WORD OF THE DAY
slough \ SLUFF \ verb
Definition
1 : to cast off or become cast off
2 : to crumble slowly and fall away
3 : to get rid of or discard as irksome, objectionable, or disadvantageous
Examples
"The glue [that affixes the tiling to the hull] is exposed to a wide variety of environmental conditions, including big temperature swings as well as the pressures of operating at 1,000 feet beneath the surface. The friction of moving underwater tugs at the coating, and running into objects contributes to it gradually sloughing off."
— Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 7 Mar. 2017
"After Monday’s [landslide], the Department of Public Works cut down two trees on the hillside, removed a loose mass of dirt that was unstable and reopened the road. But a significant chunk of the hillside sloughed off in the wee hours of Wednesday morning, with a valley resident alerting people that it had closed as early as 12:30 a.m."
— Samantha Kimmey, Point Reyes Light (Marin County, California), 9 Mar. 2017
Did You Know?
There are two verbs spelled slough in English, as well as two nouns, and both sets have different pronunciations. The first noun, referring to a swamp or a discouraged state of mind, is pronounced to rhyme with either blue or cow; it derives from Old English slōh, which is akin to a Middle High German slouche, meaning "ditch." Its related verb, which can mean "to plod through mud," has the same pronunciation.
The second noun, pronounced to rhyme with cuff, refers to the shed skin of a snake (as well as anything else that has been cast off). Its related verb describes the action of shedding or eliminating something, just like a snake sheds its skin. This slough derives from Middle English slughe and is distantly related to slūch, a Middle High German word meaning "snakeskin."
Friday, April 28, 2017
Thursday, April 27, 2017
Junket
WORD OF THE DAY
junket \ JUNK-ut \ noun
Definition
1 : a dessert of sweetened flavored milk set with rennet
2 a : a festive social affair
2 b : trip, journey: such as (i) : a trip made by an official at public expense (ii) : a promotional trip made at another's expense
Examples
The [enter political figure of choice] is under fire for going on a weeklong lavish junket.
"When I was young, … our family often made junkets after church on Sunday, to Cook's, a massive arrangement of barns and sheds near New London. Purveyors of everything from household items to car parts, it … had such buyer appeal that it seemed to be swarming with shoppers every time we stopped in."
— The Litchfield (Minnesota) Independent Review, 9 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
The road junket has traveled has been a long one, with frequent stops for food along the way. Since at least the 15th century, the word has named various comestibles, ranging from curds and cream to sweet confections. By the 16th century, junket had also come to mean "banquet."
Apparently, traveling must have been involved to reach some junkets because eventually the term was also applied to pleasure outings or trips (whether or not food was the focus). Today, the word usually refers either to a trip made by a government official and paid for by the public, or to a free trip by a member of the press to a place where something, such as a new movie, is being promoted.
junket \ JUNK-ut \ noun
Definition
1 : a dessert of sweetened flavored milk set with rennet
2 a : a festive social affair
2 b : trip, journey: such as (i) : a trip made by an official at public expense (ii) : a promotional trip made at another's expense
Examples
The [enter political figure of choice] is under fire for going on a weeklong lavish junket.
"When I was young, … our family often made junkets after church on Sunday, to Cook's, a massive arrangement of barns and sheds near New London. Purveyors of everything from household items to car parts, it … had such buyer appeal that it seemed to be swarming with shoppers every time we stopped in."
— The Litchfield (Minnesota) Independent Review, 9 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
The road junket has traveled has been a long one, with frequent stops for food along the way. Since at least the 15th century, the word has named various comestibles, ranging from curds and cream to sweet confections. By the 16th century, junket had also come to mean "banquet."
Apparently, traveling must have been involved to reach some junkets because eventually the term was also applied to pleasure outings or trips (whether or not food was the focus). Today, the word usually refers either to a trip made by a government official and paid for by the public, or to a free trip by a member of the press to a place where something, such as a new movie, is being promoted.
Wednesday, April 26, 2017
Upbraid
WORD OF THE DAY
upbraid \ up-BRAYD \ verb
Definition
1a : to criticize severely
1b : find fault with
2a : to reproach severely
2b: scold vehemently
Examples
"A helpful neighbor was able to contact the owner in Dorset and upbraided her for having her house stand empty while a young couple could find no place to live."
— Kitty Ferguson, Stephen Hawking: An Unfettered Mind, 2012
"There was a steady stream of customers, mostly for takeout, and the experience was marred only by a guy we took to be the proprietor upbraiding one of his employees in front of the customers. Bad form, sir."
— Heidi Knapp Rinella, The Las Vegas Review-Journal, 1 Apr. 2016
Did You Know?
Upbraid, scold, and berate all mean to reproach angrily, but with slight differences in emphasis. Scold usually implies rebuking in irritation or ill temper, either justly or unjustly. Upbraid tends to suggest censuring on definite and usually justifiable grounds, while berate implies scolding that is prolonged and even abusive.
If you're looking for a more colorful term for telling someone off, try tongue-lash, bawl out, chew out, or wig—all of which are fairly close synonyms of berate.
Among these synonyms, upbraid is the senior member in English, being older than the others by at least 100 years. Upbraid derives via Middle English from the Old English ūpbregdan, believed to be formed from a prefix meaning "up" and the verb bregdan, meaning "to snatch" or "to move suddenly."
upbraid \ up-BRAYD \ verb
Definition
1a : to criticize severely
1b : find fault with
2a : to reproach severely
2b: scold vehemently
Examples
"A helpful neighbor was able to contact the owner in Dorset and upbraided her for having her house stand empty while a young couple could find no place to live."
— Kitty Ferguson, Stephen Hawking: An Unfettered Mind, 2012
"There was a steady stream of customers, mostly for takeout, and the experience was marred only by a guy we took to be the proprietor upbraiding one of his employees in front of the customers. Bad form, sir."
— Heidi Knapp Rinella, The Las Vegas Review-Journal, 1 Apr. 2016
Did You Know?
Upbraid, scold, and berate all mean to reproach angrily, but with slight differences in emphasis. Scold usually implies rebuking in irritation or ill temper, either justly or unjustly. Upbraid tends to suggest censuring on definite and usually justifiable grounds, while berate implies scolding that is prolonged and even abusive.
If you're looking for a more colorful term for telling someone off, try tongue-lash, bawl out, chew out, or wig—all of which are fairly close synonyms of berate.
Among these synonyms, upbraid is the senior member in English, being older than the others by at least 100 years. Upbraid derives via Middle English from the Old English ūpbregdan, believed to be formed from a prefix meaning "up" and the verb bregdan, meaning "to snatch" or "to move suddenly."
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
Hummock
WORD OF THE DAY
hummock \ HUM-uk \ noun
Definition
1 : a rounded knoll or hillock
2 : a ridge of ice
3 : a fertile area in the southern United States and especially Florida that is usually higher than its surroundings and that is characterized by hardwood vegetation and deep humus-rich soil
Examples
"Ah! I have penetrated to those meadows on the morning of many a first spring day, jumping from hummock to hummock, from willow root to willow root, when the wild river valley and the woods were bathed in so pure and bright a light as would have waked the dead, if they had been slumbering in their graves, as some suppose."
— Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854
"Relying on a surveying device … Reeder set about measuring minute elevation changes across the land, searching for subtle gradations and anomalies. He zeroed in on a hummock that looked like the earthen side of a bunker, long since overgrown with moss and foliage, and roughly 100 feet away, a telltale dip in the earth."
— Matthew Shaer, Smithsonian Magazine, March 2017
Did You Know?
Hummock first appeared in English in the mid-1500s as an alteration of hammock, another word which can be used for a small hill. This hammock is not related to the hammock we use to refer to a swinging bed made of netting or canvas.
That hammock comes from the Spanish hamaca, and ultimately from Taino, a language spoken by the original inhabitants of the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas. The origins of the other hammock and the related hummock are still obscure, though we know they share an ancestor with Middle Low German hummel ("small height") and hump ("bump").
The latter of those is also a cousin of the English word hump, another word which can refer to a small hill or hummock.
hummock \ HUM-uk \ noun
Definition
1 : a rounded knoll or hillock
2 : a ridge of ice
3 : a fertile area in the southern United States and especially Florida that is usually higher than its surroundings and that is characterized by hardwood vegetation and deep humus-rich soil
Examples
"Ah! I have penetrated to those meadows on the morning of many a first spring day, jumping from hummock to hummock, from willow root to willow root, when the wild river valley and the woods were bathed in so pure and bright a light as would have waked the dead, if they had been slumbering in their graves, as some suppose."
— Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854
"Relying on a surveying device … Reeder set about measuring minute elevation changes across the land, searching for subtle gradations and anomalies. He zeroed in on a hummock that looked like the earthen side of a bunker, long since overgrown with moss and foliage, and roughly 100 feet away, a telltale dip in the earth."
— Matthew Shaer, Smithsonian Magazine, March 2017
Did You Know?
Hummock first appeared in English in the mid-1500s as an alteration of hammock, another word which can be used for a small hill. This hammock is not related to the hammock we use to refer to a swinging bed made of netting or canvas.
That hammock comes from the Spanish hamaca, and ultimately from Taino, a language spoken by the original inhabitants of the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas. The origins of the other hammock and the related hummock are still obscure, though we know they share an ancestor with Middle Low German hummel ("small height") and hump ("bump").
The latter of those is also a cousin of the English word hump, another word which can refer to a small hill or hummock.
Monday, April 24, 2017
Ambiguous
WORD OF THE DAY
ambiguous \ am-BIG-yuh-wus \ adjective
Definition
1a : doubtful or uncertain especially from obscurity or indistinctness
1b : incapable of being explained, interpreted, or accounted for
1c : inexplicable
2 : capable of being understood in two or more possible senses or ways
Examples
"In the app, numbers and symbols are included by default, and ambiguous characters like the digit 0 and capital O are suppressed."
— Neil J. Rubenking, PCMag.com, 24 Feb. 2017
"The setting for this story is ambiguous—a girl and her mother leave one country for another to escape an unspecified conflict. The only clue given to the location is the vast ocean separating the two countries, which the refugees must travel by boat."
— Anna Fitzpatrick, The Globe and Mail (Canada), 4 Mar. 2017
Did You Know?
Ambiguous, obscure, vague, equivocal, and cryptic are used to describe writing or speech that is not clearly understandable. Ambiguous applies to language capable of more than one interpretation ("an ambiguous suggestion") and derives from the Latin verb ambigere, meaning "to be undecided." Obscure suggests a hiding or veiling of meaning through some inadequacy of expression or withholding of full knowledge ("obscure poems").
Vague, on the other hand, describes a lack of clear formulation due to inadequate conception or consideration ("a vague sense of obligation"). Equivocal is the best choice for language that creates a wrong or false impression, allowing for uncertainty or promoting mistaken interpretations ("the politician gave an equivocal answer"), and when there is a deliberate attempt to confuse, cryptic can be used ("cryptic clues about the location of the buried treasure").
ambiguous \ am-BIG-yuh-wus \ adjective
Definition
1a : doubtful or uncertain especially from obscurity or indistinctness
1b : incapable of being explained, interpreted, or accounted for
1c : inexplicable
2 : capable of being understood in two or more possible senses or ways
Examples
"In the app, numbers and symbols are included by default, and ambiguous characters like the digit 0 and capital O are suppressed."
— Neil J. Rubenking, PCMag.com, 24 Feb. 2017
"The setting for this story is ambiguous—a girl and her mother leave one country for another to escape an unspecified conflict. The only clue given to the location is the vast ocean separating the two countries, which the refugees must travel by boat."
— Anna Fitzpatrick, The Globe and Mail (Canada), 4 Mar. 2017
Did You Know?
Ambiguous, obscure, vague, equivocal, and cryptic are used to describe writing or speech that is not clearly understandable. Ambiguous applies to language capable of more than one interpretation ("an ambiguous suggestion") and derives from the Latin verb ambigere, meaning "to be undecided." Obscure suggests a hiding or veiling of meaning through some inadequacy of expression or withholding of full knowledge ("obscure poems").
Vague, on the other hand, describes a lack of clear formulation due to inadequate conception or consideration ("a vague sense of obligation"). Equivocal is the best choice for language that creates a wrong or false impression, allowing for uncertainty or promoting mistaken interpretations ("the politician gave an equivocal answer"), and when there is a deliberate attempt to confuse, cryptic can be used ("cryptic clues about the location of the buried treasure").
Friday, April 21, 2017
Bucolic
WORD OF THE DAY
bucolic \ byoo-KAH-lik \ adjective
1a : of or relating to shepherds or herdsmen
1b: pastoral
2a : relating to or typical of rural life
2b : pleasing or picturesque in natural simplicity
2c: idyllic
Examples
"My husband, Toby, and I … live on a remote sheep farm in the Cotswold Hills.… Our house perches on the edge of a bucolic valley, its pastures divided by ancient dry-stone walls and hawthorn hedges."
— Plum Sykes, Vogue, November 2016
"With acres of tree-shaded paths, outdoor cafés, a lake with rowboats, and several exhibition spaces, the city's grandest park offers a bucolic escape."
— Andrew Ferren, Traveler, November 2016
Did You Know?
We get bucolic from the Latin word bucolicus, which is ultimately from the Greek word boukolos, meaning "cowherd."
When bucolic was first used in English as an adjective in the early 17th century, it meant "pastoral" in a narrow sense—that is, it referred to things related to shepherds or herdsmen and in particular to pastoral poetry.
Later in the 19th century, it was applied more broadly to things rural or rustic. Bucolic has also been occasionally used as a noun meaning "a pastoral poem" or "a bucolic person."a
bucolic \ byoo-KAH-lik \ adjective
1a : of or relating to shepherds or herdsmen
1b: pastoral
2a : relating to or typical of rural life
2b : pleasing or picturesque in natural simplicity
2c: idyllic
Examples
"My husband, Toby, and I … live on a remote sheep farm in the Cotswold Hills.… Our house perches on the edge of a bucolic valley, its pastures divided by ancient dry-stone walls and hawthorn hedges."
— Plum Sykes, Vogue, November 2016
"With acres of tree-shaded paths, outdoor cafés, a lake with rowboats, and several exhibition spaces, the city's grandest park offers a bucolic escape."
— Andrew Ferren, Traveler, November 2016
Did You Know?
We get bucolic from the Latin word bucolicus, which is ultimately from the Greek word boukolos, meaning "cowherd."
When bucolic was first used in English as an adjective in the early 17th century, it meant "pastoral" in a narrow sense—that is, it referred to things related to shepherds or herdsmen and in particular to pastoral poetry.
Later in the 19th century, it was applied more broadly to things rural or rustic. Bucolic has also been occasionally used as a noun meaning "a pastoral poem" or "a bucolic person."a
Thursday, April 20, 2017
Pittance
WORD OF THE DAY
pittance \ PIT-unss \ noun
Definition
1: a small portion, amount, or allowance
2: a meager wage or remuneration
Examples
"… chances are good that any snow that might fall in coming days could be like the pittance of flakes that fell Thursday—and then almost immediately melted."
— Neil Johnson, The Janesville (Wisconsin) Gazette, 11 Mar. 2017
"It's a setup worthy of Sherlock Holmes: a museum acquires a work of art for a pittance, not quite realizing what it has on its hands, only to discover, quite casually, that the piece in question is a long-lost work by a canonical artist."
— Kirkus Reviews, 24 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
It's a pity when you haven't anything but a pittance. And in fact, pity and pittance share etymological roots. The Middle English word pittance came from Anglo-French pitance, meaning "pity" or "piety."
Originally, a pittance was a gift or bequest to a religious community, or a small charitable gift. Ultimately, the word comes from the Latin pietas, meaning "piety" or "compassion." Our words pity and piety come from pietas as well.
pittance \ PIT-unss \ noun
Definition
1: a small portion, amount, or allowance
2: a meager wage or remuneration
Examples
"… chances are good that any snow that might fall in coming days could be like the pittance of flakes that fell Thursday—and then almost immediately melted."
— Neil Johnson, The Janesville (Wisconsin) Gazette, 11 Mar. 2017
"It's a setup worthy of Sherlock Holmes: a museum acquires a work of art for a pittance, not quite realizing what it has on its hands, only to discover, quite casually, that the piece in question is a long-lost work by a canonical artist."
— Kirkus Reviews, 24 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
It's a pity when you haven't anything but a pittance. And in fact, pity and pittance share etymological roots. The Middle English word pittance came from Anglo-French pitance, meaning "pity" or "piety."
Originally, a pittance was a gift or bequest to a religious community, or a small charitable gift. Ultimately, the word comes from the Latin pietas, meaning "piety" or "compassion." Our words pity and piety come from pietas as well.
Wednesday, April 19, 2017
Magnanimous
WORD OF THE DAY
magnanimous \ mag-NAN-uh-mus \ adjecvtive
Definition
1 : showing or suggesting a lofty and courageous spirit
2 : showing or suggesting nobility of feeling and generosity of mind
Examples
Rather than gloat about her victory in the race, Michelle chose to be magnanimous and congratulated her opponents on their strong showings.
"Of course, all TV shows will one day end, and cancellation is part of the business. But similar to its streaming rival Netflix, Amazon has been unusually magnanimous with renewals, granting second and even third seasons to series that haven't exactly captured the cultural conversation…."
— Meredith Blake, The Los Angeles Times, 17 Dec. 2016
Did You Know?
When you see anima, animus, or a similar formation in a word, it's an indicator of something alive, lively, or spirited. Something described as animated is full of life, for example, and the word animal names a living, breathing thing.
The Latin word animus means "soul" or "spirit." In magnanimous, that animus is joined by Latin magnus, meaning "great." Basically meaning "greatness of spirit," magnanimity is the opposite of pettiness. A truly magnanimous person can lose without complaining and win without gloating.
Angry disputes can sometimes be resolved when one side makes a magnanimous gesture toward another.
magnanimous \ mag-NAN-uh-mus \ adjecvtive
Definition
1 : showing or suggesting a lofty and courageous spirit
2 : showing or suggesting nobility of feeling and generosity of mind
Examples
Rather than gloat about her victory in the race, Michelle chose to be magnanimous and congratulated her opponents on their strong showings.
"Of course, all TV shows will one day end, and cancellation is part of the business. But similar to its streaming rival Netflix, Amazon has been unusually magnanimous with renewals, granting second and even third seasons to series that haven't exactly captured the cultural conversation…."
— Meredith Blake, The Los Angeles Times, 17 Dec. 2016
Did You Know?
When you see anima, animus, or a similar formation in a word, it's an indicator of something alive, lively, or spirited. Something described as animated is full of life, for example, and the word animal names a living, breathing thing.
The Latin word animus means "soul" or "spirit." In magnanimous, that animus is joined by Latin magnus, meaning "great." Basically meaning "greatness of spirit," magnanimity is the opposite of pettiness. A truly magnanimous person can lose without complaining and win without gloating.
Angry disputes can sometimes be resolved when one side makes a magnanimous gesture toward another.
Tuesday, April 18, 2017
Grimalkin
WORD OF THE DAY
grimalkin \ grih-MAWL-kin \ noun
Definition
: a domestic cat; especially : an old female cat
Examples
The family grimalkin, dreaming, perhaps, of mousing days long past, twitched her tail as she dozed contentedly on the windowsill.
"The security-evading feline was caught on camera … on a confectionary shelf, back in November. Now, the grumpy grimalkin has been pictured glaring down at shoppers from above a fridge full of pizzas, garlic bread and ready meals."
— Hatty Collier, News Shopper, 7 Jan. 2016
Did You Know?
In the opening scene of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, one of the three witches planning to meet with Macbeth suddenly announces, "I come, Graymalkin." The witch is responding to the summons of her familiar, or guardian spirit, which is embodied in the form of a cat. Shakespeare's graymalkin literally means "gray cat."
The gray is of course the color; the malkin was a nickname for Matilda or Maud that came to be used in dialect as a general name for a cat—and sometimes a hare—and for an untidy woman as well. By the 1630s, graymalkin had been altered to the modern spelling grimalkin.
grimalkin \ grih-MAWL-kin \ noun
Definition
: a domestic cat; especially : an old female cat
Examples
The family grimalkin, dreaming, perhaps, of mousing days long past, twitched her tail as she dozed contentedly on the windowsill.
"The security-evading feline was caught on camera … on a confectionary shelf, back in November. Now, the grumpy grimalkin has been pictured glaring down at shoppers from above a fridge full of pizzas, garlic bread and ready meals."
— Hatty Collier, News Shopper, 7 Jan. 2016
Did You Know?
In the opening scene of William Shakespeare's Macbeth, one of the three witches planning to meet with Macbeth suddenly announces, "I come, Graymalkin." The witch is responding to the summons of her familiar, or guardian spirit, which is embodied in the form of a cat. Shakespeare's graymalkin literally means "gray cat."
The gray is of course the color; the malkin was a nickname for Matilda or Maud that came to be used in dialect as a general name for a cat—and sometimes a hare—and for an untidy woman as well. By the 1630s, graymalkin had been altered to the modern spelling grimalkin.
Monday, April 17, 2017
Reciprocate
WORD OF THE DAY
reciprocate \ rih-SIP-ruh-kayt \ verb
Definition
1 : to give and take mutually
2 : to return in kind or degree
3 : to make a return for something done or given
4 : to move backward and forward alternately
Examples
It was kind of Jake to give us a ride to the airport, and we'd like to find a way to reciprocate the favor.
"The covenant only works if each partner, as best as possible, puts the other's needs above his or her own, with the understanding that the other will reciprocate."
— David Brooks, The New York Times, 7 Mar. 2017
Did You Know?
Reciprocate, retaliate, requite, and return all mean "to give back," usually in kind or in quantity. Reciprocate implies a mutual or equivalent exchange or a paying back of what one has received ("We reciprocated their hospitality by inviting them to our beach house").
Retaliate usually implies a paying back of an injury or offense in exact kind, often vengefully ("She retaliated by spreading equally nasty rumors about them"). Requite implies a paying back according to one's preference, and often not in an equivalent fashion ("He requited her love with cold indifference").
Return implies simply a paying or giving back ("returned their call" or "return good for evil").
reciprocate \ rih-SIP-ruh-kayt \ verb
Definition
1 : to give and take mutually
2 : to return in kind or degree
3 : to make a return for something done or given
4 : to move backward and forward alternately
Examples
It was kind of Jake to give us a ride to the airport, and we'd like to find a way to reciprocate the favor.
"The covenant only works if each partner, as best as possible, puts the other's needs above his or her own, with the understanding that the other will reciprocate."
— David Brooks, The New York Times, 7 Mar. 2017
Did You Know?
Reciprocate, retaliate, requite, and return all mean "to give back," usually in kind or in quantity. Reciprocate implies a mutual or equivalent exchange or a paying back of what one has received ("We reciprocated their hospitality by inviting them to our beach house").
Retaliate usually implies a paying back of an injury or offense in exact kind, often vengefully ("She retaliated by spreading equally nasty rumors about them"). Requite implies a paying back according to one's preference, and often not in an equivalent fashion ("He requited her love with cold indifference").
Return implies simply a paying or giving back ("returned their call" or "return good for evil").
Friday, April 14, 2017
Perpend
WORD OF THE DAY
perpend \ per-PEND \ verb
Definition
1a : to reflect on carefully
1b : ponder
2a : to be attentive
2b : reflect
Examples
Perpend: it is easier to build on a good first impression than it is to repair a bad one.
"Okay folks, it looks like all is not lost. Electronic Arts is at least perpending their stance heading into the next-generation of console gaming and after originally writing off Nintendo's Wii U, they've now reneged on that stance and are reconsidering the Big 'N's offerings."
— William Usher, Cinema Blend, 23 Aug. 2013
Did You Know?
Perpend isn't used often these days, but when it does show up it is frequently imperative, as in "Perpend the following." As such, its use can be compared to the phrases "consider this" or "mark my words."
Perpend arrived in English in the 15th century from the Latin verb perpendere, which in turn comes from pendere, meaning "to weigh." Appropriately, our English word essentially means "to weigh carefully in the mind."
Pendere has several descendants in English, including append, compendium, expend, and suspend. Perpend can also be a noun meaning "a brick or large stone reaching through a wall" or "a wall built of such stones," but that perpend comes from a Middle French source and is unrelated to the verb.
perpend \ per-PEND \ verb
Definition
1a : to reflect on carefully
1b : ponder
2a : to be attentive
2b : reflect
Examples
Perpend: it is easier to build on a good first impression than it is to repair a bad one.
"Okay folks, it looks like all is not lost. Electronic Arts is at least perpending their stance heading into the next-generation of console gaming and after originally writing off Nintendo's Wii U, they've now reneged on that stance and are reconsidering the Big 'N's offerings."
— William Usher, Cinema Blend, 23 Aug. 2013
Did You Know?
Perpend isn't used often these days, but when it does show up it is frequently imperative, as in "Perpend the following." As such, its use can be compared to the phrases "consider this" or "mark my words."
Perpend arrived in English in the 15th century from the Latin verb perpendere, which in turn comes from pendere, meaning "to weigh." Appropriately, our English word essentially means "to weigh carefully in the mind."
Pendere has several descendants in English, including append, compendium, expend, and suspend. Perpend can also be a noun meaning "a brick or large stone reaching through a wall" or "a wall built of such stones," but that perpend comes from a Middle French source and is unrelated to the verb.
Thursday, April 13, 2017
Chaffer
WORD OF THE DAY
chaffer \ CHAFF-er \ verb
Definition
1a : haggle, exchange, barter
1b : to bargain for
2a : (British) to exchange small talk
2b: chatter
Examples
"And while Levy and Toriki drank absinthe and chaffered over the pearl, Huru-Huru listened and heard the stupendous price of twenty-five thousand francs agreed upon."
— Jack London, "The House of Mapuhi," 1909
"Travelers who had little money to start with frequently traded a stock of wares of their own along the way—leather goods or precious stones for example—or offered their labor here and there, sometimes taking several months or even years to finally work or chaffer their way as far as Egypt."
— Ross E. Dunn, The Adventures of Ibn Battuta, 1986
Did You Know?
The noun chaffer was originally used to refer to commercial trading. Chaffer (also spelled chaffare, cheffare, and cheapfare over the years) dates to the 1200s and was formed as a combination of Middle English chep, meaning "trade" or "bargaining," and fare, meaning "journey."
The verb chaffer appeared in the 1300s and originally meant "to trade, buy, and sell." In time, both the verb and the noun were being applied to trade that involved haggling and negotiating.
chaffer \ CHAFF-er \ verb
Definition
1a : haggle, exchange, barter
1b : to bargain for
2a : (British) to exchange small talk
2b: chatter
Examples
"And while Levy and Toriki drank absinthe and chaffered over the pearl, Huru-Huru listened and heard the stupendous price of twenty-five thousand francs agreed upon."
— Jack London, "The House of Mapuhi," 1909
"Travelers who had little money to start with frequently traded a stock of wares of their own along the way—leather goods or precious stones for example—or offered their labor here and there, sometimes taking several months or even years to finally work or chaffer their way as far as Egypt."
— Ross E. Dunn, The Adventures of Ibn Battuta, 1986
Did You Know?
The noun chaffer was originally used to refer to commercial trading. Chaffer (also spelled chaffare, cheffare, and cheapfare over the years) dates to the 1200s and was formed as a combination of Middle English chep, meaning "trade" or "bargaining," and fare, meaning "journey."
The verb chaffer appeared in the 1300s and originally meant "to trade, buy, and sell." In time, both the verb and the noun were being applied to trade that involved haggling and negotiating.
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
Cloying
WORD OF THE DAY
cloying \ KLOY-ing \ adjective
Definition
: disgusting or distasteful by reason of excess
: excessively sweet or sentimental
Examples
"In Raymond Chandler's first novel The Big Sleep (1939), Philip Marlowe visits a client in his orchid house, where the air was thick, wet, steamy and larded with the cloying smell of tropical orchids in bloom."
— Amy Henderson, The Weekly Standard, 20 Feb. 2017
"A snap of the Eiffel Tower using only the #ParisLove hashtag requires no elaboration—been there, done that—while a photo of the Taj Mahal, simply tagged #EternalLove, can feel more cloying than compelling."
— Adam Bisby, The Globe and Mail (Canada), 25 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
"Can one desire too much of a good thing?" asks Rosalind in William Shakespeare's play As You Like It. Cloying suggests that you can because it implies a repugnant excess of something that might be pleasing in smaller doses.
An exploration into the history of cloying, however, leads us eventually to roots that are neither sweet nor excessive, but rather tough as nails. Cloying derives from the verb cloy, which now means "to supply or indulge to excess," but which once meant "to clog" and earlier "to prick a horse with a nail in shoeing."
Cloy itself traces via Middle English to Anglo-French encloer (which also meant "to prick a horse with a nail in shoeing") and ultimately to Latin clavus, meaning "nail."
Tuesday, April 11, 2017
Defile
WORD OF THE DAY
defile \ dih-FYLE \ verb
Definition
: to march off in a line
Examples
The generals gazed on impassively as the troops defiled past.
"He watched as the troops defiled across the bridge; their thinned ranks made a noticeable impression on the monarch."
— Michael V. Leggiere, Napoleon and the Struggle for Germany, 2015
Did You Know?
It's likely that when you hear the verb defile, what comes to mind is not troop movements but, rather, something being contaminated or desecrated. That more commonly encountered homograph of defile, meaning "to make unclean or impure," dates back to the 15th century and is derived from the Anglo-French verb defoiller, meaning "to trample."
Today's word, on the other hand, arrived in English in the early 18th century. It is also from French but is derived from the verb défiler, formed by combining dé- with filer ("to move in a column"). Défiler is also the source of the English noun defile, which means "narrow passage or gorge."
defile \ dih-FYLE \ verb
Definition
: to march off in a line
Examples
The generals gazed on impassively as the troops defiled past.
"He watched as the troops defiled across the bridge; their thinned ranks made a noticeable impression on the monarch."
— Michael V. Leggiere, Napoleon and the Struggle for Germany, 2015
Did You Know?
It's likely that when you hear the verb defile, what comes to mind is not troop movements but, rather, something being contaminated or desecrated. That more commonly encountered homograph of defile, meaning "to make unclean or impure," dates back to the 15th century and is derived from the Anglo-French verb defoiller, meaning "to trample."
Today's word, on the other hand, arrived in English in the early 18th century. It is also from French but is derived from the verb défiler, formed by combining dé- with filer ("to move in a column"). Défiler is also the source of the English noun defile, which means "narrow passage or gorge."
Monday, April 10, 2017
Hyperbole
WORD OF THE DAY
hyperbole \ hye-PER-buh-lee \ noun
Definition
: extravagant exaggeration
Examples
"There are those in the organization who believe Bryant might not only be the best receiver on the team, he could be the best in the league. Whether it's true or mere hyperbole is not the point. What it indicates is the immense ability Bryant possesses."
— Gerry Dulac, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 19 Feb. 2017
"It's not hyperbole to speculate that there is no director who has had a greater influence on the shape of cinema than Japanese filmmaker [Akira] Kurosawa. He directed 30 films, most of them good to great. 'Seven Samurai,' 'Yojimbo' and 'Rashomon' have been remade and borrowed from more times than can be counted…."
— Barbara VanDenburgh, The Arizona Republic, 24 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
In the 5th century B.C. there was a rabble-rousing Athenian, a politician named Hyperbolus, who often made exaggerated promises and claims that whipped people into a frenzy.
But even though it sounds appropriate, Hyperbolus' name did not play a role in the development of the modern English word hyperbole. That noun does come to us from Greek (by way of Latin), but from the Greek verb hyperballein, meaning "to exceed," not from the name of the Athenian demagogue. Hyperballein itself was formed from hyper-, meaning "beyond," and ballein, "to throw."
Friday, April 7, 2017
Ignoble
WORD OF THE DAY
ignoble \ ig-NOH-bul \ adjective
Definition
1a: of low birth or common origin
1b: plebeian
2 : characterized by baseness, lowness, or meanness
Examples
"Luthor has been hanging around Superman's arctic fortress … devising plans for world dictatorship and other ignoble acts."
— Kevin Canfield, The Journal News, 27 Jun. 2006
"Suburbs are sometimes portrayed as ignoble compared to cities, and media centers like New York and Washington attract young, pro-urban writers who trumpet their hometown virtues."
— Tyler Cowen, The Bay City (Michigan) Times, 17 Oct. 2016
Did You Know?
The word noble, in addition to referring to someone born to aristocratic ranks, can also be used to describe someone of outstanding character. That word first appeared in English in the 13th century, and its antonym, ignoble, came about two centuries later.
Ignoble derives via Middle English and Middle French from the Latin prefix in- ("not") and the Old Latin gnobilis ("noble"). Originally, ignoble described someone born to common or plebeian origins, but by the late 16th century it had come to describe people of dishonorable character, or the actions performed by such people.
ignoble \ ig-NOH-bul \ adjective
Definition
1a: of low birth or common origin
1b: plebeian
2 : characterized by baseness, lowness, or meanness
Examples
"Luthor has been hanging around Superman's arctic fortress … devising plans for world dictatorship and other ignoble acts."
— Kevin Canfield, The Journal News, 27 Jun. 2006
"Suburbs are sometimes portrayed as ignoble compared to cities, and media centers like New York and Washington attract young, pro-urban writers who trumpet their hometown virtues."
— Tyler Cowen, The Bay City (Michigan) Times, 17 Oct. 2016
Did You Know?
The word noble, in addition to referring to someone born to aristocratic ranks, can also be used to describe someone of outstanding character. That word first appeared in English in the 13th century, and its antonym, ignoble, came about two centuries later.
Ignoble derives via Middle English and Middle French from the Latin prefix in- ("not") and the Old Latin gnobilis ("noble"). Originally, ignoble described someone born to common or plebeian origins, but by the late 16th century it had come to describe people of dishonorable character, or the actions performed by such people.
Thursday, April 6, 2017
Nugatory
WORD OF THE DAY
nugatory \ NOO-guh-tor-ee \ adjective
Definition
1a: of little or no consequence
1b: trifling, inconsequential
2a: having no force
2b: inoperative
Examples
"The novel's greatest talker is Sandro's best friend, Ronnie Fontaine, whose photographs (such as we hear about them) seem nugatory, but whose stories are captivating."
— James Wood, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2013
"… Christine McVie … was working on 'Keep Me There,' a throwback melodically to her solo album of a few years previously. The opening may have been nugatory, but the chord progression up into the chorus had a driving tension."
— David Honigmann, The Financial Times, 9 Jan. 2017
Did You Know?
Nugatory, which first appeared in English in the 17th century, comes from the Latin adjective nugatorius and is ultimately a derivative of the noun nugae, meaning "trifles." Like its synonyms vain, idle, empty, and hollow, nugatory means "without worth or significance."
But while nugatory suggests triviality or insignificance ("a monarch with nugatory powers," for example), vain implies either absolute or relative absence of value (as in "vain promises").
Idle suggests being incapable of worthwhile use or effect (as in "idle speculations"). Empty and hollow suggest a deceiving lack of real substance or genuineness (as in "an empty attempt at reconciliation" or "a hollow victory").
nugatory \ NOO-guh-tor-ee \ adjective
Definition
1a: of little or no consequence
1b: trifling, inconsequential
2a: having no force
2b: inoperative
Examples
"The novel's greatest talker is Sandro's best friend, Ronnie Fontaine, whose photographs (such as we hear about them) seem nugatory, but whose stories are captivating."
— James Wood, The New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2013
"… Christine McVie … was working on 'Keep Me There,' a throwback melodically to her solo album of a few years previously. The opening may have been nugatory, but the chord progression up into the chorus had a driving tension."
— David Honigmann, The Financial Times, 9 Jan. 2017
Did You Know?
Nugatory, which first appeared in English in the 17th century, comes from the Latin adjective nugatorius and is ultimately a derivative of the noun nugae, meaning "trifles." Like its synonyms vain, idle, empty, and hollow, nugatory means "without worth or significance."
But while nugatory suggests triviality or insignificance ("a monarch with nugatory powers," for example), vain implies either absolute or relative absence of value (as in "vain promises").
Idle suggests being incapable of worthwhile use or effect (as in "idle speculations"). Empty and hollow suggest a deceiving lack of real substance or genuineness (as in "an empty attempt at reconciliation" or "a hollow victory").
Wednesday, April 5, 2017
Brachiate
WORD OF THE DAY
brachiate \ BRAY-kee-ayt \ verb
Definition
: to progress by swinging from hold to hold by the arms
Examples
Sarah sat on the park bench and watched as her five-year-old son confidently brachiated along the monkey bars.
"Designed to replicate the natural forest environment, Gibbon Forest encourages its animals to display their natural behaviours, which include loud calling, rarely descending to the ground and brachiating…."
— Nick Reid, The Tamworth (UK) Herald Series, 16 Feb. 2017
Did You Know?
Certain members of the ape family, such as the gibbon, have the ability to propel themselves by grasping hold of an overhead tree branch (or other projection) and swinging the body forward. (Chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans are less likely to travel in this manner, due to the weight of their bodies; when they do, it is only for very short distances.)
The word for this action, brachiate, derives from bracchium, the Latin word for "arm." Brachiate shares etymological ancestors with such words as bracelet (an ornamental band or chain worn around the wrist) and brachiopod (a category of marine organisms with armlike feeding organs called lophophores).
Another relative is pretzel. That word's German root, Brezel, is related to the Latin brachiatus, meaning "having branches like arms."
Tuesday, April 4, 2017
Gimcrack
WORD OF THE DAY
gimcrack \ JIM-krak \ noun
Definition
1a: a showy object of little use or value
1b: gewgaw
Examples
The harmonica that Carrie kept in her desk drawer was a gimcrack that she had won as a carnival prize many years ago.
"He painted his office a deep crimson …, and then added period sconces, arrangements of pheasant feathers and various other gimcracks all meant to resemble, get this, the Red Room of the PBS show 'Downton Abbey.'"
— Margaret Carlson, The Morning Call, 19 Mar. 2015
Did You Know?
Gimcrack is one of many peculiar-sounding words that have pervaded our language to refer to something ornamental and of little value. Others include bauble, trinket, knickknack, gewgaw, kickshaw and tchotchke. Bauble appears to be the oldest among the group, with known evidence of usage dating back to the 14th century.
The earliest available evidence of gewgaw and kickshaw is from the 16th century, whereas gimcrack and knickknack established themselves in the 17th century.
Tchotchke, borrowed from Yiddish, is by far the most recent addition to our language, first appearing as an English word in the 20th century.
gimcrack \ JIM-krak \ noun
Definition
1a: a showy object of little use or value
1b: gewgaw
Examples
The harmonica that Carrie kept in her desk drawer was a gimcrack that she had won as a carnival prize many years ago.
"He painted his office a deep crimson …, and then added period sconces, arrangements of pheasant feathers and various other gimcracks all meant to resemble, get this, the Red Room of the PBS show 'Downton Abbey.'"
— Margaret Carlson, The Morning Call, 19 Mar. 2015
Did You Know?
Gimcrack is one of many peculiar-sounding words that have pervaded our language to refer to something ornamental and of little value. Others include bauble, trinket, knickknack, gewgaw, kickshaw and tchotchke. Bauble appears to be the oldest among the group, with known evidence of usage dating back to the 14th century.
The earliest available evidence of gewgaw and kickshaw is from the 16th century, whereas gimcrack and knickknack established themselves in the 17th century.
Tchotchke, borrowed from Yiddish, is by far the most recent addition to our language, first appearing as an English word in the 20th century.
Monday, April 3, 2017
Vaticination
WORD OF THE DAY
vaticination \ vuh-tiss-uh-NAY-shun \ noun
Definition
1a : something foretold
1b : prediction
2 : the act of prophesying
Examples
"In fact, origin stories are not about the past at all: they are not eyewitness reportage, they are not history, they are not diary entries detailing actual bygone events. Similarly, end-time stories are not about the future at all: they are not predictions, they are not vaticinations, they are not crystal-ball visions.… The stories are fictive efforts offered as instructions for the present moment."
— J. H. McKenna, The Huffington Post, 5 Dec. 2016
"Imagined futures that are really thinly disguised commentaries on current affairs are not chiefly concerned with reliable prediction. Yet look in the periphery of such allegorical tales and you can find some surprisingly accurate vaticination."
— The Economist, 10 June 2006
Did You Know?
When George Orwell's novel 1984 was published in 1949, a displeased critic said it broke "all records for gloomy vaticination." (In Orwell's favor, another critic asserted, "It is impossible to put the book down.")
While it's about as difficult to predict the future of a word as the future of the world, hindsight reveals that vaticination has endured better than other words based on Latin vates, meaning "prophet." Vaticinian ("prophetic"), vaticinar ("prophet"), vaticinatress ("prophetess"), and vaticiny ("prophesy") have all faded into obscurity (although two synonyms of prophetic, vatic and vaticinal, also keep the vates lineage alive today).
vaticination \ vuh-tiss-uh-NAY-shun \ noun
Definition
1a : something foretold
1b : prediction
2 : the act of prophesying
Examples
"In fact, origin stories are not about the past at all: they are not eyewitness reportage, they are not history, they are not diary entries detailing actual bygone events. Similarly, end-time stories are not about the future at all: they are not predictions, they are not vaticinations, they are not crystal-ball visions.… The stories are fictive efforts offered as instructions for the present moment."
— J. H. McKenna, The Huffington Post, 5 Dec. 2016
"Imagined futures that are really thinly disguised commentaries on current affairs are not chiefly concerned with reliable prediction. Yet look in the periphery of such allegorical tales and you can find some surprisingly accurate vaticination."
— The Economist, 10 June 2006
Did You Know?
When George Orwell's novel 1984 was published in 1949, a displeased critic said it broke "all records for gloomy vaticination." (In Orwell's favor, another critic asserted, "It is impossible to put the book down.")
While it's about as difficult to predict the future of a word as the future of the world, hindsight reveals that vaticination has endured better than other words based on Latin vates, meaning "prophet." Vaticinian ("prophetic"), vaticinar ("prophet"), vaticinatress ("prophetess"), and vaticiny ("prophesy") have all faded into obscurity (although two synonyms of prophetic, vatic and vaticinal, also keep the vates lineage alive today).
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