December 2018 WOTDs
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31 December 2018
begum(1)
[bee-guh m, bey-]
noun
– (in India) a high-ranking Muslim woman, especially a widow.
Origin of begum(1)
1625–35; < Urdu begam ≪ Turkic begim, apparently a derivative of beg. See bey
begum(2)
[bih-guhm]
verb (used with object), be·gummed, be·gum·ming.
to smear, soil, clog, etc., with or as if with gum or a gummy substance.
Origin of begum2
be- + gum1
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for begum
Historical Examples
He had no right to try the Begums, nor did he pretend to try them.
Critical and Historical Essays, Volume III (of 3)
Thomas Babington Macaulay
What do you mean by the word rebellion, as applied to the Begums?
The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. XII. (of XII.)
Edmund Burke
Now they could not be sent by the Begums in their own person.
The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. XII. (of XII.)
Edmund Burke
Sheridan pleaded the cause of the Begums in what has been reckoned the finest speech ever heard in modern times.
Biographical Outlines
Anonymous
30 December 2018
ryot
[rahy-uh t]
noun (in India)
a peasant.
a person who holds land as a cultivator of the soil.
Origin of ryot
1615–25; Hindi raiyat; Persian; Arabic raʿīyah subjects, literally, flock
Dictionary.com
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for ryots
Historical Examples
Like the ryots and the agricultural labourers, they do not show the least sign of revolt.
The New World of Islam
Lothrop Stoddard
The farmers in Egypt irrigate in the same way as the ryots of India.
The Critic in the Orient
George Hamlin Fitch
Indian ryots are quite as receptive of new ideas as English farmers.
Tales of Bengal
S. B. Banerjea
Certain deductions have to be made—some ryots may be defaulters.
Sport and Work on the Nepaul Frontier
James Inglis
It is the business of all, from the ryots to the dewan, to conceal and deceive.
The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. XII. (of XII.)
Edmund Burke
29 December 2018
squirearchy
or squir·ar·chy
[skwahyuh r-ahr-kee]
noun, plural squire·ar·chies.
the collective body of squires or landed gentry of a country.
the social, economic, and political class formed by the landed gentry.
Origin of squirearchy
First recorded in 1795–1805; squire + -archy
Related forms
squire·ar·chal, squire·ar·chi·cal, adjective
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for squirearchy
Historical Examples
Not, indeed, that the squirearchy then present were at all disposed to regret Maitland’s absence.
Tony Butler
Charles James Lever
But the baronage or squirearchy of the country were of another mind.
The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 07
Various
But the Baronage or Squirearchy of the country were of another mind.
History Of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Vol. III. (of XXI.)
Thomas Carlyle
This lowly lad fought the forces of “Squirearchy and Hierarchy.”
The War After the War
Isaac Frederick Marcosson
Such was more or less the universal humor in the squirearchy of Brandenburg; not of good omen to Burggraf Friedrich.
The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 07
Various
28 December 2018
congeries
[kon-jeer-eez, kon-juh-reez]
noun (used with a singular or plural verb)
a collection of items or parts in one mass; assemblage; aggregation; heap:
From the airplane the town resembled a congeries of tiny boxes.
Origin of congeries
1610–20; < Latin: a heap, equivalent to conger- (stem of congerere to collect, heap up, equivalent to con- con- + gerere to bear, carry) + -iēs noun suffix; cf. rabies, series
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for congeries
Historical Examples
Tim and his congeries hate the clerics, but they fear the flagellum.
Ireland as It Is
Robert John Buckley (AKA R.J.B.)
Inside the congeries of glazed houses he was somewhat at sea.
The Market-Place
Harold Frederic
I cannot imagine such a congeries of blunders as a war for the Poles.
Cornelius O’Dowd Upon Men And Women And Other Things In General
Charles Lever
To speak Johnsonically it is a congeries of inexplicable nonsense.
The Mirror of Taste, and Dramatic Censor
Stephen Cullen Carpenter
A boarding-house is a congeries of people who have come down.
Marge Askinforit
Barry Pain
27 December 2018
confrère
Noun
A fellow member of a profession.
‘Pooley’s police confrères’
Origin
Mid 18th century: French, from medieval Latin confrater, from con- ‘together with’ + frater ‘brother’.
Pronunciation
confrère/ˈkɒnfrɛː/
Oxford Living Dictionary
26 December 2018
alexithymia
[ey-lek-suh-thahy-mee-uh]
noun Psychiatry.
– difficulty in experiencing, expressing, and describing emotional responses.
Origin of alexithymia
a-6 + Greek léxi(s) speech (see alexia) + -thymia
Dictionary.com
Anagram
a Amity helix
My Haiti axle
Hi Italy exam
Hail yeti max
Hey mail taxi
25 December 2018
dreadnought
noun
a battleship armed with heavy guns of uniform calibre
an overcoat made of heavy cloth
slang a heavyweight boxer
a person who fears nothing
Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for dreadnought
Dreadnought
n. “battleship,” literally “fearing nothing,” from dread (v.) + nought (n.). Mentioned as the name of a ship in the Royal Navy c.1596, but modern sense is from the name of the first of a new class of British battleships mainly armed with big guns of one caliber, launched Feb. 18, 1906.
Examples from the Web for dreadnought
Historical Examples
The aero-sub was motionless and submerged just off the port bow of the dreadnought.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science April 1930
Various
No, Sir, do as I bid you; just bring me the dreadnought and a round hat.’
The Uncollected Writings of Thomas de Quincey, Vol. 2
Thomas de Quincey
24 December 2018
scansion
[skan-shuh n]
noun Prosody.
the metrical analysis of verse. The usual marks for scansion are ˘ for a short or unaccented syllable, ¯ or · for a long or accented syllable, ^ for a rest, | for a foot division, and ‖ for a caesura or pause.
Origin of scansion
1645–55; Late Latin scānsiōn- (stem of scānsiō), Latin: a climbing, equivalent to scāns(us) (past participle of scandere to climb) + -iōn- -ion
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for scansion
Contemporary Examples
Words are shoehorned in without much regard for scansion, stress, or tone.
You Too Can Hear U2 Overthink Its New Song
Andrew Romano
November 22, 2013
Historical Examples
It is either hexameter or pentameter, according to the scansion?
Notes and Queries, Number 204, September 24, 1853
Various
I wanted to read it aloud to you and get in my practice on scansion that way.
Beatrice Leigh at College
Julia Augusta Schwartz
Morris inserts ben after rakel, to the ruin of the scansion.
Chaucer’s Works, Volume 2 (of 7)
Geoffrey Chaucer
It makes no difference, either to the sense or the scansion.
Chaucer’s Works, Volume 2 (of 7)
Geoffrey Chaucer
Altered to Sim-e-kin by Tyrwhitt, for the scansion; but cf. ll.
Chaucer’s Works, Volume 5 (of 7) — Notes to the Canterbury Tales
Geoffrey Chaucer
Anagram
ions cans
23 December 2018
gematria
[guh-mey-tree-uh]
noun
1. a cabbalistic system of interpretation of the Scriptures by substituting for a particular word another word whose letters give the same numerical sum.
Origin of gematria
Greek, Hebrew
1685-1695; < Hebrew gēmaṭriyā < Greek geōmetría geometry
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for gematria
Historical Examples
Yet, by the Kabbalistic rules of gematria and Temurah might they not be exhumed?
The Life and Letters of Lafcadio Hearn, Volume 1
Elizabeth Bisland
The word is a cabalistic cryptogram—an instance of gematria —for Babel.
The Expositor’s Bible: The Book of Daniel
F. W. Farrar
Machlah by gematria equals eighty-three; and all may be avoided by an early breakfast of bread and salt and a bottle of water.
Hebraic Literature; Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and Kabbala
Various
And let us now assume a point in dispute in order to illustrate how it is solved by gematria.
Hebraic Literature; Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and Kabbala
Various
You mentioned some works on the numerical Cabbala, the gematria (I think) they call it.
Letters of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Vol. II (of 2)
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Word Origin and History for gematria
n.
1680s, from Hebrew gematriya, from Greek geometria (see geometry ). “[E]xplanation of the sense of a word by substituting for it another word, so that the numerical value of the letters constituting either word is identical” [Klein].
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Anagram
agate rim
Get Maria
Tiara gem
image art
at mirage
22 December 2018
durbar
[dur-bahr]
noun (in India)
1. the court of a native ruler.
2. a public audience or levee held by a native prince or by a British governor or viceroy; an official reception.
3. the hall or place of audience.
4. the audience itself.
Origin of durbar
1600–10; alteration of Urdu darbār court < Persian, equivalent to dar door + bār entry
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for durbar
Contemporary Examples
In 1979 the Durbar Square of each city was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Nepal Old and New: Kathmandu Valley’s Royal Cities Get a Facelift
Condé Nast Traveler
August 19, 2013
Historical Examples
The durbar was continued day by day until every point had been discussed.
The Philippine Islands
John Foreman
At length the Nabob dismissed us, and we retired from the durbar.
Athelstane Ford
Allen Upward
If I had it I would have a durbar every day, instead of once or twice a year.
Following the Equator, Complete
Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
A state elephant at a Durbar gives one a very similar impression.
Reginald
Saki
The Durbar was one of the most striking and picturesque sights I have seen.
At the Court of the Amr
John Alfred Gray
Anagram
rad rub
21 December 2018
friable
[frahy-uh-buh l]
adjective
1. easily crumbled or reduced to powder; crumbly:
friable rock.
Origin of friable
Latin
1555-1565; < Latin friābilis, equivalent to friā(re) to rub, crumble + -ābilis -able
Related forms
friability, friableness, noun
unfriable, adjective
unfriableness, noun
Can be confused
friable, fryable.
Synonyms
fragile, frangible.
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for friable
Historical Examples
The same field, well drained, is friable and porous, and uniform in texture.
Farm drainage
Henry Flagg French
The muscles are friable and are covered with ecchymotic spots.
Special Report on Diseases of the Horse
United States Department of Agriculture
As they are now friable and porous, they require to be delicately handled.
A Dictionary of Arts, Manufactures and Mines
Andrew Ure
The bright colors are on the surface of the rock only, which is too friable to be preserved.
Wonders of the Yellowstone
James Richardson
The matter left in the pot will be blackish and friable when cold.
Elements of the Theory and Practice of Chymistry, 5th ed.
Pierre Joseph Macquer
Fruit large; flesh soft and friable, but juicy, pleasant and aromatic.
The Pears of New York
U. P. Hedrick
The paste varies from a friable clay to a hard, ringing stone-ware.
The Ceramic Art
Jennie J. Young
The rock through this whole district is of a soft, friable nature.
Letters from Palestine
J. D. Paxton
If clots are found at all, they are large, soft, and friable.
A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I
Various
Mellow, friable soils are not more important to any other crop than to flax.
Soil Culture
J. H. Walden
19 December 2018
snit
[snit]
noun
1. an agitated or irritated state.
Origin of snit
1935-1940 First recorded in 1935-40; origin uncertain
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for snit
Contemporary Examples
When I lost, I drove off in a 1937 snit, refusing to concede to Perry.
Kinky for Perry
Kinky Friedman
August 24, 2011
18 December 2018
ad valorem
[ad vuh-lawr-uh m, -lohr-]
adjective, adverb
– in proportion to the value (used especially of duties on imports that are fixed at a percentage of the value as stated on the invoice).
Origin of ad valorem
Latin: literally, according to the worth
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for ad valorem
Historical Examples
This method is sometimes called the rational or ad valorem method.
The Economic Aspect of Geology
C. K. Leith
I trust the tariff of Heaven has an ad valorem scale for them—and all of us.
The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table
Oliver Wendell Holmes
There is an ad valorem duty of 8% on imports and of about 1% on exports.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 1
Various
Ad valorem is a Latin phrase, signifying according to the value.
The Government Class Book
Andrew W. Young
Down to the year 1834 the duty was an ad valorem one of 96 per cent.
The Commercial Products of the Vegetable Kingdom
P. L. Simmonds
17 December 2018
umami
[oo-mah-mee]
noun
a strong meaty taste imparted by glutamate and certain other amino acids: often considered to be one of the basic taste sensations along with sweet, sour, bitter, and salty.
Origin of umami
1975–80; < Japanese: savory quality, delicious taste
Dictionary.com
Contemporary Examples
This unsmoked, wet-cured ham is the sine qua non of Parisian butcher shops: a light, ephemeral meat, sweet but umami.
Easter’s Top Five Hams
Mark Scarbrough
March 30, 2010
If “umami” was recently accepted into the lexicon…maybe “tomato-ey” isn’t that far behind.
The Only Food That Matters
Katie Workman
August 18, 2009
