Catching Up With WORDS!
Remember the old days when I could post all the time? They disappeared for a while, so I have weeks worth of A Word A Day posts to put up! Here we go:
Week ending 29 November 2009:
Week ending 29 November 2009:
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg Last week we featured verbs. Now it's the turn for their little helpers: adverbs. Adverbs help verbs describe the action with more precision or more detail. How did she enter the room? Cautiously, gingerly, excitedly, etc. We know adverbs as words ending in -ly, but adverbs come in many garbs. This week we'll feature five unusual adverbs.
doggo
PRONUNCIATION: (DOW-goh, DOG-oh)
MEANING:
adverb: Still and quiet (used in the form: to lie doggo)ETYMOLOGY:
Probably from dogUSAGE:
"The possibility is that [the Australian cricket team members] are merely lying doggo before they come out blazing in the next three days." Stephen Brenkley; Cricket: Anderson Has Australia in Deep Strife; The Independent (London, UK); Jul 18, 2009.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Hypocrisy is the homage which vice pays to virtue. -Francois, duc de La Rochefoucauld, moralist (1613-1680)cap-a-pie
PRONUNCIATION:
(kap-uh-PEE)
MEANING:
adverb: From head to footETYMOLOGY:
From Middle French de cap a pé (from head to foot). Interestingly, in Modern French the order of head and foot has reversed in this term: de pied en cap.
USAGE:
"The guest curator is Dr David Starkey. He explains the first exhibit -- the Earl of Pembroke on a charger, both man and horse cap-a-pie in full armour." Guy Liardet; Flesh and Blood of a Virgin Queen; The Times (London, UK); May 1, 2003.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
A great book should leave you with many experiences, and slightly exhausted at the end. You live several lives while reading it. -William Styron, novelist (1925-2006)
videlice
PRONUNCIATION:
(vi-DEL-uh-sit, wi-DAY-li-ket)
MEANING:
adverb: That is; namely; to wit (used to introduce examples or details)ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin videlicet, contraction of videre licet (it's permissible to see), from videre (to see) and licere (to be permitted). The word is mostly used in its abbreviated form, viz. How did this abbreviation come about? In medieval Latin, the symbol of contraction for -et resembled the shape of z.
USAGE:
"The choreographer, videlicet Victor Kabaniaev, received formal training in Russia and has created more than 40 dance and ballet works." Jeffrey R. Smith; A Jaw-Dropping Dracul at The Crucible; Alameda Sun (California); Jan 15, 2009.
"In 1902, the Wanganui Herald reported that the mayor had proposed 'to have the name of our town spelt correctly - viz, by reinstating the letter h, making it Whanganui in accordance with its original name and meaning.'" One Little Letter Means So Much; Dominion Post (Wellington, New Zealand); Sep 18, 2009.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Nations have recently been led to borrow billions for war; no nation has ever borrowed largely for education. Probably, no nation is rich enough to pay for both war and civilization. We must make our choice; we cannot have both. -Abraham Flexner, educator (1866-1959)
2. Appropriately; relevantly
adjective: Appropriate
"In the Radio Times interview, Eileen Atkins's comments seemed to arrive apropos of nothing." Katy Guest; Ladettes, Feminists and a Dame; Independent on Sunday (London, UK); Aug 3, 2008.
Week ending 6 December 2009:
A common misconception is that in the past when an immigrant to the US arrived on Ellis Island, the clerk at the registration office often changed a name, from Kwiatkovski to Kay, for example. While stories of renaming at the port of entry are mostly myths, many names were later anglicized, such as Pedersen becoming Peterson.
Something similar happens with the language. What do the words puny, petty, mayday have in common? Each is a French word that has been adopted into English with a phonetic respelling, from puisné, petit, and m'aidez (literally, Help me).
This week we've picked five French terms that are used in English with little change. They have the same spellings and meanings, though English pronunciations are a little different from their original French.
1. Someone appointed by an organization, group, or committee to investigate or monitor an issue, and compile and present the findings
2. One who is designated to record the deliberations of a meeting
The word rapporteur in French has various other meanings besides a reporter, such as an informer or a tattletale, and a protractor.
Week ending 13 December 2009:
"How do you find words?" Readers sometimes ask me. I like to say that words come to me. "Pick me!" "Pick me!" They raise their hands, eager to go out, be widely known in the language, and find a place on people's tongues.
From time to time I scour dictionaries for words, to seek out more obscure ones. When I stumble upon an interesting word, I feel as excited as a paleontologist might feel on finding a fossil, or a geologist on discovering a new form of rock. Shiny words, grimy words, words long and short, words with an unusual arrangement of letters, words to describe something unusual, and more.
1. Using a roundabout form of expression; wordy
2. Formed by the use of two or more words instead of inflection
"Some people are annoyed by the errors they find in others' choice of grammar or selection of vocabulary. To these guardians of language, there are few more egregious slip-ups (slips-up?) than ... to utilize an inflectional, rather than a periphrastic." Ammon Shea; Error-Proof; The New York Times; Sep 28, 2009.
Example: I've warned you a thousand, no, a million times
God bless -- no harm in blessing -- the Pretender!
(John Byrom)
No, let the monarch's bags and others hold
The flattering, mighty, nay, al-mighty gold.
(John Wolcot)
Examples:
"Why wilt thou sleep the sleep of death?" (William Blake)
"Make war upon themselves - brother to brother / Blood to blood, self against self." (Shakespeare)
Week ending 20 December:
This week we'll feature a potpourri of words. We opened a dictionary, shook it gently, and five words fell out. They came in all shapes, sizes, and senses. They're short and long. They're flighty and grouchy. Call 'em what you will, a medley of words, a farrago, or a gallimaufry. They're disparate, they're diverse. They're varied and variegated, unclassified and unsorted. And they're all ready for use.
1. An image or representation
2. A vague resemblance to something
"Edward [the vampire] is stuck forever in the simulacrum of a devastatingly attractive 17-year-old boy." Olivia Laing; The Mormon Queen of the Damned; New Zealand Herald (Auckland); Nov 21, 2009.
1. To claim as a right for oneself presumptuously
2. To claim on behalf of another: to attribute or assign
1. A commotion or fuss
2. Mental turmoil
3. A smothering cloud of dust or smoke
verb tr.: To confuse or worry someone
verb intr.: To worry or fuss
apropos
PRONUNCIATION:
(ap-ruh-PO)
MEANING:
adverb: 1. In reference to2. Appropriately; relevantly
adjective: Appropriate
ETYMOLOGY:
From French à propos (to the purpose), from Latin propositium (purpose), from ponere (to put). Ultimately from the Indo-European root apo- (off or away) that is also the source of pose, apposite, after, off, awkward, post, and puny.USAGE:
"Tom Stoppard said, apropos of his play Arcadia, that there were some works that made a playwright feel not so much proud as lucky." Alastair Macaulay; When Death (That Bowler-Hatted Gent) Comes Calling in Dreams; The New York Times; Mar 6, 2008."In the Radio Times interview, Eileen Atkins's comments seemed to arrive apropos of nothing." Katy Guest; Ladettes, Feminists and a Dame; Independent on Sunday (London, UK); Aug 3, 2008.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Words / as slippery as smooth grapes, / words exploding in the light / like dormant seeds waiting / in the vaults of vocabulary, / alive again, and giving life: / once again the heart distills them. -Pablo Neruda, poet and diplomat (1904-1973)scienter
PRONUNCIATION:
(sy-EN-tuhr)
MEANING:
adverb: Deliberately; knowingly. ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin scienter (knowingly), from scire (to know; to separate one thing from another). Ultimately from the Indo-European root skei- (to cut or split) that also gave us schism, ski, shin, science, conscience, and nice.NOTES:
In law, scienter is an important concept. Scienter must be shown, i.e. a person was aware -- for example, the currency note he was passing was counterfeit -- to prove the guilt. The word is often used as a noun. USAGE:
"The judge said that the complaint, if true, would show BankAtlantic's executives acted with scienter -- the intent or knowledge of wrongdoing that's the key to a plaintiff's argument in a class action complaint." Brian Bandell; Judge Lets Class Action Suit Proceed Against BankAtlantic Bancorp; South Florida Business Journal; May 22, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Forgive him, for he believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature. -George Bernard Shaw, writer, Nobel laureate (1856-1950)Week ending 6 December 2009:
A common misconception is that in the past when an immigrant to the US arrived on Ellis Island, the clerk at the registration office often changed a name, from Kwiatkovski to Kay, for example. While stories of renaming at the port of entry are mostly myths, many names were later anglicized, such as Pedersen becoming Peterson.
Something similar happens with the language. What do the words puny, petty, mayday have in common? Each is a French word that has been adopted into English with a phonetic respelling, from puisné, petit, and m'aidez (literally, Help me).
This week we've picked five French terms that are used in English with little change. They have the same spellings and meanings, though English pronunciations are a little different from their original French.
rapporteur
PRONUNCIATION:
(rap-or-TUHR)
MEANING:
noun:1. Someone appointed by an organization, group, or committee to investigate or monitor an issue, and compile and present the findings
2. One who is designated to record the deliberations of a meeting
ETYMOLOGY:
From French raportour (reporter), from rapporter (to bring back, report), from apporter (to bring), from Latin portare (carry). Ultimately from the Indo-European root per- (to lead, pass over) that also gave us support, comport, petroleum, sport, passport, colporteur (a peddler of religious books), Swedish fartlek (a training technique), Norwegian fjord (bay), and Sanskrit parvat (mountain).The word rapporteur in French has various other meanings besides a reporter, such as an informer or a tattletale, and a protractor.
USAGE:
"The United Nations special rapporteur, Raquel Rolnik, listened to it all patiently, occasionally taking notes, nodding encouragement." Chris McGreal; UN Meets Homeless Victims of American Property Dream; The Guardian (London, UK); Nov 12, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Reading a book is like rewriting it for yourself. You bring to a novel, anything you read, all your experience of the world. You bring your history and you read it in your own terms. -Angela Carter, novelist and journalist (1940-1992)amour-propre or amour propre
PRONUNCIATION:
(ah-moor PRO-pruh)
MEANING:
noun: Self-esteem; self-respectETYMOLOGY:
From French amour-propre (self-esteem), from amour (love) + propre (own)USAGE:
"Diaghilev was always happy to trample on the feelings of his colleagues if he thought that the outcome merited it and at different times we see Fokine, Benois, Bakst, and Nijinsky all desolated by jealousy and injured amour-propre." Luke Jennings; A Tyrannical Genius; The Observer (London, UK); Oct 25, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Man can be the most affectionate and altruistic of creatures, yet he's potentially more vicious than any other. He is the only one who can be persuaded to hate millions of his own kind whom he has never seen and to kill as many as he can lay his hands on in the name of his tribe or his God. -Benjamin Spock, pediatrician and author (1903-1998)esprit de corps
PRONUNCIATION:
(eh-SPREE duh COR)
MEANING:
noun: A spirit of solidarity; a sense of pride, devotion, and honor among the members of a group.ETYMOLOGY:
From French esprit (spirit), de (of), corps (body, group)USAGE:
"Using cooking to promote an esprit de corps and employee bonding had its beginnings on the West Coast." Jonnie Bassaro; Corporate Employees Bond Through Cooking; News-Times (Danbury, Connecticut); Sep 17, 2007.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Commandment Number One for any truly civilized society is this: Let people be different. -David Grayson [pen name of Ray Stannard Baker], journalist, author (1870-1946)chef-d'oeuvre
PRONUNCIATION:
(shay-DOO-vruh)
MEANING:
noun: A masterpieceETYMOLOGY:
From French chef-d'oeuvre (masterpiece), from chef (chief) + oeuvre (work)USAGE:
"Not every item is a chef d'oeuvre: The Surrealists loved to create collages from trivial snapshots." Jorg von Uthmann; Kinky Dolls, Glass Tears Adorn Surrealist Photo Show; Bloomberg; Oct 29, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Every one is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody. -Mark Twain, author and humorist (1835-1910)savoir-faire
PRONUNCIATION:
(SAV-wahr-fayr)
MEANING:
noun: The ability to say or do the right thing in any situation; tactETYMOLOGY:
From French savoir-faire (know-how), from savoir (to know) + faire (to do)USAGE:
"In a cascade of thanks, C.S. Richardson bows gracefully to all those elegant Londoners, full of savoir faire." Peter Wells; The A to Z of Life; New Zealand Herald (Auckland); Jul 7, 2008.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Men become civilized, not in proportion to their willingness to believe, but in proportion to their readiness to doubt. -H.L. Mencken, writer, editor, and critic (1880-1956)Week ending 13 December 2009:
"How do you find words?" Readers sometimes ask me. I like to say that words come to me. "Pick me!" "Pick me!" They raise their hands, eager to go out, be widely known in the language, and find a place on people's tongues.
From time to time I scour dictionaries for words, to seek out more obscure ones. When I stumble upon an interesting word, I feel as excited as a paleontologist might feel on finding a fossil, or a geologist on discovering a new form of rock. Shiny words, grimy words, words long and short, words with an unusual arrangement of letters, words to describe something unusual, and more.
rhopalic
PRONUNCIATION:
(ro-PAL-ik)
MEANING:
adjective: Having each successive word longer by a letter or syllableETYMOLOGY:
From Latin rhopalicus, from Greek rhopalos (club, tapered cudgel)NOTES:
A rhopalic verse or sentence is one that balloons -- where each word is a letter or a syllable longer. The word is also used as a noun. Here's a terrific example of a rhopalic by Dmitri Borgmann: "I do not know where family doctors acquired illegibly perplexing handwriting; nevertheless, extraordinary pharmaceutical intellectuality, counterbalancing indecipherability, transcendentalises intercommunications' incomprehensibleness."USAGE:
"Soapy fired off a rhopalic sentence, that is, one in which each word is one letter longer than the word that precedes it: 'I am the only dummy player, perhaps, planning maneuvers calculated brilliantly, nevertheless outstandingly pachydermatous, notwithstanding unconstitutional unprofessionalism.'" Alan Truscott; Talking About Behavior; The New York Times; Oct 26, 1986.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
The sorrow which has no vent in tears may make other organs weep. -Henry Maudsley, psychiatrist (1835-1918)periphrastic
PRONUNCIATION:
(per-uh-FRAS-tik)
MEANING:
adjective, also used as a noun:1. Using a roundabout form of expression; wordy
2. Formed by the use of two or more words instead of inflection
Examples:
"daughter of John" (compared with "John's daughter)
"It did happen" (compared with "It happened")
"more stupid" (compared with "stupider")
"Do you have" (compared with "Have you")
"daughter of John" (compared with "John's daughter)
"It did happen" (compared with "It happened")
"more stupid" (compared with "stupider")
"Do you have" (compared with "Have you")
ETYMOLOGY:
Via Latin, from Greek periphrastikos, from periphrazein (to explain around), from peri- (around) + phrazein (to speak, say)USAGE:
"There is something frustratingly schematic about the characters ... periphrastic leader writer set against a reporter who speaks mostly in grunts and sighs." Charles Spencer; Alphabetical Order, Hampstead Theatre; The Daily Telegraph (London, UK); Apr 22, 2009. [leader = editorial]"Some people are annoyed by the errors they find in others' choice of grammar or selection of vocabulary. To these guardians of language, there are few more egregious slip-ups (slips-up?) than ... to utilize an inflectional, rather than a periphrastic." Ammon Shea; Error-Proof; The New York Times; Sep 28, 2009.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
I am not a lover of lawns. Rather would I see daisies in their thousands, ground ivy, hawkweed, and even the hated plantain with tall stems, and dandelions with splendid flowers and fairy down, than the too-well-tended lawn. -William Henry Hudson, author and naturalist (1841-1922)epanorthosis
PRONUNCIATION:
(ep-uh-nor-THO-sis)
MEANING:
noun: The immediate rephrasing of something said in order to correct it or to make it stronger. Usually indicated by: no, nay, rather, I mean, etc.Example: I've warned you a thousand, no, a million times
ETYMOLOGY:
From Greek epanorthosis (correction, revision), from epi- (upon) + ana- (again) + orthosis (making straight), from ortho (straight)MORE EXAMPLES:
God bless the King, -- I mean the faith's defender!God bless -- no harm in blessing -- the Pretender!
(John Byrom)
No, let the monarch's bags and others hold
The flattering, mighty, nay, al-mighty gold.
(John Wolcot)
USAGE:
"But rather, simply the two most beautiful words in the language (let's face it, epanorthosis is my million-dollar baby)." Michael Brodsky; We Can Report Them; Thunder's Mouth Press; 1999.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
He felt justified to kill birds for a museum where they would be preserved forever, as some feel justified to eat fish, chicken, or other meat that is digested in hours. Which is more justified? And even if necessary, how do you justify? Those who are familiar with ancient folklore, or are up above the rest of us a moral notch or two, kill "respectfully" by offering prayers or apologies, in the hope that animals will "offer themselves" up to be voluntarily killed. However, it is a sad fact that no animal cares if those who might eat them invent reasons to justify their acts (to make themselves feel good). -Bernd Heinrich, biology professor and author (b. 1940)monepic
PRONUNCIATION:
(mun-NEP-ik)
MEANING:
adjective: Composed of a single word or single-word sentencesETYMOLOGY:
From Greek mono- (one) + epos (speech, word)USAGE:
"His speech is monepic. These words consist of substantives, such as mamma, nurse, milk, and so forth." James Sully; Popular Science; Nov 1894.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Great thoughts reduced to practice become great acts. -William Hazlitt, essayist (1778-1830)ploce
PRONUNCIATION:
(PLO-see)
MEANING:
noun: The repetition of a word or phrase for rhetorical emphasis or for extended meaningExamples:
"Why wilt thou sleep the sleep of death?" (William Blake)
"Make war upon themselves - brother to brother / Blood to blood, self against self." (Shakespeare)
ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin ploce, from Greek ploke (plaiting), from plekein (to plait).USAGE:
"Theme and irony both seem to echo through the following lines, in which ploce and pronouns play off one another. Duncan speaks to Lady Macbeth about love and thanks her for the 'trouble' of hosting his visit: The love that follows us sometimes is our trouble
Which still we thank as love. Herein I teach you
How you shall bid God 'ild us for your pains,
And thank us for your trouble."
Paul Pellikka; Echoes of Sound and Sense in Macbeth; Style; Spring 1997Which still we thank as love. Herein I teach you
How you shall bid God 'ild us for your pains,
And thank us for your trouble."
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
We must embrace pain and burn it as fuel for our journey. -Kenji Miyazawa, poet and story writer (1896-1933)Week ending 20 December:
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargThis week we'll feature a potpourri of words. We opened a dictionary, shook it gently, and five words fell out. They came in all shapes, sizes, and senses. They're short and long. They're flighty and grouchy. Call 'em what you will, a medley of words, a farrago, or a gallimaufry. They're disparate, they're diverse. They're varied and variegated, unclassified and unsorted. And they're all ready for use.
anomie or anomy
PRONUNCIATION:
(AN-uh-mee)
MEANING:
noun: Social instability and alienation caused by the erosion of norms and valuesETYMOLOGY:
From French anomie, from Greek anomia (lawlessness), from anomos (lawless), from a- (without) + nomos (law). Ultimately from the Indo-European root nem- (to assign or take) that's also the source for words such as number, numb, nomad, metronome, astronomy, and nemesis.USAGE:
"That didn't mean the music was emotionless, but that the emotions were bleak: isolation, urban anomie, feeling cold and hollow inside, paranoia." Simon Reynolds; One Nation Under A Moog; The Guardian (London, UK); Oct 10, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
The pages are still blank, but there is a miraculous feeling of the words being there, written in invisible ink and clamoring to become visible. -Vladimir Nabokov, (1899-1977)simulacrum
PRONUNCIATION:
(sim-yuh-LAY-krum)
MEANING:
noun:1. An image or representation
2. A vague resemblance to something
ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin simulare (to simulate), from similis (like). Ultimately from the Indo-European root sem- (one) that is also the source of simultaneous, assemble, simple, Sanskrit sandhi (union), Russian samovar (a metal urn, literally, self-boiler), and Greek hamadryad (a wood nymph, who lives in a tree and dies when it dies).USAGE:
"The game [Webkinz] also offers an outlet to exercise a simulacrum of control over aspects of their lives, an opportunity often not available in the day-to-day world." Akin Ajayi; Every Kid Wants A Petting Zoo at Home; Jerusalem Post (Israel); Dec 3, 2009."Edward [the vampire] is stuck forever in the simulacrum of a devastatingly attractive 17-year-old boy." Olivia Laing; The Mormon Queen of the Damned; New Zealand Herald (Auckland); Nov 21, 2009.
A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Live a good life. If there are gods and they are just, they will not care how devout you have been, but will welcome you based on the virtues you have lived by. If there are gods, but unjust, then you should not want to worship them. If there are no gods, then you will be gone, but will have lived a noble life that will live on in the memories of your loved ones. -Marcus Aurelius, philosopher and writer (121-180)avoirdupois
PRONUNCIATION:
(av-ur-duh-POIZ, -PWA)
MEANING:
noun: Heaviness or weight of a personETYMOLOGY:
From Middle English avoir de pois (goods sold by weight), from Old French aveir de peis (goods of weight), originally referred to things sold in bulkUSAGE:
"Both McKay and Welles are tall and carry a fair amount of avoirdupois." Sam Allis; Getting Orson Welles Just Right; Boston Globe; Dec 6, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
The vanquished know war. They see through the empty jingoism of those who use the abstract words of glory, honor, and patriotism to mask the cries of the wounded, the senseless killing, war profiteering, and chest-pounding grief. -Chris Hedges, journalist, author, and war correspondent (b. 1956)arrogate
PRONUNCIATION:
(AIR-uh-gayt)
MEANING:
verb tr.:1. To claim as a right for oneself presumptuously
2. To claim on behalf of another: to attribute or assign
ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin arrogatus (appropriated), past participle of arrogare, from rogare (to ask). Ultimately from the Indo-European reg- (to move in a straight line, to lead or rule) that is also the source of arrogant, regent, regime, direct, rectangle, erect, rectum, alert, source, surge, supererogatory, abrogate, and prorogue.USAGE:
"Youth fills you with optimistic thoughts, bursts with energy, and brims with confidence. It is the stage where you feel that your calling in life is to change the existing order for betterment arrogating the role of the social arbiter." Philip Fernando; Understanding the JVP; Daily News (Colombo, Sri Lanka); Dec 8, 2009.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Many demolitions are actually renovations. -Jalaluddin Rumi, poet and mystic (1207-1273)pother
PRONUNCIATION:
(POTH-uhr)
MEANING:
noun:1. A commotion or fuss
2. Mental turmoil
3. A smothering cloud of dust or smoke
verb tr.: To confuse or worry someone
verb intr.: To worry or fuss
ETYMOLOGY:
Of unknown originUSAGE:
"Very little will change whether that appointee is Caroline Kennedy or someone else. So why all the pother?" Ed Quillen; Expanded Non-story Season; Denver Post; Dec 28, 2008.A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
I am always sorry when any language is lost, because languages are the pedigrees of nations. -Samuel Johnson, lexicographer (1709-1784)
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