A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Thu Jan 1 00:03:12 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--veritable X-Bonus: Modern man thinks he loses something - time - when he does not do things quickly. Yet he does not know what to do with the time he gains -- except kill it. -Erich Fromm ver.i.ta.ble a. [F. v['e]ritable. See Verity.] Agreeable to truth or to fact; actual; real; true; genuine. "From now onwards I'm going to be a veritable angel." This week's theme: Words from Maya Chandrasekaran's novel "Changes at the Manor." -------- Date: Fri Jan 2 00:03:20 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fastidious X-Bonus: Problems are only opportunities in work clothes. -Henry J. Kaiser fas.tid.i.ous a. [L. fastidiosus disdainful, fr. fastidium loathing, aversion, perh. fr. fastus arrogance (of uncertain origin) + taedium loathing. Cf. Tedious, Fash.] Difficult to please; delicate to a fault; suited with difficulty; squeamish; as, a fastidious mind or ear; a fastidious appetite. "`Well I dislike getting all hot and sweaty,' she answered fastidiously." This week's theme: Words from Maya Chandrasekaran's novel "Changes at the Manor." -------- Date: Sat Jan 3 00:03:24 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--doleful X-Bonus: The deeds you do today may be the only sermon some people will hear today. -St. Francis of Assisi dole.ful a. Full of dole or grief; expressing or exciting sorrow; sorrowful; sad; dismal. "`In fact everything's awful this year. New Headmistress, all sorts of changes, more studies, and dear darling Mrs Kapoor,' Indu said dolefully, and the others laughed." This week's theme: Words from Maya Chandrasekaran's novel "Changes at the Manor." -------- Date: Sun Jan 4 00:03:11 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bedlam X-Bonus: Under-Achievers Anonymous has an 11-step program. bed.lam n. [From the Bethlehem, a hospital for the insane, in London, corrupted into bedlam.] 1. A place appropriated to the confinement and care of the insane; a madhouse. 2. Any place where uproar and confusion prevail. bed.lam a. Belonging to, or fit for, a madhouse. "The class was a scene of pure bedlam. Some people were discussing their new Headmistress, mostly bitterly, while the more cheerful people were talking about happier things like what they had done during the holidays." This week's theme: Words from Maya Chandrasekaran's novel "Changes at the Manor." -------- Date: Mon Jan 5 00:03:44 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--zugzwang X-Bonus: Those who would have nothing to do with thorns must never attempt to gather flowers. zug.zwang n. [G. Zugzwang : Zug, pull, move fr. MHG zuc, pull, fr. OHG, fr. ziohan, to pull; + Zwang, compulsion fr. MHG twanc, fr. OHG). A situation in a chess game in which a player is forced to make an undesirable or disadvantageous move. Peter Schjeldahl, The delinquent, The Village Voice, 14 Oct 1997, p. 101. "In Kippenberger's game, it is always our move, and our options are, as they say in chess, zugzwang: losing either way." In his classic story "Shatranj Ke Khiladi" (meaning "Chess Players," later made into a film directed by Satyajit Ray), Indian writer Munshi Premchand narrates the saga of a kingdom engrossed in the game of chess, unmindful of the advancing enemy forces. Such is the charm of this ancient Indian game of chess. It attests to the popularity of the game that many of the chess words have entered mainstream vocabulary. As World Chess Championship finals continue to a finish in Lausanne, Switzerland, let's look at few words from chess terminology. Live broadcast of the finals is available on the Web at http://www.chessweb.com/wcc/ -Anu -------- Date: Tue Jan 6 00:03:36 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gambit X-Bonus: Every child comes with the message that God is not yet tired of the man. -Rabindranath Tagore, poet (1861-1941) gam.bit n. [F. gambit, cf. It. gambitto gambit, a tripping up. See Gambol, n.] (Chess Playing) A mode of opening the game, in which a pawn is sacrificed to gain an attacking position. 2. A maneuver, especially one used at an initial stage. 3. A remark intended to open a conversation. Gillian Reynolds, The Arts, The Daily Telegraph, 25 Oct 1997. "Thanks to Neil's gambit, the BBC got through Charter renewal with grassroots intact." This week's theme: words from chess. -------- Date: Wed Jan 7 00:03:12 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--stalemate X-Bonus: Happiness is something that comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open. -Rose Lane stale.mate n. (Chess) The position of the king when he can not move without being placed on check and there is no other piece which can be moved. stale.mate v. t. (Chess) To subject to a stalemate; hence, to bring to a stand. Wiranto elected chairman of team to elect president, The Jakarta Post, 28 Oct 1997. "`We can again resort to lobbying in case we fail to avoid astalemate,' Latief said." This week's theme: words from chess. -------- Date: Thu Jan 8 00:03:08 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--checkmate X-Bonus: Imagine a school with children that can read or write, but with teachers who cannot, and you have a metaphor of the Information Age in which we live. -Peter Cochrane check.mate v. t. 1. (Chess) To check (an adversary's king) in such a manner that escape is impossible; to defeat (an adversary) by putting his king in check from which there is no escape. 2. To defeat completely; to terminate; to thwart. check.mate n. [F. eschec et mat, fr. Per. shah mat ceckmate, lit., the king is dead, fr. Ar. mata he died, is dead. The king, when made prisoner, or checkmated, is assumed to be dead, and the game is finished. See Chess.] 1. The position in the game of chess when a king is in check and cannot be released, -- which ends the game. 2. A complete check; utter defeat or overthrow. Mark of the Mafia, The Week, 31 Mar 1997. "Braide's gubernatorial ambition may, however, be checkmated by that of Andrew Uchendu, an Ikwerre elite in the same party." This week's theme: words from chess. -------- Date: Fri Jan 9 00:03:22 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--counterplay X-Bonus: It is not only for what we do that we are held responsible, but also for what we do not do. -Moliere coun.ter.play n. A threat or offensive position in chess intended to counter an opponent's advantage in another part of the board. Robert W. Welkos and Rone Tempest, Hollywood's New China Syndrome; Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep 1997. "In another obvious counterplay to the coming China-Tibet movies, Beijing has just released a 90-minute television documentary about the Dalai Lama." This week's theme: words from chess. -------- Date: Sat Jan 10 00:03:15 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--endgame X-Bonus: On the Internet, nobody knows you're a dog. -Cartoon in The New Yorker end.game n. 1. The final stage of a chess game after most of the pieces have been removed from the board. 2. The final stage of an extended process or course of events. Ervin, Mike, In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam. (book reviews), The Progressive, 1 Jun 1995. "Defense Secretary in the 1960s and memoir writer in the 1990s, McNamara still gropes for the elusive coherence that can offer a graceful endgame for his life." This week's theme: words from chess. -------- Date: Sun Jan 11 00:03:11 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--patzer X-Bonus: The louder he talked of his honor, the faster we counted our spoons. -Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (1803-1882) pat.zer n. Slang. [Prob. fr. G., bungler, fr. patzen, to bungle.] A poor or amateurish chess player. Franz Lidz, Focus: Your Move and Make it Snappy, Sports Illustrated, 28 Mar 1988. "While others followed the play-by-play on TV monitors, Tal was taking on any patzer who wanted some action." This week's theme: words from chess. -------- Date: Mon Jan 12 00:04:27 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--machicolation X-Bonus: It often shows an excellent command of language to say nothing. -Karol Newlin mach.i.co.la.tion n. [Cf. LL. machicolamentum, machacolladura, F. machicolis, machecoulis; perh. fr. F. me'che match, combustible matter + OF. coulis, couleis, flowing, fr. OF. & F. couler to flow. Cf. Match for making fire, and Cullis.] 1. (Mil. Arch.) An opening between the corbels which support a projecting parapet, or in the floor of a gallery or the roof of a portal for shooting or dropping missiles upon assailants attacking the base of the walls. Also, the construction of such defenses, in general, when of this character. 2. The act of discharging missiles or pouring burning or melted substances upon assailants through such apertures. Saul, Nigel, Bodiam Castle. (Sussex, England)., Vol. 45, History Today, 01-01-1995, pp 16(6). "The battlemented parapets and projecting turrets look convincing enough from a distance; and there is even a machicolation gallery corbelled out to create the overhang necessary for missile holes." Your home is your castle. But how do you properly describe the bits and pieces of a castle? Some of these words are still commonly used, while others are found only in history books and knights-and-ladies romances. All of them provide an interesting glimpse of how royalty used to live. -Ellen McMicking (elberethATinforamp.net) (This week's Guest Wordsmith, Ellen has worked as an aircraft riveter, nanny, radio announcer, song writer, wine maker, silversmith, and security consultant, though not at the same time. -Anu) -------- Date: Tue Jan 13 00:03:04 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--postern X-Bonus: You must have been warned against letting the golden hours slip by. Yes, but some of them are golden only because we let them slip by. -James M. Barrie pos.tern n. [OF. posterne, posterle, F. poterne, fr. L. posterula, fr. posterus coming after. See Posterior.] 1. Originally, a back door or gate; a private entrance; hence, any small door or gate. 2. (Fort.) A subterraneous passage communicating between the parade and the main ditch, or between the ditches and the interior of the outworks. pos.tern a. Back; being behind; private. More, Sir Thomas, Utopia: Part I., Great Works of Literature, 01-01-1992. "Every house hath two doors, one into the street, and a postern door on the back side into the garden." This week's theme: words about forts and castles. -------- Date: Wed Jan 14 00:03:30 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--rampart X-Bonus: With lies you may go ahead in the world, but you can never go back. -Russian Proverb ram.part n. [F. rempart, OF. rempar, fr. remparer to fortify, se remparer to fence or intrench one's self; re- re- pref. + pref. en- (L. in) + parer to defend, parry, prepare, L. parare to prepape. See Pare.] 1. That which fortifies and defends from assault; that which secures safety; a defense or bulwark. 2. (Fort.) A broad embankment of earth round a place, upon which the parapet is raised. It forms the substratum of every permanent fortification. ram.part v. t. To surround or protect with, or as with, a rampart or ramparts. David Keys, Archaeology / Tourists lay siege to fortress town., Independent, 05-03-1994. "The ruined town, complete with 1,000 metres of massive ramparts and scores of partially preserved Iron Age houses, has been quite literally tumbling down under the pressure of tourism." This week's theme: words about forts and castles. -------- Date: Thu Jan 15 00:03:06 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--entresol X-Bonus: Generosity is giving more than you can, and pride is taking less than you need. -Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931) [Sand and Foam] en.tre.sol n. [F.] (Arch.) A low story between two higher ones, usually between the ground floor and the first story; mezzanine. Hoving, Thomas; Fayard, Judith Devereux, Wing victory. (the Louvre's new Richelieu wing)., Vol. 148, Town & Country Monthly, 04-01-1994, pp 76(12). "The three floors and the entresol are interconnected by a bank of modern escalators." This week's theme: words about forts and castles. -------- Date: Fri Jan 16 00:04:01 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--garderobe X-Bonus: A smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks. garde.robe n. [ME, fr. OF: garder, to keep + robe, robe] 1.a. A chamber for storing clothes; a wardrobe. b. The contents of a wardrobe. 2. A private chamber. Jean Shea, Working Vacations Helping Dig Up The Past in Wales., Newsday, 05-15-1994, pp 26. "A day later, duties were shifted for everyone, and Bob and I, who were partners on landscape duties, were back together on the fabric survey, which is how we ended up in the garderobe." This week's theme: words about forts and castles. -------- Date: Sat Jan 17 00:03:09 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--groin X-Bonus: It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it. -Dan Quayle groin v. t. (Arch.) To fashion into groins; to build with groins. groin n. [Icel. grein distinction, division, branch; akin to Sw. gren, branch, space between the legs, Icel. greina to distinguish, divide, Sw. grena to branch, straddle. Cf. Grain a branch.] 1. (Anat.) The line between the lower part of the abdomen and the thigh, or the region of this line. 2. (Arch.) The projecting solid angle formed by the meeting of two vaults, growing more obtuse as it approaches the summit. 3. (Math.) The surface formed by two such vaults. 4. A frame of woodwork across a beach to accumulate and retain shingle. Beverly Louise Brown, Tiepolo's Heavenly Visions., Vol. 12, The World & I, 04-01-1997, pp 146. "The framework had two large triangular projections on either side of the ceiling's center that hid the point where the groin vaults of two side chapels intersected the main vault." This week's theme: words about forts and castles. -------- Date: Sun Jan 18 00:03:21 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--oratory X-Bonus: Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none. -Shakespeare or.a.to.ry n. [L. oratoria (sc. ars) the oratorical art.] The art of an orator; the art of public speaking in an eloquent or effective manner; the exercise of rhetorical skill in oral discourse; eloquence. or.a.to.ry n. [OE. oratorie, fr. L. oratorium, fr. oratorius of praying, of an orator: cf. F. oratoire. See Orator, Oral, and cf. Oratorio.] A place of orisons, or prayer; especially, a chapel or small room set apart for private devotions. Andrea Schilte-Peevers, Heavenly Realms of Upper Swabia., German Life, 09-30-1995, pp PG. "Famous architect Balthasar Neumann designed the lavish stairwell, but Feuchtmayer contributed stucco work and sculptures for the chapel's chancel, oratory, and high altar, which holds a magnificent crucifix. Gottfried Bernhard Goz supplied the ceiling fresco." This week's theme: words about forts and castles. -------- Date: Mon Jan 19 00:54:01 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--catch-22 X-Bonus: Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplification. -Martin H. Fischer catch-22 [fr. Catch-22, a novel by Joseph Heller] 1.a. A situation in which a desired outcome or solution is impossible to attain because of a set of inherently illogical rules or conditions. b. The rules or conditions that create such a situation. 2. A situation or predicament characterized by absurdity or senselessness. 3. A contradictory or self-defeating course of action. 4. A tricky or disadvantageous condition; a catch. James S. Kunen, Exercising Her Right to Madness, Accused Killer Gena Spero Poses a Legal Problem Without a Solution., People, 10-05-1987, pp 115. "His aim is to present an insanity defense, and he wants her off medication so that the jury can see how sick she really is. Unmedicated, however, she becomes incompetent and can't go to trial. 'That presents a catch-22,' he concedes." In the beginning was the Word and then came Numbers. And this week's AWAD combines both. Look for more words with numbers during this week. -Anu -------- Date: Tue Jan 20 00:03:36 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--eighty-six X-Bonus: Sometimes you can observe a lot by watching. -Yogi Berra eighty-six also 86, vt [Perh. rhyming slang for nix] 1. To refuse to serve at a bar or restaurant. 2.a. To throw out; eject. b. To throw away; discard. Zan Dubin, Clubs in and around Orange County; Los Angeles Times, 06-19-1997, pp F-4. "He says the show will go on next month, though scheduling conflicts may move it to another hotel and the band may be eighty-sixed." This week's theme: words with numbers. -------- Date: Wed Jan 21 00:03:17 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--two-fisted X-Bonus: Truth often suffers more by the heat of its defenders than the arguments of its opposers. -William Penn two-fist.ed adj. 1. Using or able to use two fists: a two-fisted backhand stroke in tennis. 2. Informal. Characterized by great vigor, energy, or enthusiasm; a two-fisted card player. Brian O'Reilly, In a Dry Era You Can StilL be Trapped by Drinking, Fortune, 03-06-1995, pp 167+. "Children of alcoholics are much more likely to have a high tolerance for alcohol. And those two-fisted drinkers who could put their friends under the table from the very beginning, researchers have discovered, are actually at much greater risk than those who get dizzy or sick or drunk on a few drinks." This week's theme: words with numbers. -------- Date: Thu Jan 22 00:03:44 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--twenty-twenty X-Bonus: Time is the best teacher; unfortunately, it kills all its students. twen.ty-twen.ty or 20/20 [From a method of testing vision by reading charts at a distance of 20 feet.] adj. Having normal visual acuity. Levenson, Christopher, War Voices.(book reviews)., Vol. 70, World Literature Today, 09-01-1996, pp 961(2). "Curtis's oblique poetic strategies, suffused with the ironies of twenty-twenty hindsight, are no less diverse." This week's theme: words with numbers. -------- Date: Fri Jan 23 00:04:11 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--foursquare X-Bonus: This is my rule of married life: it's better to be happy than to be right. -Click & Clack, the Tappet Brothers four.square adj. 1: square 2: marked by boldness and conviction: forthright. Beasley, Conger, Jr., The dirty history of nuclear power, Vol. 5, E Magazine, 02-01-1994, pp 34(6). "A sturdy, foursquare man, he sits solidly in a straightbacked chair at the kitchen table of his ancestral house, his feet planted firmly on the floor. `Local hunters and fishermen begun to report some oddities. Fish without eyes. A two-headed bird. A nine-legged frog, which I actually saw. I decided it was time to get involved.'" This week's theme: words with numbers. -------- Date: Sat Jan 24 00:03:39 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--two-time X-Bonus: By plucking her petals, you do not gather the beauty of the flower. -Rabindranath Tagore two-time v.t. Slang. To be unfaithful or deceitful to (a loved one). Johnson, Brian D., Dolores Claiborne.(movie reviews)., Vol. 108, Maclean's, 04-03-1995, pp 66(2). "And as Selena's two-timing editor at Esquire, Eric Bogosian is wasted in a subplot that goes nowhere." This week's theme: words with numbers. -------- Date: Sun Jan 25 00:03:06 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--four-flush X-Bonus: It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations. four-flush v.i. To bluff in poker with a four flush. 2. To make empty claims; bluff. Ann Landers, Newsday, 10-13-1995, pp B04. "If you have an engagement ring, return it promptly. Simply tell the four-flusher you have decided you are not right for each other. No need to recount the lies..." This week's theme: words with numbers. -------- Date: Mon Jan 26 00:04:12 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--primipara X-Bonus: Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught. pri.mip.a.ra n. [L., fr. primus first + parere to bring forth.] A woman who bears a child for the first time. Navigating the Real World; Hearts of the City; A rotating panel of experts from the worlds of philosophy, psychology and religion offer their perspective on the dilemmas that come with living in South, Los Angeles Times, 01-15-1997, pp B-2. "Which image panders to the moral and class arrogance of Wilson's implicit politics of punishment, and which serves the state's--our--real long-term interest by providing the conditions for two Californians, mother and child, to become productive citizens? Or does Wilson plan to beam up poor postpartum primiparas to Portland after their newborns are adopted into white-picket-fence homes?" One of life's most awesome experiences is the birth of a child. From the day a woman first discovers she is pregnant until well after the child is born, she and her partner, are introduced to a wide range of words to describe the new and sometimes mysterious world they have entered. I have chosen a few of these words, attempting to avoid ones that are limited in use to the medical profession. -Melinda Soares (mmmmATica.net) (This week's Guest Wordsmith Melinda is studying to be a childbirth educator and doula. She runs a business making plaster casts of pregnant bellies. -Anu) -------- Date: Tue Jan 27 00:03:09 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gravid X-Bonus: Said a hunted fox followed by twenty horsemen and a pack of twenty hounds, "Of course they will kill me. But how poor and how stupid they must be. Surely it would not be worth while for twenty foxes riding on twenty asses and accompanied by twenty wolves to chase and kill one man." -Kahlil Gibran (1883-1931) [Sand and Foam] grav.id a. [L. gravidus, fr. gravis heavy, loaded. See Grave, a.] Being with child; heavy with young; pregnant; fruitful; as, a gravid uterus; gravid piety. Lehman, Mark L., Composers from West Flanders., Vol. 58, American Record Guide, 01-11-1995, pp 210(1). "I begins with a gravid, ponderous proclamation of heavy-treading timpani under thick-textured, dissonant brass lines that well up from the depths with powerful grandeur." This week's theme: words about pregnancy and childbirth. -------- Date: Wed Jan 28 00:03:51 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--parity X-Bonus: Music is a higher revelation than philosophy. -Beethoven par.i.ty n. [L. paritas, fr. par, paris, equal: cf. F. parite'. See Pair, Peer an equal.] The quality or condition of being equal or equivalent; A like state or degree; equality; close correspondence; analogy; as, parity of reasoning. par.i.ty n. [L. parere, to give birth, bring forth + -ity] Med. 1. The condition of having borne offspring. 2. The number of children borne by one woman. Schulman, Elizabeth, Preterm delivery among women in the South Carolina Medicaid high risk channeling project, Vol. 6, Journal of Health Care for the Poor & Underserved, 01-01-1995, pp 352. "The interactional effect of maternal age and parity on the incidence of low birth weight has been well documented." This week's theme: words about pregnancy and childbirth. -------- Date: Thu Jan 29 00:03:37 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--couvade X-Bonus: The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not by smashing it. -Arnold H. Glasow cou.vade n. [F., fr. couver. to incubate.] A custom, among certain tribes, that when a woman gives birth to a child her husband takes to his bed, as if ill. Morris, David, Pain's dominion, Vol. 18, Wilson Quarterly, 09-01-1994, pp 8. "A similar phenomenon reappears in the condition known as couvade syndrome, in which the male partners of pregnant women experience various symptoms of pregnancy, including abdominal pain." Todd Gitlin, Ditto; The Culture Of The Copy: Striking Likenesses, Unreasonable Facsimiles. By Hillel Schwartz . Zone Books, Los Angeles Times, 01-12-1997, pp 5. "Twenty-two pages on mannequins or 14 on couvade (men aping the look of pregnant women) don't so much establish that we live in a culture of copies as that there is a lot of copying in the culture. " This week's theme: words about pregnancy and childbirth. -------- Date: Fri Jan 30 00:03:29 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--natality X-Bonus: Until you make peace with who you are, you'll never be content with what you have. -Doris Mortman na.tal.i.ty n. [L. natalis, fr. natus, p. p. of nasci to be born: cf. F. natal. See Nation, and cf. Noel.] Birth rate. Sandy Hamm, N.J. Teen Birth Rate Less Than U.S., New Pittsburgh Courier, 04-22-1995, pp PG. "Both had fallen slightly from 1991. New Jersey has `more or less followed the pattern of the national rate, but at a lower level,' Stephanie Ventura of the NCHS Natality Branch said." This week's theme: words about pregnancy and childbirth. -------- Date: Sat Jan 31 00:03:31 EST 1998 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--parturition X-Bonus: You can't have a better tomorrow if you are thinking about yesterday all the time. -Charles F. Kettering par.tu.ri.tion n. [L. parturitio, fr. parturire: cf. F. parturition. See Parturient.] 1. The act of bringing forth, or being delivered of, young; the act of giving birth; delivery; childbirth. Miller, Julia I., Miraculous childbirth and the Portinari altarpiece.., Vol. 77, The Art Bulletin, 06-01-1995, pp 249(14). "Not only did the Nativity represent the Incarnation of the Savior but, in popular legend, the delivery itself was miraculous: it preserved Mary's virginity and was also exempt from the usual fears, pains, and dangers of ordinary human parturition." This week's theme: words about pregnancy and childbirth.