23 September 2017

corybantic

[kawr-uh-ban-tik, kor-]

adjective

1. frenzied; agitated; unrestrained.
2. (initial capital letter). Also, Corybantian [kawr-uh-ban-shuh n, kor-] (Show IPA), Corybantine [kawr-uh-ban-tin, -tahyn, kor-]. of or relating to a Corybant.

Origin of corybantic

1635-1645 First recorded in 1635-45; Corybant + -ic

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for corybantic

Historical Examples

He laid the corybantic young lady in question upon the table to substantiate his statement.
A Safety Match
Ian Hay

But the machinery—the hideously discordant human orchestra, the corybantic dancing!
Visionaries
James Huneker

Anagram

botanic cry
abort cynic
by narcotic
cry it bacon
try coca bin

Today’s quote

Youth is the period in which a man can be hopeless. The end of every episode is the end of the world. But the power of hoping through everything, the knowledge that the soul survives its adventures, that great inspiration comes to the middle-aged.

– Gilbert K. Chesterton

On this day

23 September 63BC – birth of Augustus Caesar, founder of the Roman Empire and first Roman Emperor. Died 19 August 14 AD.

23 September 1122 – The Concordat of Worms, sometimes known as Pactum Calixtinum, which was an agreement between Pope Calixtinum and Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, near the City of Worms, to end the first phase of the power struggle between the Papacy and the Emperors by granting Kings the right to grant Bishops in their territories with secular authority, but not sacred authority. Bishops then swore allegiance to the King and the Pope. The Kings could also call on them for military support.

23 September 1215 – birth of Kublai Khan, of the Mongol Empire. He was the grandson of Genghis Khan. In 1271, Kublai Khan established the Yuan Empire ruling over modern-day Mongolia, China and Korea. He became the first non-Chinese Emperor to conquer all of China. Died 18 February 1294.

23 September 1913 – French aviator Roland Garros, becomes the first person to fly across the Mediterranean Sea.

23 September 1918 – Birth of Faith Bandler. Australian civil rights activist. Her father was from Vanuatu. Her mother of Scottish-Indian descent. Campaigned for the rights of indigenous Australians and South Sea Islanders. She was a leader in the 1967 referendum on aboriginal Australians. She was involved with the Aboriginal–Australian Fellowship and the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders (FCAATSI). She was awarded a Member of the Order of Australia in 1984 and Companion of the Order of Australia in 2009. Died 12 February 2015.

23 September 1949 – birth of Bruce Springsteen (a.k.a. The Boss), American rocker.

22 September 2017

gimcrack

[jim-krak]

noun

1. a showy, useless trifle; gewgaw.
adjective
2. showy but useless.

Origin of gimcrack

Middle English Old French

1325-1375 for earlier sense; Middle English gib(e)crake; compare Middle English gibben to waver (< Old French giber to shake)

Synonyms

1. bauble, knickknack, trinket, ornament.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for gimcrack

Historical Examples

I will buy her the necklace she scolded me about at Lacy and gimcrack ‘s; it’s just the sum.
The International Magazine, Volume 2, No. 2, January, 1851
Various

A nice set you must be to give your gimcrack craft such a name as that!
Fitz the Filibuster
George Manville Fenn

The Gothic souls find fault with it, and say it is gimcrack and tawdry and cheap.
Aaron’s Rod
D. H. Lawrence

Anagram

mag crick

Today’s quote

Peace begins with a smile.

– Mother Teresa

On this day

22 September 1913 – execution by hanging of Ernest Austin at Boggo Road Gaol. Austin was the last man to be legally executed in Queensland. He had been convicted of the rape and murder of 12 year old Ivy Mitchell at Cedar Creek Road near Samford. Austin is buried in South Brisbane Cemetry. It is said that his ghost haunts Boggo Road Gaol. Queensland abolished the death penalty in 1922, becoming the first Australian state to do so.

22 September 1957 – birth of Nick Cave in Warracknabeal, Victoria (Australia). Australian gothic/alternative musician. Frontman of ‘The Birthday Party’ and ‘Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’, also having a successful solo career. In 2006, he formed ‘Grinderman’, an alternative rock band which disbanded in 2011.

22 September 2890 – birth of Bilbo Baggins, Hobbit, born in the Shire. Star of the iconic novel, ‘The Hobbit‘, by J.R.R. Tolkien. Bilbo also features in Tolkien’s ‘The Lord of the Rings‘. Note, his birthday is in the year 2890 in the Third Age or in the year 1290 in Shire-Reckoning). There is some disparity between Shire-Reckoning and the Gregorian calendar. Some believe that 12 September is the comparative Gregorian date, others believe 14 September is the Gregorian date to celebrate Bilbo’s birthday, as explained in one of the appendices to Lord of the Rings.

22 September 2968 – birth of Frodo Baggins, Hobbit, born in the shire. Nephew of legendary hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, with whom he shares his birthday. Star of J.R.R. Tolkien’s ‘Lord of the Rings‘. His birthday is in the year 2968 in the Third Age, or in the year 1368 in Shire-Reckoning). As Bilbo celebrated his eleventy-first (111th) birthday, Frodo was celebrating his 33rd birthday, which is the age at which a hobbit legally comes of age.

19 September 2017

forswear

[fawr-swair]

verb (used with object), forswore, forsworn, forswearing.

1. to reject or renounce under oath:
to forswear an injurious habit.
2. to deny vehemently or under oath.
3. to perjure (oneself).
verb (used without object), forswore, forsworn, forswearing.
4. to swear falsely; commit perjury.

Origin of forswear

Middle English, Old English
900 before 900; Middle English forsweren, Old English forswerian. See for-, swear

Related forms

forswearer, noun

Synonyms

1. abjure, relinquish, forgo, forsake, abandon.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for forswear

Contemporary Examples

You do not forswear studying by electric light because Lincoln relied on his fireplace.
Randy Cohen’s Three Favorite Ethicist Columns
Randy Cohen
October 8, 2012

Historical Examples

The old girl must be protected from that sort of eye-opener, if I’ve to forswear my soul.
Romance
Joseph Conrad and F.M. Hueffer

He would not forswear his fathers’ faith and did not understand what the priest said.
From Pole to Pole
Sven Anders Hedin

“Then I forswear all rash promises for the future,” he declared.
That Girl Montana
Marah Ellis Ryan

All the world seemed bent on compelling her to forswear herself.
The Madigans
Miriam Michelson

What is the secret of thy ring that a man must forswear love for it?
Operas Every Child Should Know
Mary Schell Hoke Bacon

The Tunker says that I must forswear myself to become a Christian.
In The Boyhood of Lincoln
Hezekiah Butterworth

But what right had he to defend from gallantry the woman he was about to forswear before the world?
Excuse Me!
Rupert Hughes

If you would belong to me, forswear all of which this is the emblem.
The Pastor’s Fire-side Vol. 4 (of 4)
Jane Porter

I abhor myself, and from this hour, I forswear all woman-kind for your sake.
Self-control
Mary Brunton

Anagram

fear rows
safer row
few roars

Today’s quote

Fairness is not about statistical equality.

– John Bercow

On this day

19 September – International Talk Like a Pirate Day.

19 September 1952 – Charlie Chaplin exiled from the United States because of his anti-war and humanitarian beliefs which conflicted with McCarthy’s ‘reds under the bed’ policy.

19 September 1959 – USSR President Nikita Khrushchev banned from visiting Disneyland … ironically 31 years after Mickey Mouse debuted on screen. The reason given was that the Los Angeles Police Chief couldn’t provide adequate security.

19 September 1982 – birth of the emoticon. At 11.44am on this day, a computer scientist by the name of Scott Fahlman suggested on a bulletin board forum that the now iconic 🙂 be used to indicate a post was ‘not serious’. It has now come to also mean happy, as well as not serious for when people post comments, emails etc … or when they think a smiley will help ease a flame …

19 September 2003 – death 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). Born 13 June 1927.

18 September 2017

fillip

[fil-uh p]

verb (used with object)

1. to strike with the nail of a finger snapped from the end of the thumb.
2. to tap or strike smartly.
3. to drive by or as by a fillip:
Anticipation filliped his passion.
verb (used without object)
4. to make a fillip with the fingers.
noun
5. an act or instance of filliping; a smart tap or stroke.
6. anything that tends to rouse, excite, or revive; a stimulus:
Praise is an excellent fillip for waning ambition.

Origin of fillip

late Middle English

1425-1475; late Middle English philippe to make a signal or sound with thumb and right forefinger; expressive word of uncertain orig; cf. flip1

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for fillip

Historical Examples

And doubtless some break in the monotony gives a fillip of pleasure.
Hiero
Xenophon

It was just a fillip to my enjoyment, as I looked on and off my page alternately.
Daisy
Elizabeth Wetherell

He has given a fillip to existence, loath as I am to acknowledge it.
The Prairie Mother
Arthur Stringer

Corrupting a Legislature is not something a man may do with a fillip of his finger and thumb.
Frenzied Finance
Thomas W. Lawson

She knew that it wanted but this fillip to carry her through.
The Merry-Go-Round
Carl Van Vechten

Eat, drink, play; all other human joys are not worth a fillip.’
The Works of Lord Byron
Lord Byron

And the baron with a fillip of the finger made this toy whirl round.
Original Short Stories, Volume 10 (of 13)
Guy de Maupassant

The common parent was given a fillip of a contemptuous thumb and finger.
A Man of Two Countries
Alice Harriman

Vaucorbeil watched him, then, with a fillip, knocked off his cap.
Bouvard and Pcuchet
Gustave Flaubert

A fillip to the wheel of her fate was given as she and Ellis went up the hill.
The Barrier
Allen French

Anagram

if pill
fill pi

Today’s quote

I have this one little saying, when things get too heavy just call me helium, the lightest known gas to man.

– Jimi Hendrix

On this day

18 September 1873 – ‘The panic of 1873’ – a severe economic crisis in Europe and the United States caused by a drop in demand for silver following Germany’s decision to abandon the silver standard after the Franco-Prussian Wars. ‘The Panic’ lasted until 1879. It was known as the ‘Great Depression’, until the financial crisis of the 1930s.

18 September 1965 – ‘Get Smart’ premieres on U.S. television.

18 September 1970 – death of Jimi Hendrix. American guitarist and singer-songwriter. He was 27. Born 27 November 1942

17 September 2017

esoteric

[es-uh-ter-ik]

adjective

1. understood by or meant for only the select few who have special knowledge or interest; recondite:
poetry full of esoteric allusions.
2. belonging to the select few.
3. private; secret; confidential.
4. (of a philosophical doctrine or the like) intended to be revealed only to the initiates of a group:
the esoteric doctrines of Pythagoras.

Origin of esoteric

Greek

1645-1655; < Greek esōterikós inner, equivalent to esṓter(os) inner + -ikos -ic

Related forms

esoterically, adverb
nonesoteric, adjective
nonesoterically, adverb
unesoteric, adjective

Can be confused

esoteric, exoteric.

Synonyms

1. abstruse, arcane, cryptic, enigmatic.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for esoteric

Contemporary Examples

There is a pill in Tibetan Buddhism that contains a lot of esoteric ingredients, some of which are bodily substances.
How to Think With Your Gut
Mindy Farabee
April 8, 2013

He noted that some esoteric historians call them “Palestinians.”
Moshe Feiglin Is Now Mainstream
Gabriel Fisher
December 6, 2012

Suddenly you can hold forth about leading and kerning and other esoteric aspects of typesetting.
Instagram App Deepens Class Warfare Between Apple and Android Smartphones
Dan Lyons
April 5, 2012

In the old days it was not uncommon for the admissions officer to pose some esoteric —make that wacko—question.
Do College Interviews Count?
Steve Cohen, Mike Muska
October 5, 2011

Dig deeper into exotic and esoteric areas of interest for direction in creative pursuits, especially.
Zodiac Beast
Starsky + Cox
April 8, 2011

Historical Examples

He was again conscious of that esoteric disturbance in his temples.
The Black Bag
Louis Joseph Vance

The design of this cave-like aperture should betray its esoteric meaning.
Sex=The Unknown Quantity
Ali Nomad

There might be an esoteric book for the individual’s own account of himself.
The Task of Social Hygiene
Havelock Ellis

A key to some great and deep occult teachings, and esoteric mysteries.
The Human Aura
Swami Panchadasi

Instruct him in the meaning of the Vedas,Reveal to him their esoteric sense.V.
The Buddha
Paul Carus

Anagram

so recite
cite rose
eco tiers
core site

Today’s quote

I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day.

– Vincent Van Gogh

On this day

17 September 1916 – Baron Manfred Von Richthofen (a.k.a The Red Baron), wins his first aerial combat in World War I.

17 September 1947 – the United State Department of Defense forms and is tasked with coordinating all defense related organisations in the U.S. The DoD is the largest employer in the world, with over 3.2 million employees, including active soldiers, sailors, airmen/women, and National Guard.

17 September 1951 – birth of Cassandra Peterson a.k.a Elvira, U.S. actress and host of late-night B-grade horror and sci-fi movies.

17 September 1961 – birth of Baz Luhrmann, Australian film director (Romeo and Juliet, Strictly Ballroom, Moulin Rouge).

17 September 1966 – St George Dragons beat Balmain Tigers 23-4, to win the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) grand final for the 11th consecutive year. The longest premiership-winning streak in Australian sport.

17 September 1972 – M*A*S*H* premieres on NBC-TV.

17 September 1991 – first version of Linux released.

15 September 2017

epicure

[ep-i-kyoo r]

noun

1. a person who cultivates a refined taste, especially in food and wine; connoisseur.
2. Archaic. a person dedicated to sensual enjoyment.

Origin of epicure

Middle English, Latin

1350-1400 for earlier sense; 1555-65 for def 2; Middle English Epicures, Epicureis Epicureans (plural) < Latin Epicūrēus (singular) (see epicurean )

Synonyms

1. gastronome, gourmet, epicurean. 2. voluptuary, sensualist, gourmand.

Antonyms

1. ascetic.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for epicure

Historical Examples

It was introduced into England as an epicure ‘s dish in the seventeenth century.
De Libris: Prose and Verse
Austin Dobson

Kingozi’s methods of eating had in them little of the epicure.
The Leopard Woman
Stewart Edward White

Across the top of its door were painted in gold letters, the words: “The epicure.”
The Einstein See-Saw
Miles John Breuer

I was always an epicure in the matter of love, and knew the best when I found it.
The Golden Fountain
Lilian Staveley

These are quite an epicure ‘s dish, and care must be taken to cook them slowly.
Nelson’s Home Comforts
Mary Hooper

Certainly, he mused to himself, his brother was an epicure in love.
The Mask
Arthur Hornblow

Your book, “The epicure of Medicine,” is worth its weight in gold.
Food for the Traveler
Dora Cathrine Cristine Liebel Roper

We are told by Chaucer that he was a great householder and an epicure.
The Canterbury Puzzles
Henry Ernest Dudeney

The oyster is now a dish for the epicure and the lobster for the millionaire.
The Old Coast Road
Agnes Rothery

He spoke in French, fluent and exact, and his manner was entirely that of the epicure.
Hushed Up
William Le Queux

Anagram

pure ice
pie cure
ice peru

Today’s quote

We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.

– T. S. Eliot

On this day

15 September – International Day of Democracy.

15 September 1254 – birth of Marco Polo, Italian explorer. Died 9 January 1324.

14 September 2017

undine

[uhn-deen, uhn-deen]

noun

1. any of a group of female water spirits described by Paracelsus.

Origin of undine

New Latin undīna (1658; coined by Paracelsus), equivalent to Latin und(a) wave, water + -īna -ine1

Synonyms

See sylph.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for undine

Historical Examples

“She’s like undine after she had found her soul,” said the Englishman.
The Eternal City
Hall Caine

You remind me just now of pictures I have seen of undine and the woodland nymphs.
Pretty Madcap Dorothy
Laura Jean Libbey

Urquhart called her undine, and she was mostly known as the Mermaid.
Love and Lucy
Maurice Henry Hewlett

I will sell it, fair undine, and you shall have the proceeds.
The Memoires of Casanova, Complete
Jacques Casanova de Seingalt

Then there is undine, but she only appears on the operatic stage, and that but rarely.
From a Terrace in Prague
Lieut.-Col. B. Granville Baker

I didn’t make much success of waking my undine ‘s soul to life!
The Making of a Soul
Kathlyn Rhodes

Anagram

in dune

Today’s quote

Ethics and equity and the principles of justice do not change with the calendar.

– D. H. Lawrence

On this day

14 September 1752 – the British Empire commences using the Gregorian calendar instead of the Julian calendar. To balance the calendar, the 10 days from 3 September to 13 September are written off. This is because the Gregorian claimed the annual cycle was 365.2425 days. The Julian calendar averaged out at 365.25 days per year, but used 365 days each year with an extra day every four years to allow for the rounded down amount.

14 September 1812 – Fire of Moscow – French troops under the command of Napoleon defeat Russian troops in the Battle of Borodino and invade Moscow. Count Fyodor Rostopchin orders Russian citizens to destroy the Kremlin and other major buildings as they retreat. The fires burn for 4 days and destroy around 75% of Moscow.

14 September 1983 – birthday of Amy Winehouse. English singer-songwriter. Died 23 July 2011.