A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Mon Nov 1 00:01:06 EDT 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--comminate X-Bonus: How strange that nature does not knock, and yet does not intrude! -Emily Dickinson, poet (1830-1886) A backronym is a word or phrase re-interpreted as an acronym or an initialism. With a little ingenuity, any word can be turned into an acronym (or an initialism). SOS didn't originate as an acronym. It was a distress signal for the Morse code (...---...) devised to be easily recognizable by a radio operator listening to the chatter of multiple streams of signals. It was only a coincidence that this sequence spelled SOS in Morse Code. Later, people came up with explanations for this signal such as Save Our Souls and Save Our Ship (for another example of an ex post facto coinage, see Apgar score https://wordsmith.org/words/apgar_score.html ). Just as a backronym comes later, a back-formation is a word that is coined after an existing word, though it appears the existing word was coined later. The verb to back-form itself is a back-formation. In this week's A.Word.A.Day we'll look at five back-formations. comminate (KOM-uh-nayt) verb tr. To threaten with divine punishment; to curse. [Back-formation from commination, from com- (intensive prefix) + minari (to threaten). Ultimately from the Indo-European root men- (project), which is also the source of minatory https://wordsmith.org/words/minatory.html , menace, mountain, eminent, promenade, demean, amenable, and mouth. Earliest recorded use: 1611.] "I think he deserves comminating, don't you? Nancy said people like that ought to be put down, didn't you, Nancy?" Mollie Hardwick; Malice Domestic; Fawcett; 1992. -------- Date: Tue Nov 2 00:01:06 EDT 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--aesthete X-Bonus: Creative activity could be described as a type of learning process where teacher and pupil are located in the same individual. -Arthur Koestler, novelist and journalist (1905-1983) This week's theme: Back-formations aesthete or esthete (ES-theet) noun Someone who has or affects high sensitivity to beauty, especially in art. [Back-formation from aesthetic. Via Latin from Greek aisthesis (sensation or perception). Ultimately from the Indo-European root au- (to perceive) which is the source of other words such as audio, audience, audit, obey, oyez, auditorium, anesthesia, and synesthesia https://wordsmith.org/words/synesthesia.html . Earliest recorded use 1881.] "Alex is a secret aesthete, a slum-dwelling intellectual who finds redemption through Beethoven rather than the pumping dance beats down at the Korova milk bar." Neil Cooper; A Clockwork Orange, Citizens Theatre, Glasgow; The Herald (Glasgow, Scotland); Oct 18, 2010. -------- Date: Wed Nov 3 00:01:06 EDT 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--dentulous X-Bonus: Worth begets in base minds, envy; in great souls, emulation. -Henry Fielding, author (1707-1754) This week's theme: Back-formations dentulous (DEN-chuh-lus) adjective Having teeth. [Back-formation from edentulous (toothless), from ex- (out of) + dens (tooth). Earliest recorded use: 1926.] "He was therefore prejudiced against all things calciferous or dentulous. 'I propose that the next student who is caught biting a fellow student should be removed.'" Robert B Shampo; The Weird Thoughts and Writings of Battling Goozler; Vantage; 2009. -------- Date: Thu Nov 4 00:01:05 EDT 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--buttle X-Bonus: Insanity - a perfectly rational adjustment to an insane world. -RD Laing, psychiatrist and author (1927-1989) This week's theme: Back-formations buttle (BUT-l) verb intr. To do a butler's work. [Back-formation from butler, from Old French bouteillier (cup-bearer), from bouteille (bottle). Originally, a butler was in charge of the wine. Earliest recorded use: 1867.] "The top hotels in Saudi Arabia are staffed by foreign men -- something I realized must be the case when my butler at the Al Faisaliah folded my underwear unprompted. If I were buttled by a Saudi, we'd probably be shuttled to Deera Square -- or Chop Chop Square, as it's better known -- where the public beheadings occur." Maureen Dowd; A Girls' Guide to Saudi Arabia; Vanity Fair (New York); Aug 2010. http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/08/maureen-dowd-201008 -------- Date: Fri Nov 5 00:01:05 EDT 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--emote X-Bonus: Because we don't understand the brain very well we're constantly tempted to use the latest technology as a model for trying to understand it. In my childhood we were always assured that the brain was a telephone switchboard. (What else could it be?) And I was amused to see that Sherrington, the great British neuroscientist, thought that the brain worked like a telegraph system. Freud often compared the brain to hydraulic and electromagnetic systems. Leibniz compared it to a mill, and now, obviously, the metaphor is the digital computer. -John R. Searle, philosophy professor (b. 1932) This week's theme: Back-formations emote (i-MOHT) verb intr. To express emotion in an excessive or theatrical manner. [Back-formation from emotion, from Old French esmovoir (to excite, stir up), from Latin emovere (to remove or displace), from ex- (out of) + movere (to move). Earliest recorded use: 1917.] "Doctors are trained to always look serious and never emote." Ninad Siddhaye; Doctors Self-Medicate With Theatre; Daily News & Analysis (Mumbai, India); Oct 9, 2010. -------- Date: Mon Nov 8 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vitiate X-Bonus: In the case of good books, the point is not how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you. -Mortimer J. Adler, philosopher, educator and author (1902-2001) Short story writer Guy de Maupassant once wrote, "Whatever you want to say, there is only one noun to express it, one verb to animate it, and one adjective to qualify it." As a master of the short story, Maupassant knew something about finding the right word. While a word has many synonyms, each synonym has its own shade of meaning. A good writer picks just the right shade to paint a picture with words. Add more color to your verbal palette with this week's assorted words. vitiate (VISH-ee-ayt) verb tr. 1. To impair or spoil the effectiveness of. 2. To corrupt. [From Latin vitiare (to spoil, injure), from vitium (blemish). Earliest recorded use: 1534.] "The peaceful atmosphere at the school was vitiated as a police constable in an inebriated condition created a scene there." Alok Mishra; Women, Girls Outnumber Men in Gopalganj, Siwan; The Times of India (New Delhi); Oct 29, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Nov 9 00:01:06 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--parsimonious X-Bonus: Throw your dream into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, or a new country. -Anais Nin, author (1903-1977) This week's theme: Assorted words parsimonious (par-si-MO-nee-uhs) adjective Excessively sparing or frugal. [From Middle English parcimony, from Latin parsimonia, from parcere (to spare). First recorded use: 1598.] "President Calvin Coolidge was so parsimonious with words that he became known as 'Silent Cal'." Rob Christensen; Interesting, But Not Quite Convincing; The News & Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina); Sep 12, 2010. -------- Date: Wed Nov 10 00:01:06 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--miry X-Bonus: Several excuses are always less convincing than one. -Aldous Huxley, novelist (1894-1963) This week's theme: Assorted words miry (MYR-ee) adjective 1. Resembling mire. 2. Muddy; swampy. [From mire (bog), from Old Norse myrr. Earliest recorded use: 1398.] "This election night, American liberals, sternum-deep in that miry slough of despond, are as depressed as they've been since the Florida debacle back in 2000." Michael Tomasky; Midterms 2010: A Sea-Change in Just Two Years; The Guardian (London, UK); Nov 3, 2010. -------- Date: Thu Nov 11 00:01:06 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--majordomo X-Bonus: Don't wait for the Last Judgment. It takes place every day. -Albert Camus, writer and philosopher (1913-1960) This week's theme: Assorted words majordomo (may-juhr-DO-mo) noun 1. Someone whose job is to make arrangements or organize things for another. 2. A steward or butler. [From Spanish mayordomo (butler, main servant), from Latin major + domus (house).] "If there hadn't been a Saudi majordomo to come and collect us, we would have been in limbo -- a pair of single women wandering the airport with no man to get them out, trapped forever like Tom Hanks in the movie The Terminal." Maureen Dowd; A Girls' Guide to Saudi Arabia; Vanity Fair (New York); Aug 2010. http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/08/maureen-dowd-201008 -------- Date: Fri Nov 12 00:01:06 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fatuous X-Bonus: We are not the same persons this year as last; nor are those we love. It is a happy chance if we, changing, continue to love a changed person. -William Somerset Maugham, writer (1874-1965) This week's theme: Assorted words fatuous (FACH-oo-uhs) adjective Foolish or inane, especially in a complacent and smug manner. [From Latin fatuus (foolish). Earliest recorded use: 1633.] "You know it's patronising because every five minutes there is an utterly fatuous remark dressed up as profundity." Amol Rajan; When Women Aren't on Top; The Independent (London, UK); Oct 13, 2010. -------- Date: Mon Nov 15 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--in situ X-Bonus: If you want to work on your art, work on your life. -Anton Chekhov, short-story writer and dramatist (1860-1904) The adverb is a stepchild of the language. Usage pundits, grammar gurus, and language mavens have been denouncing it ad nauseam: Don't pay much attention to the adverb. It makes you (and your writing) look bad. Let it stay in the basement of the language. Why don't you talk with nouns and verbs instead? Adverbs do have a job. Push them away and you're left wondering how to answer questions such as: How? In what manner? To what degree? When people advise avoiding the adverb, they're referring to words ending in -ly: extremely, really, endlessly, etc. It may be OK to use such words sparingly, but your writing appears stilted if they are used often. Many adverbs don't end in -ly. In fact, in the few sentences here, I used such adverbs aplenty (ad nauseam, often, aplenty). This week we have lined up five such adverbs. Try them on for size. And if an adverb fits, why not have a ball with it? in situ (in SY-too, SEE-, -tyoo, -choo) adverb In the original place. [From Latin in situ (in place). The word is used in medicine to indicate a condition in a localized state, not spread beyond. First recorded use: 1740.] "The sound engineers came to record the nuns in situ." Louette Harding; Sing out, Sisters: How a Closed Order of Benedictine Nuns Recorded an Album; Daily Mail (London, UK); Oct 9, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Nov 16 00:01:07 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--wherefore X-Bonus: The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story, and writes another, and his humblest hour is when he compares the volume as it is with what he vowed to make it. -J.M. Barrie, novelist and playwright (1860-1937) This week's theme: Adverbs wherefore (HWAIR-for) adverb For what reason? noun Reason or purpose. [From Middle English, a combination of where + for. The word often appears in the phrase "the whys and wherefores (of something)", meaning its reasons. First recorded use: c. 1200.] "Love is the most dunderheaded of all the passions; it never will listen to reason. The very rudiments of logic are unknown to it. 'Love has no wherefore,' says one of the Latin poets." Edward Bulwer-Lytton; Kenelm Chillingly; 1873. -------- Date: Wed Nov 17 00:01:04 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ex gratia X-Bonus: I have never started a poem yet whose end I knew. Writing a poem is discovering. -Robert Frost, poet (1874-1963) This week's theme: Adverbs ex gratia (eks GRAY-shee-uh) adverb, adjective As a favor or gesture of goodwill, rather than from any legal requirement. [From Latin ex (out of) + gratia (favor, kindness). First recorded use: 1769.] Notes: When they say they are making a payment ex gratia, it is more often than not, not ex gratia, but because of their culpability. "Lumka Oliphant said, 'The payment of Rand 1000 is made ex gratia as Roadlink is indemnified by our terms and conditions.'" Wendy Knowler; The Missing Link in Passenger Satisfaction; Independent (Johannesburg, South Africa); Jun 9, 2010. "'We decided that we will give $20,000 as an ex-gratia payment for the health problems they may have,' Veterans Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn said." Stalling Agent Orange Suit Costs Ottawa $7.8M; CBC News (Toronto, Canada); Jun 24, 2010. -------- Date: Thu Nov 18 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--therewithal X-Bonus: I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was joy. -Rabindranath Tagore, philosopher, author, songwriter, painter, educator, composer, Nobel laureate (1861-1941) This week's theme: Adverbs therewithal (thair-with-ALL) adverb Together with; besides. [From there + withal, from the joining of the phrase "with al" (with all). First recorded use: c. 1330.] "A festive Bazaar invites one and all to sample its selection of well-chosen words, therewithal, with imagination and inspiration to create stories and greeting cards." This Week's Arts Round-up; The Cornishman (Cornwall, UK); Dec 10, 2009. -------- Date: Fri Nov 19 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--in toto X-Bonus: If writers were good businessmen, they'd have too much sense to be writers. -Irvin S. Cobb, author and journalist (1876-1944) This week's theme: Adverbs in toto (in TO-to) adverb Totally; as a whole. [From Latin totus (total). First recorded use: 1639.] "Garcia opposes lifting the embargo in toto." Tim Padgett; Florida's 25th District; Time (New York); Sep 27, 2010. -------- Date: Mon Nov 22 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--schmeer X-Bonus: No matter what side of the argument you are on, you always find people on your side that you wish were on the other. -Jascha Heifetz, violinist (1901-1987) Charles V, King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor, is reported to have said, "I speak Spanish to God, Italian to women, French to men, and German to my horse." One wonders how he would have completed, "and Yiddish to..." Yiddish, a language full of wit and charm, embodies a deep appreciation of human behavior in all its colorful manifestations. This week we'll look at a few Yiddishisms that have enriched the English language. Add these words from Yiddish to bring a little zest to your conversation. schmeer or schmear or shmear or shmeer (shmeer) noun: 1. The entire set (as in, "the whole schmeer"). 2. Bribe or flattery. 3. Spread or paste. verb tr: To butter up: to flatter or bribe. [From Yiddish schmirn (to smear, grease, or flatter), from Middle High German smiren. Earliest recorded use: 1930.] Notes: Literally speaking, to schmeer is to smear, cream cheese on a bagel, for example. The term is also used in many metaphorical senses: to flatter or bribe someone. Many languages have similar terms. In English we have: "to grease someone's palm" (to bribe) and "to butter someone up" (to flatter). There's another metaphorical sense in English that makes use of schmeer's cousin, smear, as in "to smear someone's reputation". "All three of the women sharing the bill have extensive TV experience -- HBO and Comedy Central specials, Letterman, Leno, the whole shmear." James Sullivan; We Are Women, Hear Us Roar; The San Francisco Chronicle; Oct 17, 2002. "Creswell's attorney, Michael Axelrad, said jurors indicated to him that this schmeer tactic did not swing their decision." Al Lewis; Starbucks, Pepsi Win With Ponzi Allegation; Dow Jones News Service (New York); Aug 14, 2009. -------- Date: Tue Nov 23 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--noodge X-Bonus: The institution of royalty in any form is an insult to the human race. -Mark Twain, author and humorist (1835-1910) This week's theme: Words from Yiddish noodge or nudzh or nudge (nooj) verb tr.: To pester; to nag. verb intr.: To whine. noun: One who pesters and annoys with persistent complaining. [From Yiddish nudyen (to pester, bore), from Polish nudzic. The word developed a variant spelling 'nudge' under the influence of the English word 'nudge'. A cousin of this word is nudnik (a boring pest) https://wordsmith.org/words/nudnik.html . First recorded use: 1960.] "My younger son wanted a dog as much as I didn't want one, and has wheedled and noodged me for a dog for about the past year." Neil Steinberg; Notice: This is Not a Column About a Dog; Chicago Sun-Times; Sep 5, 2010. "Rahm Emanuel is willing to be a relentless noodge to keep the herd moving in the right direction." David Brooks; The Soft Side; The New York Times; Oct 5, 2010. -------- Date: Wed Nov 24 00:01:04 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--shamus X-Bonus: You shall judge of a man by his foes as well as by his friends. -Joseph Conrad, novelist (1857-1924) This week's theme: Words from Yiddish shamus (SHAH-muhs, SHAY-) noun 1. A private detective. 2. A police officer. [Perhaps from Yiddish shames/shammes (sexton, a caretaker at a synagogue), from Hebrew shamash (servant). The spelling of the word has altered from the influence of the Celtic name Seamus (equivalent to James) as many police officers in the US at the time, especially in New York, were Irish. First recorded use: 1925.] "A private eye is expected to be whip-smart and tough as nails, but if the guy isn't likable, he's D.O.A. as a genre hero. So it's nice to note that Vlodek Elstrom, a shamus from a tumbledown town in northern Illinois has lost none of his initial appeal in its sequel." Marilyn Stasio; A Need for Noir; The New York Times; Jan 23, 2009. -------- Date: Thu Nov 25 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--golem X-Bonus: We are all tattooed in our cradles with the beliefs of our tribe; the record may seem superficial, but it is indelible. You cannot educate a man wholly out of the superstitious fears which were implanted in his imagination, no matter how utterly his reason may reject them. -Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr, poet, novelist, essayist, and physician (1809-1894) This week's theme: Words from Yiddish golem (GO-luhm, -lem) noun 1. An automaton. 2. A blockhead. [From Yiddish goylem, from Hebrew golem (shapeless mass). First recorded use: 1897.] Notes: In Jewish legend a golem was a human-like figure brought to life supernaturally. The most famous of these golem stories is of the golem of Prague, in which a 16th century rabbi created a golem to protect the Jews from anti-Semitic attacks. "I've created a golem that will continue to live, no matter what I do. Books get burnt and websites disappear, but my e-mail accounts continue to get spammed." Serge Debrebant; Berthold Metz: "I'm Trying To Become The World's Most-Spammed Person"; Financial Times (London, UK); Apr 17, 2010. -------- Date: Fri Nov 26 00:01:06 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--schmegeggy X-Bonus: We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done. -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, poet (1807-1882) This week's theme: Words from Yiddish schmegeggy or schmegegge (shmuh-GEG-ee) noun 1. A stupid person. 2. Nonsense. [Formed on the pattern of other Yiddish words starting with schm-, for example, schmuck. Also see meshuga: https://wordsmith.org/words/meshuga.html . First recorded use: 1964.] "Dr. Eric Kandel*: I was a schmegeggy. To think that each one of these complex mental structures had a single locale and that I could find them in six months was absurd. I learned to be more realistic." Claudia Kalb; Interview: Biology of the Mind; Newsweek (New York); Mar 27, 2006. * 2000 Nobel Prize in physiology / medicine "What did you have to do with it? Your parents were Mormon. What kind of schmegeggy is this?" Jess Stearn; Soulmates; Bantam; 1984. -------- Date: Mon Nov 29 00:01:06 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--sforzando X-Bonus: In the silence of night I have often wished for just a few words of love from one man, rather than the applause of thousands of people. -Judy Garland, actress and singer (1922-1969) Is "czol" an English word? If you are a typical English speaker, chances are you haven't met every single word in the language, yet you may be able to tell with near certainty whether or not it's an English word.* How's that possible? Growing up with a language, we unconsciously learn patterns that occur in words. Any unusual combination of letters in a word we come across, such as the first two consonants in czol, stick out like a penguin in the middle of the Serengeti. Yet some words that have long been part of the language do sport unusual letter combinations, and yes, they are borrowings from other languages: fjord https://wordsmith.org/words/fjord.html (Norwegian), cwm https://wordsmith.org/words/cwm.html (Welsh), llama (Quechua), and tsunami (Japanese), to name a few. This week we'll feature five such examples -- words that have unusual initial consonants. * Someone has, in fact, checked out every single word in the 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary and survived to write a book http://amazon.com/o/asin/0399533982/ws00-20 about it. sforzando (sfort-SAHN-do) adjective, adverb: With sudden force or strong accent (used as a musical direction). noun: A note or group of notes with strong emphasis. [From Italian sforzare (to force), from Latin fortis (strong). Ultimately from the Indo-European root bhergh- (high), which is also the source of iceberg, belfry, borough, burg, burglar, bourgeois, fortify, and force. First recorded use: 1801.] "Establishing a driving rhythm with the barking of sforzando strings, the piece remained complex, teetering between moments of brooding and violent bursts." Penderecki Thrills Beijing; Global Times (Beijing, China); Oct 17, 2010. -------- Date: Tue Nov 30 00:01:05 EST 2010 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--kvetch X-Bonus: Elitism is the slur directed at merit by mediocrity. -Sydney J. Harris, journalist (1917-1986) This week's theme: Words with unusual initial consonants kvetch (kvech) verb intr. To complain habitually, whine; gripe. noun 1. A chronic complainer. 2. A complaint. [From Yiddish kvetshn (squeeze, pinch, complain), from Middle High German quetschen (to squeeze). First recorded use: 1964.] "Perhaps one should emphasize here that V.S. Naipaul has gone out of his way, from time to time and far beyond the call of duty, to burnish his reputation as a cantankerous curmudgeon -- truly the Evelyn Waugh of our age, right down to his squirearchal residence in the west of England -- or even as a bigoted old barroom kvetch. Not long ago Naipaul anathematized Tony Blair as a 'pirate' at the head of 'a socialist revolution'." Geoffrey Wheatcroft; A Terrifying Honesty; The Atlantic Monthly (Boston); Feb 2002.