Tag Archives: Vocabulary

Thoughts for the Day

Posted on January 6, 2014 by Ron

Today in History (January 6th): 1745: Birthdays: Frenchman Jacques Montgolfier, who, with his brother, invented the hot air balloon. 1759: George Washington married widow Martha Dandridge Custis. 1822: Birthdays: German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, who discovered the ruins of ancient Troy. … Continue reading →

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Thoughts for the Day

Posted on January 5, 2014 by Ron

Today in History (January 5th): 1643: In the first record of a legal divorce in the American colonies, Anne Clarke of the Massachusetts Bay Colony was granted a divorce from her absent and adulterous husband, Denis Clarke. 1855: Birthdays: King … Continue reading →

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Thoughts for the Day

Posted on January 4, 2014 by Ron

Today in History (January 4th): 1809: Birthdays: French teacher of the blind Louis Braille. 1813: Birthdays: British shorthand writing system inventor Isaac Pitman. 1838: Birthdays: Charles Stratton, the midget known as Gen. Tom Thumb, a famous entertainer and protege of … Continue reading →

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Nugacity

Posted on January 3, 2014 by Ron

PRONUNCIATION: (noo-GAS-i-tee, nyoo-) http://wordsmith.org/words/nugacity.mp3 MEANING: (noun), Triviality; futility. ETYMOLOGY: From Latin nugax (trifling), from nugari (to trifle). Earliest documented use: 1572. USAGE: “For many, the Beachcomber column has been an oasis of nugacity in an otherwise worthy landscape.” The next … Continue reading →

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Terrestrial

Posted on January 2, 2014 by Ron

PRONUNCIATION: (tuh-RES-tree-uhl) http://wordsmith.org/words/terrestrial.mp3 MEANING: (adjective) 1. Pertaining to the earth or its inhabitants. 2. Pertaining to the land (as distinct from water or air) or those living on land. 3. Worldly, mundane. (noun), One living on the earth. It lowers … Continue reading →

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Unremacadamized

Posted on January 1, 2014 by Ron

PRONUNCIATION: (ehn-ree-meh-KAE-deh-mIzd) http://wordsmith.org/words/unremacadamized.mp3 MEANING: (adjective), Having not been covered again with MacAdam stone layers or contemporary macadam. ETYMOLOGY: Today we have a lexical Dagwood sandwich for you: an English prefix and suffix surrounding bits and pieces of four other languages. … Continue reading →

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Crowdsource

Posted on December 31, 2013 by Ron

PRONUNCIATION: (KROUD-sohrs) http://wordsmith.org/words/crowdsource.mp3 MEANING: (verb tr.), To enlist the services of a large number of people outside the company, for little or no pay, to accomplish a task. ETYMOLOGY: A blend of crowd + outsource. Earliest documented use: 2006. NOTES: … Continue reading →

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Belie

Posted on December 30, 2013 by Ron

PRONUNCIATION: (beh-LI) http://wordsmith.org/words/belie.mp3 MEANING: (verb), To show to be false, contradict, to misrepresent, to give a false impression of. This verb is only rarely used to mean “to lie about” today. ETYMOLOGY: Today’s word shares an origin with lie “to … Continue reading →

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Kennedy Speech Patterns

Posted on December 28, 2013 by Ron

Those who remember President John F. Kennedy, or who have heard recordings of his voice, know that he spoke with a Boston accent. He not only dropped the “r” sound in many words (“Let the wahhd go fawth … that … Continue reading →

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Aby

Posted on December 28, 2013 by Ron

Publish Date: 2013.MM.DD PRONUNCIATION: (uh-BY) http://wordsmith.org/words/aby.mp3 MEANING: (verb tr.), To pay the penalty for. (verb intr.), To suffer, to endure. ETYMOLOGY: From Old English abycgan (to pay for), from bycgan (to buy). Earliest documented use: before 1225. If it occurs, … Continue reading →

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