A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Tue Jul 1 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pogonotomy X-Bonus: It is almost impossible to carry the torch of truth through a crowd without singeing somebody's beard. -Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, scientist and philosopher (1 Jul 1742-1799) This week's theme: Unusual antonyms pogonotomy (po-guh-NAH-tuh-mee) noun The cutting of a beard; shaving. [From Greek pogon (beard) + -tomy (cutting). Earliest documented use: 1896.] NOTES: Why simply "shave" when you can announce you're off to perform a pogonotomy? Using this word adds a certain gravity to your morning routine. The opposite is pogonotrophy, the growing of a beard. https://wordsmith.org/words/pogonotrophy.html Mugshots of Amish men who were found guilty of forced pogonotomy https://wordsmith.org/words/images/pogonotomy_large.jpg Read more: BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-21389094 Photo: Jefferson County Ohio Sheriff's Office "[Rimsky-Korsakov] wore a professorial beard, led a dignified life, was a good family man, ... In the total absence of filmable amours and licentious behavior in Rimsky-Korsakov's disconcertingly placid life, the caliphs of Baghdad-on-the-Hollywood-Hills, eager to make use of his technicolor music, performed a pogonotomy on his chin and, dipping a greasy hand into a barrel of schmaltz, came up with a spectacular movie version of the Russian master's life." Nicolas Slonimsky; The Listener's Companion; Schirmer Trade Books; 2012. -------- Date: Wed Jul 2 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--agnoiology X-Bonus: A man who is 'ill-adjusted' to the world is always on the verge of finding himself. One who is adjusted to the world never finds himself, but gets to be a cabinet minister. -Hermann Hesse, novelist, poet, Nobel laureate (2 Jul 1877-1962) This week's theme: Unusual antonyms agnoiology (ag-noi-OL-uh-jee) noun The study of ignorance or the investigation of the unknowable. [From Greek a- (not) + gnosis (knowledge). Earliest documented use: 1854.] NOTES: For those who prefer knowing that they don't know, agnoiology has got your back. The opposite is epistemology, the study of knowledge https://wordsmith.org/words/epistemology.html . Both were introduced to the English language by the philosopher James Frederick Ferrier, truly the first agnoiologist + epistemologist if there ever was one. Then there's agnotology, in a class of its own. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnotology "Our company can assist with your re-elections, senators, by using _artificial_ intelligence to create _actual_ ignorance." https://wordsmith.org/words/images/agnoiology_large.jpg Cartoon: Dan Piraro https://www.facebook.com/bizarrocomics/ "Let's say you have a degree in philematology [the study of kissing] and the guy interviewing you for a job to flip burgers doesn't know agnoiology from agnotology [the study of culturally-induced ignorance or doubt]. You may have existential angst." Samir Geepee; Awesome Cup; Notion Press; 2020. -------- Date: Thu Jul 3 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--iteroparous X-Bonus: In the struggle between yourself and the world, second the world. -Franz Kafka, novelist (3 Jul 1883-1924) This week's theme: Unusual antonyms iteroparous (IT-uh-ro-PAR-uhs) adjective Reproducing multiple times in one's lifetime. [From Latin iterum (again) + -parous (producing). Earliest documented use: 1954.] NOTES: The spirit of being iteroparous is saying, "That was fun, let's do it again!" (reproductively speaking). The opposite is semelparous: the one-and-done approach. https://wordsmith.org/words/semelparous.html https://wordsmith.org/words/images/iteroparous_large.jpg Illustration: Anu Garg + AI "'Based on the detection of ripe females across a broad range of total lengths (70-135mm) it seems likely that torrentfish are iteroparous and multiple spawning migrations are taking place,' wrote Warburton, Closs, and another researcher in a paper published earlier this month." Will Harvie; Enigmatic Torrentfish a Unique Native; Dominion Post (Wellington, New Zealand); Sep 27, 2021. "Man is supposed to be iteroparous. Maybe that's why sex becomes a bore after marriage. If sex was a one-time thing with fatal consequences, people might think twice before going forth and multiplying." Julya Oui; There Be Monsters; Buku Fixi; 2015. -------- Date: Fri Jul 4 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--melanism X-Bonus: Most institutions demand unqualified faith; but the institution of science makes skepticism a virtue. -Robert King Merton, sociologist (4 Jul 1910-2003) This week's theme: Unusual antonyms melanism (MEL-uh-niz-uhm) noun An inherited overproduction of melanin leading to unusually dark coloration. [From Greek melano- (black). Earliest documented use: 1842.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/melanism NOTES: Melanism is nature's "dark mode". The opposite of albinism ("light mode"). Iconic examples: black panthers, melanistic jaguars, and peppered moths that went goth during the Industrial Revolution. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peppered_moth#Evolution Melanistic and typically colored jaguars https://wordsmith.org/words/images/melanism_large.jpg Photo: Eduardo Estrada, Wildlife & Conservation Photography / Wikimedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melanism#/media/File:Melanism_in_Panthera_Onca.jpg "The most obvious explanation is that melanism provides better camouflage in the stygian depths of North America's woodlands. Alternatively, female wolves may simply prefer their males tall, dark and handsome." Match and Mix; The Economist (London, UK); Oct 3, 2020. https://wordsmith.org/words/stygian.html -------- Date: Mon Jul 7 00:01:03 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fulvous X-Bonus: I began to sense faintly that secrecy is the keystone of all tyranny. Not force, but secrecy ... censorship. When any government, or any church for that matter, undertakes to say to its subjects, "This you may not read, this you must not see, this you are forbidden to know," the end result is tyranny and oppression, no matter how holy the motives. Mighty little force is needed to control a man whose mind has been hoodwinked; contrariwise, no amount of force can control a free man, a man whose mind is free. No, not the rack, not fission bombs, not anything -- you can't conquer a free man; the most you can do is kill him. -Robert A. Heinlein, science-fiction author (7 Jul 1907-1988) Last year, during what he called "Freedom Summer", Florida Governor Ron DeSantis banned colors -- all but red, white, and blue -- he didn't find suitable to light up bridges at night. WashPost https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/05/21/florida-bridges-rainbow-lights-pride/ Permalink https://archive.is/tlsUr Because nothing says freedom like policing your palette, your menu https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/06/opinion/ron-desantis-cultured-meat.html and your reading list https://abcnews.go.com/US/desantis-scales-back-book-ban-law-amid-spike/story?id=109386578 . Here at Wordsmith.org we celebrate all colors. We're not afraid of any colors. In fact, this week we'll feature five words related to colors he likely does not approve of. Share your favorite tint, shade, or neon dream on our website https://wordsmith.org/words/fulvous.html or drop us a technicolor line at words@wordsmith.org. Include your location (city, state). fulvous (FUHL-vuhs) adjective Tawny; brownish-yellow or orange. [From Latin fulvus, from flavus (yellow). Earliest documented use: 1664.] Fulvous shrike-tanager https://wordsmith.org/words/images/fulvous_large.jpg Photo: Hector Bottai / Wikimedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulvous_shrike-tanager#/media/File:Lanio_fulvus_-_Fulvous_Shrike-Tanager_(male);_Botanic_Garden,_Manaus,_Amazonas,_Brazil.jpg "The woman with outstretched arms, looking out on the sun as it rises or sets over a fulvous hillside." Jason Farago; Terrains That Tap Into the Inner Self; The New York Times; Feb 7, 2025. -------- Date: Tue Jul 8 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--festucine X-Bonus: Anyone entrusted with power will abuse it if not also animated with the love of truth and virtue, no matter whether he be a prince, or one of the people. -Jean de la Fontaine, poet and fabulist (8 Jul 1621-1695) This week's theme: Words related to colors festucine (FES-tyuh-syn/seen) adjective Of a pale yellow or straw-like color. [From Latin festuca (stalk, straw). Earliest documented use: 1646.] A festucine horse: Belarusian folk art https://wordsmith.org/words/images/festucine_large.jpg Photo: Wikimedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Belarusian_folk_art_-_Horse_made_of_straw_-_XIXth_cent_-_Museum_of_Belarusian_Folk_Art.jpg "The growing tailings pond ... glittered festucine yellow in the morning light." Malcolm Crawford; Sheila's Tree; iUniverse; 2004. -------- Date: Wed Jul 9 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--spadiceous X-Bonus: As a child I was taught that to tell the truth was often painful. As an adult I have learned that not to tell the truth is more painful, and that the fear of telling the truth -- whatever the truth may be -- that fear is the most painful sensation of a moral life. -June Jordan, writer, teacher, and activist (9 Jul 1936-2002) This week's theme: Words related to colors spadiceous (spay/spuh-DISH-uhs) adjective 1. Of a reddish-brown color. 2. Relating to a spadix, the floral spike usually enclosed in a spathe. [From Latin spadix (a torn-off palm branch and its fruit), from Greek spadix (a torn-off frond). Earliest documented use: 1646.] A white anthurium with spadices in the center https://wordsmith.org/words/images/spadiceous_large.jpg Photo: Ramesh NG https://flickr.com/photos/rameshng/5716816878/ "Home, we find one of our own mentionable birds ... weaving inflatable migrating spadiceous chiffons." Morgan Benson; The Mating Rituals of the Burning Giraffe; Xlibris; 2010. -------- Date: Thu Jul 10 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--verdazurine X-Bonus: We are healed of a suffering only by expressing it to the full. -Marcel Proust, novelist (10 Jul 1871-1922) This week's theme: Words related to colors verdazurine (vuhrd-AZH-uh-reen) adjective Bluish-green; sea-green. [From Italian verdazzurro (sea-green), from verde (green) + azzurro (blue). Earliest documented use: 1681.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/verdazurine_large.jpg Photo: Tiket2 / Wikimedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asia-tropical-island-exotic-paradise-turquoise-ocean-sea-empty-holidays-tiket2.jpg "The water turns verdazurine this time of year." Peter Geye; A Lesser Light; University of Minnesota Press; 2025. -------- Date: Fri Jul 11 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--versicolored X-Bonus: I hold one share in the corporate earth and am uneasy about the management. -E.B. White, writer (11 Jul 1899-1985) This week's theme: Words related to colors versicolored (VUHR-si-kuhl-uhrd) adjective 1. Having many colors; variegated. 2. Having a color that changes in appearance; iridescent. [From Latin vertere (to turn) + color. Earliest documented use: 1721.] Versicolored Barbet https://wordsmith.org/words/images/versicolored_large.jpg Photo: Joao Quental https://www.flickr.com/photos/jquental/14543039680/ "Adjacent to the breakfront, a smaller bookcase contained a veritable farrago of versicolored origami." John J. Klingerman; The Voice of the Sphinx; Covenant Books; 2021. -------- Date: Mon Jul 14 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Adam and Eve X-Bonus: Literature encourages tolerance -- bigots and fanatics seldom have any use for the arts, because they're so preoccupied with their beliefs and actions that they can't see them also as possibilities. -Northrop Frye, writer and critic (14 Jul 1912-1991) Last month, when I featured a week of kings who became words https://wordsmith.org/words/nero.html one of those was Herod https://wordsmith.org/words/herod.html . I had mentioned that the Massacre of the Innocents is generally considered apocryphal. A reader challenged me with Matthew 2:16. When I pointed out historians’ skepticism, he quickly admitted some Biblical tales may be more allegory than fact. I've read the Bible and I was struck by how many vivid idioms have seeped into English. This week, we’ll unpack five of them. Adam and Eve (AD-uhm uhn/uhnd EEV) noun 1. A beginning. 2. A set of ancestors or founders. [After the first humans in the Biblical account. Earliest documented use: 1789.] Also see: adamite https://wordsmith.org/words/adamite.html Adam's ale https://wordsmith.org/words/adams_ale.html "Adam and Eve", (between 1597 & 1600) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/adam_and_eve_large.jpg Art: Peter Paul Rubens https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rubens_Painting_Adam_Eve.jpg "If we grant that the Adam and Eve of American poetry, Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, invented the modern poetic sequence ... then it seems natural that every American poet since has at least attempted a long poem to contend with and extend the work of their progenitors." Jeffrey Skinner; Writing the Poetic Sequence; The Writer (Manchester, UK); Feb 1994. -------- Date: Tue Jul 15 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--mess of pottage X-Bonus: I daresay anything can be made holy by being sincerely worshipped. -Iris Murdoch, writer (15 Jul 1919-1999) This week's theme: Biblical idioms mess of pottage (MES uhv POT-ij) noun Something trivial accepted in return for something of great value, especially when done for immediate gratification. [From mess (dish), from Latin missum (sent to a table), past participle of mittere (to send) + pottage (a thick soup, literally something in/from a pot). Earliest documented use: 1330.] NOTES: The biblical story told in Genesis 25:29-34 involves twin brothers Esau and Jacob, though Esau popped out first and thus has the birthright (the rights of the firstborn son). One day Jacob is cooking some stew. Esau returns from the fields hungry and asks Jacob for some stew. Jacob asks for Esau's birthright in return. What good is the birthright if I die hungry, Esau reasons, and agrees to it. A stew-pid bargain? Fun fact: The word porridge is an alteration of pottage. "Esau and the Mess of Pottage", 1653 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/mess_of_pottage_large.jpg Art: Jan Victors https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Victors_Esau_and_the_mess_of_pottage.jpg See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/mess%20of%20pottage "'I think he has sold his soul for a mess of pottage.' -Democratic Congressman John Lewis on reports that Zell Miller, a conservative Democratic senator from Georgia, will speak at the Republican convention." United States: On the Trail; The Economist (London, UK); Jul 3, 2004. -------- Date: Wed Jul 16 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--salt of the earth X-Bonus: Every student needs someone who says, simply, "You mean something. You count." -Tony Kushner, playwright (b. 16 Jul 1956) This week's theme: Biblical idioms salt of the earth (SALT uhv thuh UHRTH) noun A person or group considered to be among the finest of humanity. [From salt, from Old English sealt + earth, from Old English eorthe. Earliest documented use: 1386.] NOTES: In Matthew 5:13 Jesus gives the Sermon on the Mount and calls good, moral people the salt of the earth. What's so special about salt? Ask someone who has to dine on food without salt. Or a marathoner running low on electrolytes. Or someone needing to preserve food for a long winter or sea voyage prior to the invention of refrigeration. Roman soldiers got a special allowance for salt. That's where we got the word salary, from Latin sal (salt). It's a myth that they were actually paid in salt. "Salt of the Earth", 1954 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/salt_of_the_earth_large.jpg Poster: Independent Productions / Wikimedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_of_the_Earth_(1954_film) "Jones's thesis is that British writers, after centuries of patronizing working-class people as 'the salt of the earth', now depict them only as hooligans, if they write about them at all." Deborah Friedell; Blighty; The New Yorker; Sep 12, 2011. -------- Date: Thu Jul 17 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--writing on the wall X-Bonus: There are stars whose radiance is visible on Earth though they have long been extinct. There are people whose brilliance continues to light the world though they are no longer among the living. These lights are particularly bright when the night is dark. They light the way for humankind. -Hannah Senesh, poet, playwright, and paratrooper (17 Jul 1921-1944) This week's theme: Biblical idioms writing on the wall (RY-ting ahn thuh WAWL) noun A clear sign of impending decline or disaster. [From write, from Old English writan + wall, from Old English weall, from Latin vallum (rampart), from vallus (stake). Earliest documented use: 1663.] NOTES: In the Biblical story told in Daniel 5, the haughty King Belshazzar throws a big party. While everyone is feasting, a disembodied hand appears and writes a warning on the wall. The term is also used in the form handwriting on the wall. The moral of the story: At a party, read the room. Also, read the doom. "Belshazzar's feast (Daniel 5:5)", 1636 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/writing_on_the_wall_large.jpg Art: Rembrandt https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Belshazzar%E2%80%99s_feast,_by_Rembrandt.jpg "My mother, her sister, and parents arrived in 1934 from Germany; my grandmother saw the writing on the wall early. Nobody else in her family was persuaded that Hitler's rise was not a temporary aberration, and they stayed behind." Liora Moriel; The New Revisioning; The Jerusalem Report (Israel); Jun 26, 2023. -------- Date: Fri Jul 18 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--feet of clay X-Bonus: A man who takes away another man's freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. -Nelson Mandela, activist, South African president, Nobel laureate (18 Jul 1918-2013) This week's theme: Biblical idioms feet of clay (FEET ov KLAY) noun A hidden weakness or flaw in someone otherwise strong and admired. [From Old English fot (foot) + claeg (clay). Earliest documented use: 1814.] NOTES: In the Biblical story narrated in Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream in which he sees a huge statue. Its head is gold, chest and arms silver, belly and thighs bronze, legs iron, and feet partly iron and partly clay. Daniel interprets the dream as signifying the weakness of the kingdom. See also: Achilles’ heel https://wordsmith.org/words/achilles_heel.html . https://wordsmith.org/words/images/feet_of_clay_large.jpg Illustration: Anu Garg + AI "We're used to learning our heroes have feet of clay, that they dope or drive drunk or cheat on their spouses." Charlie Gillis; Liar, Liar, Lance on Fire; Maclean's (Toronto, Canada); Nov 28, 2012. -------- Date: Mon Jul 21 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--lase X-Bonus: The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice. Ironically, their virtues make them vulnerable; they are often wounded, sometimes destroyed. -Ernest Hemingway, author and journalist, Nobel laureate (21 Jul 1899-1961) A maker makes, a taker takes, and a shaker shakes. Simple enough. In each case, the verb came first and then we formed a noun by adding a suffix. It's very common in the English language: nouns formed by adding an -er or -r. Sometimes it's the reverse. We take a noun and remove a part of it to make a verb. This process is called back-formation: forming of words by removing a supposed suffix. In reality, there was no suffix. The word laser is an acronym. Some purists grumble about extending words in this way, whether by back-formation or other linguistic gymnastics. They might insist on saying "targeted by a laser beam" when we can simply say "lased". Short and to the point. Of course, another option is to take the noun and just verb it as is, like lasered. But why, when the snappier back-formation lased does the job? This week we'll see five words coined by the process of back-formation. lase (layz) verb tr.: To expose or process with a laser (e.g. to target an object or cut a material). verb intr.: To give off coherent light. [Back-formation from laser, an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Earliest documented use: 1962.] Lasing the Milky Way, Paranal Observatory, Chile https://wordsmith.org/words/images/lase_large.jpg Photo: Yuri Beletsky / ESO https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Laser_Towards_Milky_Ways_Centre.jpg "Additionally, a pilot vessel was lased as it was on its way back to the pilot launch." Coast Guard Warns of Laser Strikes on Ships in Bay; Capital (Annapolis, Maryland); May 5, 2017. "We managed to lase deer-sized targets consistently out to only about 400 yards." Andrew McKean; Range Masters; Outdoor Life (Miami, Florida); Oct 2017. -------- Date: Tue Jul 22 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ablute X-Bonus: Give me your tired, your poor, / Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, / The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. / Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, / I lift my lamp beside the golden door! -Emma Lazarus, poet and playwright (22 Jul 1849-1887) [from a poem written to raise funds for building the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty] This week's theme: Back-formations ablute (uh-BLOOT) verb tr., intr. To bathe or to wash a part of the body. [Back-formation from ablution, from Latin abluere (to wash off), from ab- (away, off) and lavere (to wash). Earliest documented use: 1703.] "A Woman Bathing in a Stream", c. 1654 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/ablute_large.jpg Art: Rembrandt https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Woman_Bathing_in_a_Stream "Some secondary schools have installed cameras in student toilet blocks in order to discourage vaping. This seems like a pretty drastic step and one that raises serious issues as to the right to ablute in private." Susan Hornsby-Geluk; Cameras in Toilets Risk Impinging the Right to Ablute in Private; The Post (Wellington, New Zealand); Oct 18, 2023. -------- Date: Wed Jul 23 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--insurrect X-Bonus: Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted, the indifference of those who should have known better, the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most, that has made it possible for evil to triumph. -Haile Selassie, Emperor of Ethiopia (23 Jul 1892-1975) This week's theme: Back-formations insurrect (in-suh-REKT) verb intr. To rise in revolt against a government or other authority. [Back-formation from insurrection, from Latin insurgere (to rise up), from in- (intensive prefix) + surgere (to rise). Earliest documented use: 1694.] "A Scene from the January Uprising [of 1863]", 1876 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/insurrect_large.jpg Art: Tadeusz Ajdukiewicz https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tadeusz_Ajdukiewicz,_sc%C3%A8ne_de_l%27insurrection_de_1863.jpg "He mentioned news of a recent slave insurrection somewhere in Virginia. 'Oh Papa, What could I do if they decided to insurrect?'" Lois Glass Webb; The Judge's Daughter; AuthorHouse; 2004. -------- Date: Thu Jul 24 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--incent X-Bonus: Only the stupid steal from the rich. The clever steal from the poor. The law usually protects the rich. -Carsten Jensen, author (b. 24 Jul 1952) This week's theme: Back-formations incent (in-SENT) verb tr. To provide a reward or benefit to induce action. [Back-formation from incentive, from incinere (to strike a tune), from in- (intensive prefix) + canere (to sing). Earliest documented use: 1844.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/incent_large.jpg Photo: ntenny https://www.flickr.com/photos/ntenny/2956072015 "You have households that don't want to borrow, that can't be incented to borrow because rates can't be pushed much lower." Not So Broken; The Economist (London, UK); Oct 4, 2012. -------- Date: Fri Jul 25 00:01:01 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--tase X-Bonus: The less justified a man is in claiming excellence for his own self, the more ready he is to claim all excellence for his nation, his religion, his race, or his holy cause. A man is likely to mind his own business when it is worth minding. When it is not, he takes his mind off his own meaningless affairs by minding other people's business. -Eric Hoffer, philosopher and author (25 Jul 1902-1983) This week's theme: Back-formations tase (tayz) verb tr. To incapacitate or subdue by delivering an electric shock using a stun gun. [Back-formation from Taser, a trademark for a stun gun. It was invented by Jack Cover and named TSER, for "Tom Swift's Electric Rifle", inspired by the novel "Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle" (1911). Earliest documented use: 1991.] "Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle", 1911 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/tase_large.jpg Cover: Grosset & Dunlap / Wikimedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TomSwift10.jpg "We cannot forget that this is the province where police went into a school and tased a 12-year-old girl, where school officials called the police on a four-year-old boy or where police handcuffed a six-year-old girl." Kearie Daniel; Police Won't Make Every Student Feel Safer; Toronto Star (Canada); Jun 29, 2025. -------- Date: Mon Jul 28 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vicissitude X-Bonus: We are social creatures to the inmost centre of our being. The notion that one can begin anything at all from scratch, free from the past, or unindebted to others, could not conceivably be more wrong. -Karl Popper, philosopher and professor (28 Jul 1902-1994) What makes a good word? All of them, really. Even the obscure ones, like fulvous. https://wordsmith.org/words/fulvous.html You may not use it every day, but it’s out there, shading feathers and foxes alike. Still, we get it. Sometimes you want words with a bit more mileage. Words that show up in GRE prep books, office reports, or that sternly worded email from corporate. Words like precarious https://wordsmith.org/words/precarious.html , flagrant https://wordsmith.org/words/flagrant.html , and factious https://wordsmith.org/words/factious.html . We hear you. So this week we'll feature words that are not just good, but gainfully employed, words that earn their keep by showing up for duty daily -- to the extent that two of them can be found in each usage example. vicissitude (vi-SIS-i-tood/tyood) noun A change in circumstances, typically one that is unwelcome. [From Latin vicis (turn, change). Ultimately from the Indo-European root weik- (to bend or wind), which also gave us weak, week, wicket, wicker, vicarious, and vicar. Earliest documented use: 1576.] NOTES: The word is often used in the plural, vicissitudes, for the ups and downs of life. As these things go, when the word is used, usually it's more downs than ups. When you hear a friend mention vicissitudes of their life, chances are it’s a layoff at work, a heartbreak, or that mysterious lump on an X-ray. Not their trip to Disneyland. A roller coaster ride doesn't count as vicissitudes. "Vicissitudes" https://wordsmith.org/words/images/vicissitude_large.jpg Sculpture: Jason Taylor http://www.underwatersculpture.com/ See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/vicissitude "Like every Sendak story, 'Where the Wild Things Are' explores his preoccupations, chief among which are the vicissitudes of his own childhood, and the temerity and fragility of children in general." Cynthia Zarin; Not Nice; The New Yorker; Apr 17, 2006. -------- Date: Tue Jul 29 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--trenchant X-Bonus: If only I may grow: firmer, simpler, -- quieter, warmer. -Dag Hammarskjold, Secretary General of the United Nations, Nobel laureate (29 Jul 1905-1961) This week's theme: Misc words trenchant (TREN-chuhnt) adjective Incisive and forceful. [From Old French trenchant (cutting), from present participle of trenchier (to cut), from Latin truncare (to cut), from truncus (trunk, as in a severed tree). Ultimately from the Indo-European root terə- (to cross over or overcome), which also gave us tranche, trench, truncate, trunk, truculent https://wordsmith.org/words/truculent.html , and trencherman (a hearty eater) https://wordsmith.org/words/trencherman.html . Earliest documented use: 1325.] HMS "Trenchant" (Royal Navy submarine) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/trenchant_large.jpg Photo: Zachary Wickline / US Navy / Wikimedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Navy_Trafalgar-class_submarine_HMS_Trenchant_(S91).jpg See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/trenchant "The international image of Mr. Sharon -- at first perceived as a stalwart warrior but later as a trenchant enemy of peace -- has closely mirrored these vicissitudes." Michael B. Oren; The End of the Beginning; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Jan 6, 2006. -------- Date: Wed Jul 30 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--untrammeled X-Bonus: The man who is denied the opportunity of taking decisions of importance begins to regard as important the decisions he is allowed to take. -C. Northcote Parkinson, author and historian (30 Jul 1909-1993) This week's theme: Misc words untrammeled or untrammelled (uhn-TRAM-uhld) adjective Not limited or restricted. [From un- (not) + trammel (a restriction or hindrance) https://wordsmith.org/words/trammel.html , from Old French tramail, from Latin tremaculum (a three-layered fishing net), from tres (three) + macula (mesh). Ultimately from the Indo-European root trei- (three), which also gave us three, testify (to be the third person: to bear witness), and triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13) https://wordsmith.org/words/triskaidekaphobia.html . Earliest documented use: 1795.] NOTES: Originally, a trammel referred to a clever (and for fish, quite diabolical!) fishing net with three layers: the outer ones with wide mesh, the inner with finer mesh. A fish would swim through the large holes, only to be trapped in the inner web. A real net-work of trouble. untrammeled https://wordsmith.org/words/images/untrammeled_large.jpg Image: Hendi Wang / Freepik https://www.freepik.com/premium-vector/design-vector-fish-sea-coloring-page-kid-outline_29352346.htm trammeled https://wordsmith.org/words/images/trammeled_large.jpg Image: Lindsay G. Thompson / Wikimedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FMIB_36608_Trammel_Net_2.jpg See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/untrammeled "The decision ... to look into the banks' failure to pass on the benefits of interest rate cuts has not been met with untrammelled joy by the investment community. AIB-owned Goodbody Stockbrokers was particularly trenchant in its criticism." FSRA's Interest Not Welcomed by Banks; Irish Times (Dublin); Jul 11, 2003. -------- Date: Thu Jul 31 00:01:02 EDT 2025 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--pillory X-Bonus: Trust is the first step to love. -Premchand, novelist and poet (31 Jul 1880-1936) This week's theme: Misc words pillory (PIL-uh-ree) verb tr.: To subject to severe public criticism or ridicule. noun: A device used in the past to publicly punish offenders by locking their head and hands in place. [From Old French pilori, probably from Latin pila (pillar). Earliest documented use: 1330.] NOTES: Being trapped in the pillory left a person defenseless to passersby's jeers. And overripe tomatoes. The crime could be anything from being guilty of perjury to just bad poetry. The pillory is now history, but its spirit lives on in online comments and certain cable news panels. https://wordsmith.org/words/images/pillory_large.jpg Image: From "The New Eclectic History of the United States", 1890 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_new_eclectic_history_of_the_United_States_(1890)_(14769275962).jpg See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/pillory "Wen Jiabao, China's premier, told a less-than-ebullient audience in Davos -- once a Mecca to the ideas of untrammelled capitalism -- about the west's 'unsustainable model of development characterised by prolonged low savings and high consumption'. He pilloried western banks, chunks of whose near-worthless stock are now owned by Chinese state institutions." Ralph Atkins & David Pilling; A Quest for Other Ways; Financial Times (London, UK); Mar 16, 2009.