A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Fri Aug 1 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--haggard X-Bonus: Time is a dressmaker specializing in alterations. -Faith Baldwin, novelist (1893-1978) This week's theme: Words with hidden connections to animals. haggard (HAG-uhrd) adjective Looking gaunt or exhausted, as from fatigue, suffering, hunger, age, etc. [Of uncertain origin, apparently from Old French hagard (wild falcon), perhaps influenced by the word hag. The word is still used for a hawk captured as an adult.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "The war photos [show] a haggard, sweaty, unshaven Marine sucking on a canteen during one of those hellacious South Pacific island battles of World War II." Peter Carlson; Flashes of Memory; Washington Post; Jun 8, 2008. -------- Date: Mon Aug 4 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--paper tiger X-Bonus: Truth never damages a cause that is just. -Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (1869-1948) Guest Wordsmith Mardy Grothe (drmgrothe aol.com) writes: Whenever people describe one thing in terms of something else, they are engaging in metaphorical thinking (as when Shakespeare wrote, "All the world's a stage"). When people speak metaphorically, they make a connection between two conceptual domains that, at first glance, don't appear to have much in common with each other. A metaphor is a kind of magical mental changing room, where one thing, for a moment, becomes another, and in that moment is seen in a whole new way. A popular recent metaphor is carbon footprint. There's no intrinsic relationship between the amount of energy one consumes and the size of one's foot, but as soon as this metaphor was coined, it immediately replaced the previous metaphor on the subject (energy hog). When Howard Cosell said, "Sports is the Toy Department of Life", he helped us look at the sporting world in a fresh and highly original way. Comedian Paul Reiser did the same thing when he once looked over at his wife breastfeeding their first child and thought to himself, "What was once an entertainment center has become a juice bar." Robert Frost said, "An idea is a feat of association, and the height of it is a good metaphor." Metaphorical thinking is one of the oldest activities of humankind, and one of the most useful when it captures essential features of certain types of people, as in terms like stool pigeon, stalking horse, rainmaker, or the first water. This week we explore metaphorical descriptions of people. (Dr. Mardy Grothe is a psychologist, author, platform speaker, and quotation anthologist. His most recent book is I Never Metaphor I Didn't Like: A Comprehensive Compilation of History's Greatest Analogies, Metaphors, and Similes http://amazon.com/o/asin/0061358134/ws00-20 to be published this week. For more, go to http://drmardy.com ) paper tiger (PAY-puhr TY-guhr) noun One who is outwardly strong and powerful but is in fact powerless and ineffectual. [Translation of Chinese zhi lao hu, from zhi (paper) + lao hu (tiger).] The term is often used to describe countries. In 1956, Chairman Mao of China applied it to the US. Later it was used in the Western press to refer to China and its economy. "But will it be another Arab paper tiger? 'I don't think much can be accomplished by merely meeting at an annual conference and issuing a list of recommendations,' Abu Zeid agrees." Hadia Mostafa; A River Runs Through It; Egypt Today (Cairo); Jul 12, 2004. -------- Date: Tue Aug 5 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--loose cannon X-Bonus: Serious sport has nothing to do with fair play. It is bound up with hatred, jealousy, boastfulness, disregard of all rules and sadistic pleasure in witnessing violence. In other words, it is war minus the shooting. -George Orwell, writer (1903-1950) This week's theme: Metaphorical descriptions of people. loose cannon (loos KAN-uhn) noun An uncontrollable or unpredictable person, often causing damage to his own faction. [From allusion to a cannon broken loose on the deck of a rolling ship.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Another remarked: '[Sean Connery]'s a loose cannon, we can't control anything he says, but he thinks he's speaking for us." Meg Henderson; Sean Connery's Book Leaves His Story Untold; The Sunday Times (London, UK); Jul 20, 2008. -------- Date: Wed Aug 6 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sacred cow X-Bonus: Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth. -Henry David Thoreau, naturalist and author (1817-1862) This week's theme: Metaphorical descriptions of people. sacred cow (SAY-krid kou) noun Something that is beyond criticism. [From the special regard for a cow in the Hindu religion.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "There are no sacred cows in the Philippine Army, Army chief Lt. Gen. Victor Ibrado claimed, as he vowed not to tolerate any unlawful acts of soldiers, whatever their rank or position may be." Gilbert Bayoran; Army General Faces Court Martial; The Visayan Daily Star (Bacolod City, Philippines); Jul 28, 2008. -------- Date: Thu Aug 7 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--tenderfoot X-Bonus: A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business. -Henry Ford, industrialist (1863-1947) This week's theme: Metaphorical descriptions of people. tenderfoot (TEN-duhr-foot) noun A newcomer or a beginner at something, one not used to hardships. [Originally the term was applied to newcomers to ranching and mining districts in the western US. A tenderfoot is quite different from a tenderloin https://wordsmith.org/words/tenderloin.html .] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Elisabeth Moss's years of comfortable anonymity may be over because of the engrossing role as the tenderfoot who begins to climb the corporate ladder in Mad Men." Luaine Lee; Moss finds a perfect fit on 'Mad Men'; The Olympian (Olympia, Washington); Jul 28, 2008. -------- Date: Fri Aug 8 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--dark horse X-Bonus: Tomatoes and oregano make it Italian; wine and tarragon make it French. Sour cream makes it Russian; lemon and cinnamon make it Greek. Soy sauce makes it Chinese; garlic makes it good. -Alice May Brock, author (b. 1941) This week's theme: Metaphorical descriptions of people. dark horse (dark hors) noun Someone little-known who ends up winning a contest unexpectedly. [From the idea of a relatively unknown horse winning a race. The term is also used for a person who unexpectedly wins a party's nomination for a political contest, often as a compromise candidate. The OED shows the first citation of the term from the novel The Young Duke by the British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "John King thinks he, RPB, and Sheldon Hope, all from De Big Show, are the three front-runners, with Adrian Clarke as the dark horse." Yvette Best and Carlos Atwell; Oval Awaits First Monarch; Nation News (Barbados); Jul 31, 2008. -------- Date: Mon Aug 11 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--loquacious X-Bonus: Our country, right or wrong. When right, to be kept right; when wrong, to be put right. -Carl Schurz, revolutionary, statesman and reformer (1829-1906) A.Word.A.Day subscribers read this newsletter for many different reasons. For some, it's the joy of learning fascinating stories about the origins of words (their etymologies). For others, it's discovering unusual words, whether it's their meanings or sounds or spelling. Many, especially students, read it to increase their vocabulary for one of the many standardized tests or for personal enrichment. Those readers sometimes write back to say, "OK, so this word resistentialism ( https://wordsmith.org/words/resistentialism.html ) is interesting, but I'd like to see words that I can use more often in my daily life." Each word featured in AWAD includes examples taken from newspapers, magazines, and books to illustrate it and to show that it has been used in the real world. Still, we take their point. This week we present words you might encounter in your next test. loquacious (lo-KWAY-shuhs) adjective Talkative; wordy. [From Latin loqui (to speak). The word loquacious has a negative sense, but a positive word to come out of the same Latin root is eloquent.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Arguably the most loquacious Speaker in the Lok Sabha's* history, [Somnath] Chatterjee kept up a steady commentary." Manini Chatterjee Firm in Chair; The Telegraph (Calcutta, India); Jul 22, 2008. *lower house in the Parliament of India [The above quotation is priceless. Mr. Chatterjee is supposed to be a Speaker. What else would you expect him to be if not loquacious? And a parliament is a place where you are supposed to speak: the word is derived from the French word parler (to speak).] -------- Date: Tue Aug 12 00:01:07 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--austral X-Bonus: Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength. -Eric Hoffer, philosopher and author (1902-1983) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words. austral (O-struhl) adjective Southern. [From Latin auster (south). That's why Australia is so named, but that does not apply to Austria, in central Europe. Austria's name is a Latinized form of its German name Oesterreich (eastern empire, referring to the eastern boundary of the Frankish Empire at one time).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "[Werner] Herzog simply lets the subjects talk about their backgrounds, motivation, fears, and coping strategies during the period of the austral summer (October-February)." Ron Wynn; Herzog's Documentary Offers Insider's View of Antarctica; The City Paper (Nashville, Tennessee); Jul 25, 2008. -------- Date: Wed Aug 13 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--nugacity X-Bonus: A hair in the head is worth two in the brush. -Oliver Herford, writer and illustrator (1863-1935) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words. nugacity (noo-GAS-i-tee, nyoo-) noun Triviality; futility. [From Latin nugax (trifling), from nugari (to trifle).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "For many, the Beachcomber column has been an oasis of nugacity in an otherwise worthy landscape." Beachcomber; The Daily Express (London, UK); Jan 9, 2006. -------- Date: Thu Aug 14 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--epiphenomenon X-Bonus: It is easier to lead men to combat, stirring up their passion, than to restrain them and direct them toward the patient labors of peace. -Andre Gide, author, Nobel laureate (1869-1951) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words. epiphenomenon (ep-i-fuh-NOM-uh-non, nuhn) noun 1. A secondary phenomenon, one resulting from another. 2. An additional symptom appearing during the course of an illness, but not necessarily related to it. [From Greek epi- (upon, after, over) + phainomenon (that which appears), from phainesthai (to appear).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "So if politics has become no more than a mere epiphenomenon of entertainment, a shadow play of a shadow play, why not go to the source?" Peter Biskind; When Worlds Collide; The Nation (New York); Apr 5, 1999. -------- Date: Fri Aug 15 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fugacious X-Bonus: The conscience of the world is so guilty that it always assumes that people who investigate heresies must be heretics; just as if a doctor who studies leprosy must be a leper. Indeed, it is only recently that science has been allowed to study anything without reproach. -Aleister Crowley, author (1875-1947) This week's theme: Miscellaneous words. fugacious (fyoo-GAY-shuhs) adjective Lasting a very short time. [From Latin fugere (to flee) which also gave us other words such as fugitive, centrifugal, refuge, and subterfuge.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "We must realise and be ever conscious of the fact that life is fugacious and ephemeral." Bobson Gbinije; Reflections at Christmas; This Day (Lagos, Nigeria); Nov 15, 2004. -------- Date: Mon Aug 18 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--louche X-Bonus: For truly it is to be noted, that children's plays are not sports, and should be deemed as their most serious actions. -Michel de Montaigne, essayist (1533-1592) A popular admonition goes, "Don't judge a book by its cover." Yet we do that all the time. We ascribe qualities of character to people based on their physical characteristics. And our language takes shape to reflect that attitude. Are cross-eyed people shady? I don't think so. At least, not any more than the straight-eyed. In this week's AWAD we'll look at more of these words. louche (loosh) adjective Of questionable character; dubious; disreputable. [From French louche (cross-eyed), from Latin lusca, feminine of luscus (one-eyed).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "They wanted her to be a dancer, but the teenage Bardot fell in with the louche and devious film-maker Roger Vadim, and became the notorious Girl In A Bikini instead." Adam Sweeting; Zouzou Exposed; The Guardian (UK); Nov 7, 1998. -------- Date: Tue Aug 19 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--clochard X-Bonus: Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace. -Dwight D. Eisenhower, U.S. general and 34th president (1890-1969) This week's theme: Words for physical characteristics used to describe people figuratively. clochard (KLOH-shahr) noun A beggar; vagrant. [From French clocher (to limp), from Latin clopus (lame).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "The bridge is always crowded with vehicles, clochards, salespeople, college students, the aged and infants, and dogs." Kyoko Yoshida; Kyoto Panorama Project; The Massachusetts Review (Amherst); Winter 2000/2001. -------- Date: Wed Aug 20 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--myopic X-Bonus: How can a society that exists on instant mashed potatoes, packaged cake mixes, frozen dinners, and instant cameras teach patience to its young? -Paul Sweeney This week's theme: Words for physical characteristics used to describe people figuratively. myopic (my-OP-ik) adjective 1. Nearsighted; unable to see distant objects clearly. 2. Shortsighted; lacking foresight; narrow-minded. [Via Latin, from Greek myopia, from myop- (nearsighted), from myein (to close) + ops (eye).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Three characters dominate the drama: star prosecutor David Boies, whose casual demeanour belied razor-sharp courtroom instincts; Judge Penfield Jackson, the conservative arbitrator who grew increasingly disenchanted with Microsoft's arrogance; and Bill Gates, portrayed as a surly, myopic Napoleon, whose cantankerous, evasive testimony did much to bring about the guilty verdict." Steve Yap; Consequences of Hubris; Far Eastern Economic Review (Hong Kong); Jun 14, 2001. -------- Date: Thu Aug 21 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--dexterous X-Bonus: The most important scientific revolutions all include, as their only common feature, the dethronement of human arrogance from one pedestal after another of previous convictions about our centrality in the cosmos. -Stephen Jay Gould, paleontologist, biologist, author (1941-2002) This week's theme: Words for physical characteristics used to describe people figuratively. dexterous (DEK-struhs, -stuhr-uhs) adjective, also dextrous 1. Skillful or adroit, mentally or bodily. 2. Right-handed. [From Latin dexter (right-hand, skillful).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Paul Frazier was quietly dexterous on bass, always the stealth weapon in Mr. Byrne's music." Ann Powers; Same As He Ever Was; The New York Times, May 15, 2001. -------- Date: Fri Aug 22 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ambisinister X-Bonus: It is impossible to imagine Goethe or Beethoven being good at billiards or golf. -H.L. Mencken, writer, editor, and critic (1880-1956) This week's theme: Words for physical characteristics used to describe people figuratively. ambisinister (am-bi-SIN-uh-stuhr) adjective Clumsy with both hands. (Literally, with two left hands.) [From Latin ambi- (both) + sinister (on the left side).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Professor Fischer says that the reserve physicians 'were surgically ambisinister, medically at the zero point, and lacking in discipline, military skill and temperance.'" The Military Surgeon; Harvard University; 1914. -------- Date: Mon Aug 25 00:01:05 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--dactylogram X-Bonus: For in reason, all government without the consent of the governed is the very definition of slavery. -Jonathan Swift, satirist (1667-1745) Once in a while delivery of this newsletter is delayed and messages start pouring into my mailbox complaining of withdrawal symptoms. "Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind," British writer Joseph Rudyard Kipling said, and that might help explain why some of us get so hooked on them. As time passes, we experience symptoms of mithridatism, the condition of immunity acquired by taking gradually increased doses of something (coined after Mithridates VI, king of Pontus, who tried to build immunity against poisoning). Slowly they take over and we realize we need words with even greater potency, words that are unusual, esoteric, or even preposterous, to get a still greater high. Are you one of those for whom the dictionary might be better characterized as addictionary? Help is at hand. Consider this week's words as extra high doses of your daily fix. These are words that ask, "Why use a simple word when a fancy one is available?" dactylogram (dak-TIL-uh-gram) noun A fingerprint. [From Greek daktylos (finger or toe) + gramma (something written).] The study of fingerprints for identification purposes is known as dactylography or dactyloscopy. Dactylonomy is the art of counting on fingers. Dactylology is finger-speech -- communicating by signs made with fingers. -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "The dactylogram expert confirmed that Christina's prints were found on the gun and elsewhere throughout Lombardi's apartment." William Bernhardt; Blind Justice; Ballantine Books; 1992. -------- Date: Tue Aug 26 00:01:07 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--apograph X-Bonus: A society that gets rid of all its troublemakers goes downhill. -Robert A. Heinlein, science-fiction author (1907-1988) This week's theme: Why use a simple word? apograph (AP-uh-graf) noun A copy or a transcript. [From Greek apo- (away, off, apart) + -graph (writing).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "This fragment first appeared in the Ricci apograph, a manuscript compiled almost entirely by a grandson of Machiavelli, Giuliano de Ricci." Julia L Hairston; Skirting the Issue: Machiavelli's Caterina Sforza; Renaissance Quarterly (New York); Autumn 2000. -------- Date: Wed Aug 27 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--argillaceous X-Bonus: Not being able to govern events, I govern myself. -Michel de Montaigne, essayist (1533-1592) This week's theme: Why use a simple word? argillaceous (ahr-juh-LAY-shuhs) adjective Made of, resembling, or relating to, clay: clayey. [From Latin argilla (clay). Ultimately from the Indo-European root arg- (to shine; white), that is also the source of words such as argentine (silvery) and argue (from Latin arguere, to make clear).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "But unlike many family movies, [the movie Akeelah and the Bee] has moments of pulchritude while showing no traces of argillaceous feet." Ruthe Stein; Sweetly entertaining 'Bee' Takes Fresh Approach to Spelling It Out; San Francisco Chronicle; Apr 28, 2006. -------- Date: Thu Aug 28 00:01:06 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--maquillage X-Bonus: Poets are soldiers that liberate words from the steadfast possession of definition. -Eli Khamarov, author (b. 1948) This week's theme: Why use a simple word? maquillage (ma-kee-AAZH) noun Makeup or cosmetics. [From French maquillage (makeup), from maquiller (to apply makeup). Ultimately from the Indo-European root mag-/mak- (to knead, to fit) that is also the source of words make, mason, mass, match, and mingle.] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Wearing black boots and black Levi's, chains around his wrist and neck, a striped vest, a goatee, and a Caesar haircut, Kevyn Aucoin, 31, the Michelangelo of maquillage, stares intently at his canvas, brush in hand. The canvas is the delicate face of Kate Moss." James Servin; The Face Maker; Harper's Bazaar (New York); Jan 1994. -------- Date: Fri Aug 29 00:01:09 EDT 2008 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pleonexia X-Bonus: Alas, after a certain age every man is responsible for his face. -Albert Camus, writer and philosopher (1913-1960) This week's theme: Why use a simple word? pleonexia (pli-uh-NEK-see-uh) noun Excessive or insatiable covetousness. [From Greek pleonektein (to be greedy), from pleion (more) + ekhein (have).] -Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org) "Don McClanen thinks a condition called pleonexia has overtaken the U.S. 'Pleonexia is an insatiable need for more of what I already have, and it has penetrated our culture to the point where people are angry at the poor,' he states." Jaye Scholl; Don McClanen Offers the Wealthy a Different Kind of Freedom; Barron's (New York); Sep 18, 2000.