Word Facts for Feb. 19-25, 2011
Word origin for the weekend of Feb. 19-20, 2011: playing with a full deck - This phrase, which first appears in about 1930 in a detective story by Dashiell Hammett, is almost always used in the negative: someone who is not "playing with a full deck" - of cards, that is - is missing something needed to negotiate the game of life. The phrase is used less commonly now than more recent expressions such as "a taco shy of a combination plate."
Word origin for Feb. 21, 2011: the only thing we have to fear is fear itself - With this resounding phrase from his first inaugural address in 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt encouraged Americans to look with confidence to the future, never mind the uncertain economy and world picture. His speechwriter deserves applause for the sentiment, though he borrowed it from the Duke of Wellington, who defeated Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Waterloo and remarked afterward, "The only thing I am afraid of is fear."
Word origin for Feb. 22, 2011: boomeritis - Sad to say, at least for them, but the baby boomer generation - roughly those born between 1946 and 1962 - is getting older. The word "boomeritis," formed from "boomer" and the suffix meaning "inflammation of," refers to injuries suffered by aging boomers playing the sports of their youth, straining muscles and such. The word dates to about 2005.
Word origin for Feb. 23, 2011: leviathan - In its first appearance in the Old Testament - in Psalms - "leviathan" is the word for a sea monster that God slays and distributes as food to the hungry. The word later came to be applied to the largest animal in the sea - the whale - and then, following the usage of English philosopher Thomas Hobbes in his book Leviathan, to any huge organization, particularly the government.
Word origin for Feb. 24, 2011: flight - The act of flying has become a noun with other uses, as in "a flight of skaters" and "a flight of wine." The first sense has a clear connection with the verb "to fly," since skaters move as if on air. The second use is less clear, but the term "a flight of wine" means a series of glasses of wine being compared in competition.
Word origin for Feb. 25, 2011: yuppie - This slightly outmoded term, meaning "young urban professional," was introduced into the newspapers by way of demographic jargon in the late 1970s. It first appeared in print in 1980 alongside a variant, "yupper," which has completely fallen out of usage.
Word origin for Feb. 21, 2011: the only thing we have to fear is fear itself - With this resounding phrase from his first inaugural address in 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt encouraged Americans to look with confidence to the future, never mind the uncertain economy and world picture. His speechwriter deserves applause for the sentiment, though he borrowed it from the Duke of Wellington, who defeated Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Waterloo and remarked afterward, "The only thing I am afraid of is fear."
Word origin for Feb. 22, 2011: boomeritis - Sad to say, at least for them, but the baby boomer generation - roughly those born between 1946 and 1962 - is getting older. The word "boomeritis," formed from "boomer" and the suffix meaning "inflammation of," refers to injuries suffered by aging boomers playing the sports of their youth, straining muscles and such. The word dates to about 2005.
Word origin for Feb. 23, 2011: leviathan - In its first appearance in the Old Testament - in Psalms - "leviathan" is the word for a sea monster that God slays and distributes as food to the hungry. The word later came to be applied to the largest animal in the sea - the whale - and then, following the usage of English philosopher Thomas Hobbes in his book Leviathan, to any huge organization, particularly the government.
Word origin for Feb. 24, 2011: flight - The act of flying has become a noun with other uses, as in "a flight of skaters" and "a flight of wine." The first sense has a clear connection with the verb "to fly," since skaters move as if on air. The second use is less clear, but the term "a flight of wine" means a series of glasses of wine being compared in competition.
Word origin for Feb. 25, 2011: yuppie - This slightly outmoded term, meaning "young urban professional," was introduced into the newspapers by way of demographic jargon in the late 1970s. It first appeared in print in 1980 alongside a variant, "yupper," which has completely fallen out of usage.
Labels: 2005, 2011, alcoholic drinks, bible, books, cards, food, games, glasses, greg, languages, life, maxed-out tags limit, page-a-day, reading, sports, teunis, visitors, words
posted by Flami at 12:02:00 AM
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