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Aug 16, 2021
This week’s themeShoes This week’s words brogue revamp clever clogs shoestring bauchle 
Lady Guinevere And The Rogue With A Brogue
Image: Amazon Previous week’s theme Words that look one part of speech but are other 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargThe cartoonist and author Mimi Pond once said, “What becomes of the broken-hearted? They buy shoes.” True? Only women, or men as well? The popular notion about women and shoes may or may not be true, but shoes have helped them majorly, more than once. Cinderella’s glass slippers reunited her with her beau. Dorothy’s silver shoes flew her around. No wonder many love shoes, some a little more than others. Some even have an obsession with the shoe, but here we are more interested in their place in the language. This week we’ll look at five terms related to shoes that also have developed figurative meanings. Do you have a shoe addiction? Do you consider yourself a sneakerhead? Do you have a personal story involving shoes, addiction or not? Share it below or email us at words@wordsmith.org. brogue
PRONUNCIATION:
(brohg)
MEANING:
noun: 1. A sturdy shoe typically with ornamental perforations and a wing tip. 2. A heavy shoe of untanned leather. 3. A strong accent, especially Irish or Scottish when speaking English. ETYMOLOGY:
From Irish and Scottish Gaelic brog (shoe). The accent sense of the word
apparently arose from this kind of shoes worn by the speakers. Earliest
documented use: 1587.
USAGE:
“Eggsy is being fitted for dress shoes -- and learning the difference
between oxfords and brogues.” Michael O’Sullivan; Bespoke and Swagger; The Washington Post; Feb 13, 2015. “Slightly built, with glasses, Tomm Moore speaks in a brogue that gives the word ‘film’ two syllables.” Rebecca Keegan; Artist Tomm Moore Is ‘Living the Dream’; Los Angeles Times; Jan 9, 2015. See more usage examples of brogue in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
I'm not at all contemptuous of comforts, but they have their place and it
is not first. -E.F. Schumacher, economist and author (16 Aug 1911-1977)
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