A.Word.A.Day Archives from https://wordsmith.org/awad -------- Date: Fri Nov 1 00:01:04 EDT 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--rodomont X-Bonus: A man said to the universe: "Sir, I exist!" "However," replied the universe, "The fact has not created in me a sense of obligation." -Stephen Crane, writer (1 Nov 1871-1900) This week's theme: Eponyms from fiction rodomont (RAH-duh-mont) noun A vain boaster. [After Rodomonte, the boastful king in "Orlando Innamorato" by Matteo Boiardo and the sequel "Orlando Furioso" by Ludovico Ariosto. Earliest documented use: 1592. A related word is rodomontade https://wordsmith.org/words/rodomontade.html .] "The Very Strong Rodomonte" https://wordsmith.org/words/images/rodomont_large.jpg Art: Antonio Tempesta (1555-1630) "Tyson wasn't just being a rodomont about [the city of] Columbus accomplishments. She said that sharing the city's experiences was a way to help other countries with their own government reforms." Councilwoman Priscilla Tyson Touting Columbus to Inspire African Nations; Call & Post (Cleveland, Ohio); Nov 7, 2012. -------- Date: Mon Nov 4 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--glad hand X-Bonus: A king can stand people's fighting, but he can't last long if people start thinking. -Will Rogers, humorist (4 Nov 1879-1935) What does a surgeon have in common with a palmist? Both work with hands, etymologically speaking. The word surgeon is another spelling for chirurgeon, from Greek cheir (hand). That's where the similarity ends. One is based on science, another on mumbo-jumbo. The English language has more than a handful of terms derived from hands. Among the idioms, we have: hands up, which is not the opposite of hands down; offhand, which is not the opposite of on hand; hand in, which is not the opposite of hand out, and so on. But then that's the nature of idioms. Well, we have tipped our hand. This week we'll see five terms that have their origin in hands. glad hand or glad-hand (GLAD hand) noun: A hearty welcome or greeting, often insincere. verb tr., intr.: To greet warmly, often insincerely. [From glad, from Old English glaed (bright, cheerful) + hand, from Old English hand. Earliest documented use: 1895.] Presidential candidate Mitt Romney on the campaign trail, 2012 https://wordsmith.org/words/images/glad_hand_large.jpg Photo: Yahoo https://www.flickr.com/photos/yahoopolitics/8158652990/ See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/glad%20hand NOTES: Glad-handing is typically associated with politicians, used-car salesmen, and their ilk. There's often a hidden agenda: they are not greeting so enthusiastically because they are delighted to see you, rather they want something from you. You'd never find a dog glad-handing or glad-pawing you (cats, maybe). When they come running, tails wagging, to greet you at the front door, they mean every bit of it. "The PM himself was unable to suppress a beam of triumph, as he glad-handed his fellow leaders." Heather Stewart & Lisa O'Carroll; Brexit Deal May Be a Rare Win-Win for Boris Johnson; The Guardian (London, UK); Oct 17, 2019. -------- Date: Tue Nov 5 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--fingerpost X-Bonus: To sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men. -Ella Wheeler Wilcox, poet (5 Nov 1850-1919) This week's theme: Words originating in the hand fingerpost (FING-guhr-post) noun 1. A post with one or more signs pointing toward one or more places. 2. Something or someone serving as a guide. [From the resemblance of the sign to the fingers of a hand. Earliest documented use: 1738.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/fingerpost NOTES: A fingerpost is a post with long thin boards pointing toward various locations. These boards may look like fingers on a hand, hence the name. Sometimes these boards actually terminate in a pointing finger. The "Oxford English Dictionary" lists another sense of the word fingerpost: a parson or a member of the clergy. As this citation from the "A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue" (1785) tells it: "Finger post, a parson, so called, because like the finger post, he points out a way he probably will never go, i.e. the way to heaven." A fingerpost in Rushton, Cheshire, UK https://wordsmith.org/words/images/fingerpost_large.jpg Photo: Jeff Buck https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/5919434 "The title [of the poem] isn't a hint or a fingerpost so much as the Reader's Digest condensed version." William Logan; Shelley's Wrinkled Lip, Smith's Gigantic Leg; Parnassus: Poetry in Review (New York); 2011. -------- Date: Wed Nov 6 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--chirocracy X-Bonus: I don't think that combat has ever been written about truthfully; it has always been described in terms of bravery and cowardice. I won't even accept these words as terms of human reference any more. And anyway, hell, they don't even apply to what, in actual fact, modern warfare has become. -James Jones, novelist (6 Nov 1921-1977) This week's theme: Words originating in the hand chirocracy (ky-ROK-ruh-see) noun Government that rules by physical force. [From Greek chiro- (hand) + -cracy (rule), alluding to a rule by a strong hand or a heavy-handed rule. Earliest documented use: 1677.] "Although he did not explicitly say so, it seems likely that our author regarded contemporary society as going through the stages of 'dangerous democracy' and 'anarchy or chirocracy'; after all, in 1577, the royal government of the Netherlands had collapsed, the States had taken matters into their own hands." Tabitta Van Nouhuys; The Ages of Two-Faced Janus; Brill; 1998. -------- Date: Thu Nov 7 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--bareknuckle X-Bonus: You cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individuals. To that end, each of us must work for his own improvement, and at the same time share a general responsibility for all humanity, our particular duty being to aid those to whom we think we can be most useful. -Marie Curie, scientist, Nobel laureate (7 Nov 1867-1934) This week's theme: Words originating in the hand bareknuckle (BER-NUHK-uhl) adjective, adverb 1. Without using boxing gloves. 2. Rough; unrestrained by rules or scruples. [From bare, from Old English baer + knuckle, diminutive of Middle Low German knoke (bone). Earliest documented use: 1883.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/bareknuckle Band-Aid? You mean duct tape? https://wordsmith.org/words/images/bareknuckle_large.jpg Image: quickmeme http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/3uhvdy "This will be bareknuckle brawl on the mountainside and the strongest, smartest rider will win." Lawrence Ostlere; Froome vs Thomas: Two Old Friends Set to Be Tested by Opposing Ambitions; The Independent (London, UK); Jul 24, 2018. -------- Date: Fri Nov 8 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--manumission X-Bonus: Your voice dries up if you don't use it. -Patti Page, singer (8 Nov 1927-2013) This week's theme: Words originating in the hand manumission (man-yuh-MISH-uhn) noun Release from slavery, servitude, or restraint. [From Latin manumittere (to free), from manus (hand) + mittere (to let go). Ultimately from the Indo-European root man- (hand), which also gave us manual, manage, maintain, manicure, maneuver, manufacture, manuscript, command, manure, manque https://wordsmith.org/words/manque.html , legerdemain https://wordsmith.org/words/legerdemain.html , and mortmain https://wordsmith.org/words/mortmain.html . Earliest documented use: 1452.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/manumission "It wasn't the menacing red lights of the bygone peripheral [Kinect] that intrigued me, nor the unremarkable games it birthed, but its mandate of manumission. When paired with an Xbox, it urged us all to leave the controller on the couch and physicalize our intentions instead." Ripley D Light; Totally WIRED; Wired (San Francisco, California); Oct 2019. -------- Date: Mon Nov 11 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--froward X-Bonus: Brothers don't necessarily have to say anything to each other -- they can sit in a room and be together and just be completely comfortable with each other. -Leonardo DiCaprio, actor and director (b. 11 Nov 1974) Is time circular? Who knows. In one way, what has happened never comes back. On the other hand, every year, the clock strikes again, a new year begins, and we get another chance to look forward and back. When I have a difficult decision to make, I like to think what I would be wondering when I knew my time had run out: I wish I had been a little kinder? I wish had spoken out more when I saw a wrong? I wish I had stood up for what I believed in even when it was going to cost me? A time comes when even those who considered themselves the mightiest rulers of the world are gone, never to be able to change what they did or what the world thinks of them. We can't reverse time, https://www.technologyreview.com/s/613123/no-ibm-didnt-just-reverse-time-with-a-quantum-computer/ at least not yet. So why not do it right in the first place? We are all connected, in time and place. A thread, however slender, connects us to the rest of the humanity. This week's words are somewhat like that. Each is different, but is connected to other words in some way. froward (FRO-wurd/urd) adjective Difficult to deal with; contrary. [From Middle English fro- (away, from) + -ward (moving or facing in a specific direction). Earliest documented use: 1340.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/froward NOTES: If you recall the phrase to-and-fro (which is short for "to and from"), you can easily sense where froward is going. It's the opposite of toward. Over time, the senses of the two words have shifted so they are not antonyms any more. "Sir Andrew, who was far from valorous, thought there might be wisdom in the Justice's words, and remembered that he had troubles enough of his own with a froward wife without taking up the burdens of others." Rafael Sabatini; The Sea-Hawk; Martin Secker; 1915. -------- Date: Tue Nov 12 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--listless X-Bonus: To the artist there is never anything ugly in nature. -Auguste Rodin, sculptor (12 Nov 1840-1917) This week's theme: Misc. words listless (LIST-luhs, -lis) adjective Devoid of energy or enthusiasm. [From list (desire, inclination), from Old English lystan (to be pleasing). Ultimately from the Indo-European root las- (to be eager), which also gave us lust. Earliest documented use: 1440.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/listless "She grew froward -- by turns high-spirited and listless, voluble and dumb, doting and cynical." John Barth; Lost in the Funhouse; Doubleday; 1968. https://wordsmith.org/words/voluble.html -------- Date: Wed Nov 13 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--indolent X-Bonus: I know what I have given you. I do not know what you have received. -Antonio Porchia, poet (13 Nov 1886-1968) This week's theme: Misc. words indolent (IN-duh-lehnt) adjective 1. Lazy, lethargic, averse to exertion. 2. Painless or causing little pain; slow to develop or heal. Used in medicine, for example, indolent ulcer. [From Latin indolent-, stem of indolens, from Latin in- (not) + dolens, present participle of dolere (to suffer, feel pain) which also gave us dolor, condole, and dole. Earliest documented use: 1663.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/indolent "He becomes listless, indolent, flabby as a jellyfish." Stefan Zweig (Translation: Anthea Bell); The Collected Stories of Stefan Zweig; Pushkin Press; 2013. -------- Date: Thu Nov 14 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--matronly X-Bonus: No drug, not even alcohol, causes the fundamental ills of society. If we're looking for the source of our troubles, we shouldn't test people for drugs, we should test them for stupidity, ignorance, greed, and love of power. -P.J. O'Rourke, writer (b. 14 Nov 1947) This week's theme: Misc. words matronly (MAY-truhn-lee) adjective 1. Stately; dignified. 2. Characteristic of a mature, plump, unfashionable woman. [From matron (a married woman; a woman in charge), from Latin matrona (married woman, wife), from mater (mother). Ultimately from the Indo-European root mater (mother), which also gave us mother, material, matter, matrix, and matrimony. Earliest documented use: 1590.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/matronly Robin Williams in "Mrs. Doubtfire" (1993) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/matronly_large.jpg Image: IMDb "She had grown somewhat stouter of late, and her movements were already a little matronly, a little indolent." Anton Chekhov (translation: Constance Garnett); The Darling and Other Stories; Macmillan; 1916. -------- Date: Fri Nov 15 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--valorous X-Bonus: Poetry is the art of creating imaginary gardens with real toads. -Marianne Moore, poet (15 Nov 1887-1972) This week's theme: Misc. words valorous (VAL-uhr-uhs) adjective Courageous; brave; bold. [From Latin valor (worth), from valere (to be well or strong). Earliest documented use: 1477.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/valorous "Martha Washington, matronly and dowdy ... smiled. 'I can assure you that the General holds the utmost respect for General Arnold as well. Without his valorous service, none of us might be here tonight celebrating the French alliance.'" Jack Edward Shay; The Dock of Broken Dreams; Xlibris; 1999. -------- Date: Mon Nov 18 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gongoozler X-Bonus: Physicists are made of atoms. A physicist is the atom's way of knowing about atoms. -George Wald, scientist and Nobel laureate (18 Nov 1906-1997) Nietzsche once said, "At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time." What words describe you or people you know or people in the news? To describe unique beings we need unique words. In this week's A.Word.A.Day we feature five words to describe people. gongoozler (gon-GOOZ-luhr) noun An idle spectator. [Of uncertain origin, perhaps from Lincolnshire dialect gawn and gooz, both of which mean to stare. Earliest documented use: 1904.] NOTES: Rubberneckers gawk at highway accidents, trainspotters spot trains, and gongoozlers goozle gons. Well, no, language doesn't work like that. Originally, a gongoozler was a person who liked to hang out around canals watching passing boats. Over time, the word has evolved to refer to anyone who likes to stare at some activity. See also, kibitzer https://wordsmith.org/words/kibitzer.html . Gongoozlers at Foxton Locks, UK https://wordsmith.org/words/images/gongoozler_large.jpg Photo: Stephen Dawson / Wikimedia Commons "To get rid of a gongoozler, stare at him through binoculars." Terry Darlington; Narrow Dog To Carcassonne; Bantam; 2005. -------- Date: Tue Nov 19 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hail-fellow X-Bonus: Do not believe that it is very much of an advance to do the unnecessary three times as fast. -Peter Drucker, management consultant, professor and writer (19 Nov 1909-2005) This week's theme: Words to describe people hail-fellow (HAYL-fel-oh) noun: A congenial companion. adjective: Enthusiastically friendly. [Short for the former greeting "Hail-fellow well met." Earliest documented use: 1577.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hail-fellow NOTES: If you are one of those people who shorten OK to K, or for whom it takes too long to say Hi (Is "Yo" shorter?), you should know the archaic greeting "Hail, fellow! Well met!" Here's your challenge for today. Greet the next person you see with a "Hail, fellow! Well met!" Don't explain unless asked. Report results to us at words@wordsmith.org. "But I would give my head to be like everybody else -- to be hail-fellow with those men out at the shed, for instance." E.W. Hornung; The Boss of Taroomba; The Floating Press; 2014. -------- Date: Wed Nov 20 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--connoisseur X-Bonus: The truth isn't always beauty, but the hunger for it is. -Nadine Gordimer, novelist, Nobel laureate (20 Nov 1923-2014) This week's theme: Words to describe people connoisseur (kon-uh-SUHR/SOOR) noun An expert who is knowledgeable enough to pass critical judgment in a field, especially in fine arts, cuisines, etc. [From French connoisseur (connaisseur in Modern French), from Old French conoisseor, from conoistre (to know), from Latin cognoscere (to learn or get to know), from co- (together) + gnoscere (to know), (to learn). Ultimately from the Indo-European root gno- (to know), which is also the source of know, recognize, acquaint, ignore, diagnosis, notice, normal, agnostic https://wordsmith.org/words/agnostic.html , incognito https://wordsmith.org/words/incognito.html , anagnorisis (the moment of recognition or discovery) https://wordsmith.org/words/anagnorisis.html , and prosopagnosia (inability to recognize faces) https://wordsmith.org/words/prosopagnosia.html . Earliest documented use: 1719.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/connoisseur "The Connoisseur" (1882) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/connoisseur_large.jpg Art: Edward Antoon Portielje "These days olive oil must be savoured with the heightened diligence of a connoisseur." 'Shall We Strippagio?' How to Be an Olive Oil Snob; The Times (London, UK); Oct 24, 2019. -------- Date: Thu Nov 21 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--gangrel X-Bonus: Work saves us from three great evils: boredom, vice, and need. -Voltaire, philosopher (21 Nov 1694-1778) This week's theme: Words to describe people gangrel (GANG-ruhl) noun 1. A vagrant or drifter. 2. A tall, thin, long-limbed person. [From Old English gang/gong (manner of going, way, passage), from gangen (to go). Earliest documented use: 1450.] "She is an enthusiastic reader and collector of books, provides shelter to the gangrels in her tower." Dietmar Bohnke; Shades of Gray; Galda + Wilch Verlag; 2004. -------- Date: Fri Nov 22 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--vulgarian X-Bonus: Oh, would that my mind could let fall its dead ideas, as the tree does its withered leaves! -Andre Gide, author, Nobel laureate (22 Nov 1869-1951) This week's theme: Words to describe people vulgarian (vuhl-GAY-ree-uhn) noun A boorish, lewd, and crude person who makes a conspicuous display of wealth. [From Latin vulgus (mob, common people). Earliest documented use: 1833.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/vulgarian "Maxie, how can a clean-cut child such as yourself bear to be around such a vulgarian?" Max Allan Collins; USS Powderkeg; Brash Books; 2019. -------- Date: Mon Nov 25 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--shell-shocked X-Bonus: We haven't yet learned how to stay human when assembled in masses. -Lewis Thomas, physician and author (25 Nov 1913-1993) Make love, not war. Sounds like a pretty good idea, unless you're an arms manufacturer. Unlike toothpaste or shoes, we don't run out of or wear out weapons in our day-to-day life, so you have to get a war going from time to time. And, what's a few thousand lives if God himself calls upon you to lobby to start a war? God being the almighty dollar. Here in the US we spend more on the military than the next seven countries combined. https://www.nationalpriorities.org/blog/2019/07/18/us-spends-more-its-military-176-countries-combined/ We are so unprotected. Let's pray the next eight countries don't band together and attack us. Or we could beat some of those swords into ploughshares. We could sure use some of the money to pay for pre-schools, college, healthcare, and more. Fun fact: more than half the bankruptcies in the US are due to medical expenses https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/11/this-is-the-real-reason-most-americans-file-for-bankruptcy.html . Millennia of fighting has left its imprint on the language. The English language has many terms related to weapons that are now used as metaphors, for example, loose cannon https://wordsmith.org/words/loose_cannon.html and gauntlet https://wordsmith.org/words/gauntlet.html . This week we'll see five more such terms. shell-shocked (SHEL-shockd) adjective Stunned, confused, and exhausted as a result of experiencing intense stress, such as in a war zone. [From shell, from Old English sciell + shock, from French choc, from choquer (to collide). Earliest documented use: 1898.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/shell%20shock An Australian soldier in Ypres, Belgium, during WWI (1917) https://wordsmith.org/words/images/shell-shocked_large.jpg Photo: Official War Photographer, British Govt. "Perhaps Canada's politicians felt a bit shell-shocked after living dangerously during these stressful Trumpian moments, but that is no excuse." Tony Burman; After Trump; Toronto Star (Canada); Oct 19, 2019. -------- Date: Tue Nov 26 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--hatchet job X-Bonus: Ideologies separate us. Dreams and anguish bring us together. -Eugene Ionesco, playwright (26 Nov 1909-1994) This week's theme: Words related to weapons hatchet job (HATCH-it job) noun Malicious criticism meant to harm someone's reputation. [From hatchet (a small, short-handled axe), from Old French (hachete), diminutive of hache (axe) + job, of unknown origin. Earliest documented use: 1925.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/hatchet%20job NOTES: In the beginning a hatchet job was a murder carried out by a hired Chinese assassin in the US, known as a hatchet man. Over time, the word began to be used metaphorically for verbal criticism meant to destroy someone's reputation. Another hatchet idiom is to bury the hatchet, meaning to end hostilities and reconcile. https://wordsmith.org/words/images/hatchet_job_large.jpg Photo: Max Pixel https://www.maxpixel.net/Make-Wood-Tree-Nature-Wood-Axe-Woods-Cases-3075862 "It's a hatchet job, they're out to blacken her name." Mike Scantlebury; Secret Garden Festival; Lulu; 2018. -------- Date: Wed Nov 27 00:01:03 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--battle-axe X-Bonus: We want our sound to go into the soul of the audience, and see if it can awaken some little thing in their minds... Cause there are so many sleeping people. -Jimi Hendrix, musician, singer, and songwriter (27 Nov 1942-1970) This week's theme: Words related to weapons battle-ax or battle-axe (BAT-l aks) noun 1. A broadax used as a weapon of war. 2. A typically older woman with a reputation for being sharp-tongued, domineering, and aggressive. [From battle, from Latin battuere (to beat) + ax, from Old English aecs (ax). It's not entirely clear how this term came to be applied to a fierce woman. Perhaps it's because a sharp-tongued woman could cut down someone as well as an ax, metaphorically speaking. Earliest documented use: 1380 (1896 for the figurative meaning).] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/battle-axe https://wordsmith.org/words/images/battle-axe1_large.jpg Photo: MathKnight/Wikimedia Carrie Nation, 1910, a member of the temperance movement who campaigned against alcohol consumption. She actually carried a hatchet that she wielded to destroy taverns: https://wordsmith.org/words/images/battle-axe2_large.jpg Photo: Philipp Kester/NYT/Wikimedia "Blair Davis became the most entertaining Wheel of Fortune contestant ever last night. When he was introduced by Pat Sajak, Davis said: 'I've been trapped in a loveless marriage for the last 12 years to an old battle-axe named Kim. She cursed my life with three stepchildren: Star, RJ, and Ryan, and I have one rotten grandson.'" Jay Greeson; 5-at-10; Chattanooga Times Free Press (Tennessee); Oct 16, 2019. -------- Date: Thu Nov 28 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--smoking gun X-Bonus: One must be very naive or dishonest to imagine that men choose their beliefs independently of their situation. -Claude Levi-Strauss, anthropologist (28 Nov 1908-2009) This week's theme: Words related to weapons smoking gun (SMOH-king gun) noun Something that serves as incriminating evidence, especially of a crime. [From the idea that someone holding a recently fired gun that still has the smoke coming out of the barrel would make for incontrovertible evidence that they were the one who shot the victim. Earliest documented use: 1970s.] See usage examples in Vocabulary.com's dictionary: https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/smoking%gun https://wordsmith.org/words/images/smoking_gun_large.jpg Photo: Lars Plougmann https://flickr.com/photos/criminalintent/8151904957/ "John Sauven, an executive director at Greenpeace UK, said: 'The link between climate change and extreme weather used to be a fingerprint, it now looks more like a smoking gun.'" Damian Carrington; Climate Change Made UK Heatwave 30 Times More Likely -- Met Office; The Guardian (London, UK); Dec 6, 2018. -------- Date: Fri Nov 29 00:01:04 EST 2019 Subject: A.Word.A.Day--great guns X-Bonus: If I can do no more, let my name stand among those who are willing to bear ridicule and reproach for the truth's sake, and so earn some right to rejoice when the victory is won. -Louisa May Alcott, writer and reformist (29 Nov 1832-1888) This week's theme: Words related to weapons great guns (grayt gunz) noun: Someone or something impressive. adverb: With energy and enthusiasm; successfully. interjection: Expressing surprise or disbelief. [In the beginning, a great gun referred to a large firearm that required mounting. Eventually it came to be applied metaphorically. The adverbial use started in horse races. Earliest documented use: 1430.] https://wordsmith.org/words/images/great_guns_large.jpg Image: Wikimedia Commons "[Douglas Carter] Beane’s career has been going great guns anyway." Misha Berson; Taking a Jab at Hollywood Homophobia; The Seattle Times; Aug 15, 2008. "Fortunately, my chooks* are back on the lay, our vegies are going great guns (thank you, spring sunshine), and my regular fresh food market has amazing specials at closing time on Saturdays." Zoe Furman; Nearly $70 for a Pie? It's Just too Expensive; The Age (Melbourne, Australia); Oct 22, 2019. *chook = chicken (Australian slang)