30 April 2016

stupa

[stoo-puh]

noun

1. a monumental pile of earth or other material, in memory of Buddha or a Buddhist saint, and commemorating some event or marking a sacred spot.

Origin of stupa

1875-1880; < Sanskrit stūpa

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for stupa

Historical Examples

For instance the many-storeyed pagoda is an elongation of the stupa.
Hinduism and Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Vol. 3 (of 3)
Charles Eliot

Some authorities think that this stupa may be one of those erected over a portion of the Buddha’s ashes after his funeral.
Hinduism and Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Vol. 3 (of 3)
Charles Eliot

The one which is best preserved (or at any rate reproduced in greatest detail) is the stupa of Rawak.
Hinduism and Buddhism, An Historical Sketch, Vol. 3 (of 3)
Charles Eliot

The usual manis lie along the road, and a large red chhorten or stupa has a touch of the Indian style.
Trans-Himalaya, Vol. 2 (of 2)
Sven Hedin

As more Sogdians became Buddhist, stupas were built alongside their principal routes, as can be seen in the Hunza valley of northern Pakistan; scores of passing Sogdians carved their names into rocks alongside images of the Buddha in hope that their long journeys would be fruitful and safe – poignant reminders of the traveller’s need for spiritual comfort when far from home.
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
Peter Frankopan

Anagram

tap us
sat up

Today’s quote

The mind is everything. What you think, you become.

– Buddha

On this day

30 April – International Jazz Day.

30 April 1945 – German Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler and his wife, Eva Braun, commit suicide in a bunker in Germany. Hitler had been Chancellor of Germany since 2 August 1934. He was born in Austria on 20 April 1889.

30 April 1975 – the Fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnamese civil war, when North Vietnamese tanks rumbled into Saigon, then the capital of South Vietnam, defeating the South Vietnamese army, United States military and her allies. The Fall was preceded by the largest helicopter evacuation in history, known as Operation Frequent Wind, in which 7,000 American military and civilians were evacuated. Weeks earlier, Operation Baby Lift had evacuated 2,000 orphan babies. Operation New Life evacuated 110,000 Vietnamese refugees. Tens of thousands of Vietnamese evacuated by land and sea. Following the communist take-over, hundreds of thousands of South Vietnamese fled the country, resulting in a surge of refugees worldwide. 30 April and 1 May are celebrated in Vietnam as Liberation Day or Reunification Day. Those who fled refer to it as Black April.

29 April 2016

stave

[steyv]

noun

1. one of the thin, narrow, shaped pieces of wood that form the sides of a cask, tub, or similar vessel.
2. a stick, rod, pole, or the like.
3. a rung of a ladder, chair, etc.
4. Prosody.
a verse or stanza of a poem or song.
the alliterating sound in a line of verse, as the w- sound in wind in the willows.
5. Music. staff1(def 10).
verb (used with object), staved or stove, staving.
6. to break in a stave or staves of (a cask or barrel) so as to release the wine, liquor, or other contents.
7. to release (wine, liquor, etc.) by breaking the cask or barrel.
8. to break or crush (something) inward (often followed by in).
9. to break (a hole) in, especially in the hull of a boat.
10. to break to pieces; splinter; smash.
11. to furnish with a stave or staves.
12. to beat with a stave or staff.
verb (used without object), staved or stove, staving.
13. to become staved in, as a boat; break in or up.
14. to move along rapidly.
Verb phrases
15. stave off,
to put, ward, or keep off, as by force or evasion.
to prevent in time; forestall:
He wasn’t able to stave off bankruptcy.

Origin of stave

1125-1175; (noun) Middle English, back formation from staves; (v.) derivative of the noun

Related forms

unstaved, adjective

Synonyms

4. See verse.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for stave

Contemporary Examples

Will “loyalty cards” be enough to stave of a Republican massacre of House Democrats on Tuesday?
The Democrats’ Simple Midterm Weapon
Ben Jacobs
November 3, 2014

The amount was large: $125 billion in loans from the European Union to stave off the collapse of Spanish banks.
Markets Relieved at Spain Bailout Deal; Financial World Still Worried
Zachary Karabell
June 10, 2012

Anagram

a vest
sea TV

Today’s quote

These are bagpipes. I understand the inventor of the bagpipes was inspired when he saw a man carrying an indignant, asthmatic pig under his arm. Unfortunately, the man-made sound never equalled the purity of the sound achieved by the pig.

– Alfred Hitchcock

On this day

29 April 711 – Islamic conquest of Hispania as Moorish forces led by Tariq ibn-Ziyad land on Gibraltar in preparation for the invasion of Spain.

29 April 1770 – Captain James Cook names Botany Bay after landing there on this day.

29 April 1910 – British Parliament passes ‘The People’s Budget’, the first budget in British history that is aimed at redistributing wealth to all.

29 April 1945 – the Dacchau concentration camp near Munich is liberated by US forces.

29 April 1967 – Muhammad Ali stripped of his boxing title after refusing, on religious grounds, being drafted into the Army.

29 April 1980 – death of Alfred Hitchcock, English movie producer and director. Born 13 August 1899.

28 April 2016

abnoy

tagalog

adjective

1. (informal)Oddly-behaving.

2. (informal)Crazy, in both senses of risky or mentally unstable..

Noun

abnoy

1. (informal)A freak.
2. (informal)An eccentric.
3. One of the three types of balut:
a. balut – fertilised duck egg – consumed usually around 17 days old.
b. penoy – unfertilised duck egg
c. abnoy (or bugok) – undeveloped duck egg which smells terrible and is considered ‘rotten’. Not generally recommended for consumption. Although some areas do make it into a dish called bibingkang abnoy.

Origin

English: abnormal

Example

Yep, the politicians are just like bibingkang abnoy: their corrupt practices smell like hell, but their dirty money tastes like heaven.
The politics of balut
Perryscope
Perry Diaz
Filamstar.com/the-politics-of-balut

Anagram

on bay

Today’s quote

I think there’s just one kind of folks. Folks.

– Harper Lee

On this day

28 April 1789 – Mutiny on the ‘Bounty’. Lieutenant Bligh and 18 of his crew from the Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty, are set afloat in an open boat following a mutiny led by Christian Fletcher. After 47 days Bligh landed the boat on Timor, in the Dutch East Indies. The mutineers settled on Pitcairn Island and in Tahiti. In 1856, the British Government granted Norfolk Island to the Pitcairners because population growth had outgrown the small island.

28 April 1926 – birth of Harper Lee, American author. Harper wrote the iconic ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, which detailed the racism that she witnessed as she grew up in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. Died 19 February 2016.

28 April 1945 – Italians execute former dictator Benito Mussolini and his mistress, Clara Petacci.

28 April 1996 – Port Arthur massacre in Tasmania, when Martin Bryant shoots 35 people dead. He is currently serving a life sentence for the murders.

27 April 2016

thunderation

[thuhn-duh-rey-shuh n]

interjection

1. an exclamation of surprise or petulance.

Origin of thunderation

1830-1840, Americanism; thunder + -ation

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for thunderation

Historical Examples

Why, thunderation, you might as well be a day scholar for all the school life you get!
Center Rush Rowland
Ralph Henry Barbour

This is a thunderation nice kind of a night to have a celebration on!
The Skipper and the Skipped
Holman Day

Why in thunderation did I ever leave the office without my portable instrument?
The Young Wireless Operator–As a Fire Patrol
Lewis E. Theiss

Anagram

anointed hurt
rationed hunt
attuned rhino

Today’s quote

Of all the things I’ve lost, I miss my mind the most.

– Ozzy Osbourne

On this day

27 April 1904 – The Australian Labor Party wins the federal election, making Chris Watson Australia’s third prime minister. The ALP was the first such labour party in the world to win a national election.

27 April 1950 – apartheid formally commences in South Africa with the implementation of the Group Areas Act that segrated races.

27 April 1951 – birth of Paul Daniel ‘Ace’ Frehley, former lead guitarist with Kiss. Frehley’s character with the band was the ‘Spaceman’. He has since launched a solo career and formed a band called Frehley’s Comet.

27 April 1953 – President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs Executive Order 10450 ‘Hiring and Firing Rules for Government Employment’. The order declared homosexuality, communism and moral perversion to be national security threats and grounds for sacking a government employee or not hiring an applicant.

27 April 1994 – South Africa’s first democratic election in which citizens of all races could vote. The interim constitution is enacted. The African National Congress won the election with 62% of the vote, bringing Nelson Mandela to power. 27 April is celebrated as Freedom Day in South Africa.

26 April 2016

perigee

[per-i-jee]

noun, Astronomy.

1. the point in the orbit of a heavenly body, especially the moon, or of an artificial satellite at which it is nearest to the earth.

Origin of perigee

French Greek
1585-1595; < French perigée < New Latin perigēum, perigaeum < Greek perígeion (sēmeîon limit), neuter of perígeios near, of the earth, equivalent to peri- peri- + -geios, adj. derivative of gaîa, gê the earth

Related forms

perigeal, perigean, adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for perigee

Historical Examples

She occupied the exact point, to a mathematical nicety, where our 28th parallel crossed the perigee.
All Around the Moon
Jules Verne

That point of the moon’s orbit which is furthest from the earth; the opposite of perigee.
The Sailor’s Word-Book
William Henry Smyth

In 1907 Mars was in perigee, as it is termed, seven days after the opposition; while in 1909, perigee was before opposition.
To Mars via The Moon
Mark Wicks

Anagram

rig epee
gee ripe

Today’s quote

Life really does begin at forty. Up until then, you are just doing research.

– Carl Jung

On this day

26 April 121AD – birth of Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor. Died 17 March 180AD.

26 April 1865 – Union troopers corner and shoot dead John Wilkes Booth, the man who fired the fatal bullet on 14 April 1865 that assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.

26 April 1894 – birth of Rudolf Hess. Prominent Nazi politician who served as Deputy Fuhrer under Adolf Hitler. In 1941, Hess flew solo to Scotland in an effort to negotiate peace after being ignored by Hitler in various plans associated with the war. The flight was not sanctioned by Hitler. Hess was taken prisoner and charged with crimes against peace. He served a life sentence and remained in prison until his death. Died 17 August 1987.

26 April 1945 – birth of Dick Johnson, Australian racing car legend. Five-time Australian Touring Car Champion, three-time winner of the Bathurst 1000, inducted into the V8 Supercar Hall of Fame in 2001.

26 April 1986 – the Chernobyl nuclear disaster when an explosion and fire at the No 4 reactor in the Chernobyl nuclear plant, Ukraine, releases radioactive gas across Northern Europe. It is estimated to have killed up to 1 million people from radioactive related cancers.

26 April 1989 – the deadliest tornado in world history strikes Central Bangladesh, killing more than 1300, injuring 12,000 and leaving up to 80,000 homeless.

25 April 2016

upbraid

[uhp-breyd]

verb (used with object)

1. to find fault with or reproach severely; censure:
The military tribunal upbraided the soldier for his cowardice.
2. (of things) to bring reproach on; serve as a reproach to.
verb (used without object)
3. Archaic. to utter reproaches.

Origin of upbraid

Middle English Old English
1000 before 1000; Middle English; Old English upbrēdan to adduce as a fault. See up-, braid

Related forms

upbraider, noun
unupbraided, adjective

Synonyms

1. reprove, blame. See reprimand.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for upbraid

Historical Examples

You may upbraid me, and I will sit here and make not one excuse.
Ravenshoe
Henry Kingsley

You are young now; some day your conscience may upbraid you.
An Eagle Flight
Jos Rizal

For he could not very well follow his inclination to upbraid, without seriously impairing his efficacy for reasoning with her.
The Honour of the Clintons
Archibald Marshall

Applerod, who had been the first to upbraid him, was now the first to recover his spirits.
The Making of Bobby Burnit
George Randolph Chester

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him
James 1:5
Bible (King James Version)

upbraid me with the loss of all of which you have bereft me.
Tales And Novels, Volume 8 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth

If she did not upbraid herself, at any rate she denounced Miss Henderson.
Double Harness
Anthony Hope

But conscience has not to upbraid me with any of these things.
Concerning Cats
Helen M. Winslow

Henry knew what was on his comrade’s mind but he did not upbraid him for weakness of spirit.
The Young Trailers
Joseph A. Altsheler

Then they began to upbraid me for bringing them upon this fatal expedition.
A Tramp Abroad, Complete
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)

Anagram

rabid up
burp aid
paid rub
arid pub

Today’s quote

The more you are motivated by love, the more fearless and free your action will be.

– Dalai Lama

On this day

25 April – Anzac Day. National day of remembrance for Australia and New Zealand to commemorate ANZACs who fought at Gallipoli during World War I, honouring all service-men and women who served their country.

25 April – World Penguin Day.

25 April 1915 – World War I: the battle of Gallipoli begins, when Australian, New Zealand, British and French forces invade Turkey’s Gallipoli Peninsula, landing at Cape Helles, and what is now called Anzac Cove. The attack followed a failed British attempt on 18 March 1915 to seize Constantinople by sailing a fleet into the Dardenelle Straits. The Turks laid naval mines and sank three British ships. The Gallipoli Campaign resulted in the deaths of 56,643 Turks, 56,707 allies, which included 34,072 from Britain, 9,798 from France, 8,709 from Australia, 2,721 from New Zealand, 1,358 from British India, 49 from Newfoundland. More than 107,000 Turks and 123,000 allies were injured. The Gallipoli Campaign is seen as a defining moment in the national histories of both Australia and Turkey.

25 April 1983 – American schoolgirl, Samantha Smith, is invited to the Soviet Union after its leader, Yuri Andropov, reads her letter expressing her fears of nuclear war.

23 April 2016

caitiff

[key-tif] Archaic.

noun

1. a base, despicable person.
adjective
2. base; despicable.

Origin of caitiff

Latin Middle English Anglo-French
1250-1300; Middle English caitif < Anglo-French < Latin captīvus captive

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for caitiff

Historical Examples

The constable has sworn that the caitiff had pea-green hair.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 107, October 6, 1894
Various

Her eloquent sighs and sobs soon told the caitiff he had nothing to fear.
A Simpleton
Charles Reade

Galaor spurred to the rescue, and by his aid the caitiff crew were slain or routed.
Legends & Romances of Spain
Lewis Spence

What man would be so caitiff and thrall as to fail you at your need?
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle

caitiff, you knew there was another one worth all these twice told.
The Cloister and the Hearth
Charles Reade

The caitiff who had undersold them was in the village at that moment!
The Woodlands Orchids
Frederick Boyle

They set a spy on her, a caitiff priest named L’Oyseleur, who pretended to be her friend, and who betrayed her.
The Red True Story Book
Various

So long as this caitiff knight lives, your life will not be safe.
Saint George for England
G. A. Henty

We passed for good knights one time: / what caitiff ‘s death, if we Here in far-off country / a woman’s game are doomed to be!
The Nibelungenlied
Unknown

Then after the search ‘he perceived the barrels and so bound the caitiff fast.’
What Gunpowder Plot Was
Samuel Rawson Gardiner

Anagram

If I fact

Today’s quote

The only way to have a friend is to be one.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

On this day

23 April 1564 – birth of William Shakespeare, the Bard. English poet and playwright.

23 April 1616 – death of William Shakespeare, the Bard. English poet and playwright. Shakespeare invented more than 1700 words which are now in common use. He changed nouns into verbs, verbs into adjectives and joining words that normally wouldn’t be joined.

23 April 1928 – birth of Shirley Temple, American actress, singer, dancer and former U.S. ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia. Died 10 February 2014.

21 April 2016

psephology

[see-fol-uh-jee]

noun

1. the study of elections.

Origin of psephology

Greek

1950-1955; < Greek psêpho(s) pebble + -logy; so called from the Athenian custom of casting votes by means of pebbles

Related forms

psephological [‐fuh-loj-i-kuh l], adjective
psephologist, noun

Dictionary.com

Example

Today our panel of expert psephologist vegetables, will rate the impact each issue will have on the impending election on a scale of 1 to Barnaby Joyce.
First Dog on the Moon
The Guardian
20 April 2016

Anagram

gloppy shoe

Today’s quote

The secret of getting ahead is getting started.

– Mark Twain

On this day

21 April 753BC – Romulus founds Rome.

21 April 1782 – the city of Rattanaskosin is founded by King Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke. The city is now known as Bangkok.

21 April 1910 – death of Mark Twain, U.S. novellist, author of ‘The Adventures of Tom Sawyer’ and ‘The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn’. Born 30 November 1835.

21 April 1947 – birth of Iggy Pop, punk, garage & glam rocker, actor.

21 April 1970 – Prince Leonard (born Leonard Casley), self-appointed sovereign secedes the Hutt River Province from Australia. Now known as the Principality of Hutt River, it is located 517km north of Perth, Western Australia and is the oldest micronation in Australia. Its sovereignty is not recognised by Australia or other nations. On 2 December 1977, Prince Leonard declared war on Australia after the Australian Tax Office pursued him for non-payment of taxes. Hostilities were ceased a few days later and Prince Leonard wrote to the Governor-General declaring his sovereignty based on the Province being undefeated in war. In 2012, the ATO again unsuccessfully attempted to recover claimed taxes. Hutt River has its own stamps and currency.

21 April 1972 – The Province of Hutt River attains legal status when Australia fails to challenge its sovereignty within two years of its formation, as required by Australian law.

20 April 2016

rodomontade

[rod-uh-mon-teyd, -tahd, -muh n-, roh-duh-]

noun

1. vainglorious boasting or bragging; pretentious, blustering talk.
adjective
2. bragging.
verb (used without object), rodomontaded, rodomontading.
3. to boast; brag; talk big.

Origin of rodomontade

Middle French, Italian

1605-1615; < Middle French < Italian Rodomonte, the boastful king of Algiers in Orlando Innamorato and Orlando Furioso + Middle French -ade -ade1

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for rodomontade

Historical Examples

Such work was to him for the most part a detestable compound of vulgarity and rodomontade.
Critical Miscellanies (Vol. 3 of 3)
John Morley

Lily said, “Yes, it was so,” without at all understanding what he meant by his rodomontade.
London’s Heart
B. L. (Benjamin Leopold) Farjeon

The death of Sir Richard Grenville was emphatically what the sixteenth century described as a rodomontade in act.
A Short History of the Royal Navy 1217 to 1688
David Hannay

He spoke with warmth and feeling, but with an entire absence of boastfulness or rodomontade.
Benjamin Franklin
John Torrey Morse, Jr.

Anagram

rooted nomad
tornado mode
toad doormen
odd anteroom
doom a rodent
dared to moon

Today’s quote

If music made sense, we wouldn’t have rock and roll.

– Steve Stine

On this day

20 April 1889 – birth of Adolf Hitler in Austria. Austrian-German politician. German Chancellor from 2 August 1934 – 30 April 1945. Genocidal megalomaniac. Died 30 April 1945.

20 April 1908 – first day of competition in the New South Wales Rugby League.

20 April 1912 – death of Bram Stoker, Irish novellist, author of ‘Dracula’. Born 8 November 1847.

20 April 1918 – German flying ace, Manfred Von Richthoffen (the Red Baron), shoots down his 79th and 80th victims. The following day he was fatally wounded while pursuing a Sopwith Camel. Before yielding to his injuries, Richthoffen landed his plane in an area controlled by the Australian Imperial Force. Richthoffen died moments after allied troops reached him. Witnesses claim his last word was ‘kaputt’, which means broken, ruined, done-in or wasted.

20 April 1939 – Billie Holiday records the first civil rights song, ‘Strange Fruit’.

19 April 2016

obliquity

[uh-blik-wi-tee, oh-blik-]

noun, plural obliquities.

1. the state of being oblique.
2. divergence from moral conduct, rectitude, etc.; immorality, dishonesty, or the like.
3. an instance of such divergence.
4.mental perversity.
5. an instance of mental perversity.
6. an inclination or a degree of inclination.
7. a confusing or obscure statement or passage of writing, especially one deliberately made obscure.

Origin of obliquity

late Middle English Middle French Latin
1375-1425; late Middle English obliquitee < Middle French obliquite < Latin oblīquitās, equivalent to oblīqu (us) oblique + -itās -ity

Related forms

obliquitous, adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for obliquity

Historical Examples

He saw no reason why he should not push on; and in the Egyptian obliquity of his heart, he ‘whaled’ his ass to a degree.
The Knickerbocker, Vol. 10, No. 6, December 1837
Various

The obliquity of vision of the European residents on all these points is extraordinary.
Appearances
Goldsworthy Lowes Dickinson

I do not think they mean any harm: at least, I can look at this obliquity with indifference in my own particular case.
Table-Talk
William Hazlitt

Variation in obliquity of the ecliptic; about 47″ in 100 years.
Astronomical Curiosities
J. Ellard Gore

On the anomaly of the Prcession of the quinoxes, & of the obliquity of the Zodiack.
On the magnet, magnetick bodies also, and on the great magnet the earth
William Gilbert of Colchester

What utter heartlessness too, and what obliquity of moral vision does it exhibit.
Discussion on American Slavery
George Thompson

Anagram

by oil quit
boy I quilt

Today’s quote

Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live.

– Oscar Wilde

On this day

19 April 1987 – The Simpsons is first aired on television in the United States.

19 April 1993 – 70 members of the cult Branch Davidian sect, led by David Koresh, perish following a fire at their Waco compound. It is believed they lit the fire deliberately as federal agents stormed the compound following a siege that began in February 1993.

19 April 1995 – Terrorist Timothy McVeigh detonates a bomb in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people, including 19 children, and injuring 680 people. McVeigh was executed by lethal injection on 11 June 2001.