A.W.A.D. - No Theme for This Week's Words

with Anu Garg

Have you ever taken a vacation that's planned to every nanosecond? At 9:37 we visit the Garden of Standonburg and spend an hour and 18 minutes there, then we reach the Pamponi Museum at 11:09, and then .... Well, that's not a vacation, is it? Sometimes it's best to let yourself roam through what may come, with no plan, no schedule, no rules, no aim, and nothing to guide except a free mind and open heart.

This week's AWAD is prepared in just that spirit. A word tickles our fancy and leads us to some others that bring forth new sights. We skip some of them, move ahead or perhaps take a leisurely stroll through the dictionary. There's nothing common among the words selected -- at least as far as we know. There's no theme to constrain our word choices during the next five days. Or maybe that's the theme.

eleemosynary
PRONUNCIATION: (el-uh-MOS-uh-ner-ee, el-ee-, -MOZ-)
MEANING:adjective: Relating to charity

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin eleemosynarius, from eleemosyna (alms), from Greek eleemosyne (pity, charity), from eleemon (pitiful), from eleos (pity).

USAGE: "The Guzmans started their non-profit organization, Path of Hope Foundation, 18 years ago. Their single goal: to care for the poor who live near their corner. The Thanksgiving dinner is one of their eleemosynary events."Lynn Seeden; Free Thanksgiving Dinner Feeds 1,400; Orange County Register (Santa Ana, California); Dec 4, 2003

obloquy
PRONUNCIATION: (OB-luh-kwee)
MEANING: noun:

1. Censure or abusive language towards someone, especially when expressed by many
2. Disgrace resulting from public condemnation

ETYMOLOGY:From Latin obloquium (talking against, contradiction), from ob- (against) + loqui (to speak). Ultimately from the Indo-European root tolkw (to speak) that is also the source of somniloquy, loquacious, and allocution.

USAGE: "[Jimmy Carter] is a man who is prepared to risk the obloquy and criticism of die-hard neocons and nervous fellow senior Democrats to break the chains of Washington's foolish Middle East peace policy."Carter Mission; Arab News (Jeddah, Saudi Arabia); Apr 9, 2008

palliate
PRONUNCIATION:(PAL-ee-ayt)
MEANING: verb tr.:
1. To ease the symptoms of a problem without fixing its cause
2. To make an offense appear less severe by excuses or apologies; extenuate

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin palliare (to cover), from pallium (cloak).

USAGE: "When success came it palliated his sense of loss for a while." Frank Carrigan; John Lennon: The Life; Brisbane Times (Australia); Jan 9, 2009

countervail
PRONUNCIATION: (koun-tuhr-VAYL)
MEANING: verb tr., intr.: To counterbalance or to neutralize

ETYMOLOGY: From Old French contrevaloir, from Latin contra (against) + valere (to be strong). Ultimately, from the Indo-European root wal- (to be strong) that is also the source of valiant, avail, valor, and value.

USAGE:
"China is the unique case of a country arming a neighbour with nuclear weapons to countervail a rival." K. Subrahmanyam; Befriending the Dragon; The Times of India (New Delhi); Jul 5, 2004.

excoriate
PRONUNCIATION: (ik-SKOR-ee-ayt)
MEANING: verb tr.:
1. To severely criticize someone or something
2. To strip off the skin

ETYMOLOGY: From Latin excoriare (to strip or to skin), ex- (out) + corium (skin, hide). Ultimately from the Indo-European root sker- (to cut) that is also the source of words such as skirt, sharp, scrape, screw, shard, shears, carnage, curt, carnivorous, hardscrabble, and incarnadine.

USAGE: "Why is she [Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, president of Philippines] being excoriated for trying to implement her campaign promise?" Efren L. Danao; Give Light, Not Heat, to Cha-cha Issue; The Manila Times (Philippines); Jun 17, 2009.