GAME: Word of the Day (WOTD)

[voralfred]

irrotational

Pronunciation: /ˌɪrəʊˈteɪʃ(ə)n(ə)l/
adjective
Physics
(Especially of fluid motion) not rotational; having no rotation.

(...)

_/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\__/^\_

Residents of Oklahoma and its neighboring states pray for irrotational storms this time of year. Way too often their prayers are not answered. Tornado alley routinely suffers.

With global warming increasing the probability of tornadoes, praying for irrotational storms may seem somewhat irrational, if you'll pardon me for being a man of little faith.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

irrotational

With global warming increasing the probability of tornadoes, praying for irrotational storms may seem somewhat irrational, if you'll pardon me for being a man of little faith.

Okay, you're pardoned.

But I like your irrotational puns!

[Algot Runeman]

alliteration

Pronunciation: /əˌlidəˈrāSH(ə)n/
noun
The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

Origin
Early 17th century: from medieval Latin alliteratio(n-), from Latin ad- (expressing addition) + littera 'letter'.

^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*

A little, light libation lifted Larry's libido. Later, laconic, he lounged, looked lovingly at Louise and laughed.
Larry was afflicted by alliteration. I gleefully share his affliction with you.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

alliteration

My grandma was no language scholar.

She may very well have understood "alliteration" to mean "se coucher au lit" (lie down on the bed) and paid no further attention to the linguistic phenomenon.

Though, as with "fur" and "flirt" for example, she did like short words starting with an "f".

[Algot Runeman]

kawaii

Pronunciation: /kəˈwʌɪ/
adjective
(In the context of Japanese popular culture) cute: she paints elephants that are extremely kawaii
noun
[mass noun]
The quality of being cute, or items that are cute: even in a cosmopolitan city like Tokyo, kawaii is everywhere

Origin
Japanese.



-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The couple examined the canvas print, looking for the signs of ice cream shops to which they had gone, unaware of being made into a kawaii photo. There were over 600 shops on the print. They had visited very few.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

kawaii

Had you claimed it was a kawaii collage of nations' flags, I would have believed you.

Kampai!

[Algot Runeman]

outfight

Pronunciation: /aʊtˈfʌɪt/
verb (past and past participle outfought)
[with object]
Fight better than and beat (an opponent): he challenged a hundred men and outfought every one

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Tom was determined, amidst all the company infighting, to outfight his rivals for the open VP position.

[Algot Runeman]

telephoto

Pronunciation: /ˈtɛlɪfəʊtəʊ/
(also telephoto lens)
noun (plural telephotos)
A lens with a longer focal length than standard, giving a narrow field of view and a magnified image.
Also used as an adjective

Etymology
also tele-photo, 1898, shortened form of telephotographic (1892), in reference to lenses introduced at that time to increase the magnification of photographs taken by a camera, from tele- + photographic.


Nathan LeClair

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Tony took his telephoto to the show. He planned a photo essay and wanted good close-ups of the stars. His seats were so bad he would have needed a telescope to have a chance. He planned his story on the telephone with his editor who had been around the magazine so long that he had used the telegraph for stories. The editor decided that Tony should just tell a story in words which would paint a picture more telling than photos ever could.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

telephoto

If "A picture is worth a thousand words", then what's the going rate for a telephoto (besides power training)?

[Algot Runeman]

Wow, and that's what a portable telescope looks like to me. I hope that telephoto has built-in quiver correction. I'm wondering if the photographer is attempting to count the blemishes on someone's nose across the stadium.

[voralfred]

telephoto

If "A picture is worth a thousand words", then what's the going rate for a telephoto (besides power training)?

The guy on this picture clearly outphot the one on Algot's picture. This is no fair telefight, really.

[Algot Runeman]

chickabiddy

Pronunciation: /ˈtʃɪkəbɪdi/
noun (plural chickabiddies)
informal
An affectionate form of address for a small child or a loved one.

Origin
Late 18th century: from chick1 + -a- (for ease of pronunciation) + biddy.



-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Clark corralled his cluster of chickabiddy charges as they moved through the monument displays. Eighth grade kids are marginally biddable, but Clark had years of experience as a teacher and knew the tricks he needed.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

chickabiddy

Clearly my grandpa knew how to bid for a chick. He bagged my grandma, admittedly with little effort as she was more than willing.

Afterward, in private, when no-one else was in hearing range, she called herself his chickabiddy. Grandpa never denied it, though he was silently convinced that the term applied mostly to him, as actually he himself had been the seduced victim ... NO, the most agreeable party.

[Algot Runeman]

meacock

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
n. An uxorious, effeminate, or spiritless man.
from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
n. A timorous, cowardly fellow.

Examples
Similarly the earl himself describes him as 'a man that as much knowledge has of war as I of brewing mead -- a bookish nursling of the monks -- a meacock. '
Chambers's Edinburgh Journal, No. 422 Volume 17, New Series, January 31, 1852

Note
Probably a blend of meek and cock, or from meek +‎ -ock (“diminutive suffix”).

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Quiet was fine. Reserved could be tolerated, but Sarah could not approve of her brother being a meacock. She insisted he accompany her on morning rides around the estate and engaged him in all sorts of competition to keep him from sinking so low. With Father being away with his troops, it was up to her since Mama was so sickly.

[Algot Runeman]

begunk

from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
v. To befool; deceive; balk; jilt.
n. An illusion; a trick; a cheat.

Examples
I circumvented them --- I played at bogle about the bush wi 'them --- I cajoled them; and if I havena gien Inch-Grabbit and Jamie Howie a bonnie begunk, they ken themselves.
The Waverley

Note
The word 'begunk' may come from a nasalised variant of Scots begeck ("to deceive, disappoint"), equivalent to be- +‎ geck.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Our words routinely try to begunk others to enhance our advantage over them. It sometimes works, but not always. We need to be reminded that our goals are not always the best ones for everyone.

[Algot Runeman]

Brobdingnagian

Pronunciation: /ˌbrɒbdɪŋˈnaɡɪən/
adjective
Huge; gigantic: a beam engine of Brobdingnagian proportions

Origin
Early 18th century: from Brobdingnag, the name given by Swift (in Gulliver's Travels) to a land where everything is of huge size, + -ian.



-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Martin made a swift decision. He ran. There was no point in getting badly beaten by the three Brobdingnagian brothers. Speed over brawn, Martin raced away from their lumbering efforts to catch him.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

Brobdingnagian

In my humble opinion Pantagruelian is a wee bit easier to pronounce than Brobdingnagian.

Not like gruelling, but like groo-ellian!

[Algot Runeman]

coronach

Pronunciation: /ˈkɒrənək/ /ˈxɒrənək/
noun
(In Scotland or Ireland) a funeral song.

Origin
Early 16th century (originally Scots, denoting the outcry of a crowd): from Scottish Gaelic corranach (Irish coranach), from comh- 'together' + rànach 'outcry'.


Stoptimephoto

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The outfits and the tune may be different, but Scots and Irish would recognize the New Orleans funeral procession as an appropriate coronach.

[voralfred]

The coronach that took place under his window was so loud the poor old man had a coronary . Then they had to perform a new coronach for him...

[Algot Runeman]

lobster

Pronunciation: /ˈlɒbstə/
noun

Photo Credit: Selbe
1 A large marine crustacean with a cylindrical body, stalked eyes, and the first of its five pairs of limbs modified as pincers.
Homarus and other genera, class Malacostraca
1.1 [mass noun] The flesh of the lobster as food: she ordered lobster and a glass of white wine [as modifier]: lobster bisque
1.2 Australian /NZ A marine crayfish, especially one whose claws are eaten as food.
1.3 [mass noun] A deep red colour typical of a cooked lobster: [as modifier]: a heavily built man with a lobster nose

Origin
Old English lopustre, alteration of Latin locusta 'crustacean, locust'.



-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Boothbay Harbor in Maine, USA is one source of lobster for restaurants. Lobster are not red until cooked. The traditional way to eat this ocean-dwelling crustacean is to boil it and then crack away the shell to get at the tail and claw meat. That meat is dipped in melted or "drawn" butter which drips down the diner's chin!

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

lobster

Emily felt rather silly. While she stood there quite menacingly, almost touching the net, the ball flew in a high arc right over her and landed just inside the baseline's corner.

She had to admit it. Her opponent was an expert lobster.

[Algot Runeman]

alicorn

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
n. The horn of a unicorn considered as a medical or pharmacological ingredient.
n. A winged horse with a single horn on its head; a winged unicorn.
Examples
Maybe an alicorn, which was a winged unicorn, and a werewolf.
Pet Peeve

Astrid may rush out into the knight with an alicorn in her fist, intent on vigilante justice, but even she knows that the police must be called, people must be taken to the hospital - there's proper procedure.
Diana Peterfreund

Note
The word 'alicorn' comes from Italian alicorno, already associated with unicorns and reinterpreted, popularized by Bearing an Hourglass (1984) and other fantasy novels by Piers Anthony.


Charles & Adrienne Esseltine

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Tinkerbelle always rode an alicorn to travel significant distances when Peter was not going with her. If He was going, she'd ride in one of his pockets if she wanted to nap or perch on his shoulder for a good view.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

alicorn

A horse with wings, and a straight horn.
I suppose this alicorn has iron hoofs and balls too?

What will they think of next? A Vulcan president?

[Algot Runeman]

phrenology

Pronunciation: /frɪˈnɒlədʒi/
noun
[mass noun] chiefly historical
The detailed study of the shape and size of the cranium as a supposed indication of character and mental abilities.

Origin
Early 19th century: from Greek phrēn, phren- 'mind' + -logy.


Pieter Cornelissen

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

They called him "Lumpy", they claimed, for no special reason. He was an amateur phrenologist in a family of professional physicians.

[E Pericoloso Sporgersi]

phrenology

He might have been a bit more immediately useful if that amateur phrenologist had applied himself as a culinary nephrologist.

Mmh, Rognons de Veau à la Liègoise, YUMMY! (Veal Kidneys in Mustard Sauce)