A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Mon Aug 2 00:02:13 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--forfend X-Bonus: The only devils in this world are those running around in our own hearts, and that is where all our battles should be fought. -Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) forfend (for-FEND) verb tr. 1. Defend; protect. 2. Forbid; prohibit. 3. Prevent; secure. [From Middle English forfenden, from for- + fenden (to ward off).] "They (poplars) had been planted on communal land, evenly spaced along a river's edge, so their thirst for water might help forfend local flooding." Kenneth Baker; The Colors of Monet: Museums See Green; The San Francisco Chronicle; Apr 22, 1990. "Back on earth, Mr O'Keefe is also engaged in more mundane forms of cost control. Programmes are being cut. Bureaucrats, heaven forfend, are being made redundant." Science and Technology: 2020 Vision; Human Space-flight; The Economist (London, UK); Nov 16, 2002. Our seven-year-old daughter Ananya has developed an interest in etymology. Often she'll interrupt her play in the backyard and peek in my downstairs study to ask about whatever word comes to her mind. Some time back she barged in with, "So how did the word dog came about?" I explained to her that the word dog came from Middle English dogge which came from Old English docga. Satisfied, she went back to her play. I had completely forgotten about it when a few days later I overheard her talking to her grandmother on the phone, "Amma, we got a dogga." I was puzzled and later asked why she said dogga instead of dog. She patiently explained, "You know, Amma is old. That's why I used Old English with her." Well, Grandma is old, but not that old. The Old English period is generally thought to have begun with the arrival of certain Germanic tribes (Angles, Saxons, and Jutes) in Britain in the fifth century. Scholars have divided the history of the English language into three periods: Old English (from the middle of the 5th to the beginning of the 12th century), Middle English (12th century through the 15th), and Modern English (16th century onwards). This week we feature a few words that have their origins in Old English, also known as Anglo-Saxon. These words are old but not ready for retirement yet -- put them to work. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue Aug 3 00:02:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--anent X-Bonus: When two elephants fight it is the grass that gets trampled. -African proverb anent (uh-NENT) preposition Regarding, concerning, about. [From Middle English, from Old English on efen (on even).] "Our experience with Mr. Estrada validates the analysis on the flaw in the Constitution anent the term of office of the Chief Executive - six years is just too short for a good president (like Fidel V. Ramos) - and too long! for a bad one like President Estrada." Rick B. Ramos; To Take a Stand: Disenchantment; BusinessWorld (Manila, Philippines); Apr 5, 2000. "In the case of Citibank, the subsidiary of Citicorp, which is itself to be cocooned in Citigroup, the money trail has actually been excavated to a certain degree, anent the escapades of Raúl Salinas, a k a Mr. Ten Percent, brother of Carlos Salinas, former president of Mexico." Alexander Cockburn; Beat the Devil: Banks, Drugs and Marriage; The Nation (New York); May 4, 1998. This week's theme: words derived from Old English. -------- Date: Wed Aug 4 00:02:09 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gloaming X-Bonus: The television, that insidious beast, that Medusa which freezes a billion people to stone every night, staring fixedly, that Siren which called and sang and promised so much and gave, after all, so little. -Ray Bradbury, science-fiction writer (1920- ) gloaming (GLO-ming) noun Twilight; dusk. [From Middle English gloming, from Old English glomung, from glom (dusk). Ultimately from Indo-European root ghel- (to shine) that is also the source of words such as yellow, gold, glimmer, glimpse, glass, arsenic, melancholy and cholera.] "This grand show is eternal. It is always sunrise somewhere; the dew is never all dried at once; a shower is forever falling; vapor is ever rising. Eternal sunrise, eternal sunset, eternal dawn and gloaming, on sea and continents and islands, each in its turn, as the round earth rolls." John Muir, naturalist, explorer, and writer (1838-1914). "The book is a marked departure from previous (Robert) Harris works set in the chill gloaming of mid-20th-century European history, an era that has fascinated him since he was a child ..." Alan Cowell; A Writer's Allegories For Today; International Herald Tribune (Paris, France); Nov 18, 2003. This week's theme: words derived from Old English. -------- Date: Thu Aug 5 00:02:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--whilom X-Bonus: Often war is waged only in order to show valor; thus an inner dignity is ascribed to war itself, and even some philosophers have praised it as an ennoblement of humanity, forgetting the pronouncement of the Greek who said, "War is an evil in as much as it produces more wicked men than it takes away." -Immanuel Kant, philosopher (1724-1804) whilom (HWI-luhm) adjective Former. adverb Formerly. [From Middle English, from Old English hwilum (at times), plural of hwil (time).] Here is another unusual word that is a synonym of this word: quondam. "With obvious agreement, he quotes the whilom CEO of RJR Nabisco, Ross Johnson, whose three rules of Wall Street are, 'Never play by the rules, never pay in cash, and never tell the truth.'" Jonathan Yardley; The Root Of All Evil; The Washington Post; Oct 6, 1991. "The moonflower tree lofted luminous ghostly vespertine blooms, evening-glories of such prodigious perfume -- as to totally eclipse memory of the whilom little-leaved corporate ficus." Patti Hagan; Moonstruck: A Gardener's Lunar Awakening; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Aug 23, 1994. (vespertine: occurring in the evening.) This week's theme: words derived from Old English. -------- Date: Fri Aug 6 00:02:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--forsooth X-Bonus: Many highly intelligent people are poor thinkers. Many people of average intelligence are skilled thinkers. The power of the car is separate from the way the car is driven. -Edward De Bono, consultant, writer, and speaker (1933- ) forsooth (for-SOOTH) adverb In truth; Indeed. [From Middle English forsoth, from Old English forsoth, from for + soth (truth).] The term is used to express doubt, disbelief, or contempt now. Its modern equivalent might be the word really, as in "Really?" "Others wanted him to spend less on social services and old people - forsooth!" Simon Hoggart; Howard is Upstaged by a Virtuoso Display of Sadie-masochism; The Guardian (London, UK); Mar 18, 2004. "Gold diggers and murderers forsooth, the stage is set as far as the JVP is concerned, for their historic entry into forming the next government." Haunting Memories of the JVP That Linger; Sunday Leader (Colombo, Sri Lanka); Mar 21, 2004. This week's theme: words derived from Old English. -------- Date: Mon Aug 9 00:02:14 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--New York minute X-Bonus: The wise are instructed by reason, average minds by experience, the stupid by necessity and the brute by instinct. -Marcus Tullius Cicero, statesman, orator and writer (106-43 BCE) New York minute (NOO york MIN-it, NYOO -) noun A very short period of time; an instant. [From the allusion to the frenzied pace of life in New York City.] "Sometimes in New Orleans, the weather can change in a New York minute." Janet Angelico; 2nd-graders Invent a Way to Win Contest; Times Picayune (Louisiana); Mar 28, 2004. "Jambalaya, a spicy Louisiana rice dish, usually takes an hour or more to prepare, but this version's ready in a New York minute." Meghan Pembleton; Jambalaya's Ready in Minutes When You Use Precooked Rice; The Arizona Republic (Phoenix); Apr 21, 2004. Once upon a time, a person's name was his complete identification and address. It could comprise his given name, profession, father/mother's name, a personal trait, and even the name of his village. That was because where one lived defined a person as much as anything else. The place of origin often turned into a generic term for some personal characteristic. The English language is replete with such expressions where the name of a place has become associated with a particular quality, such as laconic (using few words) from Laconia in ancient Greece, bohemian (unconventional) from Bohemia in the Czech Republic, and Siamese (connected twin) from Siam, the former name of Thailand. There are many others. New Yorkers are stereotyped as people always in a hurry and often rude, although there are many polite and generous New Yorkers. The term New York Minute has been facetiously defined as the time between a New York City traffic light turning green and the driver of the car behind you honking his or her horn. This week we visit places with names that have become part of the English language. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) PS: Besides being derived from place names, all five terms this week have something else in common. Can you find out what it is? -------- Date: Tue Aug 10 00:12:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Boston marriage X-Bonus: In a consumer society there are inevitably two kinds of slaves: the prisoners of addiction and the prisoners of envy. -Ivan Illich, priest (1926-2002) Boston marriage (BOS-tuhn MAR-ij, BAW-stuhn -) noun A long-term, intimate friendship between two women, often sharing a household. [After Boston (and other areas in the Northeast US) where such arrangements occurred during the 19th century. Perhaps popularized by Henry James's 1886 novel The Bostonians that portrayed such relationships.] "Boston marriage of Miss Woolley and Miss Marks, for example, was intensely passionate, as their letters show." Elspeth Cameron; Heart to Heart; Chatelaine (Toronto, Canada); Oct 1997. "Frances, for her part, saved her own endearments for her lifelong friend, Mildred Minturn, with whom she had a kind of Boston marriage at Bryn Mawr." The Craftsman And the Nihilist; The New Republic (Washington, DC); Jul 4, 1994. This week's theme: toponyms or words derived from place names. -------- Date: Wed Aug 11 00:01:10 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--China syndrome X-Bonus: I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires. -Susan B Anthony, reformer and suffragist (1820-1906) China syndrome (CHY-nuh SIN-drom) noun A hypothetical sequence of events in which meltdown at an out-of-control nuclear reactor could cause the molten core to go deeply through the earth. [From the fanciful idea of a catastrophic nuclear accident in the US resulting in its superheated core sinking in the earth, melting a hole all the way to the other side - to China.] Popular usage indicates the term is in the process of being redefined. Nowadays, it's often used to refer to the effects of the huge and growing Chinese economy in the global marketplace. "But the biggest concern for investors is that the China syndrome melt-up will flare out as over-investment leads to over-capacity." William Hanley; Danger in New China syndrome: Red-hot Economy Triggering a Global Chain Reaction; National Post (Canada); Jan 23, 2004. "You must learn to enforce breaks in your thought, or else risk a China syndrome of the mind -- thoughts breeding thoughts breeding energy and heat." Joe Heffron; Old Way; Knot Magazine (Boulder, Colorado); May 20, 2004. This week's theme: toponyms or words derived from place names. -------- Date: Thu Aug 12 00:01:12 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Indian summer X-Bonus: In America, anybody can be president. That's one of the risks you take. -Adlai Stevenson, statesman (1900-1965) Indian summer (IN-dee-uhn SUM-uhr) noun 1. A period of unseasonably warm weather in late autumn or early winter. 2. A pleasant or flourishing period toward the end of something. [Apparently from the fact that this weather phenomenon was first noticed in areas inhabited by Native Americans (erroneously called Indians), in the US.] A related term is Saint Martin's summer, that is Indian summer occurring in November. (from Saint Martin's Day, November 11). "Late last September, in the thick of a glorious Indian summer in Paris, I booked a table for dinner with my friend ..." Dana Thomas; Consuming Passion; The Scotsman (Edinburgh, Scotland); Apr 10, 2004. "For Howley there is only a continuation of the Indian summer of a career that is now promising to be swansonged by a final sojourn with the Lions next year." James Corrigan; Howley's Audacity; Independent (London, UK); May 23, 2004. This week's theme: toponyms or words derived from place names. -------- Date: Fri Aug 13 00:01:18 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--roman holiday X-Bonus: Everything is for the eye these days - TV, Life, Look, the movies. Nothing is just for the mind. The next generation will have eyeballs as big as cantaloupes and no brain at all. -Fred Allen Roman holiday (RO-muhn HOL-i-day) noun An entertainment event where pleasure is derived from watching gore and barbarism. [From the gladiatorial contests held in ancient Rome.] Besides being toponyms, all five terms featured this week are also the titles of movies (New York Minute, China Syndrome, Indian Summer, Roman Holiday) or plays (Boston Marriage). "There were his young barbarians all at play; There was their Dacian mother: he, their sire, Butcher'd to make a Roman holiday!" Lord Byron; Childe Harold's Pilgrimage; Canto iv. Stanza 141. "Perry Ryan: I think maybe the press was a bit sensational because they were disappointed that the female sheriff they thought was going to perform the execution didn't actually do it, and as a consequence, the story became what a Roman holiday that this was in Owensboro." Laurie Howell; Last Public Execution That Was Held in Owensboro, Kentucky, in 1936; Weekly Edition - National Public Radio (Washington, DC); May 5, 2001. This week's theme: toponyms or words derived from place names. -------- Date: Mon Aug 16 00:01:12 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stat X-Bonus: What is reading, but silent conversation. -Walter Savage Landor, writer (1775-1864) stat (stat) adverb Immediately (mostly used in a medical context). [From Latin statim, literally immediately.] "As she walked away, I made a couple of calls, stat, in case the issue came up again." Beth Teitell; What is it Delegates Do, Anyway?; Boston Herald (Massachusetts); Jul 26, 2004. "'Scrubs' continues to look for humor in medical mishaps... Hand me the defibrillator, stat, I've got to shock myself out of hysterics." Ted Cox; 'Scrubs' Hospitalized After Jumping Shark; Daily Herald (Arlington Heights, Illinois); May 7, 2002. The magic of technology is spreading. What we couldn't even imagine only a few years ago is now possible. With just a few clicks of a mouse button, someone in one corner of the world can make contact with a fellow human being thousands of miles away and offer to sell her cheap Viagra. Seriously, I'm sick of spam. I think spammers should be an integral part of the new NASA policy. We should send spammers (and virus writers too, while we're at it) on a one-way ticket to Mars. I filter them out but with more than a thousand pieces of spam hitting my mailbox every day, some of this net excrement still manages to sneak past. Until recently, most of the spam was in English. Lately, it's been in Chinese, Spanish, French, German, Vietnamese and many other tongues. Comparing these pieces of junk mail with their English language edition, one can improve one's knowledge of foreign languages. For example, many of you may have received a message beginning: From: Mariam Abachha Subject: Envie d'associé avec vous Translation: Nigerian loot now offered in exquisite French language. So far I haven't received any spam in Latin, but I wouldn't hold my breath. Till spammers catch up on Latin, let us this week peruse a few words from that ancient language. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue Aug 17 00:01:17 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--ceteris paribus X-Bonus: Hatred - the anger of the weak. -Alphonse Daudet, writer (1840-1897) ceteris paribus (KAY-tuhr-uhs PAR-uh-buhs, SET-uhr-is) adverb Other factors remaining the same. [From Latin, literally, other things the same.] This is a favorite term of economists. It's used to indicate the effect of change in a variable, assuming other variables are held constant in a system. "Ceteris paribus, I stand by my avoid recommendation." William Lewis; Forget the Big Spend; Sunday Times (London, UK); Apr 11, 2004. "But since, ceteris paribus, no poet can afford to dispense with anything that may advance his design, it but remains to be seen whether there is, in extent, any advantage to counterbalance the loss of unity which attends it." Edgar Allan Poe; The Philosophy of Composition; 1850. This week's theme: Latin expressions. -------- Date: Wed Aug 18 00:01:14 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--qua X-Bonus: Every man is a volume if you know how to read him. -William Ellery Channing, clergyman, reformer (1810-1884) qua (kway, kwa) preposition, adverb As; in the capacity of. [From Latin qua, from qui (who).] "Their old standing friends, qua individuals and groups, have to unite and wage a worldwide campaign that should equal the protests that are being made against G8, WTO, IMF, World Bank etc." M B Naqvi; Immoral and Illegal; The Daily Star (Dhaka, Bangladesh); Jul 19, 2004. "Fifth, the self-perpetuating tendencies of educational institutions, qua institutions, should never go unchallenged when they perpetuate socially disputable functions." Philip L. Smith; Mind: Anticipation and Chaos (book reviews); Philosophy East and West (Honolulu, Hawaii); Jan 1, 1995. This week's theme: Latin expressions. -------- Date: Thu Aug 19 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--terra firma X-Bonus: Other men are lenses through which we read our own minds. -Ralph Waldo Emerson , writer and philosopher (1803-1882) terra firma (TER-uh FUR-muh) noun Solid ground; dry land. [From Latin terra (earth) + firma, feminine of firmus (solid). Ultimately from Indo-European root ters- (to dry) that is the source of words such as territory, terrace, turmeric, and toast.] "But as we pushed it back, the back wheels sank deeper into the mud. We finally managed to push the plane onto the firma terra and we resumed our flight for Erave station in Samberigi." Wheels of Death; The National (Boroko, Papua New Guinea); Aug 1, 2004. "Clayton Cook would rather see more air time than simply driving over the terra firma." Dale Woodard; Taking Flight; Daily Herald-Tribune (Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada); Aug 5, 2004. This week's theme: Latin expressions. -------- Date: Fri Aug 20 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--via media X-Bonus: A man is not old until his regrets take the place of dreams. -Yiddish proverb via media (VY-uh MEE-dee-uh, VEE-uh MAY-dee-uh) noun A middle way. [From Latin, from via (way) + media, feminine of medius (middle).] This term is used by the Anglican Church to refer to itself, as a middle road between the two extremes of the Roman Catholic Church and evangelical Protestantism. "The government may reduce the proposed hike in foreign direct investment (FDI) to a via media level of 35-40 per cent." Mahua Venkatesh; Truncated Increase In Insurance FDI On Cards; Financial Express (New Delhi, India); Jul 28, 2004. "He (Seamus Heaney) has been cast as predominantly a poet of the via media, perhaps partly in contrast to the tormented writings of Lowell, Plath, Anne Sexton, et al." Brian Fallon; Capture of the Glittering Prize Seemed Unavoidable; Irish Times (Dublin, Ireland); Oct 6, 1995. This week's theme: Latin expressions. -------- Date: Mon Aug 23 00:01:24 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--trochal X-Bonus: It is as impossible to translate poetry as it is to translate music. -Voltaire, writer (1694-1778) trochal (TRO-kuhl) adjective Resembling or revolving like a wheel. [From Greek trokhos (wheel), from trekhein (to run).] "Consider this unexpected similarity between Pulp Fiction and Forrest Gump: as Pulp Fiction breaks tradition with its trochal form, so Gump breaks the contemporary rules." John H. Richardson; Dumb And Dumber; The New Republic (Washington, DC); Apr 10, 1995. "It's trochal, as Malcolm Lowry says. Reiterative, as John Dos Passos said." Jack Saunders; Forty; Illuminet Press; 1988. The grand spectacle of the 28th Olympic Games continues in Greece, birthplace of that ancient celebration. Athens, the capital city, and site of the current games, is where the first modern Olympics took place in 1896. It was named to honor Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom, arts, and warfare. Besides the city, Athena's name also gave us the English word athenaeum meaning a library, a reading room or a literary/scientific club. The Greek language has been a rich source of many colorful words in English. Why say 'library' when you can say 'athenaeum'? As the saying goes, "The Greeks had a word for it." This week we feature five words derived from Greek, so you'll no longer have to say, "It's Greek to me." -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue Aug 24 00:01:27 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--mantic X-Bonus: Work on good prose has three steps: a musical stage when it is composed, an architectonic one when it is built, and a textile one when it is woven. -Walter Benjamin, critic and philosopher (1892-1940) mantic (MAN-tik) adjective Of or relating to divination. [From Greek mantikos, from mantis (prophet), from mainesthai (to rage). Ultimately from Indo-European root men- (to think) that is also the source of words such as mind, mental, mention, Sanskrit mantra, automatic, mania, money, praying mantis, monument, music, and amnesia.] "During July, you will be involved with people who are studying the mantic arts, including astrology." Sydney Omarr; Today's Horoscope; The Washington Post; Jun 21, 2002. "Pan had taught him for summoning what beast he wished, and filled the outdoor theatre with loud leaping green lumps of slime. Comic beyond words, the piece was a hit - not least for frog-happy Eurydice. Whether anyone suspected the mantic origins of this so-called coincidence ..." Kurt Leland; The Adolescence of Orpheus; 2001 This week's theme: words from Greek. -------- Date: Wed Aug 25 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--threnody X-Bonus: Good music is very close to primitive language. -Denis Diderot, philosopher (1713-1784) threnody (THREN-uh-dee) noun A song of lamentation for the dead. [From Greek threnoidia, from threnos (lament) + oide (song). Ultimately from Indo-European root wed- (to speak) that is also the forefather of such words as ode, tragedy, comedy, parody, melody, and rhapsody.] "In his new novel James Lee Burke ties all these elements together in what amounts to a threnody of grief for the American dream." Mike Phillips; Both Villains And Victims; The Guardian (London, UK); Jul 31, 2004. "For Dorin, it was a full-throated threnody of decision." Jerry Izenberg; A Jersey Hero Hits Home; The Star-Ledger (Newark, New Jersey); Jul 25, 2004. This week's theme: words from Greek. -------- Date: Thu Aug 26 00:01:32 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stratocracy X-Bonus: Your children need your presence more than your presents. -Jesse Jackson, clergyman and civil rights leader (1941- ) stratocracy (struh-TOK-ruh-see) noun Government by the military. [From Greek stratos (army) + -cracy (rule, government). Ultimately from Indo-European root ster- (to spread), source of such words as structure, industry, destroy, street, Russian perestroika, and stratagem.] With so many countries under military rule, why isn't this word better known? Go ahead, put it to use -- why use many words when a single word is available to describe something? "(P)NDC was a stratocracy that deployed a culture of wanton and extra-judicial assassinations in the specious guise of revolutionary house-cleaning." Kwame Okoampa-Ahoofe; Question of Kettle Calling the Pot Black; New York Beacon; Oct 9, 2003. "They ... fell to be governed by an army. Their monarchy was changed into a stratocracy, and not into an aristocracy or democracy." Robert Filmer, et al; 'Patriarcha' and Other Writings; Cambridge University Press; 1991. This week's theme: words from Greek. -------- Date: Fri Aug 27 00:01:17 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--theanthropic X-Bonus: The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him. -Niccolo Machiavelli, political philosopher and author (1469-1527) theanthropic (thee-an-THROP-ik) adjective Having the nature of both God and human. [From Greek theanthropos (god-man), from theo-, (god) + anthropos (man).] "(T)he answer can only be given ... in theanthropic rather than humanistic terms." Alastair Hannay; Kierkegaard: A Biography; Cambridge University Press; 2003. "Mutual-love ethics might be called theanthropic, and its tendency is to treat God as a fellow creature." Edward Collins Vacek; Divine-command, Natural-law, And Mutual-love Ethics; Theological Studies (Milwaukee, Wisconsin); Dec 1, 1996. This week's theme: words from Greek. -------- Date: Mon Aug 30 00:01:11 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--alexia X-Bonus: Beauty is the purgation of superfluities. -Michelangelo Buonarroti, sculptor, painter, architect, and poet (1475-1564) alexia (uh-LEK-see-uh) noun A neurological disorder marked by the loss of ability to read words. Also called word blindness. [From Greek a- (not) + Greek lexis (speech), from legein (to speak), confused with Latin legere (to read) + Latin -ia (disease). Ultimately from Indo-European root leg- (to collect) that resulted in other derivatives such as lexicon, legal, dialogue, lecture, logic, legend, logarithm, intelligent, diligent, sacrilege, elect, and loyal.] "Unlike Bill, who has pure alexia, people with partial alexias recognize letters but can read only certain types of words. They may read concrete nouns such as 'inn,' but cannot decipher more abstract words such as the preposition 'in'." Lauran Neergaard; Stroke Victims Relearn to Read; Seattle Times; Jul 6, 2004. "Experiments like those in St. Louis show for the first time that alexia is the result of damage to the part of the brain that recognizes words by determining whether they conform to the rules of spelling." Jerry E. Bishop; Mapping the Mind; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Oct 12, 1993. Expectant parents comb baby name books to look for the perfect labels for their precious ones. They often scan thousands and thousands of names to find just the right one. Many choose a name because someone famous has the same moniker. For others, their choice is based on its meaning. Many simply base their selections on how the name sounds. Check out the result of recent research about vowels in a name: http://www.nature.com/news/2004/040809/full/040809-4.html Often a name becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. There is even a term for it: aptronym (a name that's especially suited). Check out some real-life examples: https://wordsmith.org/awad/awadmail61.html#aptronym In fairness to people named Alexia, their parents probably chose that name not because of its dictionary definition, but because it's a feminine form of the name Alexius (or Alexander) meaning defender, from Greek alexein (to defend). But then again, alexander is also the name of a kind of cocktail. Did someone say, "What's in a name?" This week we look at five words that are also names. -Anu Garg (garg AT wordsmith.org) -------- Date: Tue Aug 31 00:01:15 EDT 2004 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--julienne X-Bonus: The best writing is rewriting. -E.B. White, writer (1899-1985) julienne (joo-lee-EN) noun A consommé (clear soup) garnished with thin strips of vegetables. adjective (Of vegetables and other food) Cut into thin, matchstick-like pieces. verb tr. To cut into thin strips. [From French, generic use of the first name Julienne (or Jules or Julien).] "Use a grater or julienne peeler to shred the squash into long, thin strips." Zucchini Fritters a Tasty Use For Abundant Squash; The Associated Press; Jul 25, 2004. "If the initial response to this new release is any indication, Julie will julienne the chances of Asambhav." Dinesh Raheja; Sexuality Makes B-O Sense; Mid Day (Mumbai, India); Jul 28, 2004. This week's theme: words that are also names.