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Apr 18, 2022
This week’s themeThere’s a verb form for it This week’s words travest anathematize immiserate betrump manuscribe Previous week’s theme Eponyms 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargTwo children from the same parent, one goes on to become a household name, the other remains obscure, a private citizen. Happens in the movies, happens in real life too. Beethoven had a brother, Kaspar, also a composer, but it’s probably the first time you have heard of him. (He had another brother named Johann, a pharmacist.) This happens with words too. You may have known the noun travesty for a long time. You may even have used it as a verb, but did you know it has some obscure siblings? Today’s verb travest is one example and it has a sister verb travestize, as well. This week we’ve lined up five such words, words that are rare verb forms of everyday nouns. What other nouns would you like to verbify? Share below or email us at words@wordsmith.org. As always, include your location (city, state). travest
PRONUNCIATION:
(TRA-vuhst)
MEANING:
verb tr.: To mock or to parody.
ETYMOLOGY:
From either French travestir or Italian travestire, from tra- (across),
from Latin trans- + vestire (to dress). Earliest documented use: 1656.
USAGE:
“The idea of Providence was very gaily travested by Daudet in ‘Tartarin
in the Alps’.” H.G. Wells; God the Invisible King; Cassell; 1917. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
The objector and the rebel who raises his voice against what he believes to
be the injustice of the present and the wrongs of the past is the one who
hunches the world along. -Clarence Darrow, lawyer and author (18 Apr
1857-1938)
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