28 January 2018

swelter

[swel-ter]

verb (used without object)

1. to suffer from oppressive heat.
verb (used with object)
2. to oppress with heat.
3. Archaic. to exude, as venom.
noun
4. a sweltering condition.

Origin of swelter

late Middle English

1375-1425; late Middle English swelt(e)ren (v.), equivalent to swelt(en) to be overcome with heat ( Old English sweltan to die; cognate with Old Norse svelta, Gothic swiltan) + -eren -er6

Related forms

unsweltered, adjective

Examples from the Web for swelter

Contemporary Examples

There no longer is anywhere to hide from the swelter and welter of the American id.
Drug-Resistant Gonorrhea, the ‘Sex Superbug,’ Is Not Worse Than AIDS
Kent Sepkowitz
May 7, 2013

Historical Examples

The beat of the sun from above and the swelter of dust from below were overpowering.
The Great Boer War
Arthur Conan Doyle

The city, hot as an oven, seemed to swelter in the stifling night.
The Works of Guy de Maupassant, Vol. 6
Guy de Maupassant

“But in hot weather like this it must make you swelter,” continued Elmer.
Endurance Test
Alan Douglas

How far away now seems the welter and swelter of the city, the hectic sophistication of the streets.
Ballads of a Bohemian
Robert W. Service

The poor children have to swelter in knitted socks, knitted hoods, and knitted sweaters, just because they come from America.
The Spell of the Hawaiian Islands and the Philippines
Isabel Anderson

Then there is hot weather, perhaps up in the eighties, and Californians grumble, swelter and rustle for summer clothes.
Complete Story of the San Francisco Horror
Richard Linthicum

She knew as a child what it was to live amidst storms of babies, in the heat and swelter of fecundity.
The Rainbow
D. H. (David Herbert) Lawrence

How the crowded chickadee babies must swelter in their bed of fur and feathers tucked inside a close, stuffy hole!
Birds Every Child Should Know
Neltje Blanchan

He hadn’t much missed her in the swelter of the new passion, but after ten days passed he began to worry.
Painted Veils
James Huneker

Anagram

wrestle

Today’s quote

Talent perceives differences; genius, unity.

– William Butler Yeats

On this day

28 January 1853 – birth of José Julián Martí Pérez, (José Martí), Cuban national hero, nicknamed The Maestro. He was a poet, essayist, revolutionary philosopher. Fought for Cuba’s independence from Spain. Martí’s poetry is respected across the globe. One of his poems was adapted into the song, Guantanamera. Died 19 May 1895.

28 January 1968 – 4 hydrogen bombs are lost when the B-52 bomber that was carrying them, crashes near Thule, Greenland. The bombs are eventually located, but it took nine months to clear the area of radiation.

28 January 1939 – death 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‘. Born 13 June 1865.

28 January 1986 – the space shuttle, Challenger, explodes moments after lift-off, killing all seven astronauts on board, including Christa MacAuliffe, a teacher from New Hampshire, who was scheduled to deliver a lesson from outer-space as part of the ‘Teacher in Space’ project.

27 January 2018

cosmopolitan

[koz-muh-pol-i-tn]

adjective

1. free from local, provincial, or national ideas, prejudices, or attachments; at home all over the world.
2. of or characteristic of a cosmopolite.
3. belonging to all the world; not limited to just one part of the world.
4. Botany, Zoology. widely distributed over the globe.
noun
5. a person who is free from local, provincial, or national bias or attachment; citizen of the world; cosmopolite.
6. a cocktail made with vodka, cranberry juice, an orange-flavored liqueur, and lime juice.

Origin of cosmopolitan

1835-1845 First recorded in 1835-45; cosmopolite + -an

Related forms

cosmopolitanism, noun
cosmopolitanly, adverb
noncosmopolitan, adjective, noun
noncosmopolitanism, noun
uncosmopolitan, adjective

Synonyms

1. sophisticated, urbane, worldly.

Antonyms

1. provincial, parochial.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for cosmopolitan

Contemporary Examples

The Levant is already a far cry from the cosmopolitan melting pot it once was.
Beirut Letter: In Lebanon, Fighting ISIS With Culture and Satire
Kim Ghattas
September 22, 2014

Anagram

complains too
optical moons
monastic polo
moonlit capos

Today’s quote

Do you know the difference between education and experience? Education is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don’t.

– Pete Seeger

On this day

27 January – International Holocaust Memorial Day in remembrance of the 11 million victims of the Nazi holocaust before and during the Second World War. Victims included 6 million Jews (3 million of whom were Polish), 3 million Polish Christians, 2 million gypsies, and millions of others, including Africans, Asians, people with mental or physical disabilities, Communists, Socialist, Unionists, intellectuals, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Slavs, Freemasons, political activists and anyone else either opposed to Nazi ideology, or living in land Hitler wanted (particularly Poland) or who didn’t fit his idea of a perfect master race. The date was chosen because 27 January 1945 was the date that Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz-Birchenau, the largest of the Nazi death camps.

27 January 1756 – birthday of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer. Died 5 December 1791.

27 January 1926 – In London, John Logie Baird publicly demonstrates a revolutionary new invention, the television system.

27 January 1945 – The Soviet Army liberates survivors of the largest Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz in Poland, where it is estimated more than 1,000,000 Jews and tens of thousands of others were executed.

27 January 1967 – Outer Space Treaty was signed by 60 countries, including the USA and USSR, prohibiting the placement of weapons of mass destruction in space.

27 January 1973 – the Vietnam War formally ends with a treaty signed between the USA, North Vietnam and South Vietnam.

27 January 1984 – Michael Jackson’s hair catches on fire while he is singing ‘Billy Jean’ during filming of a Pepsi commercial.

27 January 2014 – death of Peter Seeger, American singer-songwriter, musician, activist. Born 3 May 1919.

26 January 2018

abeyance

[uh-bey-uh ns]

noun

1. temporary inactivity, cessation, or suspension:
Let’s hold that problem in abeyance for a while.
2. Law. a state or condition of real property in which title is not as yet vested in a known titleholder:
an estate in abeyance.

Origin of abeyance

Anglo-French, Old French
1520-1530; < Anglo-French; Old French abeance aspiration, literally, a gaping at or toward. See a-5, bay2, -ance

Synonyms

1. remission, deferral.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for abeyance

Contemporary Examples

The court will then hold the eleven felony allocutions in abeyance.
Inside the ‘PayPal 14’ Trial
Alexa O’Brien
December 6, 2013

Historical Examples

“The punishment lies in abeyance for the present,” explained Hamish.
The Channings
Mrs. Henry Wood

It would have been hard to bear had she not known what a triumph she held in abeyance.
A Singer from the Sea
Amelia Edith Huddleston Barr

Anagram

a cane bye

Today’s quote

When people didn’t feel guilt, they built empires. When they began to feel guilt, they lost them. Look at the British.

– Mario Reading, from The Nostradamus Prophecies

On this day

26 January 1788 – Australia Day – Having landed in Sydney Cove a few days earlier, Captain Arthur Phillip plants the British flag and declares possession of the land in the name of King George III of Britain.

26 January 1808 – The Rum Rebellion: Twenty years after establishing the colony of New South Wales, the only successful military coup in Australia’s history results in the New South Wales Corps deposing the Governor of NSW, William Bligh. For the following two years, the colony was under military rule, until the arrival of new Governor, Major-General Lachlan Macquarie. At the time, it was referred to as the Great Rebellion. The rebellion was over a disagreement between the government and private entrepreneurs regarding the future of the colony. The government wanted to keep it as an open prison with a primitive economy. Years later, an English Quaker named William Howitt, a tee-totaller, looking to blame the ills of the world on alcohol, claimed the rebellion was about Bligh threatening the profits made from the Army’s trading of spirits. He coined the term ‘Rum Rebellion’.

26 January 1939 – During the Spanish Civil War, Nationalist forces loyal to General Francisco Franco enter Barcelona, overthrowing the Republican forces headquartered there.

26 January 1945 – Soviet troops liberate 7,000 survivors of the Auschwitz network of concentration camps in Poland.

26 January 1950 – India becomes a republic, freed from British rule. The new President, Dr Rajenda Prasad had campaigned with Mahatma Gandhi for Indian self-rule. Jawaharlal Nehru becomes the country’s first Prime Minister on 10 February 1952.

26 January 1965 – Hindi becomes the official language of India.

26 January 1988 – Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Phantom of the Opera’ opens on Broadway for its first performance. The musical becomes a world-wide smash and is the longest running show on Broadway.

24 January 2018

obeisance

[oh-bey-suh ns, oh-bee-]

noun

1. a movement of the body expressing deep respect or deferential courtesy, as before a superior; a bow, curtsy, or other similar gesture.
2. deference or homage:
The nobles gave obeisance to the new king.

Origin of obeisance

Middle English, Old French, Middle French
1325-1375; Middle English obeisaunce < Middle French obeissance, derivative of Old French obeissant, present participle of obeir to obey; see -ance

Related forms

obeisant, adjective
obeisantly, adverb

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for obeisance

Historical Examples

Pani rose and made an obeisance, and brought forward a chair.
A Little Girl in Old Detroit
Amanda Minnie Douglas

Jacintha came in with the tonic in a glass, and retired with an obeisance.
White Lies
Charles Reade

To the Governor-General, however, the Sultan must do obeisance.
From Jungle to Java
Arthur Keyser

Taking the offered money, she made an obeisance, and withdrew.
Madeline Payne, the Detective’s Daughter
Lawrence L. Lynch

The sisters sang their hymn, made their obeisance, and departed.
Gryll Grange
Thomas Love Peacock

And when he made his obeisance to David, he inquired of him whence he came.
The Antiquities of the Jews
Flavius Josephus

As he spoke, he brought his wife before the King and she made an obeisance.
Operas Every Child Should Know
Mary Schell Hoke Bacon

Sweeping the cavaliers’ obeisance, gallantest of bows, they rode away.
The Amazing Marriage, Complete
George Meredith

The two stood before the throne and looked at Pharaoh, making no obeisance.
Moon of Israel
H. Rider Haggard

Your hostess will give her hand to you when you make your obeisance.
The Complete Bachelor
Walter Germain

Anagram

casino bee
a sonic bee
I be oceans
can Obi see

Today’s quote

Perhaps proof of how aleatory the concept of nationality is, lies in the fact that we must learn it before we can recognize it as such.

– Alberto Manguel

On this day

24 January 41AD – death of Caligula, also known as Gaius Caesar, 3rd Roman Emperor from 37 – 41AD. Died 24 January 41AD. First Roman Emperor to be assassinated following a conspiracy to restore the Roman Republic. While the plot to kill Caligula succeeds, the restoration of the Republic fails when the Praetorian Guard appoint Caligula’s uncle, Claudius, as Emperor.

24 January 1965 – death of U.K. Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill. Born 30 November 1874.

24 January 1974 – Cyclone Wanda makes land-fall at Maryborough, bringing the worst flooding to Queensland in decades, including the infamous Brisbane floods.

23 January 2018

revenant

[rev-uh-nuh nt]

noun

1. a person who returns.
2. a person who returns as a spirit after death; ghost.

Origin of revenant

1820-1830; < French: ghost, noun use of present participle of revenir to return, equivalent to re- re- + ven(ir) to come (< Latin venīre) + -ant -ant

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for revenant

Historical Examples

That is true, Monsieur; he has been often taken for a revenant.
The Room in the Dragon Volant
J. Sheridan LeFanu

It is by the strength of the revenant, by the return of his soul into his body?
The Phantom World
Augustin Calmet

You are now one of us; a revenant, even as I, and to live you must feed on the living.
Each Man Kills
Victoria Glad

Like that shadowy majesty of Denmark, our dramatic author was a ” revenant.”
Their Majesties’ Servants (Volume 3 of 3)
John Doran

But there is no doubt that the majority of us would prefer encountering a human rather than a four-footed ” revenant.”
Stranger Than Fiction
Mary L. Lewes

No one present, then no revenant or spook, or astral body, or hallucination: what’s in a name?
The Return
Walter de la Mare

“It might account for her seeing this revenant cavalier in any passenger,” said Lauzun, not satisfied yet.
A Reputed Changeling
Charlotte M. Yonge

Somehow, the idea of a revenant Beta curve didn’t make up for the basic loss.
Pagan Passions
Gordon Randall Garrett

Now, when she thought of him at all, it was as of some revenant of kindly countenance from a half-forgotten dream.
Linda Lee, Incorporated
Louis Joseph Vance

The Jena was a remarkably fine and fast vessel, and, as the revenant privateer, had formerly cruised long and very successfully.
The Life of Admiral Viscount Exmouth
Edward Osler

Anagram

near vent
raven ten
enter van

Today’s quote

When two elephants fight, only the grass is harmed.

– African proverb

On this day

23 January 1803 – death of Sir Arthur Guinness, Irish brewer and founder of the Guinness brewery. Born 24 September 1725.

23 January 1989 – death of Salvador Dali, Spanish surrealist painter. Born 11 May 1904.

22 January 2018

ichor

[ahy-kawr, ahy-ker]

noun

1. Classical Mythology. an ethereal fluid flowing in the veins of the gods.
2. Pathology. an acrid, watery discharge, as from an ulcer or wound.

Origin of ichor

Late Latin, Greek

1630-1640; < Late Latin īchōr (in medical sense) < Greek īchṓr

Related forms

ichorous [ahy-ker-uh s], adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for ichor

Historical Examples

When their ichor is up, they misbehave as we do when our blood is up, during the fury of war.
Homer and His Age
Andrew Lang

Then Talus said, ‘Who are you, strange maiden, and where is this ichor of youth?’
The Heroes
Charles Kingsley

The skin is red and fretted, discharging an ichor which hardens into crusts.
A Treatise on Sheep:
Ambrose Blacklock

Then Talus said, “Who are you, strange maiden; and where is this ichor of youth?”
Myths That Every Child Should Know
Various

Winifred was not discontented with her lot—the ichor of youth and good health flowed too strongly in her veins.
The Bartlett Mystery
Louis Tracy

This ichor intoxicated her and strengthened her at once, and she did not weary of drinking it.
The Marquis of Pealta (Marta y Mara)
Armando Palacio Valds

Then the mast elephant of the wind began to rush, showering drops of rain like drops of ichor, and rooting up trees.
The Kath Sarit Sgara
Somadeva Bhatta

So saying, she wiped the ichor from the wrist of her daughter with both hands, whereon the pain left her, and her hand was healed.
The Iliad
Homer

ichor, an ethereal fluid presumed to supply the place of blood in the veins of the Greek gods.
The Nuttall Encyclopaedia
Edited by Rev. James Wood

She spoke, and with her palms wiped off the ichor from her hand: the hand was healed, and the severe pains mitigated.
The Iliad of Homer (1873)
Homer

Anagram

choir

Today’s quote

For if the root of the poisoned vine is not pulled out and burned away, if the seeds are allowed to scatter, the plant will grow again.

– Simon Toyne (from The Boy Who Saw)

On this day

22 January 1973 – In the landmark ‘Roe v Wade’ case and decided simultaneously with ‘Doe v Bolton’, the United States Supreme Court rules that abortion is a Constitutional right because of the application of the due process clause of the 14th Amendment to a woman’s right to privacy, which includes the right to abortion. This was to be balanced with other state interests, namely the right to protect prenatal life and the protection of women’s health.

22 January 1930 – construction commences of the Empire State Building. It was completed 410 days later and was the world’s tallest building at that time.

21 January 2018

plew or plu

[ploo]

noun, Older Use (in Western U.S. and Canada) .

1. a beaver skin, especially one of prime quality.

Origin of plew

Canadian French

1790-1800; < Canadian French pelu; French: noun use of pelu haired, hairy (now obsolete or dial.); see poilu

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for plew

Historical Examples

The beaver-skins have fallen, according to their phraseology, to a ‘ plew a plug,’ and they find ‘red-skin’ pays better.
The Scalp Hunters
Mayne Reid

Them was the times when this child first went to the mountains: six dollars the plew —old’un or kitten!
In the Old West
George Frederick Ruxton

Them was the times when this child first went to the mountains: six dollars the plew —old ‘un or kitten.
Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 63, No. 392, June, 1848
Various

“Thar’s no money in beaver at a dollar a plew,” commented Hank, watching his partner out of the corner of his eye.
Bring Me His Ears
Clarence E. Mulford

Today’s quote

“The land doesn’t care who lives on it or what language they speak or whether they’re kind to each other or not. The notion that people can betray a country is an emotional conceit as abstract as the notion of “country” itself. “Country” exists only in the minds of men, the land itself is indifferent.’”

– Simone Toyne (from “The Boy Who Saw”)

On this day

21 January – Squirrel Appreciation Day.

21 January – National Hug Day.

21 January 1863 – State funeral held in Melbourne for Australian explorers, Burke and Wills, who had died in June or July of 1861. 40,000 spectators lined the streets for the funeral procession as it travelled to the Melbourne General Cemetery.

21 January 1924 – death of Vladimir Lenin, Russian communist revolutionary and political leader. He served as Russian leader from 1917 to 1924 and concurrently as Premier of the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1924. Born 22 April 1870.

21 January 1950 – death of George Orwell (born Eric Arthur Blair), Democratic Socialist and English author of works such as ‘Nineteen-Eighty Four‘, ‘Animal Farm‘, and ‘Homage to Catalonia‘. Born 25 June 1903.

21 January 1992 – death of Eddie Mabo. Campaigner for indigenous land rights in the Torres Strait. Successfully challenged the concept of ‘terra nullius‘, resulting in indigenous ownership of land in Australia to be recognised. Born 29 June 2014.

20 January 2018

carapace

[kar-uh-peys]

noun

1. a bony or chitinous shield, test, or shell covering some or all of the dorsal part of an animal, as of a turtle.

Origin of carapace Expand

French, Spanish
1830-1840; < French < Spanish carapacho, of obscure origin

Related forms

carapaced, adjective
carapacial [kar-uh-pey-shuh l] (Show IPA), adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for carapace

Contemporary Examples

I walked back to my desk, keeping the satisfaction locked tight within a carapace of steely unconcern, and took in the scene.
Wall Street Bonuses Tumble, But Bankers Have Nowhere to Go
Aaron Timms
March 2, 2012

It encases their loserdom in a carapace of purity and righteousness.
The GOP’s Leading Crank
Michael Tomasky
August 30, 2011

Ian McEwan: Well, I think one way… I think you have to develop a carapace of boringness.
Hanging Out with Ian McEwan: Full Transcript
The Daily Beast Video
April 14, 2010

Anagram

a pace car
a race cap

Today’s quote

Credibility is someone else’s idea of what I should be doing.

– Paul Stanley

On this day

20 January – Penguin Awareness Day.

20 January 1952 – birth of Stanley Harvey Esien, better known as Paul Stanley, singer and guitarist in glam rock band, Kiss.

20 January 1982 – It was the chomp heard around the world, when Ozzy Osbourne, The Prince of Darkness, bit the head off a bat while performing on stage in Des Moines, Iowa. A fan had thrown a bat on stage. Ozzy claims he thought it was rubber, but found out the hard way, that it was, in fact, a real bat. He was taken to hospital and given rabies shots. This follows on from an incident in 1981, when Ozzy bit the head off a dove after signing his first solo record deal … as you do … Word has it that Ozzy had planned to release a number of doves as a symbol of peace, but was drunk and felt one of the doves could do with a trim … which didn’t work out too well for the dove. There is no truth in the rumour that the Prince song, ‘When Doves Cry’ is about the incident.

18 January 2018

theophoric

[thee-OH-fawr-ik]

adjective: theophoric; adjective: theophorous
bearing the name of a god.

Example

And while “Israel” is evidently a theophoric name, the Biblical account of the name’s origin is hard to accept. For one thing, its description of how the name was conferred isn’t how theophoric names worked. According to the etymology based on the Biblical story, “isra” is a verb that describes Jacob’s relationship with the deity El. But the verb in theophoric names in the ancient Near East, and in ancient Israel in particular, should describe an attribute of the deity, not of the person. So, based on that rule, the verb isra probably described the god El in some way (who, 3,300 years ago, was not considered a sole god, but the head of the Canaanite pantheon). The problem is that it isn’t clear what that rare verb isra means, and various scholars and translators do not agree.
read more: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.652699

Anagram

cipher hoot
thrice hoop
cheroot hip
their pooch
to ochre hip

Today’s quote

For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.

– Audrey Hepburn

On this day

18 January 1977 – The Granville Rail Disaster, in which a crowded commuter train derailed and collided with an overpass that collapsed onto it, killing 83 people and injuring more than 210.

18 January 1779 – birth of Peter Roget, British lexographer and creator of Roget’s Thesaurus. Died 12 September 1869.

18 January 1904 – birth of Cary Grant, born Archibald Alexander Leach, actor (‘North by Northwest‘, ‘To Catch a Thief‘, ‘An Affair to Remember‘, ‘Gunga Din‘). Died 29 November 1986.

17 January 2018

incisive

[in-sahy-siv]

adjective

1. penetrating; cutting; biting; trenchant:
an incisive tone of voice.
2. remarkably clear and direct; sharp; keen; acute:
an incisive method of summarizing the issue.
3. adapted for cutting or piercing.
4. of or relating to the incisors :
the incisive teeth.

Origin of incisive

Medieval Latin

1520-1530 From the Medieval Latin word incīsīvus, dating back to 1520-30. See incise, -ive

Related forms

incisively, adverb
incisiveness, noun
unincisive, adjective
unincisively, adverb
unincisiveness, noun

Synonyms

1. acid, mordant; sarcastic, sardonic.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for incisive

Contemporary Examples

His correspondence, much of which survives, is that of an incisive and articulate observer.
Stonewall Jackson, VMI’s Most Embattled Professor
S. C. Gwynne
November 28, 2014

John Jenkins describes Miller as an “ incisive witness both to scientific acumen and religious belief.”
Meet the Prizewinning Catholic Biologist Creationists Can’t Stand
Karl W. Giberson
April 5, 2014

But unlike Bloom and Eagleton, his books have been, while erudite and incisive, unashamedly populist.
John Sutherland‘s Enjoyable Little History of Literature
Malcolm Forbes
November 28, 2013

Anagram

I vice sin

Today’s quote

Those who do not move, don’t notice their chains.

– Rosa Luxemburg

On this day

17 January 1899 – birth of Al Capone, who grew up to be one of America’s most famous gangsters. He died on 25 January 1947.

17 January 1942 – birthday of Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr), American professional boxer (former world heavy-weight champion), philanthropist, social activist.

17 January 1966 – the United States loses 4 H-bombs after the B-52 that was carrying them, collided with a KC-135 tanker during mid-air refuelling. The tanker exploded, killing all 4 crew, the B-52 broke apart, killing 3 of the 7 crew. Three of the hydrogen bombs were located on land near the Spanish town of Palomares. Two of the non-nuclear explosives in the weapons detonated, contaminating 2 km2 with plutonium. The fourth bomb was located 2.5 months later in the Mediterranean Sea.

17 January 1991 – Operation Desert Storm commences after Iraqi President Saddam Hussein refuses to comply with a US directive that he remove his forces from Kuwait. Hussein claimed that Kuwait was stealing Iraqi oil. 32 nations were involved in the Operation to remove Iraqi forces from Kuwait.

17 January 1927 – birth of Eartha Kitt, American singer and actress. She played Catwoman in the 1960’s Batman TV series. Two of her more famous songs were ‘C’est Si Bon’ and ‘Santa Baby’. She died on 25 December 2008.