Martin Dec Haynes; Anything Goes; Xlibris; 2011. -------- Date: Fri Jun 22 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--auscultate X-Bonus: Although the connections are not always obvious, personal change is inseparable from social and political change. -Harriet Lerner, psychologist (b. 1944) This week's theme: Back-formations auscultate (AW-skuhl-tayt) verb tr. To listen to the sounds made by internal organs (heart, lungs, etc.) to aid in the diagnosis. [Back-formation from auscultation, from auscultare (to listen). Ultimately from the Indo-European root ous- (ear) which is also the source of ear, aural, and scout. Earliest documented use: 1862; auscultation is from 1634.] A painting illustrating the inventor of the stethoscope, French physician René Laennec, auscultating a patient the good old way: the ear to the skin, while medical students look on. In his hand is his invention. https://wordsmith.org/words/images/auscultate_large.jpg Art: Théobald Chartran, 1816. "A Chinese official has been jailed for two years for deserting a sick beggar in a neighboring county and causing the man's death. ... In his defence, Chen said he had asked a general practitioner to auscultate him before the man was sent away. The doctor said his heart beat was normal." Chinese Official Jailed; Xinhua News Agency (Beijing, China); Dec 6, 2007. -------- Date: Mon Jun 25 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--durance X-Bonus: True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice that produces beggars needs restructuring. -Martin Luther King, Jr., civil-rights leader (1929-1968) I wasn't born with the sports gene, but I love swimming. Last week, when I went to the pool I saw that a letter had fallen off the sign on the wall. Instead of "NO DIVING", now it said "O DIVING". As I swam laps, the thought came to me that the sign still made sense. It simply said there's to be zero diving. This week's words are selected in a similar vein. It appears a letter or two has fallen off the front of these words, but that doesn't make much of a difference. These words still float well. They still mean the same, more or less. durance (DOO-ruhns, DYOO-) noun 1. Endurance. 2. Imprisonment or confinement, especially a long one. (Often used in the phrase 'durance vile') [From French durance (duration), from durer (to last), from Latin durare (to last), from durus (hard). Earliest documented use: 1513.] "The durance of a granite ledge." Ralph Waldo Emerson; 1847. "And from that durance he is still waiting for release." John Banville; Athena; Knopf; 1995. -------- Date: Tue Jun 26 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--suasion X-Bonus: The church says: The body is a sin. Science says: The body is a machine. Advertising says: The body is a business. The body says: I am a fiesta. -Eduardo Galeano, journalist and novelist (b. 1940) This week's theme: Words with variant spellings suasion (SWAY-zhuhn) noun The act of urging: persuasion. (Often used in the phrase 'moral suasion') [From Latin suadere (to advise). Ultimately from the Indo-European root swad- (sweet, pleasant), which also gave us sweet, suave, hedonism, persuade, and Hindi swad (taste). Earliest documented use: 1374.] "He was so convinced by my arguments that he lent me his best riding-horse without further suasion." Neal Stephenson; Quicksilver; William Morrow; 2003. -------- Date: Wed Jun 27 00:01:04 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--versal X-Bonus: Many who have spent a lifetime in it can tell us less of love than the child that lost a dog yesterday. -Thornton Wilder, writer (1897-1975) This week's theme: Words with variant spellings versal (VUHR-suhl) adjective Universal; whole. [Shortening of universal, from Latin universum (universe). Ultimately from the Indo-European root wer- (to turn or bend), also the source of wring, weird, writhe, worth, revert, universe, verso https://wordsmith.org/words/verso.html , versicolor https://wordsmith.org/words/versicolor.html , and animadvert https://wordsmith.org/words/animadvert.html . Earliest documented use: 1590s, in Romeo & Juliet.] "She looks as pale as any clout in the versal world." William Shakespeare; Romeo & Juliet; 1590s. -------- Date: Thu Jun 28 00:01:05 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--monish X-Bonus: There is no doubt that I have lots of words inside me; but at moments, like rush-hour traffic at the mouth of a tunnel, they jam. -John Updike, writer (1932-2009) This week's theme: Words with variant spellings monish (MON-ish) verb tr. To warn; to admonish. [From Old French amonester (to warn, to urge), from Latin monere (to warn). Ultimately from the Indo-European root men- (to think) which is the source of mind, mnemonic, mosaic, music, mentor, money, mandarin, and Sanskrit mantra https://wordsmith.org/words/mantra.html . Earliest documented use: before 1382.] "I believe that I have monished him with his greatest fears." Dan Clore; The Unspeakable and Others; Wildside Press; 2001. -------- Date: Fri Jun 29 00:01:03 EDT 2012 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--complice X-Bonus: The words a father speaks to his children in the privacy of the home are not overheard at the time, but, as in whispering galleries, they will be clearly heard at the end and by posterity. -Jean Paul Richter, writer (1763-1825) This week's theme: Words with variant spellings complice (KOM-plis) noun An associate; accomplice. [Via French from Latin com- (with) + plicare (to fold). Ultimately from the Indo-European root plek- (to plait), which is also the source of plait, pleat, pliant, ply, apply, deploy, display, exploit, replicate, and perplex. Earliest documented use: 1475.] "The Rhodesian army employed several methods to get information about the guerrillas and their complices." Picture Coverage of the World; Transaction Publishers; 2011.