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A.Word.A.Day--eisegesis

eisegesis (eye-si-JEE-sis) noun, plural eisegeses (-seez)

An interpretation, especially of Scripture, that expresses the interpreter's own ideas, bias, or the like, rather than the meaning of the text.

[From Greek eisegesis, equivalent to eis- into + (h)ege- (stem of hegeisthai to lead) + -sis.]

"It should be noted that the Tenth Amendment does not say that powers not explicitly delegated to the United States are reserved to the states, even though the Supreme Court, in a startling example of eisegesis, once read the word explicitly into the text of the Tenth Amendment. John A. Rohr, Public administration and comparative constitutionalism, Public Administration Review, Jul 8, 1997.

This week's theme: words about words.

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