16 June 2016

crampon

[kram-pon]

noun

1. a spiked iron plate worn on boots or shoes for aid in climbing or to prevent slipping on ice, snow, etc.
2. a device for grasping and lifting heavy loads, usually consisting of a pair of hooks suspended from a chain or cable, the upward pull on which provides tension for the hooks to grip the load on opposite sides.

Also, crampoon [kram-poon]

Origin of crampon

Middle English, Old French, Old Low Franconian
1275-1325; Middle English cra (u) mpon < Old French crampon < Old Low Franconian *krampo, cognate with Old High German krampfo, Middle Dutch crampe; see cramp2

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for crampon

Historical Examples

Outside the bandages I wore six pairs of thick woollen socks, fur boots and a crampon over-shoe of soft leather.
The Home of the Blizzard
Douglas Mawson

Anagram

man crop
corn map

Today’s quote

The great art of life is sensation, to feel that we exist, even in pain.

– Lord Byron

On this day

16 June – International Day of the African Child, which remembers those who participated in the Soweto protests in 1976, as well as raises awareness of the need for improved education provided to African children.

16 June 1816 – Lord Byron reads his poem Fantasmagoriana to his four house guests, Percy Shelley, Mary Shelley, Claire Clermont and John Polidori, challenging them to write a ghost story. Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein. Polidori wrote the short story, The Vampyre, which in turn influenced numerous vampire stories, including Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Byron himself went on to write the poem, Darkness.

16 June 1951 – birth of Roberto Duran, Panamanian boxer nicknamed ‘Manos de Piedra’ (Hands of Stone). He held world titles at four different levels; lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight. He was the second boxer to fight over five decades. He retired from professional boxing in 2002 at the age of 50. He is considered one of the greatest boxers of all time.

16 June 1961 – Soviet ballet dancer, Rudolf Nureyev defects to the West. Soviet Leader Nikita Khrushchev allegedly issued an order for Nureyev to be killed, which did not eventuate.

16 June 1967 – The Monterey Pop Festival is held over three days at Monterey, California. Over 200,000 people attended to experience performers such as Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, The Who, The Byrds, The Animals and The Grateful Dead.

16 June 1976 – Soweto Uprising in South Africa, when up to 20,000 students marched in a non-violent protest against poor quality education and demanding to be taught in their own language after Afrikaans was introduced as the medium of instruction. The protest turned violent when police opened fire on the crowd, killing 23 people. Violence continued for two weeks, with 176 people being killed. The day is now a public holiday in South Africa and commemorated as Youth Day. Internationally it is recognised as Day of the African Child.

15 June 2016

dacker

[dak-er, dah-ker]

verb (used without object), Scot. and North England.

1. to totter or stagger.
2. to waver or shake.
3. to saunter; move slowly or idly.
4. to vacillate; act irresolutely or indecisively.

Also, daiker.

Origin of dacker

early Dutch Middle Dutch

1625-1635; perhaps < early Dutch daeckeren to flutter, vibrate, Middle Dutch dakeren to wave, flutter

Dictionary.com

Anagram

racked

Today’s quote

Strange how paranoia can link up with reality now and then.

– Philip K. Dick

On this day

15 June 1215 – King John of England seals the Magna Carta (Latin for ‘Great Charter’) which established the ‘rule of law’ that was to become fundamental to the modern legal system. It ensured that no man, no monarch, was above the law. Monarchs could no longer arbitrarily deal with or dispossess their subjects. It didn’t mean equality or liberty for all, however, as it applied only to ‘all the free men’, and not all men were free in 13th century England.

15 June 1752 – Benjamin Franklin proves that lightning is electricity by launching a kite during a storm. The kite was tied to a key and a Leyden Jar, which was used to store electrical charge. The negative ions in the thunder storm charged the kite, flowing down the wet silk string and into the jar. Franklin was holding the silk at the time and was unaffected, however when he moved his hand near the key he received an electric shock, proving that lightning was static electricity. (Traditional date, the exact date is unknown).

15 June 1920 – a 5000-strong mob in Minnesota lynches three African-American who were convicted of the rape of a 17 year old white woman.

15 June 1946 – birth of Noddy Holder, British musician and singer. Holder was the lead singer with 1970’s glam rock band, Slade, which was famous for songs such as ‘Mama Weer All Crazee Now’, ‘Cum On Feel The Noize’, ‘Gudbuy T’ Jane’, and ‘Skweeze Me Pleeze Me’. Their second studio album, ‘Slayed’, spent 34 weeks at Number 1 in the UK. Slade had 17 consecutive Top 20 hits, six of which reached number one. In 2000 Holder was awarded an MBE for his services to spelling.

14 June 2016

jeremiad

[jer-uh-mahy-uh d, -ad]

noun

1. a prolonged lamentation or mournful complaint.

Origin of jeremiad

1770-1780; Jeremi(ah) + -ad1in reference to Jeremiah’s Lamentations

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for jeremiad

Contemporary Examples

But neither is it a rigorous sociological study or a polemic or a jeremiad.
Too Soon to Write: Choire Sicha’s ‘Very Recent History’
Stefan Beck
August 7, 2013

The Task Force report is a blend of modern bureaucratese and the old Judeo-Christian tradition of the jeremiad.
Did the Southern Baptist ‘Conservative Resurgence’ Fail?
Molly Worthen
May 31, 2014

Huckabee should deliver a jeremiad lambasting Washington for its role in fostering the housing collapse and the Great Recession.
Mike Huckabee’s Bully Pulpit: Economic Populism
Lloyd Green
December 23, 2013

Historical Examples

Hanneh Breineh, in a friendly manner, settled herself on the sound end of the bed, and began her jeremiad.
Hungry Hearts
Anzia Yezierska

However, here is my jeremiad after all; it seems to have been inevitable!
The Life; Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky
Modeste Tchaikovsky

Anagram

mire jade
i jam reed

Today’s quote

Passion is needed for any great work, and for the revolution, passion and audacity are required in big doses.

– Che Guevara

On this day

14 June 1158 – Munich founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the River Isar.

14 June 1789 – The Reverend Elijah Craig becomes the first person to distill whisky from maize. The new whisky is named bourbon, because that is the county in Kentucky that Reverend Craig lived in.

14 June 1928 – birth of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara, Argentinian Marxist revolutionary, physician, author. Executed 9 October 1967 on the order of Bolivian President Rene Barrientos.

14 June 1936 – death of Gilbert Keith Chesterton (otherwise known as G.K. Chesterton – born 29 May 1874), English writer, lay theologian, poet, philosopher, dramatist, journalist, orator, literary and art critic, biographer and owner of one of the world’s worst pompadours:

14 June 1937 – The USA passes the Marihuana Tax Act, which taxed the sale of cannabis.

14 June 1982 – Argentina surrenders to Great Britain after the six week Falkland’s War.

14 June 2007 – Former Ku Klux Klan member, 71 year old James Seale is found guilty of a number of charges related to the 1964 murder of two civil rights activists in Mississippi. He was sentenced to three life terms of imprisonment. His conviction was overturned the following year, before being reinstated. He died in prison in 2011.

13 June 2016

enow

[ih-nou; formerly ih-noh]

adjective, adverb, Archaic.

1. enough.

Origin of enow

Middle English, Old English
1050, before 1050; Middle English inow, Old English genōg (variant of genōh enough ), conflated with Middle English inowe, Old English genōge, plural of genōg enough

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for enow

Historical Examples

There are armed men enow to countervail all your efforts at escape.
The Monastery
Sir Walter Scott

I tolde him it was, but knew nought of ye distich, though ’twas like enow to be his.
Harper’s New Monthly Magazine, Vol. III, No. XVII, October 1851
Various

“ enow for any Christian woman, Niece, and at the least ten too many,” said Rachel severely.
Clare Avery
Emily Sarah Holt

Line 29, our text misreads ‘now:’ we restore ‘ enow,’ after the editions as in No. 9.
The Complete Works of Richard Crashaw, Volume I (of 2)
Richard Crashaw

Anagram

on we

Today’s quote

Do not wait to strike till the iron is hot; but make it hot by striking.

– William Butler Yeats

On this day

13 June 1381 – The Peasants Revolt (a brief rebellion against poll tax), led by Wat Tyler, culminates in the burning down of the Savoy Palace in London.

13 June 1525 – Martin Luther, a German monk and Catholic priest, marries a nun, Katharina von Bora, which violated the rule of celibacy decreed by the Roman Catholic church for priests and nuns. The couple went on to have six children together.

13 June 1865 – birth of William Butler Yeats (W.B. Yeats), Irish poet, Nobel Prize laureate. One of the foremost literary figures of the 20th century. He served as an Irish senator for two terms. He led the Irish Literary Revival. In 1921 he was awarded the Nobel Prize for ‘inspired poetry, which in a highly artistic form gives expression to the spirit of a whole nation‘. Died 28 January 1939.

13 June 1927 – birth of Slim Dusty AO, MBE, Australian country music singer, song-writer and producer. He was born as David Gordon Kirkpatrick and adopted the name of Slim Dusty at 11 years of age. He released his first record when he was 18. In 1957, he released ‘The Pub With No Beer‘, which became the biggest selling Australian song to that time, and the first Australian single to go gold. He won 36 Golden Guitar Awards at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. In 2000, he recorded his 100th album, ‘Looking Forward, Looking Back‘. He is the only artist in the world to have recorded 100 albums with the same record label (EMI). Died 19 September 2003.

13 June 1944 – Germany launches 10 of its new rockets, known as the V1 (also called a doodlebug or buzz bomb). The V1s were pilot-less, pulse-jet-propelled rockets with a one ton payload with a 500km range. The Germans rained V1s over London. The V1 was an early version of the Cruise Missile.

12 June 2016

countervail

[koun-ter-veyl]

verb (used with object)

1. to act or avail against with equal power, force, or effect; counteract.
2. to furnish an equivalent of or a compensation for; offset.
3. Archaic. to equal.

verb (used without object)

4. to be of equal force in opposition; avail.

Origin of countervail

Latin, Middle English, Anglo-French
1350-1400; Middle English contrevailen < Anglo-French countrevail-, tonic stem (subjunctive) of countrevaloir to equal, be comparable to < Latin phrase contrā valēre to be of worth against (someone or something). See counter-, -valent

Related forms

uncountervailed, adjective

Synonyms

1. counterbalance, counterpoise, neutralize.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for countervail

Historical Examples

You had, besides, on Virginia, sacred claims which nothing could countervail.
Paul and Virginia
Bernardin de Saint Pierre

No time was to be lost, and measures were immediately taken to countervail these designs.
Traditions of Lancashire, Volume 1 (of 2)
John Roby

One question is, can I countervail the burden I shall be, by such help to you as I can afford?
Diana of the Crossways, Complete
George Meredith

Her object being to countervail the design of her husband, she instantly commences a system of manoeuvring to carry her point.
Female Scripture Biographies, Vol. I
Francis Augustus Cox

In the case of Dryden there is nothing to countervail this presumption.
The History of England from the Accession of James II.
Thomas Babington Macaulay

Very many and very strong arms stood behind the prince ready to cooperate with him and countervail any resistance.
The Origins of Contemporary France, Volume 4 (of 6)
Hippolyte A. Taine

Anagram

no lucrative
lunatic rove
toucan liver
ritual coven
once virtual

Today’s quote

You’ve got to be a thermostat rather than a thermometer. A thermostat shapes the climate of opinion; a thermometer just reflects it.

– Cornel West

On this day

12 June – Russia Day, held every year in Russia since 1992 to celebrate the establishment of the Russian Federation, when the First Congress of the People’s Deputies of the Russian Federation adopted the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic on 12 June 1990.

12 June 1929 – birth of Anne Frank, author of the ‘Diary of Anne Frank’. On her 13th birthday (1942) she was given a diary which she kept while the family was in hiding from the German Army. The family hid for two years in a secret annex behind her father’s office. In 1944, the family was discovered and sent to concentration camps. She died on 12 March 1945 in Auschwitz Concentration Camp. The diary was published in 1947.

12 June 1967 – the US Supreme Court declares that inter-racial marriages are Constitutional and cannot be banned by the states.

12 June 1991 – Boris Yeltsin becomes Russia’s first democratically elected President following the end of the Soviet Union.

11 June 2016

schnook

[shnoo k]

noun, Slang.

1. an unimportant or stupid person; dope. ‘he was such a schnook’.

Origin of schnook

1945-1950, Americanism; of uncertain origin

Dictionary.com

no hocks
no shock

Today’s quote

Tolerance is giving to every other human being every right that you claim for yourself.

– Robert Green Ingersoll

On this day

11 June 1955 – during the 24 hour Le Mans race, a Mercedes 300 crashes at high speed. Debris, including the engine block, axles and bonnet, slams through the crowd killing 83 spectators. The bonnet decapitated a number of spectators who had been tightly packed into the stand. The driver was also killed.

11 June 1962 – Three prisoners escape from the federal prison on Alcatraz Island. The three men, Frank Morris, and brothers, Clarence and John Anglin were never found. Authorities believe it is most likely that the three men did not survive the swim across San Francisco Bay, although their bodies were never recovered.

11 June 2001 – Timothy McVeigh executed for his role in the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing, which killed 168 people, 19 of whom were children or babies.

10 June 2016

exposition

[ek-spuh-zish-uh n]

noun

1. a large-scale public exhibition or show, as of art or manufactured products:
an exposition of 19th-century paintings; an automobile exposition.
Synonyms: exhibit, demonstration, display, presentation.
2. the act of expounding, setting forth, or explaining:
the exposition of a point of view.
3. writing or speech primarily intended to convey information or to explain; a detailed statement or explanation; explanatory treatise:
The students prepared expositions on familiar essay topics.
Synonyms: elucidation, commentary; critique, interpretation, exegesis, explication.
4. the act of presenting to view; display:
The singer gave a splendid exposition of vocal talent.
5. exposure (def 12).
6. the state of being uncovered, revealed, or otherwise exposed; exposure.
7. Music. the first section of a fugue or a sonata form, in which the principal themes normally are introduced.

Origin of exposition

Middle English, Latin

1300-1350; Middle English exposicioun < Latin expositiōn- (stem of expositiō), equivalent to exposit (us) (see expose ) + -iōn- -ion

Related forms

expositional, adjective
preexposition, noun
reexposition, noun

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for exposition

Contemporary Examples

In 1876, a 23-year-old Swede named S.A. Andrée went to see the Centennial exposition in Philadelphia.
This Week’s Hot Reads: Feb. 7, 2012
Jimmy So
February 7, 2012

But also somebody who could handle a mouthful of exposition and make the words understandable and compelling.
Homeland’s Tracy Letts, Writer of ‘August: Osage County,’ Says Oscar Mania Is Frustrating
Jason Lynch
November 4, 2013

Eisner does prove himself adept at character development and exposition.
Michael Eisner on Media’s Future
Peter Lauria
September 8, 2010

Dialogue is most amazing and powerful in a movie when it is not forced to carry the burden of exposition.
How to Write Groundhog Day: 10 Rules for Screenwriters
Danny Rubin
October 19, 2012

All this shows the real problem when telling the story of geniuses: exposition.
Why Can’t Movies Capture Genius?
Clive Irving
December 13, 2014

Historical Examples

But Calhoun wrote an “exposition” of the constitutional doctrines in the case.
A Short History of the United States
Edward Channing

His exposition of them as a whole is certainly as clear as this in Matt.
The Seventh Day Sabbath, a Perpetual Sign
Joseph Bates

They were as distinct in their character as in their exposition of Scripture.
A Thousand Years of Jewish History
Maurice H. (Maurice Henry) Harris

The exposition was the most ambitious affair of the kind held so far.
A History of the Nineteenth Century, Year by Year
Edwin Emerson

In exposition he had the rare art of unfolding and aggrandizing.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 7, Slice 6
Various

Anagram

on to pixies

Today’s quote

No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of it to anyone else.

– Charles Dickens

On this day

10 June 323 BC – death of Alexander the Great, Macedonian King. He conquered the Persia Empire, which ruled Asia Minor, The Levant and Syria, Egypt, Assyria and Babylonia. He then invaded India before returning to Persia. He died in the palace of Nebuchadnezzar II in Babylon, most likely by poisoning. Born 20 July 356 BC.

10 June 1838 – Myall Creek Massacre in Australia. 28 aborigines are murdered by 11 stockmen (10 Europeans and an African). After two trials, seven of the 11 colonialists involved in the killings were found guilty of murder and hanged on 18 December 1838. The leader of the colonialists, John Fleming, was never found. He was suspected of further massacres in the Liverpool Plains and New England regions. His brother, Joseph, was linked to massacres in the Maranoa area of Queensland.

10 June 1916 – British Army officer, Lawrence of Arabia leads an Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire.

10 June 1935 – Alcoholics Anonymous founded by two recovering alcoholics, using a 12-step program to help alcoholics overcome their addiction.

10 June 1967 – end of the Six Day War, when Israel and the Arab coalition consisting of Egypt, Jordan & Syria, agree to a UN mediated cease-fire.

8 June 2016

plantain(1)

[plan-tin, -tn]

noun

1. a tropical plant, Musa paradisiaca, of the banana family, resembling the banana.
2. its fruit, eaten cooked as a staple food in tropical regions.

Origin of plantain(1)

Spanish, Latin, Medieval Latin
1545-1555; earlier pla (n) tan < Spanish plá (n) tano plantain, also plane tree < Medieval Latin pla (n) tanus, Latin platanus plane3

plantain(2)

[plan-tin, -tn]

Spell Syllables

noun

1. any plant of the genus Plantago, especially P. major, a weed with large, spreading leaves close to the ground and long, slender spikes of small flowers.

Origin

1350-1400; Middle English plauntein < Old French plantein < Latin plantāgin- (stem of plantāgō), derivative of planta sole of the foot, literally, something flat and spread out, like the broad leaf of the plantain; akin to Greek platýs flat1; see platy-

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for plantain

Contemporary Examples

It is a simple Puerto Rican cow’s milk cheese called queso de hoja and it is wrapped in a plantain leaf.
A Little Latin Flavor
Sarah Whitman-Salkin
October 20, 2009

Historical Examples

He sees the vision of hell, falls down on the ground like a plantain tree blown by a tempest, and faints.
Tales from the Hindu Dramatists
R. N. Dutta

Then one of the soldiers bade me eat my plantain ; and I thought I must do as I was bid.
The Hour and the Man
Harriet Martineau

Anagram

plain tan

Today’s quote

Life etches itself onto our faces as we grow older, showing our violence, excesses or kindnesses.

― Rembrandt Van Rijn

On this day

8 June 1921 – birth of Ivan Southall AM, DFC, Australian writer of young-adult fiction and non-fiction. Books include ‘Ash Road’, ‘Let the Balloon Go’, ‘Hill’s End’, ‘Fly West’ and ‘Josh. Died 15 November 2008.

8 June 1967 – During the Six Day War, Israel launched a naval and air assault on the USS Liberty as it sits in international waters near Egypt’s Gaza Strip. The attack left 34 US crewmen dead and injured 171 others. Israel claimed the attack was an accident, while some witnesses claimed it was deliberate.

7 June 2016

pinochle

[pee-nuhk-uh l, -nok-]

noun

1. a popular card game played by two, three, or four persons, with a 48-card deck.
2. a meld of the queen of spades and the jack of diamonds in this game.

Also, penuchle, penuckle, pinocle.

Origin of pinochle

Swiss German, Swiss French, French

1860-1865, Americanism; < Swiss German Binokel, Binoggel < Swiss French binocle literally, pince-nez (see binocle1), probably adopted as synonym of the less current French besicles spectacles, folk-etymological alteration of bezigue bezique

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for pinochle

Contemporary Examples

It’s a diversion, much like pinochle or gin rummy were in the days when there were only three TV channels.
Newt Gingrich Isn’t Doomed, Even After a Failed Presidential Campaign
Rich Galen
May 1, 2012

Historical Examples

After that, he divided his time between two saloons, where he played dominoes and pinochle, and his own house.
The Crevice
William John Burns and Isabel Ostrander

“Got change for a dollar, an’ I’ll settle that pinochle debt,” offered the sergeant.
The Drums Of Jeopardy
Harold MacGrath

Valmore and Freedom Smith went over to the livery barn for a game of pinochle.
Windy McPherson’s Son
Sherwood Anderson

It was like him to forget all about the herder and the promise of pinochle that night.
The Uphill Climb
B. M. Bower

Dirty trick to break up a pinochle game in weather like this.
Cue for Quiet
Thomas L. Sherred

The house was peaceful, that evening, and he enjoyed a game of pinochle with his wife.
Babbitt
Sinclair Lewis

And I am glad to point out also that the pinochle game is not necessarily broken up.
More Tish
Mary Roberts Rinehart

Euchre doesn’t seem the same without a barful of people, and pinochle is not the game that Stein is good at.
Cue for Quiet
Thomas L. Sherred

Auction bridge is played with cards, just like pinochle, with the exception of the beer.
You Should Worry Says John Henry
George V. Hobart

Anagram

nil epoch
chop line

Today’s quote

Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment.

– Mahatma Gandhi

On this day

7 June 1099 – the First Crusade: Siege of Jerusalem begins.

7 June 1893 – Mohandas Gandhi commits his first act of civil disobedience.

7 June 1929 – The Lateran Treaty is ratified by the Italian Parliament, allowing Vatican City to become an independent sovereign state.

7 June 1954 – death of Alan Turing, British mathematician and computer scientist. Turing is considered to be the father of computer science and artificial intelligence. He invented the ‘Turing machine’ which formulated the computer algorithm. It’s the forerunner for the modern computer. During World War 2, Turing was instrumental in cracking German messages encrypted by the Enigma machine. Sadly, Turing’s achievements were overshadowed by him being charged with gross indecency after admitting to being in a homosexual relationship. On 31 March 1952, following his guilty plea, he was chemically castrated. Two years later, on 7 June 1954,Turing took his own life with cyanide. On 10 September 2009, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown publicly apologised on behalf of the British Government for the ‘appalling way he was treated’. On 23 December 2013, Queen Elizabeth II issued a posthumous royal pardon, clearing Turing of the charge of gross indecency. Born 23 June 1912.

7 June 1975 – the inaugural World Cup cricket match is held in London.

7 June 2015 – death of Christopher Lee, CBE, English actor and singer. Lee starred in hammer horror movies, including Dracula (in which he played the title character), Dracula has risen from the grave, Taste the Blood of Dracula, and Scars of Dracula. Fearing that he would become type-cast in horror roles as had happened to Vincent Price and Peter Cushing, he went in search of other roles. Lee starred in the 1974 James Bond film, The Man with the Golden Gun. He played Saruman in Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit trilogies, and Count Dooku in two of the Star Wars prequel films, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith. Born 27 May 1922.