27 May 2017

dilatory

[dil-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee]

adjective

1. tending to delay or procrastinate; slow; tardy.
2. intended to cause delay, gain time, or defer decision:

Origin of dilatory

Latin, Middle English, Anglo-French

1250-1300; Middle English (Anglo-French); Latin dīlātōrius, equivalent to dīlā-, suppletive stem of differre to postpone (see differ ) + -tōrius -tory1

Related forms

dilatorily, adverb
dilatoriness, noun
undilatorily, adverb
undilatory, adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for dilatory

Contemporary Examples

Decision making is slow, acquisition processes are dilatory, and maintenance of the equipment bought is poor.
India’s Tryst with Terror
Kanwal Sibal
September 8, 2011

Historical Examples

His dilatory action seemed to increase the young woman’s panic.
A Rock in the Baltic
Robert Barr

He had been dilatory but now he intended to get down to business.
The Lady Doc
Caroline Lockhart

The want of proper arrangement and sufficient hands made this a most dilatory and tedious operation.
Lands of the Slave and the Free
Henry A. Murray

I had received more than a dilatory donkey on the road to the fair!
The Strand Magazine, Volume V, Issue 28, April 1893
Various

He had never been quite satisfied with Lincoln, whose policy seemed to him too dilatory.
McClure’s Magazine, Vol 31, No 2, June 1908
Various

They were as slow and dilatory as the others were eager and persistent.
Historic Tales, vol 10 (of 15)
Charles Morris

The King wished to regain Paris by negotiation; all his movements were dilatory.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume VII
John Lord

Spring is the most dilatory and provoking of all the seasons at Halifax.
Bert Lloyd’s Boyhood
J. McDonald Oxley

He was temporizing, making, with unconscious prudence, a dilatory opposition to an impending catastrophe.
The Collected Works of Ambrose Bierce, Vol. II: In the Midst of Life: Tales of Soldiers and Civilians
Ambrose Bierce

Anagram

idolatry
dial troy
oily dart

Today’s quote

There are no strangers here; Only friends you haven’t yet met.

– William Butler Yeats

On this day

27 May – 3 June – National Reconciliation Week, which is celebrated in Australia every year on these dates. The dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey — the anniversaries of the successful 1967 referendum (27 May) and the High Court Mabo decision (3 June 1992). The 1967 referendum saw over 90 per cent of Australians vote to give the Commonwealth the power to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and recognise them in the national census. On 3 June, 1992, the High Court of Australia delivered its landmark Mabo decision which legally recognised that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have a special relationship to the land—that existed prior to colonalisation and still exists today. This recognition paved the way for land rights called Native Title. 2012 marked the 20th anniversary of the Mabo decision. http://www.reconciliation.org.au/nrw

27 May 1703 – Tsar Peter the Great founds the Russian city of St Petersburg.

27 May 1907 – bubonic plague breaks out in San Francisco.

27 May 1911 – birth of Vincent Price, American actor, starred in a number of horror films, including House of Wax, House of Usher and The Raven. He also acted in the 1960s television series Batman, in which he played the evil mastermind, Egghead; a master criminal with a fixation on eggs. Price provided a voice-over on Alice Cooper’s 1975 album Welcome to My Nightmare. In 1976, Price recorded a cover version of Bobby Pickett song, Monster Mash. Died 25 October 1993.

27 May 1922 – birth 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. Died 7 June 2015.

26 May 2017

Pareidolia

(/pærᵻˈdoʊliə/ parr-i-doh-lee-ə)

noun

– a psychological phenomenon in which the mind responds to a stimulus (an image or a sound) by perceiving a familiar pattern where none exists.

Common examples are perceived images of animals, faces, or objects in cloud formations, the man in the moon, the moon rabbit, hidden messages within recorded music played in reverse or at higher- or lower-than-normal speeds, and hearing indistinct voices in random noise such as that produced by air conditioners or fans.

Anagram

A Diaper Oil
I laid opera
oil paid era
a radio pile

Today’s quote

Friendship is the shadow of the evening, which increases with the setting sun of life.

– Jean de La Fontaine

On this day

26 May – National Sorry Day. Since 1998, National Sorry Day occurs on 26 May every year to commemorate the maltreatment of Australia’s indigenous population.

26 May 1890 – Bram Stoker’s novel, Dracula, is released in England.

26 May 1913 – birth of Peter Cushing OBE, English actor who mostly appeared in Hammer Horror films, including The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula (in which he played vampire hunter, Van Helsing). Died 11 August 1994.

26 May 2012 – death of Festus, our beloved and most awesome budgie.

25 May 2017

fulsome

[foo l-suh m, fuhl-]

adjective

1. offensive to good taste, especially as being excessive; overdone or gross:
fulsome praise that embarrassed her deeply; fulsome décor.
2. disgusting; sickening; repulsive:
a table heaped with fulsome mounds of greasy foods.
3. excessively or insincerely lavish:
fulsome admiration.
4. encompassing all aspects; comprehensive:
a fulsome survey of the political situation in Central America.
5. abundant or copious.

Origin of fulsome

Middle English

1200-1250, First recorded in 1200-50, fulsome is from the Middle English word fulsom. See full1, -some1

Related forms

fulsomely, adverb
fulsomeness, noun
unfulsome, adjective

Can be confused

full, fullness, fulsome.
fulsome, noisome (see usage note at the current entry)

Usage note

In the 13th century when it was first used, fulsome meant simply “abundant or copious.” It later developed additional senses of “offensive, gross” and “disgusting, sickening,” probably by association with foul, and still later a sense of excessiveness: a fulsome disease; a fulsome meal, replete with too much of everything.For some centuries fulsome was used exclusively, or nearly so, with these unfavorable meanings.
Today, both fulsome and fulsomely are also used in senses closer to the original one: The sparse language of the new Prayer Book contrasts with the fulsome language of Cranmer’s Book of Common Prayer. Later they discussed the topic more fulsomely.These uses are often criticized on the grounds that fulsome must always retain its connotations of “excessive” or “offensive.” The common phrase fulsome praise is thus sometimes ambiguous in modern use.

Dictionary.com

Anagram

sumo elf
some flu

Today’s quote

The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at and repair.

– Douglas Adams

On this day

25 May – Towel Day. A tribute to Douglas Adams, author of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, which states that a towel is ‘about the most massively useful thing that an interstellar hitchhiker can have‘. First held in 2001, two weeks after the death of Adams. Fans carry a towel with them on this day in appreciation of Adams and his work.

25 May 1999 – Bill Morgan, who had been resuscitated after spending 14 minutes clinically dead following a heart-attack, wins a $27,000 car from a Tatts Scratch lotto ticket. During a reenactment of the event for a Melbourne TV station, Bill won $250,000 from a Scratch-It ticket. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBYuxQBSc0o

24 May 2017

journeyman

[jur-nee-muh n]

noun, plural journeymen.

1. a person who has served an apprenticeship at a trade or handicraft and is certified to work at it assisting or under another person.
2. any experienced, competent but routine worker or performer.
3. a person hired to do work for another, usually for a day at a time.

Origin of journeyman

late Middle English

1425-1475 late Middle English journeman, equivalent to journee a day’s work (see journey ) + man man1

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for journeyman

Contemporary Examples

And journeyman Swedish golfer Johan Edfors, who attended the University of Texas San Antonio, is really no match here.
March Madness: Which Celebrity Alumni Will Win?
Michael Solomon
March 16, 2011

He’ll be played by Grahame Fox, a journeyman Welsh actor who’s appeared on the U.K. soap EastEnders and the TV series Casualty.
Meet Game of Thrones’ Sexy New Season 4 Cast: The Red Viper, Porn Stars, and More
Marlow Stern
April 3, 2014

To play the character, showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss cast Pedro Pascal, a journeyman Chilean-American actor.
Meet the Red Viper: Pedro Pascal on Game of Thrones’ Kinky, Bisexual Hellraiser
Marlow Stern
March 25, 2014

“I was a journeyman chef of middling abilities,” Bourdain admits.
America’s Bad Boy Chef
Jacob Bernstein
June 12, 2010

journeyman players whose only skill is total disregard for their bodies become legends, albeit short-term ones.
Buzz Bissinger on the NFL’s No Good, Very Bad Season
Buzz Bissinger
January 1, 2013

Historical Examples

At first he had no journeyman or apprentice, and he cut the tree for his own timber.
The Catholic World; Volume I, Issues 1-6
E. Rameur

To-morrow—that is to say, when I am a journeyman—I will go my own way.
The Sand-Hills of Jutland
Hans Christian Andersen

I will not allow myself to be used by these lords of the earth as a journeyman, to whom the masters assign work for scanty pay.
Louisa Of Prussia and Her Times
Louise Muhlbach

He came to the neighbourhood of Kingston first, and worked as a journeyman.
The Log House by the Lake
William H. G. Kingston

There can be no becoming friendship between the future Lady Lovel and a journeyman tailor.
Lady Anna
Anthony Trollope

Anagram

Jenny amour
A jurymen no
run joy amen

Today’s quote

It is the artist who realizes that there is a supreme force above him and works gladly away as a small apprentice under God’s heaven.

– Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

On this day

24 May 1930 – Amy Johnson, flying a Gypsy Moth, lands in Darwin. She is the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia.

24 May 2012 – Tens of thousands of Norwegian public servants go on strike demanding pay rises and improvements in working conditions. It is the first such strike in Norway since 1984.

23 May 2017

heuristic

[hyoo-ris-tik or, often, yoo-]

adjective

1. serving to indicate or point out; stimulating interest as a means of furthering investigation.
2. encouraging a person to learn, discover, understand, or solve problems on his or her own, as by experimenting, evaluating possible answers or solutions, or by trial and error:
a heuristic teaching method.
3.of, relating to, or based on experimentation, evaluation, or trial-and-error methods.
4. Computers, Mathematics. pertaining to a trial-and-error method of problem solving used when an algorithmic approach is impractical.
noun
5. a heuristic method of argument.
6. the study of heuristic procedure.

Origin of heuristic

1815-1825; New Latin heuristicus, equivalent to Greek heur(ískein) to find out, discover + Latin -isticus -istic

Related forms

heuristically, adverb
nonheuristic, adjective
unheuristic, adjective
unheuristically, adverb

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for heuristic

Contemporary Examples

He developed a heuristic for betting on Daily Doubles (which resulted in a wager of $5, the minimum allowed).
How I Taught Arthur Chu to Be the ‘Jeopardy!’ Champ Everyone Loves to Hate
Keith Williams
February 20, 2014

Historical Examples

My standpoint, moreover, requires me to admit the validity of the hypothesis of Descent as an heuristic maxim of natural science.
At the Deathbed of Darwinism
Eberhard Dennert

Is there any need to prove the capital importance of heuristic?
Introduction to the Study of History
Charles V. Langlois

And the aim is heuristic, though often enough the search ends in no overt positive conclusion.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 16, Slice 8
Various

In all other cases, as we have already pointed out, assumption and probability have only a heuristic value for us lawyers.
Criminal Psychology
Hans Gross

Over time, actions became simpler while languages acquired the complexity of the heuristic experience.
The Civilization of Illiteracy
Mihai Nadin

The heuristic attempt to establish new patterns of human interaction through art reflects the uncertainty.
The Civilization of Illiteracy
Mihai Nadin

A general hypothesis serves every special hypothesis as a heuristic principle.
International Congress of Arts and Science, Volume I
Various

Sensualism, therefore, at least as regulative hypothesis, if not as heuristic principle.
Beyond Good and Evil
Friedrich Nietzsche

The teaching, which follows the so-called “heuristic” method, and the equipment of schools of every description, are admirable.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 13, Slice 5
Various

Anagram

itchier us
icier huts

Today’s quote

Everyone’s quick to blame the alien.

– Aeschylus

On this day

23 May 1568 – the Netherlands declares independence from Spain.

23 May 1934 – notorious bank robbers, Bonny Parker and Clyde Barrow, are killed in a shoot-out with police in Black Lake, Louisiana. Bonny and Clyde have been immortalised in songs and movies.

23 May 1944 – birth of John Newcombe, Australian tennis player.

22 May 2017

scrump

/skrʌmp/

verb

1. (dialect) to steal (apples) from an orchard or garden

2. something shrivelled or cooked to a crisp

Word Origin

dialect variant of scrimp

Collins English Dictionary

scrumpy
/ˈskrʌmpɪ/

noun

1. a rough dry cider, brewed esp in the West Country

Word Origin

from scrump, variant of scrimp (in obsolete sense: withered), referring to the apples used
Collins English Dictionary

Examples from the Web for scrumpy

I remember Gordon scrumping apples from the orchard next door.

Historical Examples

My doggie wagged his scrumpy tail, cocked his expressive ears, and glanced from me to his mistress, but did not rise.
My Doggie and I
R.M. Ballantyne

Anagram

Mr cups

Today’s quote

Biodiversity starts in the distant past and it points toward the future.

– Frans Lanting

On this day

22 May – International Day of Biodiversity

22 May 1927 – A 7.9 magnitude earthquake hits the city of Xining in the Chinese province of Quinghai, killing up to 200,000 people. It is the 5th deadliest earthquake recorded.

22 May 1972 – Ceylon changes its name to Sri Lanka to break away from its colonial past. Ceylon had been the colonial name given by Great Britain to the island. The name itself was derived from Portuguese when part of the island was a colony of Portugal.

22 May 2010 – Jordan Romero, a 13 year old U.S. boy, becomes the youngest person to conquer Mt Everest.

21 May 2017

pretext

[pree-tekst]

noun

1. something that is put forward to conceal a true purpose or object; an ostensible reason; excuse:
The leaders used the insults as a pretext to declare war.
2. the misleading appearance or behavior assumed with this intention:
His many lavish compliments were a pretext for subtle mockery.

Origin of pretext

Latin

1505-1515; Latin praetextum pretext, ornament, noun use of neuter past participle of praetexere to pretend, literally, to weave in front, hence, adorn. See pre-, texture

Can be confused

pretense, pretext.

Synonyms

2. subterfuge, evasion.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for pretext

Contemporary Examples

It requested the Times refrain from publishing them to avoid giving insurgents a pretext to incite violence against soldiers.
Taliban Corpse Photos: Friendly Fire in a Digital War
P.J. Crowley
April 18, 2012

There is the critical difference that in this case the U.S. administration is not looking for a pretext to go to war.
Western Intelligence Suspects Assad Has a Secret Chemical Stockpile
Noah Shachtman, Christopher Dickey
April 30, 2014

Neutralizing or defeating the FDLR removes any pretext for regional intervention.
How Congo Defeated the M23 Rebels
John Prendergast
November 6, 2013

But he warned against using the pretext of defense to launch vast campaigns of destruction.

Pope Francis vs. The Warmongers
Barbie Latza Nadeau
September 12, 2014
Institutions are a pretext to have a look at a wide variety of human behavior.

Legendary Documentarian Frederick Wiseman Shows Us How Berkeley Works
Nico Hines
November 9, 2013

Historical Examples

I said there were two things to discuss, the pretext and the execution.
The Memoirs of Louis XIV., His Court and The Regency, Complete
Duc de Saint-Simon

He stood irresolute a moment, then went in on a pretext of ‘inquiry.’
Robert Elsmere
Mrs. Humphry Ward

At the slightest call 500 men collect, and on any pretext kill and eat one another.
Original Narratives of Early American History
Vaca and Others

He made no comment, fearing that she might seize upon any as a pretext for putting him off.
IT and Other Stories
Gouverneur Morris

She was never under any pretext, not even in the event of my death, to return to the stage.
One of My Sons
Anna Katharine Green

Anagram

per text

Today’s quote

And what, Socrates, is the food of the soul? Surely, I said, knowledge is the food of the soul.

– Plato

On this day

21 May – World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development.

21 May 1929 – Charles Lindbergh lands in Paris after completing the first non-stop trans-Atlantic flight. He had departed the day before from New York. Lindbergh was competing for the Orteig Prize which was to be awarded to the first person to make the transatlantic flight. Lindbergh won $25,000 in prize money. Six people had previously lost their lives in competing for the Orteig Prize.

21 May 1932 – Amelia Earhart flies from Newfoundland to Ireland, becoming the first woman to make a solo transatlantic flight.

21 May 1960 – An 8.5 magnitude earthquake hits Chile, causing massive land-slides and tsunamis, including an 8 metre wave. More than 5,000 people are killed and 2 million left homeless.

21 May 1979 – Dan White is convicted of voluntary manslaughter following being charged with first degree murder after assassinating Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk. His defence team had successfully argued for conviction on the lesser charge because they claimed his mental state was diminished as he was suffering depression, evidenced by his consumption of Twinkies and other sugary foods. The defence became known as the ‘Twinkie Defence’.

20 May 2017

prurient

[proo r-ee-uh nt]

adjective

1. having, inclined to have, or characterized by lascivious or lustful thoughts, desires, etc.
2. causing lasciviousness or lust.
3. having a restless desire or longing.

Origin of prurient

Latin

1630-1640; Latin prūrient- (stem of prūriēns), present participle of prūrīre to itch

Related forms

prurience, pruriency, noun
pruriently, adverb
Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for prurient

Contemporary Examples

So far no Republican congressman has been foolish enough to cast himself as the Ken Starr figure, prude, proud and prurient.
Should Weiner Resign? Daily Beast Contributors Weigh In
The Daily Beast
June 6, 2011

It remains unclear whether the interest is altruistic or self-aggrandizing, humane or prurient, psychopathic or admirable.

All These Useless Doctors
Kent Sepkowitz
January 31, 2010

The influence of Oliver Stone, our granddaddy of prurient interest in political violence, hung thick in the air.
The Strange World of Political Assassination Fantasies
James Poulos
September 23, 2014

The only interest served by the Guardians of Peace is our prurient interest.
The Disaster Story That Hollywood Had Coming
Doug McIntyre
December 16, 2014

Philip Delves Broughton explains how the paper was popular, prurient, and invasive.
The Intrusive British Press
July 9, 2011

Historical Examples

That prurient heat in Twenty-five millions of hearts is not cooled thereby; but is still hot, nay hotter.
The French Revolution
Thomas Carlyle

The Aino’s imagination is as prurient as that of any Zola, and far more outspoken.
Aino Folk-Tales
Basil Hall Chamberlain

Voltaire says that these prurient questions were debated with a gusto and a minuteness of detail not found elsewhere.
The History of Prostitution
William W. Sanger

“To h–––– with their prurient laws,” said Lopez, rising suddenly from his chair.
The Prime Minister
Anthony Trollope

And this fair-haired little figure was the woman that people who knew her only from her books, called bold, prurient even!
The Wheels of Chance
H. G. Wells

Anagram

turn ripe
ripen rut
Pi turner

Today’s quote

We write to taste life twice: in the moment and in retrospection.

– Anais Nin

On this day

20 May 325 – commencement of the First Council of Nicea, a cabal of 1800 bishops convened by Roman Emperor Constantine I (Constantine the Great) to gain consensus within the church for various doctrinal issues, such as the divinity of Christ, the Holy Trinity and the date for Easter which were articulated in the ‘Creed of Nicea’. The Council concluded on 25 August 325.

20 May 1896 – a 6 ton chandlier falls from the ceiling of the Palais Garnier, Paris, onto the crowd below. One person is killed and many injured. The theatre was used as the setting for Gaston Leroux’s novel, Phantom of the Opera.

20 May 1944 – birth of Joe Cocker. English rock and blues singer. His first big hit was in 1968 with his cover of the Beatles song, ‘With a Little Help from my Friends’, which he performed at Woodstock the year later. In 1972, while touring Australia, he and six band members were arrested in Adelaide for possession of cannabis. The following day he was charged with assault following a brawl in Melbourne. Australian Federal Police gave him 48 hours to leave the country and banned him from re-entry. From this he earned the nickname ‘Mad-dog’. The incident raised the profile of cannabis legalisation in Australia. He toured Australia again in 1975, after the new Labor government allowed him back into the country. He won a Grammy Award in 1983 and was awarded an OBE in 2007. Died 22 December 2014.

20 May 2017 – World Whiskey Day.

19 May 2017

farrow(1)

[far-oh]

noun

1. a litter of pigs.
verb (used with object)
2. (of swine) to bring forth (young).
verb (used without object)
3. to produce a litter of pigs.

Origin of farrow(1)

Middle English, Old English
900 before 900; Middle English farwen to give birth to a litter of pigs, derivative of Old English fearh pig (cognate with Latin porcus); akin to German Ferkel young pig

farrow(2)

[far-oh]

adjective

1. (of a cow) not pregnant.

Origin

1485-95; akin to Dutch dialect verwe- (in verwekoe barren cow), Old English fearr ox

Dictionary.com

Anagram

for war

Today’s quote

Every fear hides a wish.

– David Mamet

On this day

19 May 1536 – Anne Boleyn, second wife of King Henry VIII of England, is beheaded for adultery, incest and treason.

19 May 1568 – Queen Elizabeth I orders the arrest of Mary, Queen of Scots.

19 May 1895 – Death 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. Born 28 January 1853.

19 May 1897 – Oscar Wilde released from Reading Gaol.

19 May 1909 – birth of Sir Nicholas Winton, MBE, British humanitarian who rescued 669 children from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia in 1938, shortly after Kristallnacht. Most of the children were Jewish. He arranged their safe passage to Britain and found homes for them. As war loomed, Winton registered as a conscientious objector and registered for work with the Red Cross. He rescinded his objection in 1940 and served with the Royal Air Force. Winton kept quiet about the rescue of the 669 children, not even telling his wife, Grete. It wasn’t until 1988, when Grete found a scrapbook in their attic that detailed the children, their parents’ names, and the names and addresses of the people they moved in with in Britain. She was able to locate 80 of the children. Later that year, she took Nicholas along to the filming of the BBC-TV show That’s Life. Unexpectedly for Winton, his scrapbook was shown on camera and his exploits detailed. When the host asked if anyone in the audience owed their life to Winton, more than two dozen people stood up, surrounding and applauding him.

19 May 1925 – birth of Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little), also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, African-American Muslim minister and human rights activist. He campaigned for the rights of African-Americans. At the age of 20, while in prison, he joined the ‘Nation of Islam’, a group that preached black supremacy. He eventually became disillusioned with it and its leader, Elijah Muhammad. On 8 March 1964, he publicly announced he had the Nation of Islam. Malcolm X founded Muslim Mosque Inc and the Organisation of Afro-American Unity. He converted to Sunni Islam, revoked black supremacy and preached equal rights. He was assassinated on 21 February 1965 by three members of the Nation of Islam; Talmadge Hayer (also known as Thomas Hagan), Norman 3X Butler and Thomas 15X Johnson. All three were convicted, although Butler and Johnson maintained their innocence.

19 May 1962 – Marilyn Monroe sings a seductive version of ‘Happy Birthday‘ to President John F. Kennedy for his 45th birthday. She was introduced to the stage as the ‘late’ Marilyn Monroe. Less than three months later, Monroe was found dead. The dress Monroe wore was designed by Jean Louis and sold at auction in 1999 for more than $1,200,000. It was a sheer, flesh coloured dress with 2,500 rhinestones.

18 May 2017

motet

[moh-tet]

noun, Music.

1. a vocal composition in polyphonic style, on a Biblical or similar prose text, intended for use in a church service.

Origin of motet
Middle English, Middle French
1350-1400; Middle English; Middle French; see mot, -et

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for motet

Historical Examples

At vespers, the choir sang a motet, and the Magnificat in German, besides leading the congregation in some hymns.
Bach
Charles Francis Abdy Williams

The character and scope of the German motet are thus described by Spitta, vol.
Bach
Charles Francis Abdy Williams

Who would have ventured to apply this motet to the brave and clever Saxon, high as he, too, towered above most of his peers?
Barbara Blomberg, Complete
Georg Ebers

Anagram

totem

Today’s quote

The ballot is stronger than the bullet.

– Abraham Lincoln

On this day

18 May – World Whiskey Day.

18 May 1910 – The Earth passes through the tail of Halley’s Comet.

18 May 1980 – Volcanic eruption from Mt St Helens in Washington State, USA, killing 57 people.

18 May 1989 – Over 1,000,000 people march in Beijing, demanding democracy. The Chinese government violently suppressed the protests, bringing them to an end on 4 June 1989 following the massacre of hundreds of protestors in Tiananmen Square.