Word of the day strikes back

Discussion about miscellaneous topics not covered by other forums
Richard Frost
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Word of the day

Post by Richard Frost » Mon May 17 2021 9:24am

Word of the Day : May 17, 2021 - https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day

divers

adjective DYE-verz

Definition
: of an indefinite number greater than one : various

Did You Know?
Divers is not a misspelling of diverse—it is a word in its own right. Both words come from Latin diversus, meaning "turning in opposite directions," and both historically could be pronounced as either DYE-verz (like the plural of the noun diver) or dye-VERSS. Divers (now pronounced more frequently as DYE-verz) is typically used before a plural noun to indicate an unspecified quantity ("a certain secret drawer in the wardrobe, where were stored divers parchments" — Jane Eyre); it's a rather formal word and not commonly encountered. Diverse (usually dye-VERSS) is frequently called upon to emphasize variety. It means either "dissimilar" or "unlike" (as in "a variety of activities to appeal to the children's diverse interests") or "having distinct or unlike elements or qualities" ("a diverse student body").

Examples
"Thus, by divers little makeshifts, in that ingenious way which is commonly denominated 'by hook and by crook,' the worthy pedagogue got on tolerably enough, and was thought, by all who understood nothing of the labor of headwork, to have a wonderfully easy life of it." — Washington Irving, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," 1820

"Carrick Venn was an original, a man of restless curious tastes, and his place, on a Sunday, was often full of visitors: a cheerful crowd of journalists, scribblers, painters, experimenters in divers forms of expression." — Edith Wharton, "The Bolted Door," 1909
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Sarah
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Re: Word of the day strikes back

Post by Sarah » Mon May 17 2021 9:31am

Posted by Susie Dent today:
The first meaning of 'fathom' was the span of the arms outstretched in an embrace, later standardised to 6 feet. When we 'fathom' a problem or area of knowledge, we are pulling it within our grasp.
https://twitter.com/susie_dent/status/1 ... 30336?s=20

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Re: Word of the day strikes back

Post by macliam » Mon May 17 2021 11:25am

Sarah wrote:
Mon May 17 2021 9:31am
Posted by Susie Dent today:
The first meaning of 'fathom' was the span of the arms outstretched in an embrace, later standardised to 6 feet. When we 'fathom' a problem or area of knowledge, we are pulling it within our grasp.
https://twitter.com/susie_dent/status/1 ... 30336?s=20
I understood that, since a fathom is a measurement of depth, fathoming a problem was also to assess how "deep" (serious) it is.......
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Richard Frost
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Word of the day

Post by Richard Frost » Tue May 18 2021 9:51am

Word of the Day : May 18, 2021 - https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day

peruse

verb puh-ROOZ

Definition
1 a : to examine or consider with attention and in detail : study

b : to look over or through in a casual or cursory manner

2 : read; especially : to read over in an attentive or leisurely manner

Did You Know?
Peruse has long been a literary word, used by such famous authors as William Shakespeare, Alfred Tennyson, and Thomas Hardy, and it tends to have a literary flavor even in our time. Peruse can suggest paying close attention to something, but it can also simply mean "to read." The "read" sense, which is not especially new and was in fact included in Samuel Johnson's 1755 dictionary, has drawn some criticism over the years for being too broad. Some commentators have recommended that peruse be reserved for reading with great care and attention to detail. But the fact remains that peruse is often used in situations where a simple "read" definition could be easily substituted. It may suggest either an attentive read or a quick scan.

Examples
Dmitri perused the menu while we waited for a table.

"Your best friend here is eBird.org, a crowd-sourced website managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, where birders file checklists and where you can peruse a map of hot spots (ebird.org/hotspots) to find out what's been seen near you in recent days." — Ty Burr, The Boston Globe, 1 Apr. 2021
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Re: Word of the day strikes back

Post by Sarah » Tue May 18 2021 10:29am

Susie Dent writes:
Today wouldn't be complete without a reminder of the verb 'scurryfunge': to frantically attempt to tidy up before visitors arrive.
https://twitter.com/susie_dent/status/1 ... 59299?s=20
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Word of the day

Post by Richard Frost » Wed May 19 2021 9:40am

Word of the Day : May 19, 2021 - https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day

rictus

noun RIK-tus

Definition
1 : the gape of a bird's mouth

2 a : the mouth orifice

b : a gaping grin or grimace

Did You Know?
Rictus began its English career in the late 17th century as a technical term for the mouth of an animal, the new science of zoology clearly calling for some Latin to set its lingo apart from the language of farmers. In Latin, rictus means "an open mouth"; it comes from the verb ringi, meaning "to open the mouth." Zoologists couldn't keep the word to themselves, though. English speakers liked its sound too much, and they thought it would be good for referring to a gaping grin or grimace. James Joyce used the word in both Ulysses (1922) and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916), writing in the latter, "Creatures were in the field…. Goatish creatures with human faces…. A rictus of cruel malignity lit up greyly their old bony faces."

Examples
"You could make a strong case that the current face of the Mariners' franchise, generically speaking, is frozen in a rictus of frustration.… Perhaps one day soon a saviour will emerge and lead the Mariners to unachieved heights." — Larry Stone, The Seattle Times, 31 Mar. 2021

"To [Jim Carrey] fans, it's fun to watch him return to sketch comedy—the medium that offered his big break back in the early ’90s—turn that rubber face into a rictus, and wiggle his glued-on eyebrows." — Alison Herman, The Ringer, 9 Oct. 2020
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Re: Word of the day strikes back

Post by Sarah » Wed May 19 2021 10:12am

Word of the day from Susie Dent:
Word of the day is ‘thunderplump’ (19th century): a heavy, thundery shower that seems to come from nowhere and soaks you in seconds.
https://twitter.com/susie_dent/status/1 ... 31078?s=20
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Word of the day

Post by Richard Frost » Thu May 20 2021 8:19am

Word of the Day : May 20, 2021 - https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day

copious

adjective KOH-pee-us

Definition
1 a : yielding something abundantly

b : plentiful in number

2 a : full of thought, information, or matter

b : profuse or exuberant in words, expression, or style

3 : present in large quantity : taking place on a large scale

Did You Know?
Copious dates to the 14th century, during the era of English known as Middle English. Like most terms entering the language then, it comes ultimately from Latin, from the word copia, meaning "abundance." (Cornucopia combines this same root with cornu, meaning "horn," to form the phrase "horn of plenty.") Latin copia combines the prefix co- and -op, * ops, meaning "wealth" or "power." (That asterisk means that ops is assumed to have existed or has been reconstructed by means of comparative evidence.) The latter also features in the history of opulent, meaning "wealthy" or "luxurious."

Examples
Jacqueline took copious notes during the long lecture and shared them with the rest of her study group.

"Her grandmother had trimmed her lashes when she was a baby to 'stimulate growth,' and it seemed to have worked, for now she was blessed with a flurry of thick, black lashes that other girls could only achieve with copious layers of mascara, and not even then." — Susie Yang, White Ivy, 2020
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Word of the day

Post by Richard Frost » Fri May 21 2021 9:00am

Word of the Day : May 21, 2021 - https://www.merriam-webster.com/word-of-the-day

Word of the Day : May 21, 2021

altruism

noun AL-troo-iz-um

Definition
1 : unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others

2 : behavior by an animal that is not beneficial to or may be harmful to itself but that benefits others of its species

Did You Know?
Altruism refers to a quality possessed by people whose focus is on something other than themselves, and its root reveals the object of those generous tendencies. Altruism derives from the French word autrui, meaning "other people." Autrui, in turn, developed from the Old French term autre, which means "other" and which itself comes from Latin alter, also meaning "other." That Latin source eventually caused a curious thing to happen. Under the influence of alter, the French autrui gave rise to the altrui- of both the French altruisme and the English altruism. The English term has been in service since at least the mid-1800s.

Examples
Julian's altruism is evident in the way he spends his time, including the ten hours per week that he spends volunteering at the homeless shelter.

"To that end, he advises his congregants to quit pursuing material desires and refocus their energies on acts of kindness and altruism that provide long-term happiness." — Ralph Mancini, The Leader-News (Washburn, North Dakota), 25 Mar. 2021
Last edited by Richard Frost on Fri May 21 2021 10:43am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Word of the day strikes back

Post by macliam » Fri May 21 2021 9:50am

Word of the day - DUPLICATE (DOO-pli-cut)

1. one of two or more identical things.

2. A bit too copious

"Posts may be ignored if they are duplicates" ;)
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