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Feb 6, 2020
This week’s themeWell-traveled words This week’s words Moloch bezoar cavalcade saber-rattling calash 
“Words are the small change of thought.” ~Jules RenardSend some to friends & family 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Gargsaber-rattling or sabre-rattling
PRONUNCIATION:
(SAY-buhr-rat-ling)
MEANING:
noun: Threatening words or action, for example, in the form of a flamboyant display of military power.
ETYMOLOGY:
From saber/sabre (a heavy cavalry sword with a curved blade), from French
sabre, from German dialect Sabel (now Säbel),
from Hungarian szablya + rattle (to make a quick succession of
sharp noises), probably ultimately of imitative origin. Earliest documented
use: 1922.
USAGE:
“Word just came down that something is heating up between Egypt and Israel.
Probably only a bunch of saber-rattling, but it could turn serious.” Kim Barnes; In the Kingdom of Men; Knopf; 2012. See more usage examples of saber-rattling in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
There's a schizoid quality to our relationship with animals, in which
sentiment and brutality exist side by side. Half the dogs in America will
receive Christmas presents this year, yet few of us pause to consider the
miserable life of the pig -- an animal easily as intelligent as a dog --
that becomes the Christmas ham. -Michael Pollan, professor and writer (b. 6
Feb 1955)
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