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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

argot
Wed, 16 May 2012 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 16, 2012 is: argot • \AHR-goh\  • noun : an often more or less secret vocabulary and idiom peculiar to a particular group Examples: The town's selectmen decided to hire a consultant to sort through the bureaucratic argot of the community development grant application."What makes the play work, though, is that the rich insider's argot spoken by Mr. Leight's characters is used not to show how much he knows, but to set the scene for a stinging tale of youthful hope and bitter disappointment, one whose implications are universal." — From a theater review by Terry Teachout in The Wall Street Journal, April 13, 2012 Did you know? We borrowed "argot" from French in the mid-1800s, although our language already had several words covering its meaning. There was "jargon," which harks back to Anglo-French by way of Middle English (where it meant "twittering of birds"); it had been used for specialized (and often obscure or pretentious) vocabulary since the 1600s. There was also "lingo," which had been around for almost a hundred years, and which is connected to the Latin word “lingua" ("language"). English novelist and lawyer Henry Fielding used it of "court gibberish" -- what we tend to call "legalese." In fact, the suffixal ending "-ese" is a newer means of indicating arcane vocabulary. One of its very first applications at the turn of the 20th century was for "American 'golfese.'"
accident
Tue, 15 May 2012 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 15, 2012 is: accident • \AK-suh-dunt\  • noun 1 a : an unforeseen and unplanned event or circumstance b : lack of intention or necessity : chance 2 : an unfortunate event resulting especially from carelessness or ignorance 3 : a nonessential property or quality of an entity or circumstance Examples: Following the second work-related accident in two weeks, operations at the factory were shut down so that a thorough safety review could be conducted."Too many kids — by accident of birth — start life with the odds against them, and too many schools don't do much to improve those odds." — From an article in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), December 9, 2011 Did you know? "Accident" is just one of many words in the English language to come down to us from the Latin verb "cadere," meaning "to fall." Among the others are "deciduous" (an adjective used to describe something, such as leaves, which fall off or shed seasonally or at a certain stage of development in the life cycle), "cascade" (which can mean, among other things, "a steep fall of water" or "something falling or rushing forth"),"cadence" ("a falling inflection of the voice"), and "decay" ("to fall into ruin"). "Chance," which functions as a synonym of "accident" in one sense, is also a "cadere" descendant.
skulk
Mon, 14 May 2012 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 14, 2012 is: skulk • \SKULK\  • verb 1 : to move in a stealthy or furtive manner 2 : to hide or conceal something (as oneself) often out of cowardice or fear or with sinister intent b chiefly British : malinger Examples: "I sometimes met with hounds in my path prowling about the woods, which would skulk out of my way, as if afraid, and stand silent amid the bushes till I had passed." — From Henry David Thoreau's 1854 collection of essays, Walden"These handsome gray birds … are usually found skulking amid the shadows of shrubs and thickets below a forest canopy." — From an article by Gary Phillips at MyrtleBeachOnline.com, April, 11, 2012 Did you know? Here's one for the word-puzzle lovers. Can you name three things that the word "skulk" has in common with all of these other words: booth, brink, cog, flit, give, kid, meek, scab, seem, skull and wing? If you noticed that all of the terms on that list have just one syllable, then you've got the first (easy) similarity, but the next two are likely to prove a little harder to guess. Do you give up? All of the words listed above are of Scandinavian origin and all were first recorded in English in the 13th century. As for "skulk," its closest known Scandinavian relative is the Norwegian dialect word "skulka," which means "to lie in wait" or "lurk."
hiatus
Sun, 13 May 2012 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 13, 2012 is: hiatus • \hye-AY-tus\  • noun 1 a : a break in or as if in a material object : gap b : a gap or passage in an anatomical part or organ 2 a : an interruption in time or continuity : break; especially : a period when something (as a program or activity) is suspended or interrupted b : the occurrence of two vowel sounds without pause or intervening consonantal sound Examples: The band released several hit albums in the '90s and aughts, and then went on hiatus."Wasting no time, Joshua Michael Stern is set to begin principal photography in May while [Ashton] Kutcher is on hiatus from the CBS sitcom 'Two and a Half Men.' Kutcher is a natural to play Jobs; the resemblance between the two is unmistakable." — From an article by Pamela McClintock in The Hollywood Reporter, April 1, 2012 Did you know? "Hiatus" comes from "hiare," a Latin verb meaning "to gape" or "to yawn," and first appeared in English in the middle of the 16th century. Originally, the word referred to a gap or opening in something, such as a cave opening in a cliff. In the 18th century, Laurence Sterne used the word humorously in his novel Tristram Shandy, writing of "the hiatus in Phutatorius's breeches." These days, "hiatus" is usually used in a temporal sense to refer to a pause or interruption (as in a song), or a period during which an activity is temporarily suspended (such as a hiatus from teaching).
recalcitrant
Sat, 12 May 2012 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 12, 2012 is: recalcitrant • \rih-KAL-suh-trunt\  • adjective 1 : obstinately defiant of authority or restraint 2 a : difficult to manage or operate b : not responsive to treatment c : resistant Examples: Anna's doctor ordered a week of complete bed rest, but, ever recalcitrant when it comes to doctors' orders, she was up and baking a cake after two days."Finally, he laid down the parental law: You will go on a hike and, gosh darn it, you will enjoy yourself. So the recalcitrant 14-year-old shrugged into her sweat shirt, slipped into her flimsy … canvas sneakers (totally hiking-inappropriate) and slumped in the back seat for the drive southwest to Vacaville, Calif., and Lagoon Valley Regional Park." — From an article by Sam McManis in Tri-City Herald (Washington), June 30, 2011 Did you know? Long before any human was dubbed "recalcitrant" in English (that first occurred, as best we know, in one of William Thackeray's works in 1843), there were stubborn mules (and horses) kicking back their heels. The ancient Romans noted as much (Pliny the Elder among them), and they had a word for it — "recalcitrare," which literally means "to kick back." (Its root "calc-," meaning "heel," is also the root of "calcaneus," the large bone of the heel in humans.) Certainly Roman citizens in Pliny's time were sometimes willful and hardheaded — as attested by various Latin words meaning "stubborn" — but it wasn’t until later that writers of Late Latin applied "recalcitrare" and its derivative adjective to humans who were stubborn as mules.
pacify
Fri, 11 May 2012 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 11, 2012 is: pacify • \PASS-uh-fye\  • verb 1 : to allay the anger or agitation of : soothe 2 a : to restore to a tranquil state : settle b : to reduce to a submissive state : subdue Examples: Aunt Mabel claimed she had the magic touch to pacify a cranky baby, and indeed, as soon as she picked up her infant nephew he settled right down."Before Leon LaRue could pacify a rally outside the Augusta courthouse, a rock was thrown through a bus window, and the 1970 race riots exploded." — From an article by Meg Mirshak in the Augusta (Georgia) Chronicle, March 29, 2012 Did you know? A parent who wants to win a little peace and quiet might give a fussy baby a pacifier. An employer seeking to avoid worker discontent might pay employees well. These actions may seem unrelated, but, etymologically speaking, they have a lot in common. Both "pacifier" and "pay" are ultimately derived from "pax," the Latin word for "peace." As you may have guessed, "pax" is also the source of our word "peace." "Pacify" comes to us through Middle English "pacifien," from the Latin verb "pacificare," which derives from "pax."

MedTerms Word of the Day

Avian influenza
Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 -0700
Avian influenza: A highly contagious viral disease with up to 100 percent mortality in domestic fowl. Caused by influenza A virus subtypes H5 and H7. All types of birds are susceptible to the virus, but outbreaks occur most often in chickens and turkeys. The infection may be brought by migratory wild birds which can carry the virus, but show no signs of disease. Humans are only rarely affected. Also known as fowl plague, avian flu, and bird flu.MedTerms (TM) is the Medical Dictionary of MedicineNet.com.We Bring Doctors' Knowledge To You

 

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