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with Anu Gargnettle
PRONUNCIATION:
(NET-l)
MEANING:
verb tr.:1. To irritate. 2. To sting. ETYMOLOGY:
The verb senses of the word are derived from the name of the plant, any of
the various plants of the genus Urtica whose leaves are covered with stinging
hairs. The word is ultimately from the Indo-European root ned- (to bind) that
is also the source of node, noose, annex, and connect. There's a British and
Australian idiom, grasp the nettle, meaning to tackle an unpleasant or
difficult task.
USAGE:
"My questions about the wisdom or otherwise of disbanding the Iraqi army
visibly nettled him [General David McKiernan]."Mark Urban; When Generals Become Unstuck; BBC News; May 12, 2009. See more usage examples of nettle in Vocabulary.com's dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
A man's library is a sort of harem. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (1803-1882)
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