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Feb 16, 2018
This week’s theme
People who became verbs

This week’s words
adonize
bogart
hooverize
molochize
napoleonize

napoleonize
Statue of Napoleon I in Cherbourg-Octeville, France
Photo: Eric Pouhier/Wikimedia

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Miscellaneous words
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A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

napoleonize

PRONUNCIATION:
(nuh-PO-Lee-uh-nyz)

MEANING:
verb tr.:
1. To occupy or govern in a domineering or aggressive manner.
2. To aggrandize oneself.

ETYMOLOGY:
After Napoléon Bonaparte (1769-1821), French general and emperor. Earliest documented use: 1822.

USAGE:
“Who does that Laura Walker think she is, showing up uninvited and Napoleonizing Lord Hugo’s attention like that?”
Katherine Kingsley; Once Upon a Dream; Dell; 1997.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
As against having beautiful workshops, studios, etc., one writes best in a cellar on a rainy day. -Van Wyck Brooks, writer, critic (16 Feb 1886-1963)

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