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Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2012 1:45 pm
by voralfred
Algot Runeman wrote:hackathon

Pronunciation: /ˈhakəˌTHän/

noun
informal
an event, typically lasting several days, in which a large number of people meet to engage in collaborative computer programming: a series of 48-hour hackathons to build new web and mobile services

Origin:
1990s: from hack1, on the pattern of marathon

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HackNY

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There are several pieces of software which I use that have been made better with hackathons.
When are we going to have our first Wodtathon:
a large number of people meet to engage in collaborative participation to the WOTD thread


Incidentally, my Greek friend keeps complaining about the fact that though "Marathon" clearly has a greek origin, "-athon" is in no way a greek suffix. The "th" is part of the root of the word "fennel", "marathos" in greek (supposedly, a lot of fennel was growing around the place this city was founded). Using the end of this word the way it is used is an eyesore (or rather an "earsore") to anyone, he claims, with any greek culture at all.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2012 2:29 pm
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
voralfred wrote:
Algot Runeman wrote:hackathon
...
When are we going to have our first Wodtathon
...
... "-athon" is in no way a greek suffix. ...
Should we make it hackathlon and WotDathlon?
In analogy with triathlon and decathlon?

But where does the "-athlon" come from?

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2012 3:09 pm
by voralfred
E Pericoloso Sporgersi wrote:
voralfred wrote:
Algot Runeman wrote:hackathon
...
When are we going to have our first Wodtathon
...
... "-athon" is in no way a greek suffix. ...
Should we make it hackathlon and WotDathlon?
In analogy with triathlon and decathlon?

But where does the "-athlon" come from?
According to wikipedia, from the greek άθλος (transliterated as athlos) : feat
(there should be some extra sign over the first later, in classical greek, but my keyboard doe not have it)
The word for fennel is really μάραθος (marathos) and the name of the city of Marathon was spelled Μαραθών.

So a WotDathlon would be a competitive effort to produce sentences using the WotD, instead of the more collective effort (falsely) implied by the barbarism WotDathon.

Now if you would excuse me, I am starting a Tylenolathlon (rather than a Tylenolathon...)

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 11:04 am
by Algot Runeman
higgledy-piggledy

Pronunciation: /ˌhigəldē ˈpigəldē/

adverb & adjective
in confusion or disorder: [as adverb]: bits of paper hanging higgledy-piggledy on the furniture and walls [as adjective]: a higgledy-piggledy mountain of newspapers

Origin:
late 16th century: rhyming jingle, probably with reference to the irregular herding together of pigs

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Alastair Burt

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Carla chased herself around, rushing higgledy-piggledy to corral the mess of her living room. Joe was arriving soon with his parents. Joe said they were cool, but she couldn't chance disapproval because of yesterday's dust bunnies.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2012 12:47 pm
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Algot Runeman wrote:higgledy-piggledy
Long ago - so my grandma told me - when she was a child, she lived with two playful cats in the house. Often she would have two or three friends over to visit and pet the cats.

One day the girls wanted to play a game of hopscotch, but the two cats chased the hopscotch stone higgledy-piggledy across the diagram, to the merriment and giggles of all.

From that day on, grandma called her cats Higgles and Piggles.
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Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 12:52 am
by ChoChiyo
Back in the mid fifties to early sixties, I was the eldest of five little ruffians. We lived on a farm and rarely, rarely escaped its confines. Our only access to the non-farm world was usually a trip to the grocery store. Since we grew like wild things on the farm, we had few social graces. Every month or so, our gang of five ran higgledy-piggledy through the crowded aisles of Piggly Wiggly.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 6:34 pm
by Algot Runeman
hurry-scurry

noun
disorderly haste; confused hurrying.

adjective & adverb
with hurry and confusion.

Origin:
mid 18th century: reduplication of hurry

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Klara Kim

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This week the harried housewife hurry-scurries through the Piggly Wiggly in the US, trying to find the missing ingredients for the recipe Aunt Betty sent on ahead from California because she couldn't carry the prepared food on the plane. I hope she gets applause for her work.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2012 4:58 am
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Grandma usually had pets in pairs:
her cats Higgles & Piggles,
two dachshunds Pigglet & Wigglet,
a pair of Red-Eared Sliders, Helter & Skelter,
and her hamsters, Hurry & Scurry.

The turtles were so alike that she applied a dot of red nail polish to the shell of one of them. Then she promptly forgot which one she had dotted. :slap:
Finally she painted an S on the one she thought was Skelter.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2012 11:40 am
by Algot Runeman
sessile

Pronunciation: /ˈsesəl, -īl/

adjective
Biology
(of an organism, e.g., a barnacle) fixed in one place; immobile.
(of a plant or animal structure) attached directly by its base without a stalk or peduncle: sporangia may be stalked or sessile

Origin:
early 18th century: from Latin sessilis, from sess- 'seated', from the verb sedere

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Jared Tarbell
[For the record, ever since my first biology class, I been likin' lichens.]

__________________________________-____________________________________
(A hyphen is an underscore which has raised its hopes.)

Sessile B. DeMillo spent so much time in the movie house that the ushers all knew his name and generally when to expect his next visit. If the movie was certain to be crowded, they reserved a seat for him.

My wife says I am not sessile, but sedentary and cyber-sedimentary because every time she looks across the room, there I am working at my laptop (sometimes in pursuit of WotD, of course).

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2012 12:55 pm
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Algot Runeman wrote:sessile
Patiently waiting to get better, Cecil the Seasick Sea Snail didn't move from his resting hollow on the sea-floor.

He wasn't sessile though. Nine or ten times each day, with every overhead passing of a submarine, he was blown twenty feet or so farther, to the next hollow with fresh food he could barely stomach. No wonder he stayed seasick ...

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 6:17 am
by Algot Runeman
festal

Pronunciation: /ˈfestəl/

adjective
of, like, or relating to a celebration or festival: he appeared in festal array

Derivatives
festally
adverb

Origin:
late 15th century: via Old French from late Latin festalis, from Latin festum, (plural) festa 'feast'

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Angie Tarantino

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Thanksgiving is not the best day for the festally challenged. Everyone else is in a festive mood. Bob is simply restive. Everyone around the table salivates verbally about the bounty of food. Bob just wants a quick peanut butter sandwich.
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Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate. Happy Thursday to the rest of you.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 8:02 am
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Algot Runeman wrote:festal
For the family reunion uncle Festus had donned his most festal attire.

Unfortunately his old but serviceable waistcoat was so tight that he couldn't partake of all the delicacies. He had to forego the bat udders, chicken eyeballs and stuffed tripe.
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Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 7:18 am
by Algot Runeman
adaptogen

Pronunciation: /əˈdaptəjən/

noun
(in herbal medicine) a natural substance considered to help the body adapt to stress and to exert a normalizing effect upon bodily processes. A well-known example is ginseng.

Derivatives
adaptogenic
Pronunciation: /əˌdaptəˈjenik/ adjective

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Leo Papandreou

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Bob adapted to his boring, tedious, thankless work. He was helped mightily by a variety of adaptogens. Notably, he kept a bottle of fermented apple juice and papers for some cannabis handy.

[Feeling some serious stress to buy, buy, buy this "Black" Friday. I so much more enjoy the "Burnt Umber Fridays" and my very favorite are "Yellow Fridays."]

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2012 10:08 am
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Algot Runeman wrote:adaptogen
RESISTANCE IS FUTILE !

Our Adaptogen® is Unstoppable !
Spoiler: show
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(The Borg defeated many opponents.)

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2012 3:46 pm
by Algot Runeman
gavelkind

Pronunciation: /ˈgavəlˌkīnd/

noun
historical
a system of inheritance in which a deceased person’s land is divided equally among all male heirs.

Origin:
Middle English: from obsolete gavel 'payment, rent' + kind1

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After the kind judge dropped the gavel on the case, all of the original land was equally divided among the great-grandsons, unlike standard gavelkind land distribution. Not everybody was happy.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2012 1:50 pm
by Algot Runeman
jingo

Pronunciation: /ˈjiNGgō/

noun (plural jingoes)
dated, chiefly derogatory
a vociferous supporter of policy favoring war, especially in the name of patriotism.

Phrases
by jingo!
an exclamation of surprise.

Origin:
late 17th century (originally a conjuror's word): by jingo (and the noun sense) come from a popular song adopted by those supporting the sending of a British fleet into Turkish waters to resist Russia in 1878. The chorus ran: “We don't want to fight, yet by Jingo! if we do, We've got the ships, we've got the men, and got the money too.”

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This one is all up to you, by jingo.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2012 9:59 pm
by voralfred
Me, a jingo?
Whatever made you think that I am, by jingo ?

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Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:58 am
by Algot Runeman
jollity

Pronunciation: /ˈjälitē/

noun (plural jollities)
lively and cheerful activity or celebration: a night of riotous jollity
the quality of being cheerful: he was full of false jollity

Origin:
Middle English: from Old French jolite, from joli (see jolly1)

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Tathi Sobroza

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Joe's jollity was predecated on the presence of a morose crowd. He was happiest when others were sad. Little doubt why he was rarely invited to anybody's party.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Mon Nov 26, 2012 11:31 am
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
voralfred wrote:Me, a jingo?
Whatever made you think that I am, by jingo ?

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I think it was meant with affectionate jollity.
A rhetorical oppossum, and I concur, by Jove ...

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2012 8:44 am
by Algot Runeman
volplane

Pronunciation: /ˈvälˌplān, ˈvôl-/

aeronautics
noun
a controlled dive or downward flight at a steep angle, especially by an airplane with the engine shut off.

verb
[no object]
(of an airplane) make a controlled dive or downward flight, especially with the engine shut off.

Origin:
early 20th century: from French vol plané, literally 'glided flight'

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Ken Colwell

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A volplane is a great idea as long as the engine restarts.
Personally, I prefer a stable couch.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 8:25 am
by Algot Runeman
biff

Pronunciation: /bif/

verb
[with object]
strike (someone) roughly or sharply, usually with the fist: he biffed me on the nose

noun
a sharp blow with the fist.

Origin:
mid 19th century: symbolic of a short sharp movement

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Patrick Haney

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Float like a butterfly, biff like a boxer.
(This is something Cassius Clay [Mohammed Ali] did NOT say.)

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 11:07 am
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Algot Runeman wrote:biff
The Gold Rush was no kaffeeklatsch. The biff stakes outnumbered the beef steaks.

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 3:56 pm
by voralfred
Algot Runeman wrote:biff

Pronunciation: /bif/

verb
[with object]
strike (someone) roughly or sharply, usually with the fist: he biffed me on the nose

noun
a sharp blow with the fist.

Origin:
mid 19th century: symbolic of a short sharp movement

(...)

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Float like a butterfly, biff like a boxer.
(This is something Cassius Clay [Mohammed Ali] did NOT say.)
I wonder if that's how Biff Tannen (in the various "Back to the Future" movies) got his nickname ?

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 8:40 am
by Algot Runeman
noblesse

Pronunciation: /nōˈbles/

noun
the nobility.

Phrases
noblesse oblige
/nōˈbles ōˈblēZH/ the inferred responsibility of privileged people to act with generosity and nobility toward those less privileged: there was to being a celebrity a certain element of noblesse oblige

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Eddie Van 3000


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There was no blessing given to the factory boss. Walmart managers have moved on to another supplier. Still the Walmart noblesse, to use the term in modern context, need to exert their power as heads of the largest retailer in the world. Enforce safety rules no matter where the factory is and no matter if it costs a bit more to prevent the fire death of workers because emergency exits were locked.

[Target, KMart, Kohl's, etc. Please get involved, too.]

Re: GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 10:35 am
by E Pericoloso Sporgersi
Algot Runeman wrote:noblesse
After a light buffet dinner, grandma enjoyed many dances, mostly with grandpa, but also with several other elder gentlemen of their acquaintance.

But grandpa, before calling it a day and returming home with his wife, made it a point to encourage the spiffy young man to ask her for a last dance, which she happily granted. Noblesse oblige, you know.

This gave grandpa the opportunity to grab a last drink, which was his intention all along. Grandpa was not much of a stickler for obliging the noblesse.
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