This week’s theme
People who became verbs

This week’s words
haussmannize
MacGyver
pasteurize
disneyfy
macadamize

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(muh-GY-vuhr)

MEANING:

verb tr.: To improvise an ingenious solution using whatever is available at hand.

ETYMOLOGY:

After Angus MacGyver, a secret agent in the television series MacGyver, who was known for improvising ingenious solutions to the problems he faced. He carried a Swiss Army knife and duct tape. Earliest documented use: 1992. Some related terms, though not synonyms, are kludge and jury-rig.

USAGE:

“Check out our suggestions of how to MacGyver a few starter snacks from leftovers you might have from Christmas Day.”
Myffy Rigby; Hit a New Year’s Eve Bullseye at Home; Sydney Morning Herald (Australia); Dec 27, 2016.

“So in the mid-2000s, scientists began to MacGyver a telescope out of previously existing infrastructure.”
Sarah Kaplan & Joel Achenbach; A New Horizon; The Washington Post; Apr 11, 2019.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: