Word of the Day Thursday September 20, 2007
recreant \REK-ree-uhnt\, adjective: 1. Cowardly; craven. 2. Unfaithful; disloyal.
noun: 1. A coward. 2. An unfaithful or disloyal person.
His recreant companion disappears around the fence, but he remains, smiling affably.
-- Eric J. Segal, "Norman Rockwell and the fashioning of American masculinity", Art Bulletin, December 1, 1996
To any man there may come at times a consciousness that there blows, through all the articulations of his body, the wind of a spirit not wholly his; that his mind rebels; that another girds him and carries him whither he would not. . . . The open door was closed in his recreant face.
-- Genie Babb, "Where the bodies are buried", Narrative, October 1, 2002
Wordsworth compares himself to a truant, a false steward, a recreant, when he does not write poetry, when poetic numbers fail to come spontaneously, when his harp is defrauded and the singer ends in silence.
-- J. Douglas Kneale, "Majestic Indolence: English Romantic Poetry and the Work of Art", Criticism, September 22, 1996
And it appears in the way the review essay was set up: Aronson versus Miliband, the recreant versus the faithful one.
-- Ronald Aronson, "Response to Victor Wallis", Monthly Review, October 1, 1996
But was it worth surrendering your religion, hence your honor, and becoming a recreant?
-- Eugen Weber, "The Ups and Downs of Honor", American Scholar, January 1, 1999
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Recreant comes from Old French, from the present participle of recroire, "to yield in a trial by battle," from re-, "re-" + croire, "to believe," from Latin credere.
GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)
Word of the Day Friday September 21, 2007
intrepid \in-TREP-id\, adjective: Fearless; bold; brave; undaunted; courageous; as, an intrepid soldier; intrepid spirit.
Join the few dozen rich and intrepid souls . . . who have paid hefty deposits to sign up for the first commercial rides into space.
-- Dinesh D'Souza, The Virtue of Prosperity
Less than 70 years earlier, the intrepid James Cook in his ship Resolution had been the first explorer to cross the Antarctic Circle.
-- Lennard Bickel, Shackleton's Forgotten Men
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Intrepid comes from Latin intrepidus, "calm," from in-, "not" + trepidus, "anxious, disturbed."
intrepid \in-TREP-id\, adjective: Fearless; bold; brave; undaunted; courageous; as, an intrepid soldier; intrepid spirit.
Join the few dozen rich and intrepid souls . . . who have paid hefty deposits to sign up for the first commercial rides into space.
-- Dinesh D'Souza, The Virtue of Prosperity
Less than 70 years earlier, the intrepid James Cook in his ship Resolution had been the first explorer to cross the Antarctic Circle.
-- Lennard Bickel, Shackleton's Forgotten Men
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Intrepid comes from Latin intrepidus, "calm," from in-, "not" + trepidus, "anxious, disturbed."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Wednesday September 26, 2007
factotum \fak-TOH-tuhm\, noun: A person employed to do all kinds of work or business.
Mr. Hersey thus became Mr. Lewis's summertime factotum, copying pages of a play that Lewis was writing about Communism.
-- Richard Severo, "John Hersey, Author of 'Hiroshima,' Is Dead at 78", New York Times, March 25, 1993
She is a blind, paraplegic forensic hypnotist, and he is her brother and general factotum.
-- Newgate Callendar, "Spies & Thrillers", New York Times, July 31, 1994
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Factotum is from Medieval Latin, from Latin fac totum, "do everything," from facere, "to do" + totus, "all."
factotum \fak-TOH-tuhm\, noun: A person employed to do all kinds of work or business.
Mr. Hersey thus became Mr. Lewis's summertime factotum, copying pages of a play that Lewis was writing about Communism.
-- Richard Severo, "John Hersey, Author of 'Hiroshima,' Is Dead at 78", New York Times, March 25, 1993
She is a blind, paraplegic forensic hypnotist, and he is her brother and general factotum.
-- Newgate Callendar, "Spies & Thrillers", New York Times, July 31, 1994
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Factotum is from Medieval Latin, from Latin fac totum, "do everything," from facere, "to do" + totus, "all."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Thursday September 27, 2007
pronunciamento \pro-nun-see-uh-MEN-toe\, noun: 1. A proclamation or manifesto; a formal announcement or declaration. 2. A pronouncement.
This was, then, not merely the official closing statement of a lost war, but the opening pronunciamento of an urgent campaign to maintain imperial control as well as social and political stability in a shattered nation.
-- John W. Dower, Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II
The general secretary issued a pronunciamento, in which traditional clotted cliches somehow turned into a kind of poetry, both majestic and absurd.
-- Peter Simple, "Comment: Lost", Daily Telegraph, September 10, 1999
It was said of her, by a man given to such pronunciamentos, that " in conversation she had more wit than any other person, male or female."
-- Jonathan Yardley, "Ladies of the Grand Tour", Washington Post, December 16, 2001
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Pronunciamento comes from Spanish pronunciamiento, from pronunciar, "to pronounce," from Latin pronuntiare, from pro-, "forth" + nuntiare, "to announce," from nuntius, "messenger."
pronunciamento \pro-nun-see-uh-MEN-toe\, noun: 1. A proclamation or manifesto; a formal announcement or declaration. 2. A pronouncement.
This was, then, not merely the official closing statement of a lost war, but the opening pronunciamento of an urgent campaign to maintain imperial control as well as social and political stability in a shattered nation.
-- John W. Dower, Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II
The general secretary issued a pronunciamento, in which traditional clotted cliches somehow turned into a kind of poetry, both majestic and absurd.
-- Peter Simple, "Comment: Lost", Daily Telegraph, September 10, 1999
It was said of her, by a man given to such pronunciamentos, that " in conversation she had more wit than any other person, male or female."
-- Jonathan Yardley, "Ladies of the Grand Tour", Washington Post, December 16, 2001
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Pronunciamento comes from Spanish pronunciamiento, from pronunciar, "to pronounce," from Latin pronuntiare, from pro-, "forth" + nuntiare, "to announce," from nuntius, "messenger."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Friday September 28, 2007
mendacious \men-DAY-shuhs\, adjective: 1. Given to deception or falsehood; lying; untruthful; as, a mendacious person. 2. False; untrue; as, a mendacious statement.
Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, two very different men, each from a different party, were seen as mendacious and deceitful, driven to self-destructive actions by forces they could not control.
-- Robert Shogan, The Double-Edged Sword
His writings, speeches, and decisions supply crucial evidence but also contain mendacious elements, gaps, and camouflage.
-- Richard Breitman, Official Secrets
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Mendacious is from Latin mendax, mendac-, "lying."
mendacious \men-DAY-shuhs\, adjective: 1. Given to deception or falsehood; lying; untruthful; as, a mendacious person. 2. False; untrue; as, a mendacious statement.
Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon, two very different men, each from a different party, were seen as mendacious and deceitful, driven to self-destructive actions by forces they could not control.
-- Robert Shogan, The Double-Edged Sword
His writings, speeches, and decisions supply crucial evidence but also contain mendacious elements, gaps, and camouflage.
-- Richard Breitman, Official Secrets
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Mendacious is from Latin mendax, mendac-, "lying."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Monday October 1, 2007
bouleversement \bool-vair-suh-MAWN\, noun: Complete overthrow; a reversal; a turning upside down.
For the second time in his life Amory had had a complete bouleversement and was hurrying into line with his generation.
-- F. Scott Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise
Ian Salisbury had his chance yesterday but he tried too hard to give the ball a rip on the dry surface and the old tendency to drop short or overpitch cost 34 from eight overs either side of tea as Rhodes and McMillan threatened a bouleversement worthy of the famous England deliverance against Australia in 1981.
-- Christopher Martin-Jenkins, "Gough takes England to brink", Daily Telegraph, August 10, 1998
It requires a complete bouleversement in your whole attitude, a process of adjustment that anyone who's been in this position understands; but you need to go through it.
-- "Two years' hard Labour", Independent, July 13, 1996
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Bouleversement comes from French, from Old French bouleverser, "to overturn," from boule, "ball" (from Latin bulla) + verser, "to overturn" (from Latin versare, from vertere, "to turn").
bouleversement \bool-vair-suh-MAWN\, noun: Complete overthrow; a reversal; a turning upside down.
For the second time in his life Amory had had a complete bouleversement and was hurrying into line with his generation.
-- F. Scott Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise
Ian Salisbury had his chance yesterday but he tried too hard to give the ball a rip on the dry surface and the old tendency to drop short or overpitch cost 34 from eight overs either side of tea as Rhodes and McMillan threatened a bouleversement worthy of the famous England deliverance against Australia in 1981.
-- Christopher Martin-Jenkins, "Gough takes England to brink", Daily Telegraph, August 10, 1998
It requires a complete bouleversement in your whole attitude, a process of adjustment that anyone who's been in this position understands; but you need to go through it.
-- "Two years' hard Labour", Independent, July 13, 1996
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Bouleversement comes from French, from Old French bouleverser, "to overturn," from boule, "ball" (from Latin bulla) + verser, "to overturn" (from Latin versare, from vertere, "to turn").
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
The mordacious factotum of the amicable previous head-painter, himself an egregious roué, was not only mendacious but also intrepid. After defenestrating his plangent predecessor despite the latter's cajolings, the pukka recreant caused a total bouleversement by his pronunciamento and put his faction in charge of the atelier.
Human is as human does....Animals don't weep, Nine
[i]LMB, The Labyrinth [/i]
[i]LMB, The Labyrinth [/i]
Word of the Day Tuesday October 2, 2007
supervene \soo-pur-VEEN\, intransitive verb: 1. To take place or occur as something additional, extraneous, or unexpected (sometimes followed by 'on' or 'upon'). 2. To follow immediately after; to ensue.
After all, doctors outside the hospital can pick up the pieces and readmission is always possible, provided death doesn't supervene.
-- Theodore Dalrymple, "How to win a million pounds", New Statesman, April 7, 2003
Sympathy will weaken; the anger of American public opinion will be uncontainable; doubt -- and the usual conflict of differing interests -- will supervene.
-- "The terrible swift sword", Daily Telegraph, September 13, 2001
We must recognize that it is often unwise to change procedures long in place, lest unintended adverse consequences supervene.
-- William Anderson, "It Is Ended", Weekly Standard, March 31, 2005
Perhaps it was inevitable that, after the magical extravaganza of the Eighties, a day-after-the-feast mood should supervene.
-- Robert McCrum, "The Booker", The Observer, September 26, 1999
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Supervene comes from Latin supervenire, from super-, "over, above" + venire, "to come."
supervene \soo-pur-VEEN\, intransitive verb: 1. To take place or occur as something additional, extraneous, or unexpected (sometimes followed by 'on' or 'upon'). 2. To follow immediately after; to ensue.
After all, doctors outside the hospital can pick up the pieces and readmission is always possible, provided death doesn't supervene.
-- Theodore Dalrymple, "How to win a million pounds", New Statesman, April 7, 2003
Sympathy will weaken; the anger of American public opinion will be uncontainable; doubt -- and the usual conflict of differing interests -- will supervene.
-- "The terrible swift sword", Daily Telegraph, September 13, 2001
We must recognize that it is often unwise to change procedures long in place, lest unintended adverse consequences supervene.
-- William Anderson, "It Is Ended", Weekly Standard, March 31, 2005
Perhaps it was inevitable that, after the magical extravaganza of the Eighties, a day-after-the-feast mood should supervene.
-- Robert McCrum, "The Booker", The Observer, September 26, 1999
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Supervene comes from Latin supervenire, from super-, "over, above" + venire, "to come."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Thursday October 4, 2007
redoubtable \rih-DOW-tuh-buhl\, adjective: 1. Arousing fear or alarm; formidable. 2. Illustrious; eminent; worthy of respect or honor.
He had been particularly involved in and articulate over policy toward East Asia, stressing the threat from China after the Communists won power there in 1949, and had made dramatic impressions of competence and coolness on two occasions -- under the physical threat of a crowd in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1958, and in a dramatic kitchen debate in the Soviet Union in 1959 with the redoubtable Nikita Khrushchev.
-- William Bundy, A Tangled Web
The prospect was daunting, not least because Evelyn was still a redoubtable figure on campus whom I saw almost every day and to whom I went for advice almost as regularly.
-- Keith Stewart Thomson, The Common But Less Frequent Loon and Other Essays
At the head of the table, as committee chair, sat the redoubtable Howard Mumford Jones—a teacher famed even at Harvard for his fierce authority, his wide-ranging erudition, and his intolerant exacting preciseness.
-- Nicholas Delbanco, The Lost Suitcase
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Redoubtable derives from Old French redouter, "to dread," from Medieval Latin redubitare, "to fear," literally "to doubt back at," from Latin re- + dubitare, "to doubt."
redoubtable \rih-DOW-tuh-buhl\, adjective: 1. Arousing fear or alarm; formidable. 2. Illustrious; eminent; worthy of respect or honor.
He had been particularly involved in and articulate over policy toward East Asia, stressing the threat from China after the Communists won power there in 1949, and had made dramatic impressions of competence and coolness on two occasions -- under the physical threat of a crowd in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1958, and in a dramatic kitchen debate in the Soviet Union in 1959 with the redoubtable Nikita Khrushchev.
-- William Bundy, A Tangled Web
The prospect was daunting, not least because Evelyn was still a redoubtable figure on campus whom I saw almost every day and to whom I went for advice almost as regularly.
-- Keith Stewart Thomson, The Common But Less Frequent Loon and Other Essays
At the head of the table, as committee chair, sat the redoubtable Howard Mumford Jones—a teacher famed even at Harvard for his fierce authority, his wide-ranging erudition, and his intolerant exacting preciseness.
-- Nicholas Delbanco, The Lost Suitcase
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Redoubtable derives from Old French redouter, "to dread," from Medieval Latin redubitare, "to fear," literally "to doubt back at," from Latin re- + dubitare, "to doubt."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Behold the redoubt soon to fall! It might seem redoubtable now to us massing here in front of it, but I say:
We will supervene and throw off the shacles of ill government! It will be a total bouleversement! The mendacious grand vizier and his recreant factotum Janitor Bob will fall! This is my final pronunciamento!
From Alallens "quotes of forgotten intrepid revolutionaires", 2nd edition. Shortlisted for the potboiler awards.
We will supervene and throw off the shacles of ill government! It will be a total bouleversement! The mendacious grand vizier and his recreant factotum Janitor Bob will fall! This is my final pronunciamento!
From Alallens "quotes of forgotten intrepid revolutionaires", 2nd edition. Shortlisted for the potboiler awards.
It is written.
Word of the Day Friday October 5, 2007
paroxysm \PAIR-uhk-siz-uhm\, noun: 1. (Medicine) A sudden attack, intensification, or recurrence of a disease. 2. Any sudden and violent emotion or action; an outburst; a fit.
But when he's on target -- and more often than not he is -- he can send you into paroxysms of laughter.
-- William Triplett, "Drawing Laughter From a Well of Family Pain", Washington Post, June 13, 2002
Dickens had a paroxysm of rage: 'Bounding up from his chair, and throwing his knife and fork on his plate (which he smashed to atoms), he exclaimed: "Dolby! your infernal caution will be your ruin one of these days!"'
-- Edmund Wilson, "Dickens: The Two Scrooges", The Atlantic, April/May 1940
Mrs. Bumble, seeing at a glance that the decisive moment had now arrived, and that a blow struck for mastership on one side or another, must necessarily be final and conclusive, dropped into a chair, and with a loud scream that Mr. Bumble was a hard-hearted brute, fell into a paroxysm of tears.
-- Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist
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Paroxysm is from Greek paroxusmos, from paroxunein, "to irritate, provoke or excite (literally to sharpen excessively)," from para-, "beyond" + oxunein, "to sharpen, to provoke."
paroxysm \PAIR-uhk-siz-uhm\, noun: 1. (Medicine) A sudden attack, intensification, or recurrence of a disease. 2. Any sudden and violent emotion or action; an outburst; a fit.
But when he's on target -- and more often than not he is -- he can send you into paroxysms of laughter.
-- William Triplett, "Drawing Laughter From a Well of Family Pain", Washington Post, June 13, 2002
Dickens had a paroxysm of rage: 'Bounding up from his chair, and throwing his knife and fork on his plate (which he smashed to atoms), he exclaimed: "Dolby! your infernal caution will be your ruin one of these days!"'
-- Edmund Wilson, "Dickens: The Two Scrooges", The Atlantic, April/May 1940
Mrs. Bumble, seeing at a glance that the decisive moment had now arrived, and that a blow struck for mastership on one side or another, must necessarily be final and conclusive, dropped into a chair, and with a loud scream that Mr. Bumble was a hard-hearted brute, fell into a paroxysm of tears.
-- Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist
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Paroxysm is from Greek paroxusmos, from paroxunein, "to irritate, provoke or excite (literally to sharpen excessively)," from para-, "beyond" + oxunein, "to sharpen, to provoke."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Monday October 8, 2007
maladroit \mal-uh-DROYT\, adjective: Lacking adroitness; clumsy; awkward; unskillful; inept.
Do you know someone who . . . loves quiet conversations about feelings or ideas, and can give a dynamite presentation to a big audience, but seems awkward in groups and maladroit at small talk?
-- Jonathan Rauch, "Caring for Your Introvert", The Atlantic, March 2003
Dodging these equally maladroit skiers in a small area is pretty tough going -- especially when our few seconds of downhill glory are followed by minutes spent in an ungainly queue as learners, by and large, fail to connect with the drag lift.
-- Gwyn Topham, "Skiing is for show-offs", The Guardian, January 28, 2003
And she has been battling the perception that she is a maladroit campaigner prone to missteps amid New York's complex ethnic politics.
-- Martha T. Moore, "Clinton leans on old ideas, unveils new", USA Today, February 7, 2000
There was a time when the Left stood up for the underdog-for the worker against the boss, the maladroit against the polished, the lone individual against the state.
-- John Derbyshire, "Elian Nation - He makes our battlefield plain as day", National Review, May 22, 2000
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Maladroit comes from French, from mal-, "badly" + adroit, from à droit, "properly," from à , "to" (from Latin ad) + droit, "right," from Latin directus, "straight, direct," past participle of dirigere, "to lead or guide."
maladroit \mal-uh-DROYT\, adjective: Lacking adroitness; clumsy; awkward; unskillful; inept.
Do you know someone who . . . loves quiet conversations about feelings or ideas, and can give a dynamite presentation to a big audience, but seems awkward in groups and maladroit at small talk?
-- Jonathan Rauch, "Caring for Your Introvert", The Atlantic, March 2003
Dodging these equally maladroit skiers in a small area is pretty tough going -- especially when our few seconds of downhill glory are followed by minutes spent in an ungainly queue as learners, by and large, fail to connect with the drag lift.
-- Gwyn Topham, "Skiing is for show-offs", The Guardian, January 28, 2003
And she has been battling the perception that she is a maladroit campaigner prone to missteps amid New York's complex ethnic politics.
-- Martha T. Moore, "Clinton leans on old ideas, unveils new", USA Today, February 7, 2000
There was a time when the Left stood up for the underdog-for the worker against the boss, the maladroit against the polished, the lone individual against the state.
-- John Derbyshire, "Elian Nation - He makes our battlefield plain as day", National Review, May 22, 2000
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Maladroit comes from French, from mal-, "badly" + adroit, from à droit, "properly," from à , "to" (from Latin ad) + droit, "right," from Latin directus, "straight, direct," past participle of dirigere, "to lead or guide."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
After the paroxysm of violence that culminated in the defenestration of the old roué head-painter, and the bouleversement that supervened, the maladroit factotum was unable to maintain the atelier's nec plus ultra reputation.The mendacious recreant evinced his penchant to cozen his customers, and the atelier became salient for its production of redoubtable potboilers.
Human is as human does....Animals don't weep, Nine
[i]LMB, The Labyrinth [/i]
[i]LMB, The Labyrinth [/i]
Word of the Day Tuesday October 9, 2007
physiognomy \fiz-ee-OG-nuh-mee; -ON-uh-mee\, noun: 1. The art of discovering temperament and other characteristic qualities of the mind from the outward appearance, especially by the features of the face. 2. The face or facial features, especially when regarded as indicating character. 3. The general appearance or aspect of a thing.
According to the latest rumours, he is now immersed in the science of physiognomy, the divining of a person's character by the shape of their features, and is preparing a paper on the subject for the inaugural meeting of the Van Diemen's Land Scientific Society.
-- Tom Gilling, The Sooterkin
Pasteur seems to have been most interested in capturing the actual looks of his subjects, and his portraits form a gallery showing all kinds of physiognomies that are observed with almost clinical patience.
-- Patrice Debré, Louis Pasteur (translated by Elborg Forster)
Over my crib hung a piece of tin embossed with the stern physiognomies of Vladimir Ilich Lenin and Leon Trotsky.
-- William Herrick, Jumping the Line
It was an urban physiognomy different, Bourget thought, "from every other since the foundation of the world," an unvarying flatland of industrial neighborhoods that rolled on -- backward from the horizon -- for miles and miles until it climaxed in a silhouette of towers tightly wedged between river, rail lines, and lake.
-- Donald L. Miller, City of the Century
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Physiognomy comes from Greek physiognomonia, from physiognomon, "judging character by the features," from physis, "nature, physique, appearance" + gnomon, "one who knows, hence an examiner, a judge," from gignoskein, "to know."
physiognomy \fiz-ee-OG-nuh-mee; -ON-uh-mee\, noun: 1. The art of discovering temperament and other characteristic qualities of the mind from the outward appearance, especially by the features of the face. 2. The face or facial features, especially when regarded as indicating character. 3. The general appearance or aspect of a thing.
According to the latest rumours, he is now immersed in the science of physiognomy, the divining of a person's character by the shape of their features, and is preparing a paper on the subject for the inaugural meeting of the Van Diemen's Land Scientific Society.
-- Tom Gilling, The Sooterkin
Pasteur seems to have been most interested in capturing the actual looks of his subjects, and his portraits form a gallery showing all kinds of physiognomies that are observed with almost clinical patience.
-- Patrice Debré, Louis Pasteur (translated by Elborg Forster)
Over my crib hung a piece of tin embossed with the stern physiognomies of Vladimir Ilich Lenin and Leon Trotsky.
-- William Herrick, Jumping the Line
It was an urban physiognomy different, Bourget thought, "from every other since the foundation of the world," an unvarying flatland of industrial neighborhoods that rolled on -- backward from the horizon -- for miles and miles until it climaxed in a silhouette of towers tightly wedged between river, rail lines, and lake.
-- Donald L. Miller, City of the Century
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Physiognomy comes from Greek physiognomonia, from physiognomon, "judging character by the features," from physis, "nature, physique, appearance" + gnomon, "one who knows, hence an examiner, a judge," from gignoskein, "to know."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
François returned home in despair, after flunking out his dual-phD in Phrenology and Physiognomy at the Provence Institute for New Age Studies.
His redoubtable Mother tried to console him by saying that this latest bouleversement of his was just "a little bump" in life's road, and that he'd feel his way though it in time ... which triggered a fresh paroxysm of tears.
"I'm maladroit at everything !" he wailed, utterly lost in deep despair. "Those pin-headed pencil-necked cranial osteopaths on the review board all laughed at me during my disseration. They called my research 'pure quackery' !" he sniveled. "I am NOT a quack !!!"
When she offered to make his favorite meal for him, fois gras, he began screaming incoherently, and slammed the door on her.
He shot himself (in the head) later that very night.
His redoubtable Mother tried to console him by saying that this latest bouleversement of his was just "a little bump" in life's road, and that he'd feel his way though it in time ... which triggered a fresh paroxysm of tears.
"I'm maladroit at everything !" he wailed, utterly lost in deep despair. "Those pin-headed pencil-necked cranial osteopaths on the review board all laughed at me during my disseration. They called my research 'pure quackery' !" he sniveled. "I am NOT a quack !!!"
When she offered to make his favorite meal for him, fois gras, he began screaming incoherently, and slammed the door on her.
He shot himself (in the head) later that very night.
Maybe she could have avoided this ignoble end supervening if she had told him it was goose foie gras rather than duck.Brad wrote:When she offered to make his favorite meal for him, fois gras, he began screaming incoherently about 'quackery', and slammed the door on her.
He shot himself (in the head) later that very night.
Quack quack quack!
Human is as human does....Animals don't weep, Nine
[i]LMB, The Labyrinth [/i]
[i]LMB, The Labyrinth [/i]
Word of the Day Thursday October 11, 2007
palindrome \PAL-in-drohm\, noun: A word, phrase, sentence, or verse that reads the same backward or forward.
A few examples:
Madam, I'm Adam. (Adam's first words to Eve?)
A man, a plan, a canal -- Panama! (The history of the Panama Canal in brief.)
Able was I ere I saw Elba. (Napoleon's lament.)
Mom, Dad.
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Palindrome comes from Greek palindromos, literally "running back (again)," from palin, "back, again" + dromos, "running."
palindrome \PAL-in-drohm\, noun: A word, phrase, sentence, or verse that reads the same backward or forward.
A few examples:
Madam, I'm Adam. (Adam's first words to Eve?)
A man, a plan, a canal -- Panama! (The history of the Panama Canal in brief.)
Able was I ere I saw Elba. (Napoleon's lament.)
Mom, Dad.
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Palindrome comes from Greek palindromos, literally "running back (again)," from palin, "back, again" + dromos, "running."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Monday October 15, 2007
purblind \PUR-blynd\, adjective: 1. Having greatly reduced vision. 2. Lacking in insight or discernment.
Add to this that the work seems unsure of its audience, providing no footnotes or exact references, but concluding with a bizarre parade of bibliographical essays running to 59 pages; that it gives the date only about once every 100 pages (and then not always the right date...) and leaves us feeling as if we were wandering purblind in some deep cave.
-- James R. Kincaid, "The Sum Of His Oddities", New York Times, January 13, 1991
Those changes, whose pressing necessity by the end of the 1980s was surely evident to all but the most purblind, would have taken place in any case.
-- Bryan Gould, "Mandy", New Statesman, January 29, 1999
But something is fundamentally wrong at Leeds, something that even the most ardent supporters -- and other purblind apologists -- must surely come to recognise.
-- Kevin Mitchell, "How Leeds lost it", The Observer, March 10, 2002
On and on the weary litany of purblind negativity proceeds.
-- Eric Evans, "The Theory Man.", History Today, June 1997
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Purblind derives from Middle English pur blind, wholly blind, from pur, pure + blind. In time it came to mean something less than wholly blind.
purblind \PUR-blynd\, adjective: 1. Having greatly reduced vision. 2. Lacking in insight or discernment.
Add to this that the work seems unsure of its audience, providing no footnotes or exact references, but concluding with a bizarre parade of bibliographical essays running to 59 pages; that it gives the date only about once every 100 pages (and then not always the right date...) and leaves us feeling as if we were wandering purblind in some deep cave.
-- James R. Kincaid, "The Sum Of His Oddities", New York Times, January 13, 1991
Those changes, whose pressing necessity by the end of the 1980s was surely evident to all but the most purblind, would have taken place in any case.
-- Bryan Gould, "Mandy", New Statesman, January 29, 1999
But something is fundamentally wrong at Leeds, something that even the most ardent supporters -- and other purblind apologists -- must surely come to recognise.
-- Kevin Mitchell, "How Leeds lost it", The Observer, March 10, 2002
On and on the weary litany of purblind negativity proceeds.
-- Eric Evans, "The Theory Man.", History Today, June 1997
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Purblind derives from Middle English pur blind, wholly blind, from pur, pure + blind. In time it came to mean something less than wholly blind.
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
My favorite has always been:felonius wrote: (P.S - my favourite palindrome is radar)
Egad! No bondage!
. . . but that’s just me
.If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Tuesday October 16, 2007
quotidian \kwoh-TID-ee-uhn\, adjective: 1. Occurring or returning daily; as, a quotidian fever. 2. Of an everyday character; ordinary; commonplace.
Erasmus thought More's career as a lawyer was a waste of a fine mind, but it was precisely the human insights More derived from his life in the quotidian world that gave him a moral depth Erasmus lacked.
-- "More man than saint", Irish Times, April 4, 1998
She also had a sense of fun that was often drummed out under the dull, quotidian beats of suburban life.
-- Meg Wolitzer, Surrender, Dorothy
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Quotidian is from Latin quotidianus, from quotidie, "daily," from quotus, "how many, as many, so many" + dies, "day."
quotidian \kwoh-TID-ee-uhn\, adjective: 1. Occurring or returning daily; as, a quotidian fever. 2. Of an everyday character; ordinary; commonplace.
Erasmus thought More's career as a lawyer was a waste of a fine mind, but it was precisely the human insights More derived from his life in the quotidian world that gave him a moral depth Erasmus lacked.
-- "More man than saint", Irish Times, April 4, 1998
She also had a sense of fun that was often drummed out under the dull, quotidian beats of suburban life.
-- Meg Wolitzer, Surrender, Dorothy
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Quotidian is from Latin quotidianus, from quotidie, "daily," from quotus, "how many, as many, so many" + dies, "day."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
Word of the Day Wednesday October 17, 2007
extant \EK-stunt; ek-STANT\, adjective: Still existing; not destroyed, lost, or extinct.
Why, then, did the joint House-Senate committee insert a maximum? The lack of extant records of the committee's deliberations requires us to speculate.
-- Akhil Reed Amar, The Bill of Rights
The fossil record shows clearly that ancient life was very different from extant life.
-- Paul Davies, The Fifth Miracle
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Extant comes from Latin exstare, "to stand out, to project, hence to be prominent, to be visible, to exist," from ex-, "out" + stare, "to stand."
extant \EK-stunt; ek-STANT\, adjective: Still existing; not destroyed, lost, or extinct.
Why, then, did the joint House-Senate committee insert a maximum? The lack of extant records of the committee's deliberations requires us to speculate.
-- Akhil Reed Amar, The Bill of Rights
The fossil record shows clearly that ancient life was very different from extant life.
-- Paul Davies, The Fifth Miracle
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Extant comes from Latin exstare, "to stand out, to project, hence to be prominent, to be visible, to exist," from ex-, "out" + stare, "to stand."
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animating contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you,
S Adams
S Adams
{COMPLAINT: For the past three months, our resident spelling Nazi’s ongoing misuse of the word "quotidian" has become a seemingly quotidian occurrence. Clearly, he's still under the mistaken impression that it refers to someone who frequently engages in spouting famous quotations in tourettes-like fashion. The fact that he's also a known dealer in (and abuser of) black market ecstasy is probably contributing to the extancy of the situation.}