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May 8, 2020
This week’s themeWords related to the hand This week’s words handfast repugnant backhanded ironfisted dead hand This week’s comments AWADmail 932 Next week’s theme There’s a word for it 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Gargdead hand
PRONUNCIATION:
(DED hand)
MEANING:
noun: 1. The stifling influence of something, especially of the past on the present. 2. The perpetual ownership of property by institutions, such as churches. ETYMOLOGY:
A literal translation of the term mortmain.
Earliest documented use: 1615.
USAGE:
“If the corona curves continue to crest, Covid-19 might expose as much
about the dead hand of capitalism (the corruption, the hubris, the greed)
as Chernobyl ever did about communism.” Ben Schott; Diary; The Spectator (London, UK); Apr 4, 2020. See more usage examples of dead hand in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry
about the answers. -Thomas Pynchon, novelist (b. 8 May 1937)
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