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Nov 13, 2003
This week's theme
Archaic words

This week's words
clepe
sennight
anon
gainsay
hearken

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gainsay

(GAYN-say) Pronunciation

verb tr.: To deny or contradict.

[From Middle English gainsayen, from gain- (against), from Old English gegn- + sayen, from secgan (to say).]

"With such a record, it's hard for anyone to gainsay the cynics. But as Inauguration Day approached, millions of Nigerians like Pambi again dared to hope for something better."
Tom Masland; Fingers Crossed, Nigerians Are Inaugurating Their First Freely Elected President in 16 Years; Newsweek (New York); May 24, 1999.

X-Bonus

Brasington's Ninth Law: A carelessly planned project takes three times longer to complete than expected; a carefully planned one will take only twice as long.

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