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A.Word.A.Day--ventripotent

ventripotent (ven-TRI-pot-ehnt) adjective

Having a large belly; gluttonous.

[From French, from Latin ventri- (abdomen) + potent (powerful).]

The word ventriloquism, the art of speaking such that the voice seems to come from somewhere else, is derived from the same root. Ventriloquism is, literally speaking, speaking from the belly.

"This wight ventripotent was dining
Once at the Grocers' Hall, and lining
With calipee and calipash
That tomb omnivorous -- his paunch."
Horace Smith; The Astronomical Alderman; 19th century.
(Calipee and calipash are parts of a turtle beneath the lower and upper shields, respectively)

"The actor must, at all costs, inflict upon you the well-oiled machinery of ventripotence, whereas, to the reader, it is his mind which drips fatness."
James Evershed Agate; A View of "The Beggar's Opera"; 1922.

This week's theme: Words to describe your opponents, vituperation

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