portmanteau

en-noun

portmanteau (plural portmanteaus or portmanteaux)

portmanteaus (plural)
portmanteaux (plural)

Jabberwocky
Lewis Carroll
Through the Looking-Glass
portmanteau

First used by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass to describe the words he coined in “Jabberwocky”.

His long-awaited portmanteau, which premiered in Cannes on Monday, is the most Anderson of all Anderson films. It's Anderson distilled, Anderson squared, Anderson to the nth degree.

2021 July 12, Nicholas Barber, “The French Dispatch: Four stars for Wes Anderson's latest”, in BBC:


France

en-proper noun

France (usually uncountable, plural Frances)

→ Assamese: ফ্ৰান্স (phranso)

→ Hawaiian: Palani

→? Japanese: フランス (Furansu)

→ Kalenjin: Frans

→ Kikuyu: Frans

→ Luhya: Frans

→ Meru: Frans

→ Sotho: France

→ Swahili: Ufaransa

→ Tokelauan: Falani

From Middle English France, from Old French France, from Latin Francia, from Francī, the name of a Germanic tribe, of unclear (but Proto-Germanic) origin. Believed to be most likely from Frankish *Frankō (“a Frank”), from Proto-Germanic *frankô (“javelin”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *preng- (“pole, stalk”). Compare Frank. Displaced native Old English Francland.

der

A surname from French, famously held by—

Anatole France, a French poet, journalist, and novelist.


Israel

→ Japanese: イスラエル (Isuraeru)

From Middle English Israel, from Old English, borrowed from Latin Israel, from Ancient Greek Ἰσραήλ (Israḗl), from Hebrew יִשְׂרָאֵל (yisra'él, “Israel”). In the Bible, it is said to be from the name יִשְׂרֶה אֵל (yisré 'él) given to Jacob in he:T:29, after which his descendants came to be known as Israelites and their land as the "kingdom/land of Israel". The personal name, already attested in Eblaite 𒅖𒊏𒅋 (iš-ra-il) and Ugaritic 𐎊𐎌𐎗𐎛𐎍 (yšrỉl), has been variously translated as "he wrestles with God", "he prevails with God", or "God rules" (possibly from the same root ש־ר־ה/ש־ר־ר as שָׂרָה (“Sarah”)).
Line 27 of the Merneptah Stele (from about 1200 B.C.E.) is thought to contain the earliest attestation of the name Israel in any language, Egyptian ysrjꜣr.
: i-i-z:Z1s*Z1s:r-i-A-r:Z1*T14-A1*B1:Z2
Doublet of Yisroel.

(historical) An ancient kingdom in Western Asia, roughly coextensive with the modern State of Israel and the Land of Israel.


teddy bear

From Morris Michtom, the owner of a candy store in Brooklyn N.Y., who made the first “Teddy Bear” in the year 1902 in honor of then American President Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt when he had heard that he had refused to shoot a bear cub on one of his hunting trips.

1988, Michael Weikath, "Rise and Fall", Helloween, Keeper of the Seven Keys: Part II.
The king of Los Angeles / Bought himself a teddy bear / And the queen became shameless / She did it with a chair

The origin of Paddington (the bear, not the station) dates to 1956 when author Michael Bond (1926-2017) spotted a lonesome teddy bear on the shelf of a store near the station. It was Christmas Eve, so he bought the solitary bear for his wife.

2021 September 22, Stephen Roberts, “The writings on the wall...”, in RAIL, number 940, page 74:

I'd like to mt you if you're a bearded ‘Teddy Bear,’ husky build, under 34 & share a career orientation.

1980 August 9, “Personal advertisement”, in Gay Community News, page 14:

...the sexy "teddy bear" frontman of the '80s rap group Heavy D and the Boyz.

1999, “Big Men are Sexy Too - Apr 1999”, in Ebony, volume 54, number 6, page 73:

This is not to say that women don't admire the Brad Pitts and George Clooneys of the world, but they're just as likely to be attracted to a big, teddy bear kind of man as the guy gracing the cover of GQ.

2008, Jean A. Campbell, Taking Sexy Back: The Cure for the Sexual Blahs, page 124:

Some insisted that, because men have generally hairier bodies than women, a super-hairy chest is super-male and therefore very appealing. They added that it not only looks sexy but also feels sexy, like a teddy bear.

2009, Desmond Morris, The Naked Man: A Study of the Male Body, page 161:

“So I'm sort of a big teddy bear, am I?” “A sexy teddy bear.” he kissed her neck.

2010, Abigail Reynolds, Man Who Loved Pride and Prejudice: A Modern Love Story with a Jane..., page 276:

A lovable, endearing, large, strong, hairy, or sweet man, particularly one who is gentle in spite of a burly or gruff appearance.


GR

(British) Initialism of George Rex. (on coins, letterboxes, etc.) The royal cypher for George V and his son George VI, kings of Great Britain

George Rex

(automotive, marketing, motor racing) Initialism of Gazoo Racing.: A performance brand, automotive label, and, racing division, of Toyota.


GR

en-noun

GR (countable and uncountable, plural GRs)

2001 Nussey, S. S. and Whitehead, S. A. The adrenal gland. In: Bosher, Andrea. Endocrinology: An Integrated Approach. Oxford, UK: BIOS Scientific Publishers; 2001 [cited 18 December 2009]. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/bookshelf/br.fcgi?book=endocrin&part=A442#A468 .
The expression of GR is ubiquitous and it occurs in two forms, GR-α and GR-β.

glucocorticoid receptor
glucocorticoid receptor#English

(biochemistry) Initialism of glucocorticoid receptor.


Victoria

en-proper noun

Victoria (countable and uncountable, plural Victorias or Victoriae)

From Latin Victōria, from victōria (“victory”). Doublet of Vitória. The given name can also be analyzed as the male name Victor + -ia. The places were named in honour of Queen Victoria of Great Britain.

Alexander of Russia, the patron saint of the Cobourgs, was dead, so Alexandrina of England, named in honour of him, gave way to Victoria the tutelary deity of his (when living) subservient Cobourgs. Both names are alike foreign and unharmonious to British ears,* although of the two, Alexandrina perhaps the most euphonious. Let us hope, and we have reason to hope, that the Queen will nationalize that of Victoria, and make it the theme of song and history with that of Elizabeth.
George IV., who, whatever his faults, had a true British spirit and sentiments, declared both to be anti-British, and expressed himself in no measured terms at the time about giving the royal infant such unEnglish names.

1838 Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Court and Cabinet Gossip of a New Reign, April 1838, pages 512-513

The queen of the United Kingdom from 1837 to 1901.


Darwin

From Middle English Darwin, Derwin, from Old English Dēorwine (“a given name”), composed of dēore (“dear”) + wine (“friend”).
The city in Australia is named after Charles Darwin.

census-designated place
census-designated place

A number of places in the United States:

An unincorporated community and census-designated place in Inyo County, California.

A ghost town in Fresno County, California.

A township and minor city in Meeker County, Minnesota.

Pushmataha County
Pushmataha County#English

An unincorporated community in Pushmataha County, Oklahoma.

Dickenson County
Dickenson County#English

An unincorporated community in Dickenson County, Virginia.


shrew

From Middle English *schrewe, from Old English sċrēawa (“shrew”), from Proto-Germanic *skrawwaz (“thin; meagre; frail”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut; shorten; skimp”). Cognates include Old High German scrawaz (“dwarf”), Norwegian skrugg (“dwarf”).

otter shrew

subfamily Potamogalinae in family Tenrecidae

treeshrew

families Tupaiidae and Ptilocercidae in order Scandentia

West Indies shrew

genus †Nesophontes in family Solenodontidae

The clerk had, I'm afraid, a shrew of a wife—shrill, vehement, and fluent. 'Rogue,' 'old miser,' 'old sneak,' and a great many worse names, she called him.

1863, Sheridan Le Fanu, The House by the Churchyard:

His wife was a shrew with warts on her face and she spoke to him sharply when others were present, but Simcha did not complain.

1959, Mordecai Richler, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz:

(derogatory) An ill-tempered, nagging woman: a scold.


Governator

/ˈɡʌvɚneɪtɚ/

Blend of governor + terminator. In his acting career, Schwarzenegger played a "Terminator" robot in the Terminator film series.

[Title:] Vote for the Governator?

2003 June 30, “Vote for the Governator?”, in RedEye, page 40:

Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger#English

Nickname for Arnold Schwarzenegger as governor of California.


Milton

The English place names are from Old English mylen (“mill”) or middel (“middle”) + tun (“settlement”).

Calaveras County
Calaveras County#English

An unincorporated community in Calaveras County, California; named for railroad engineer Milton Latham.

A minor city in Trimble County, Kentucky.

Lafayette Parish
Lafayette Parish#English

A census-designated place in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana; named for early resident Dr. Milton R. Cushman and his son, Milton S. Cushman.

A town in Caswell County, North Carolina; named for a mill in the area.

A minor city in Cavalier County, North Dakota.

Chittenden County
Chittenden County#English

A town and census-designated place therein, in Chittenden County, Vermont, a suburb of Burlington; named for British statesman William Fitzwilliam, Viscount Milton.

A town in Cabell County, West Virginia; named for landowner Milton Reece.


Dutchman

From Middle English Ducheman; equivalent to Dutch + -man.

[…]the tyranny of the rockspiders, crunchies, hairybacks, ropes, and bloody Dutchmen. Those were the names by which we referred to Afrikaners.

1990, Rian Malan, My Traitor's Heart: Blood and Bad Dreams, page 54:

(South Africa, derogatory) A male white Afrikaner.

(nautical) Ellipsis of Flying Dutchman.: a ghost ship


Dutchman

President Roosevelt called a press conference in the Oval Office. [...] when asked where the Billys had originated, the Dutchman smiled broadly [...].

2003, James Bradley, chapter 8, in Flyboys, New York: Little, Brown and Company:

(US) A nickname for President Franklin D. Roosevelt.


Andrew

en-proper noun

Andrew (countable and uncountable, plural Andrews)

[ˈeᵊnˌd̠ɹ̠˔ʷʊ̈u]

[ˈænˌd̠ɹ̠ʷ˔ʊ̈u]

From Ancient Greek Ἀνδρέας (Andréas), cognate with ἀνδρεῖος (andreîos, “manly”), both from ἀνήρ (anḗr, “man”). Doublet of André, Andreas, Andrei, and Andrey.

doublet

A village in Lamont County, Alberta, Canada.


PET

en-noun

PET (countable and uncountable, plural PETs)

The name of the computer (sense 4) derives from the 1970s pet rock fad; the acronym was invented afterwards.

polyethylene terephthalate
polyethylene terephthalate#English

(uncountable, organic chemistry) Initialism of polyethylene terephthalate.

positron emission tomography
positron emission tomography#English

(countable, medicine) Acronym of positron emission tomography.

(countable, genetics) Acronym of paired-end tag.

Why is the order of graphical characters in the PETSCII table so seemingly haphazard? The answer is that arrangement was dictated by the PET keyboard design, a hardware-driven decision.

2014, Nick Montfort et al., 10 PRINT CHR$(205.5+RND(1)); : GOTO 10, MIT Press, →ISBN, page 225:

personal electronic transactor
w:Commodore PET

(countable, historical, computing, backronym) Acronym of personal electronic transactor, a line of personal computers produced by Commodore International.


PET

But Wright takes a rather contrarian position about the impact of emotionally charged Trudeaumania on PET’s astonishing political rise in 1968.

2016 November 20, “New books put Trudeaumania in fresh perspective”, in Toronto Star, archived from the original on 2017-08-07:

(Canadian politics) Initialism of Pierre Elliott Trudeau.


PBS

(Canada, US, television) Initialism of Public Broadcasting Service.

Public Broadcasting Services
w:Public Broadcasting Services

(Malta, broadcasting) Initialism of Public Broadcasting Services.

Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme
w:Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme

(Australia) Initialism of Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

(linguistics) Initialism of Proto-Balto-Slavic.

In Chapter 7, she has Victor Frankenstein describe his creation as “handsome”—PBS altered this to “beautiful”, which appears in the final text.

2024 February 17, Erica Wagner, “Kill your darlings”, in FT Weekend, Life & Arts, page 2:

Percy Bysshe Shelley
w:Percy Bysshe Shelley

(literature) Initialism of Percy Bysshe Shelley.


VI

Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom
w:en:Victoria I of the United Kingdom

(UK) Abbreviation of Victoria Imperatrix.; the royal cypher of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, queen regnant and empress of the British Empire, Empire of India


Christ

From Middle English Crist, from Old English Crist, from Latin Christus, from Ancient Greek Χρῑστός (Khrīstós), proper noun use of χρῑστός (khrīstós, “[the] anointed [one]”), a semantic loan of Hebrew מָשִׁיחַ (māšīaḥ, “anointed”) or the Aramaic equivalent (whence ultimately also English messiah, also via Latin, Greek). Compare grime for the Proto-Indo-European root, *gʰr-ey- (“to rub, smear; to anoint”); further related to ghee.

(art) A figure or other artistic depiction of Jesus Christ.


Rhodes

en-proper noun

Rhodes (countable and uncountable, plural Rhodeses)

From rodes, the plural form of Middle English rode, from Old English rod, rodu.
The Rh- form—a 16th century spelling modification— was created by analogy with the unrelated Rhodes, Greece.

Vermillion County
Vermillion County#English

A number of places in the United States:

An unincorporated community in Clinton Township, Vermillion County, Indiana.

An unincorporated community in Bentley Township, Gladwin County, Michigan; named for Murry Bentley Rhodes.

A census-designated place in Flathead County, Montana.


Wellington

Wellington (countable and uncountable, plural Wellingtons)

From Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, British soldier and statesman.
From Old English Weolingtun, meaning "wealthy estate".

Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island#English

A community and rural municipality of Prince County, Prince Edward Island, Canada.

A statutory town in Larimer County, Colorado.

Palm Beach County
Palm Beach County#English

A village in Palm Beach County, Florida.

An unincorporated community in Menifee County, Kentucky.

Piscataquis County
Piscataquis County#English

A small city in Piscataquis County, Maine.

An unincorporated community in Gogebic County, Michigan.


Daniel

From Middle English Daniel, Daniell, from Ancient Greek Δᾱνῑήλ (Dānīḗl), from Hebrew דָּנִיֵּאל (daniyél, literally “God is my judge”), name borne from the prophet whose story is told in the Book of Daniel.

der

"His name is Daniel Needham," my mother said. Whew! With what relief - down came my grandmother's hands! Needham was a fine old name, a founding fathers sort of name, a name you could trace back to the Massachusetts Bay Colony - if not exactly Gravesend itself. And Daniel was as Daniel as Daniel Webster, which was as good a name as a Wheelwright could wish for.
"But he's called Dan," my mother added, bringing a slight frown to my grandmother's countenance.

1989, John Irving, A Prayer for Owen Meany, Corgi Books, →ISBN, page 55:

A male given name from Hebrew in regular use since the Middle Ages.

census-designated place
census-designated place

A census-designated place in Wyoming, United States.


Moses

From Latin Mōsēs, Mōȳsēs, from Ancient Greek Μωυσῆς (Mōusês), from Biblical Hebrew מֹשֶׁה (mōšê). Further etymology is unclear, but it is sometimes conjectured to derive from Egyptian ms-s (msj, “to give birth to”), a common element in Egyptian names of the form ‘[name of deity] is the one who bore him’; or, alternatively, contains Egyptian N35A (mw, “water”).

<i class="Latn mention" lang="egy">msj</i>

<i class="Latn mention" lang="egy">mw</i>

And the Lord came downe vpon mount Sinai, on the top of the mount: and the Lord called Moſes vp to the top of the mount, and Moſes went vp.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Exodus 19:20, column 1:

Moses supposes his toeses are roses, / But Moses supposes erroneously, / Moses he knowses his toeses aren't roses, / As Moses supposes his toeses to be!

1952 Singin' in the Rain: Moses supposes (a song)

(biblical) The pharaonic patriarch who led the enslaved Hebrews out of Egypt, the brother of Aaron and Miriam described in the Book of Exodus and the Quran.

A surname transferred from the given name.

A dialect of the Columbia-Wenatchi language

(US, African American culture) pseudonym for Harriet Tubman


Quenya

From Noldorin Quenya Quenya, ultimately derived from the Primitive Quendian root *kwene ("person"), being the name for the language invented by J. R. R. Tolkien as the language spoken by the Elves in his books.

constructed language
constructed language

A constructed language created by J. R. R. Tolkien modelled on Greek, Latin and Finnish.


Sarah

en-proper noun

Sarah (countable and uncountable, plural Sarahs)

From Biblical Hebrew שָׂרָה (śārâ, “lady, princess”), from the Biblical figure originally named Sarai (שָׂרָי (śārāy, literally “masters, princes”)).

bor

And God ſaid vnto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou ſhalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah ſhall her name be.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 21:4, column 1:

(biblical) The wife of Abraham and mother of Isaac in the Bible.

I also have two daughters, by now grown up. Their names are Sarah and Anne, good sensible names. - - - I am a believer in sensible choices, so different from many of my own. Also in sensible names for children, because look what happened to Cordelia.

1988, Margaret Atwood, Cat's Eye, page 15:

An unincorporated community in Kentucky, United States.

An unincorporated community in West Virginia, United States.


chortle

Perhaps a blend of chuckle + snort. Coined by Lewis Carroll in his poem Jabberwocky, completed in 1855 but only introduced to the public in his 1871 novel Through the Looking-Glass.

A similar sounding vocalisation of various birds.


Ezra

en-proper noun

Ezra (countable and uncountable, plural Ezras)

From the Biblical Hebrew עֶזְרָא (ʿezrā). Doublet of Esdras.

以士拉书

Ī-sê̤ṳ-lá-cṳ̆

A male given name from Hebrew of biblical origin.


Aaron

/or Celtic languages; it is pronounced /

From Latin Aaron, from Ancient Greek Ἀαρών (Aarṓn), from Hebrew אַהֲרֹן (ʾAhărōn), of unknown meaning, possibly meaning “bearer of martyrs”, or perhaps also, or instead, related to the Ancient Egyptian ꜥḥꜣ rw (“warrior lion”), though it has been suggested to also mean “elevated”, “exalted” or “high mountain”. Doublet of Harun.

And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and hee said, Is not Aaron the Leuite thy brother? I know that he can speake well.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Exodus 4:14:

(biblical) The elder brother of Moses in the Book of the Exodus, and in the Quran.

- - - the Junior Prom with boys whose names are right out of the grade-school reader, not Aaron and Arnold and Marvin, but Johnny and Billy and Jimmy and Tod. Not Portnoy or Pincus, but Smith and Jones and Brown!

1969, Philip Roth, Portnoy's Complaint, Random House, published 2002, page 145:


wild-goose chase

en-noun

wild-goose chase (plural wild-goose chases)

Early recorded use refers to a type of 16th century horse race where everyone had to try to follow the erratic course of the lead horse, like wild geese have to follow their leader in formation. Mentioned in 1593 in the English poet Gervase Markham’s book about horsemanship. Also mentioned in the William Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, scene 4 by the character Mercutio: “Nay, if our wits run the wild-goose chase, I am done; for thou hast more of the wild goose in one of thy wits than, I am sure, I have in my whole five.” Mentioned in Robert Burton, Anatomy of Melancholy (1621). Common use in the current may be the origin for the sport sense.

I went on a wild-goose chase all over the town looking for that adapter until I discovered they no longer make them.

Diagnosing this software application's problems is a wild-goose chase because it is built in an environment that has poor debugging tools.

From the beginning he has never concealed his belief that Professor Challenger is an absolute fraud, that we are all embarked upon an absurd wild-goose chase and that we are likely to reap nothing but disappointment and danger in South America, and corresponding ridicule in England.

1912, Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World […], London; New York, N.Y.: Hodder and Stoughton, →OCLC:

(figuratively) A futile search, a fruitless errand; a useless and often lengthy task whose execution is inordinately complex relative to the value of the outcome.

Anatomy of Melancholy
Gervase Markham
Robert Burton (scholar)
Romeo and Juliet
William Shakespeare


Jesus

head

Jesus (plural (of male given name) Jesuses or Jesi)

/ˈd͡ʒiːˌzʌs/

From Middle English Jhesus, Iesus, from Latin Iēsūs, from Ancient Greek Ἰησοῦς (Iēsoûs), from Biblical Hebrew יֵשׁוּעַ (yēšū́aʿ), a contracted form of יְהוֹשֻׁעַ (yəhōšúaʿ, “Joshua”). The form יֵשׁוּעַ (yēšū́aʿ) is attested in some of the later books of the Hebrew Bible (Ezra–Nehemiah), and translated as Jeshua or Yeshua in some English editions (the former appearing in the King James Version). The Greek texts make no distinction between Jesus and Joshua, referring to them both as Ἰησοῦς (Iēsoûs). In the Wycliffe Bible (Middle English), the forms used are Jhesus and Jhesu.

Sister of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary

For the Son of God, Christ Jesus, is Head of the Church; and can the Body doe any thing well, if the Head direct it not?

1621 June 19, William Laud, “Sermon preached before His Majesty”, in Seven Sermons Preached Upon Severall Occasions […], page 10:

Mohammed always announced his religion as the religion of Abraham, of Moses, and of Jesus.

1873, Syed Ameer Ali, A Critical Examination of the Life and Teachings of Mohammed, page 195:

I find that writing helps my praying, whether it is writing poetry or more conversational journaling with Jesus. I used to feel compelled to write on a scheduled basis (for example, once a week for my journaling or a poem every time I went to the Japanese Garden), but now I have let go of that compulsion and write when it seems right.

1989, James McGinnis, “Peacemaking and Prayer”, in Journey into Compassion: A Spirituality for the Long Haul, Institute for Peace and Justice; Meyer-Stone, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 36:

She’s right! Omarosa is right there! Also, I’m pretty sure the original titles of the New and Old Testament were Jesus Said This and Jesus Ain’t Say That.

2018 March 18, “Mike Pence”, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 5, episode 5, John Oliver (actor), via HBO:

Baháʼí Baháʼí

Jesus of Nazareth, a first-century Jewish religious preacher and craftsman (commonly understood to have been a carpenter, see Ancient Greek τέκτων (téktōn, “builder”)) from Galilee held to be a prophet, teacher, the son of God, and the Messiah, or Christ, in Christianity; also called "Jesus Christ" by Christians. Held to be a prophet by Muslims and Baháʼís.


Queen Anne

After Queen Anne of Great Britain (reigned 1702–1714).

A small town in Maryland, United States.


Buddha

Learned borrowing from Pali Buddha (“the Awakened One, the Enlightened One”), from buddha (“awakened, enlightened”), from Sanskrit बुद्ध (buddha, “awakened, enlightened”), past participle of बोधति (bodhati, “to wake, to awaken”). Distantly related to English bid and bede. Also cognate with Proto-Slavic *buditi (“to wake up”).

der

Siddhartha Gautama, the Nepali prince and Indian philosopher and teacher who founded Buddhism.


Maya

Borrowed from Spanish maya, from Yucatec Maya mayab (“flat”), a self-designation of the northern Maya for themselves, in the form maya’ found in compounds and phrases e.g. maya’ wíinik (“Maya man”).

A member or descendant of various peoples:

various Mesoamerican peoples living in the Spanish Empire, and now parts of Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras


Maya

Transliteration of Sanskrit माया (māyā).

Eventually, Pran and Savita decided by correspondence on Maya. Its two simple syllables meant, among other things: the goddess Lakshmi, illusion, fascination, art, the goddess Durga, kindness, and the name of the mother of Buddha. It also meant: ignorance, delusion, fraud, guile, and hypocrisy; but no one who named their daughter Maya ever paid any attention to those pejorative possibilities.
- - - 'Why ever not, Ma?' said Meenakshi.'It's a very Bengali name, a very nice name.'

1993, Vikram Seth, A Suitable Boy, Phoenix House, →ISBN, page 891:

A female given name from Sanskrit used in India.


hobbit

en-noun

hobbit (plural hobbits or (humorous) hobbitses)

hobbits (plural)
hobbitses (humorous plural)

Denham Tracts
Hobbit (word)
J. R. R. Tolkien
The Hobbit
The Lord of the Rings
hobbit

Coined in its current sense by J. R. R. Tolkien in the 1930s, featured in the novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Jocularly etymologized by him as from a hypothetical Old English *holbytla (literally “hole-builder”), from hol (“hole”) + bytlan (“to build”) + -a (“-er”). Tolkien was possibly influenced by similar terms for house-sprites (probably from Hob, a hypocoristic form of Robert), or an isolated mention of hobbits (with hobgoblins following immediately afterwards) in a list of sprites and bogies from the 19th-century Denham Tracts.

pseudo-loan

A member of a fictional race of small humanoids with shaggy hair and hairy feet.


Thatcher's children

She has not begun to stem the tide of British ugliness—the yobbish teenagers shivering in their torn gear; the shoddy streets littered with fast-food packaging; the drunks urinating on London's tube platforms; the drug culture. It is facile to call those concerned “Thatcher's children”: she is not responsible for their actions.

London's financial district, like New York's, had its “big bang,” after which, as though from dragon's teeth, Yuppies sprang up, armed with Porsches and mobile telephones. They included, inevitably, some unattractive specimens, and much of their wealth has proved evanescent. To call them “Thatcher's children” is both unfair and unhistorical. Just the same corner-cutting, money-obsessed types can be found in the novels of Trollope and Galsworthy. At the other end of the scale are the workers in moribund industries, the unmarried mothers, and the feckless young, all those who have come to expect more from the welfare state than the welfare state could ever provide: They too are called “Thatcher's children”: but their problems would have existed whatever government was in power.

1990, Anthony Lejeune, “Class”, in National Review, volume 42, number 21, pages 81–84:

Negus (2002), for example, characterizes intermediaries in the music industry in London as “public schoolboys”; in Manchester they have been seen as “Thatcher's children,” the unemployed and disaffected.

2005, Justin O'Connor, “Cities, Culture and ‘Transitional Economies’: Developing Cultural Industries in St. Petersburg”, in John Hartley, editor, Creative Industries, Wiley-Blackwell, page 255:

The social group in Britain that came to be known as ‘Thatcher's children’ (benefiting from the right-wing monetarist policies of Margaret Thatcher's government) were also called ‘yuppies’ (young, upwardly-mobile professionals, especially those working in money markets and the Stock Exchange). They often originated in the south-east of England and their profit motives were legitimised by government policy in favour of free market economics.

2007, Nikolas Coupland, Style: Language Variation and Identity, Cambridge University Press, page 96:

Non-unionism was now the norm across swathes of the private sector so that only an estimated 16% of employees were organised by trade unions by 2006. Increasingly younger workers aged between sixteen and twenty-four – known as Thatcher's children – saw little point in being trade union members.

2007, Anthony Seldon, Blair's Britain, 1997–2007, Cambridge University Press, page 228:

People who grew up or were born in the United Kingdom during the premiership of Margaret Thatcher (1979–1990) and who adopted the ideology of Thatcherism.


Thatcherism

From Thatcher + -ism. Popularized by Jamaican-born British sociologist and cultural theorist Stuart Hall in an article in Marxism Today, see quotations.

coin

Thus “Thatcherism” is—give or take one or two elements—the corresponding political bedfellow of a period of capitalist recession: the significant differences between this and other variants of Tory “philosophy” being conceived as without any specific pertinent political or ideological effects.

1979 January, Stuart Hall, “The Great Moving Right Show”, in Marxism Today, page 14:

(UK politics) The political ideology attributed to the governments of British prime minister Margaret Thatcher (1979–1990), characterised by, among other things, a free market economy, privatisation, low taxation, austerity and opposition to unionisation.

撒切爾主義

political ideology of Thatcher's governments


Thatcherite

/ˈθæt͡ʃəɹaɪt/

From Thatcher + -ite, named after British prime minister Margaret Thatcher (1925–2013).

named-after

(UK politics) An advocate of Thatcherism.


Tutankhamun

Borrowed from Egyptian i-mn:n-t-w&t-anx (twt-ꜥnḫ-jmn, literally “Living Image of Amun”). The variant spellings of the final vowel are taken from variant forms of the name of the god Amun as found in various different sources: u from Coptic ⲁⲙⲟⲩⲛ (amoun), o from Ancient Greek Ἄμμων (Ámmōn), and e from the purely conventional system of Egyptological pronunciation.

bor

Ancient Egyptian pharaoh known for his young age and his tomb, which was preserved intact to the modern age.

تُوت عَنْخ آمُون

tūt ʕanḵ ʔāmūn


Socrates

From Ancient Greek Σωκράτης (Sōkrátēs). Doublet of Sokratis.

A male given name from Ancient Greek of mostly historical use, known after a Greek philosopher.


Jesus Christ

Jesus + Christ; from Middle English Jesu Crist, Jesus Crist, from Latin Iēsus Chrīstus.

Almighty God, give us the grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life (in which thy son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility;)

1681, Church of England, The book of common prayer:

(Christianity, Islam, Baháʼí) Jesus of Nazareth, a first-century Jewish religious preacher and craftsman (commonly understood to have been a carpenter, see Ancient Greek τέκτων (téktōn, “builder”)) from Galilee, held to be a prophet, teacher and the Messiah, or Christ, in Christianity. Also held to be a prophet in Islam and the Baháʼí Faith.

ܝܶܫܽܘܥ ܡܫܺܝܚܳܐ

Yešūʿ M'šīḥāʿ

ܝܼܫܘܿܥ ܡܫܝܼܚܵܐ

Īšōʿ M'šīḥāʿ

ܝܶܫܽܘܥ ܡܫܺܝܚܳܐ

Yešūʿ M'šīḥōʿ

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints


Thomas

en-proper noun

Thomas (countable and uncountable, plural Thomases)

→ Hawaiian: Kamaki

→ Maori: Tāmati

→ Scottish Gaelic: Tòmas

Thomas of Bayeux
Thomas the Presbyter
Thomas the Slav

Inherited from Middle English Thomas, from Latin Thōmās m (as in the Vulgate), from Ancient Greek Θωμᾶς m (Thōmâs), the Biblical Greek transcription of Aramaic תאומא or תאמא (“twin”), the nickname of one of the Twelve Apostles.
In the gospel of John (11:16, 20:24), the Aramaic nickname is also translated into Greek, as δίδυμος m (dídumos). Used as a given name since the Middle Ages, e.g. Thomas the Presbyter (7th century), Thomas the Slav (8th century), Thomas of Bayeux (died 1100).
(infidel or doubter): In reference to the doubting Apostle.

A number of places in the United States:

An unincorporated community in Bureau County, Illinois.

An unincorporated community in Hamlin County, South Dakota.

A minor city in Tucker County, West Virginia.


Aeneas

From Latin Aenēās, from Ancient Greek Αἰνείας (Aineías).

And there he found a certain man named Aeneas, which had kept his bed eight years, and was sick of the palsy. And Peter said unto him, Aeneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole: arise, and make thy bed. And he arose immediately.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 9:33-34:


Paul

From Latin Paulus, from paulus (“small”). Doublet of Pablo and Paolo.

An unincorporated community in Conecuh County, Alabama, United States, named after Paul the Apostle.

A city in Minidoka County, Idaho, United States.

An unincorporated community in Otoe County, Nebraska, United States.

A village south of Newlyn, Penzance parish, south-west Cornwall, England (OS grid ref SW4627).

A municipality on Santo Antão, Cape Verde.


Abner

From Hebrew אבנר (Abner, “father of light”). From אָב (av, “father”) + נור (nur, “light”).


John the Baptist

From Middle English Johan þe Babtis, from Latin Iōannēs Baptista.

In those daies came Iohn the Baptist, preaching in the wildernesse of Iudea, And saying, Repent yee: for the kingdome of heauen is at hand.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Matthew 3:1–2:

A New Testament prophet who baptized Jesus and was subsequently executed by Herod Antipas.


Juliet

/ˈd͡ʒuːlɪɛt/

Borrowed from Italian Giulietta, diminutive of Giulia, from Latin Iūlia, feminine of Iūlius, a Roman family name. Cognate with French Juliette.

For never was a story of more woe / Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.

c. 1591–1595 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Romeo and Ivliet”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene iii]:

One of the main characters of William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.


Togarmah

From Biblical Hebrew תּוֹגַרְמָה (tōḡarmā).

(rare) A male given name from Hebrew of biblical origin.


Zumbi

The famous leader of the Quilombo dos Palmares, located in Brazil, South America.


Romeo and Juliet couple

en-noun

Romeo and Juliet couple (plural Romeo and Juliet couples)

After the eponymous characters in Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.

There are, for example, the Romeo and Juliet couples, who come from warring or enemy nations and escape to a neutral third country […]

1988, Dugan Romano, Intercultural marriage: promises and pitfalls:

The incidence there was especially high among Indian and Pakistani teens, Romeo-and-Juliet couples.

By analogy with the two Shakespearean characters, a couple consisting of one member from each of two opposing families, parties, or countries.


Adam

From Middle English Adam, from Old English Adam, from Latin Adam, Adamus, from Ancient Greek Ἀδάμ (Adám), Ἄδαμος (Ádamos), from Biblical Hebrew אָדָם (adam, “earth, man, soil, light brown”), from אדמה (adamah, “red earth, ground”).

And so it is written: The first man Adam was made a liuing soule, the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 1 Corinthians 15:45:

Second Adam from above,
Reinstate us in thy love.

1739, Charles Wesley, Hark! the Herald Angels Sing:

(with second or last) Jesus Christ, whose sacrifice, in Christian theology, makes possible the forgiveness of Adam's original sin.


Dracula

Dracula
Order of the Dragon
Vlad II Dracul
Vlad the Impaler

From the name Vlad III Dracula (also known as Vlad Țepeș (“Vlad the Impaler”)), from the name of his father Vlad II Dracul, who was given the name Dracul by the Order of the Dragon. Dracul (literally “the Devil”) comes from the Romanian drac (“devil”), itself deriving from the Latin dracō (“dragon”).

(fiction) The fictional vampire in the novel of the same name by Bram Stoker.


Peter

en-proper noun

Peter (countable and uncountable, plural Peters)

From Middle English Peter, from Old English Petrus, from Latin Petrus, from Ancient Greek Πέτρος (Pétros), from πέτρος (pétros, “stone, rock”). Doublet of Pedro, Piers, and Boutros.

A census-designated place in Cache County, Utah, United States, named after Peter Maughan.


So, given the ever growing list of J6ers that are real estate agents...has anyone looked into whether they attended whatever grift it was that 45 had going about training folks to be real estate agents?
(Tonight's random thought)

2022 September 5, Chirparrooo, Twitter, archived from the original on 2022-09-06:

(US politics, slang) Donald Trump, as the forty-fifth president of the United States.


Shakespearean sonnet

en-noun

Shakespearean sonnet (plural Shakespearean sonnets)

Named after English playwright and poet William Shakespeare (1564–1616) and strongly associated with his authorship.

named-after

(poetry) A sonnet comprising three quatrains and a final couplet, in iambic pentameter with the rhyme scheme of abab cdcd efef gg.


Romeo

From Italian Romeo, from Ancient Greek Ῥωμαῖος (Rhōmaîos, “Roman”).

der

(fiction) One of the main characters of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare: the ardent lover of Juliet.


Shakespearean

en-adj

Shakespearean (comparative more Shakespearean, superlative most Shakespearean)

more Shakespearean (comparative)
most Shakespearean (superlative)

Derivative of Shakespeare's works or authorship.


James

en-proper noun

James (countable and uncountable, plural Jameses)

⇒ English: Jim (diminutive)

⇒ English: Jimmy, Jimmie, Jimmi, Jimi (diminutive)

⇒ English: Jimbo (diminutive)

→ Hindi: जिम्बो (jimbo)

→ Hawaiian: Kimo

⇒ English: Jem (diminutive)

⇒ English: Jemmy (diminutive)

⇒ English: Jamie, Jamey (diminutive)

⇒ English: Jay (diminutive)

desc

→ Chinese: → 詹姆斯 (Zhānmǔsī) (transliteration)

→ Cornish: Jammes, Jamma

→ Danish: James

→ Fijian: Semesa

→ Icelandic: James

desctree

→ Irish: Séamas, Séamus, Seumas
→ English: Seamus, Shamus

→ Manx: Jayms

→ Maori: Hemi

→ Samoan: Semisi

→ Scottish Gaelic: Seumas
→ English: Hamish

→ Swedish: James

→ Welsh: Siâms

The English New Testament form of Jacob, from Middle English James, from Old French James, from Vulgar Latin Iacomus, spoken and altered pronunciation of Latin Iacobus, from Ancient Greek Ἰάκωβος (Iákōbos), from Ἰακώβ (Iakṓb), from Hebrew יַעֲקֹב (Yaʿăqōḇ). Doublet of Jacques, Jacob, Iago, Jago, Yago, Hamish, Seamus, and Santiago. In reference to the Ecuadorian island, a modification of the earlier name Duke of York's Island after its eponymous duke's coronation as James II of England.
See Occitan Jacme for an intermediary between Old French James and Catalan Jaume.

der

Hebrew יַעֲקֹב (Yaʿăqōḇ)

doublet

[…] And Normans call me James Fitz-James. / Thus watch I o'er insulted laws, / Thus learn to right the injured cause. […]

1810, Walter Scott, “Canto VI. The Guard-room.”, in The Lady of the Lake; […], Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for John Ballantyne and Co.; London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme, and William Miller, →OCLC, stanza XXVIII, page 286:

Heaven only knows why a man with a strong biblical name like James wants to be a president named Jimmy.

1979 Charles Kuralt, Dateline America, Harcourt Brace Jovanocich, page 184

A male given name from Hebrew popular since the Middle Ages. Also a common middle name.

An unincorporated community in Jones County, Georgia, United States.

An unincorporated community in Plymouth County, Iowa, United States.

A township in Timiskaming District, north-eastern Ontario, Canada.


Dubya

Representing a southern United States pronunciation of W, the middle initial of George W. Bush.

(often derogatory) A nickname for and abbreviation of George W. Bush.


Leah

And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well-favoured.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 29:16-17::

(biblical) The elder daughter of Laban, sister to Rachel, and first wife of Jacob.


Rachel

From Late Latin Rāchēl, from Ancient Greek Ῥαχήλ (Rhakhḗl), from Biblical Hebrew רָחֵל (rāḫēl, “ewe”). Doublet of Raquel.

And Laban had two daughters: the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was beautiful and well favoured. And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 29:16–18:

(biblical) Younger daughter of Laban, sister to Leah, and second wife of Jacob.

Rachel is another modest, nun-like name, of the same order as Judith, and has the appropriate signification of a lamb.

1849 The Massachusetts Teacher, Massachusetts Teachers' Association, Vol. 2,page 26, January 1849

She keeps saying, You are mistaken Rachel. She says my name in that heavy earnest way. The Jewish Ra-chel. I like my name like that. I have always been pleased when people said Ra-chel. But when she says it, it is as if she was taking me over. Through my name.

1979, Doris Lessing, Shikasta, Knopf, published 1979, →ISBN, page 293:

I recognize that a name like Rachel goes against my whole "ordering a different dish from everyone else at the table" rule, but sometimes you really want a steak, and that's exactly what you should get. I love the name we gave our daughter. It's not dorky, not too whimsical, and not too stuck-up. To us it sounded sweet, sporty, smart, and beautiful. It also works well with Sachs.

2010, Rob Sachs, What Would Rob Do?, John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN:

A census-designated place in Lincoln County, Nevada, United States; named for the first baby born in the town.

A census-designated place in Marion County, West Virginia, United States; named for the daughter of a local mine owner.


gollumish

en-adj

gollumish (comparative more gollumish, superlative most gollumish)

more gollumish (comparative)
most gollumish (superlative)

2003: "I do feel a bit Gollumish about it…" —alt.support.low-carb, 12 Nov 2003

2004: "With the gollumish Tony Blair never far away, urging him on, George W Bush doggedly climbed his own Mt Doom and thrust the Coalition of the Willing into the fire – along with a few thousand apparently expendable human lives." —The New Zealand Listener, Vol 191, "2003 reloaded", 27 Jan 2004

(informal) Having similar traits to the fictional character Gollum, including obsessiveness, sinisterness or talking in an unusual manner often punctuated by hissing sounds.


balrog

From Sindarin, a fictional language created by J.R.R. Tolkien, meaning something akin to "mighty demon".

The Balrog made no answer. The fire in it seemed to die, but the darkness grew. It stepped forward slowly on to the bridge, and suddenly it drew itself up to a great height, and its wings were spread from wall to wall […]

1954, J. R. R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring:

What was released was a demon, a balrog of pure sexual energy which had been denied for too long.

2004, post on newsgroup, alt.sex.bondage:

[…] is just a big goofy Balrog as far as I'm concerned, he might make a "Green Dot" poster scared; the big dweeb.

2004, post on newsgroup, rec.skiing.alpine:

[And now, a warp-drive round of Confirm or Deny.][...]
Gandalf the Grey was cooler than Gandalf the White.
Hmm, that’s a tough one. I think in some ways he was cooler, but he kind of needed to defeat the Balrog in order to become a better wizard, I guess, and play a bigger role in defeating Sauron. But he was definitely more chill as Gandalf the Grey and had a better sense of humor.

2020 July 25, Maureen Dowd, Elon Musk, “Elon Musk, Blasting Off in Domestic Bliss”, in New York Times, archived from the original on 2020-07-25:


Gandalf

From Old Norse mythology Gandalfr (“elf with a magic staff”).

A male given name from the Germanic languages known in history, and in the books of Tolkien, but not usually bestowed on children.


Sindarin

Developed by J. R. R. Tolkien as a language in his fantasy works, in which the word Sindarin itself is not of Sindarin origin: it is a term in Quenya (another of Tolkien's constructed languages), derived from Sindar, the Quenya name for the people who spoke it, which in turn is derived from sinda (“grey”).

A constructed language, partly inspired by Welsh, spoken by certain elves and others in J. R. R. Tolkien's works.


Tolkien

Likely from Middle Low German Tolkin (literally “son of Tolk”), which is probably also related to Polish Tołkiny and German Tolksdorf, names for a Prussian town; the nickname Tolk is connected to Middle Low German tolk (“interpreter”), from Proto-Slavic *tъlkъ. J. R. R. Tolkien subscribed to a folk etymology that connected the name with German tollkühn (“foolhardy”).

der

(countable) A surname.
British author J. R. R. Tolkien


Middle-earth

Alternative form of Middle Earth: the Earth.


Gollum

A fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. In the story, he was originally known as Sméagol and later named Gollum after his habit of making "a horrible swallowing noise in his throat".
The name, Sméagol, comes from Old English smeagan (“to burrow”).

A person who bears the traits or has the characteristics of Gollum in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth.


Maggie

Maggie. Never in her life had she heard her mother called Maggie. It was a name from her youth, that dead time Jerene had never been allowed to talk about [- - -]. Her mother was Margaret now.

1986, David Leavitt, The Lost Language of Cranes, Houghton Mifflin, published 1997, →ISBN, page 127:

I could tell that some of the guests were confused by the name of Maggie―no-one had called her by that clunky, unfashionable name in years―

2004, Joanne Harris, Jigs & Reels, Doubleday, →ISBN, page 81:

A diminutive of the female given name Margaret.

(informal) Margaret Thatcher, former British prime minister.


shuffle off this mortal coil

en-verb

shuffle off this mortal coil (third-person singular simple present shuffles off this mortal coil, present participle shuffling off this mortal coil, simple past and past participle shuffled off this mortal coil)

shuffles off this mortal coil (present singular third-person)
shuffling off this mortal coil (participle present)
shuffled off this mortal coil (participle past)
shuffled off this mortal coil (past)

From Hamlet by William Shakespeare, see mortal coil.

For in that ſleepe of death, what dreames may come, / When we haue ſhuffel'd off this mortall coile, / Muſt giue vs pawſe.

c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i], page 265, column 2:

But when you and I shuffle off this mortal coil, formal remembrances won’t be the only way we are remembered.

2011 April 19, Sumit Paul-Choudhury, “Digital legacy: The fate of your online soul”, in NewScientist:

Handsome, with a Freud-like beard and piercing eyes, it was also said that he had perfected the death stare. Whenever he required the skeleton of some exotic beast to compare with his fossil bones, he would visit Basel Zoo and stare at the appropriate animal, which would soon thereafter shuffle off its mortal coil.

2018, Tim Flannery, Europe: A Natural History, page 81:

(euphemistic, idiomatic) To die; to divest oneself of one's mortal body.


TDS

Trump derangement syndrome
Trump derangement syndrome#English

(US politics, uncountable) Initialism of Trump derangement syndrome.


Star Wars

[ˈstɑɹ ˈwɔɹz]

[ˈstɑ˞ ˈwɔɹz]

From the original name of the science fantasy motion picture Star Wars (1977).

Strategic Defense Initiative
Strategic Defense Initiative

(informal, military) The United States Strategic Defense Initiative.


Garfield

Also Garfeld, from Old English gār (“spear”) + feld (“field”).

Mountain View County
Mountain View County#English

A community of Mountain View County, Alberta, Canada, named after US president James A. Garfield.

A number of places in the United States:

A census-designated place in Chaffee County, Colorado.

An unincorporated community in Bonner County, Idaho.

Bonneville County
Bonneville County#English

Jefferson County
Jefferson County#English

An unincorporated community in Bonneville County and Jefferson County, Idaho, named after the US president.

An unincorporated community in Oregon County, Missouri, named after the president.

A city in Bergen County, New Jersey, renamed after the president.

A minor city in Whitman County, Washington, named after the president.


Hoover

The surname is an anglicization of German Huber or Low German Hufer, originally designating a landowner or a prosperous small-scale farmer. The common noun and verb are taken from the brand name of one of the first vacuum cleaners (see hoover).

An unincorporated community in Garvin County, Oklahoma, named after physician Daniel H. Hoover.


Saint Nicholas

No more passion play / On St. Nicholas avenue / I believe in St. Nicholas / It's a different type of Santa Claus

2004, “Good Friday”, in La maison de mon rêve, performed by Cocorosie:

Santa Claus; a figure derived from traditions surrounding the historical Saint Nicholas who is said to bring Christmas presents to children on Christmas Day.


Dickensian

en-adj

Dickensian (comparative more Dickensian, superlative most Dickensian)

more Dickensian (comparative)
most Dickensian (superlative)

From Dickens (the surname of Charles Dickens (1812–1870)) + -ian (suffix forming adjectives or nouns meaning ‘belonging to, relating to, or like’).

af

Of, pertaining to, or created by the English author Charles Dickens.

dickensià

of, pertaining to, or created by the English author Charles Dickens

a Dickensian name

Similar to Dickens' writing style, especially in commenting on society, or in using emotion, humour, or rich descriptions.

At last the first glimpse from a bridge of an open-top red bus, and a noticeable darkening of the atmosphere from the smoke of London: then the increasingly dingy stations with double-barrel names, set amid what has always been to me the outstanding feature of the "Premier Line" approach to London—the positively marvellous display of crazy chimney-pots on the grey inner suburban houses. As many as twenty, all of varying style, standing together like ranks of jagged teeth, and providing a Dickensian back-cloth which no other route can boast.

1951 October, R. S. McNaught, “Lines of Approach”, in Railway Magazine, page 704:

As though in expiation of their sires' wealth, schoolboys often had to live in conditions that would have disgraced a Dickensian workhouse.

1988, Cecil D. Eby, “Playing the Game”, in The Road to Armageddon: The Martial Spirit in English Popular Literature 1870–1914, Durham, N.C., London: Duke University Press, →ISBN, page 89:

As earlier implied, the planet is threatened on three major fronts: […] (3) by a Dickensian world of wretched excess and wretched despair.

1993, William Sloane Coffin, “A Vision of the Future”, in A Passion for the Possible: A Message to U.S. Churches, Louisville, Ky.: Westminster/John Knox Press, →ISBN, page 10:

Down in the subway under the roundabout the looming social ordeal started to weigh down on me, […] By the time I pressed a huge and over-polished brass bell I'd devolved into a shifty-eyed, cinder-cheeked Dickensian urchin, and when the door opened I half expected to see Mrs Bridges throw up her fat, floury hands and scream for the cook's boy.

2001 February, Tim Moore, “Prologue”, in Frost on My Moustache: The Arctic Exploits of a Lord and a Loafer, New York, N.Y.: St. Martin’s Griffin, St. Martin’s Press, →ISBN, page 2:

Leaning against piracy fits in with China's desire to cast off its image of a country where exploited workers toil for a pittance in Dickensian factories that turn the air and water black with the pollution they discharge.

2008 September 15, Alan Wheatley, “China getting higher marks for tackling piracy”, in Reuters, archived from the original on 2010-04-23:

Reminiscent of the environments and situations most commonly portrayed in Dickens' writings, such as poverty, social injustice, and other aspects of Victorian England.

dickensià

reminiscent of the environments and situations most commonly portrayed in Dickens’ writings, such as poverty, social injustice, and other aspects of Victorian England


Dickensian

A person who admires or studies the works of Charles Dickens.


Eber

(biblical) the son of Salah and the father of Joktan and Peleg.


slithy

Blend of lithe + slimy, coined by Lewis Carroll in 1871.

The squid wrapped its slithy tentacles around its prey.

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves / Did gyre and gimble in the wabe.

She wanted to wear these slithy, snaky gowns you see in the pictures in the hallways of the $3 photographers.

1906, Good Housekeeping, volume 43, page 130:

Such a carriage is known as “an araba,” or alternatively as an yaili—a name which is probably onomatopœic, for it is about the “slithiest” thing that runs on wheels.

1914, Edgar Thomas Ainger Wigram, The Cradle of Mankind: Life in Eastern Kurdistan:

Falling roof, hidden shafts, slithiest snakes could not have stopped me after that. I arrived in the sparkling area.

1917, Gertrude Singleton Mathews, Treasure, page 126:

He sweeps down; a frog is pinioned / Swift arrives his faithful soul-mate / True-loves share their slithy dinner.

2013, Jane Wilson-Howarth, A Glimpse of Eternal Snows:

The Beast, slithier even than the Jabberwock and certainly a deal more manxsome as a foe, grips in its claws a dreaded P45 from Piers marking the end of employment at Gussage Court.

2014, Timothy Edward, Lessons in Humiliation, page 157:

Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There


Elizabeth

en-proper noun

Elizabeth (countable and uncountable, plural Elizabeths)

From Middle English Elizabeth, from the Ancient Greek Ἐλισάβετ (Elisábet), a transliteration of the Old Testament Biblical Hebrew אלישבע (Elisheva, “my God is an oath”). See El and שבועה. Doublet of Elisheba.

der

A locale in the United States.
A village in Allen Parish, Louisiana.

A town, the county seat of Wirt County, West Virginia; named for early settler Elizabeth Woodyard Beauchamp.


Gabriel

From Latin Gabriel, from Ancient Greek Γαβρῑήλ (Gabrīḗl), from Hebrew גַּבְרִיאֵל (gaḇrīʾḗl, “God is my strong man”), from גֶּבֶר (géver, “strong man, hero”) and אֵל (ʾēl, “God, deity”), from Proto-Semitic *ʾil-. Doublet of Jibril.

Yea, it seems to me not fit for Christian humility to call a man Gabriel or Michael, giving the names of angels to the sons of mortality.

1629, Thomas Adams, Meditations upon Creed, The Works of Thomas Adams, James Nichol (1862), volume 3, page 212

"I'm the only Gabriel in the whole school," I told my father. "You don't have to whisper it from the tomb, lad. You should thank your mother and me for giving you a handle that people notice. You ought to be pleased, not down in the dumps. Backstreet Gabriels aren't bumped into on every corner, remember.

1986, Paul Bailey, Gabriel's Lament, Viking, published 1987, →ISBN, page 20:


Horace

From Latin Horatius, a Roman family name of obscure origin, possibly from Etruscan. Doublet of Horatio.


Nebuchadnezzar

/ˌnɛbəkəˈnɛzɚ/

Learned borrowing from Biblical Hebrew נְבוּכַדְנֶאצַּר (Nəḇûḵaḏneʾṣṣár), a corruption of earlier נְבוּכַדְרֶאצַּר (Nəḇûḵaḏreʾṣṣár), from Akkadian 𒀭𒀝𒃻𒁺𒋀 (Nabû-kudurrī-uṣur, “Nabu protect my boundary/heir”).

lbor

נְבוּכַדְנֶאצַּר

Nəḇûḵaḏneʾṣṣár

der

A ruler of Babylon in the Chaldean Dynasty who reigned c. 605 B.C.E. – 562 B.C.E.. According to the Bible, he conquered Judah and Jerusalem, and sent the Israelites into exile.


Spenser

From Middle English Spenser, from Middle English spenser (“spencer”), from spense (“spence”).

(countable) A surname originating as an occupation, variant of Spencer, a rare spelling variant of Spencer.


Akela

Borrowed from Hindustani اَکیلَا (akelā) / अकेला (akelā, “alone”).

A fictional wolf character in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book.


Chaucer

From Middle English Chaucer, from Old French chaucier (“hose-maker, hosier”), from chauces (“clothing for the legs, breeches, pantaloons, hose”). Compare the modern loanword chausse.

After all, the English hostel owes much of its charms to Chaucer; our associations are of his haunting pictures—his delicate Lady Prioress, his comely young squire, with their pleasant interchange of tale and legend, rise upon the mind's eye in all the fascination of his vivid delineations.

1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XVII, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume II, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 190:

Geoffrey Chaucer, a 14th-century English poet and author, best remembered for The Canterbury Tales; (by extension) his works.


deplorable

/dɪˈplɔːɹəbl̩/

PIE word
 *de
The adjective is borrowed from French déplorable (“lamentable, regrettable”), or from its etymon Late Latin dēplōrābilis + English -able (suffix meaning ‘relevant to, suitable to’). Dēplōrābilis is derived from Latin dēplōrō (“to bemoan, complain about; to bewail, lament, deplore”) + -ābilis (suffix meaning ‘able or worthy to be’); while dēplōrō is from dē- (intensifying prefix) + plōrō (“to cry out; to complain; to lament, deplore”) (possibly from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₃(w)- (“to flow; to swim”)). By surface analysis, deplore + -able.
The noun is derived from the adjective. Sense 2 refers to a campaign speech by the American politician and Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton (born 1947) during the 2016 United States presidential election calling half of the supporters of her Republican opponent Donald Trump (born 1946) a “basket of deplorables”.

der

He [Donald Trump] did not say who “the guys” were—but [John Maguire] Dowd knew he meant the Trump base, the crowds at his rallies, the Fox News watchers, the deplorables.

2018, Bob Woodward, Fear: Trump in the White House, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 355:

Trump's fate, [Steve] Bannon declared, rested with the deplorables, who had to be brought to the kind of fearful emotional pitch that would get them to the polls.

2019 June 4, Michael Wolff, “McCain, Woodward, Anonymous”, in Siege: Trump Under Fire, New York, N.Y.: Henry Holt and Company, →ISBN:

The self-image of the deplorables is that of the honest, hardworkin' people of the Christian American heartland and South who have been screwed by Washington, D.C., and the coastal elites since the dawn of time.

2020, Rick Wilson, Running against the Devil: A Plot to Save America from Trump—And Democrats from Themselves, New York, N.Y.: Crown Forum, Crown Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 265:

(specifically, US politics, derogatory, neologism) A supporter of Donald Trump.


Washington

en-proper noun

Washington (countable and uncountable, plural Washingtons)

Washington (the town in Tyne and Wear, northeast England): probably from the Old English place name Hwæssingatūn (literally “a settlement of the household of Hwæssa”), from Hwæssa (a Saxon chieftain's name) + -ing (“belonging to”) + tūn (“homestead, settlement”). It was attested in 1096 as Wasindone. Hwæssa is of uncertain origin, said to possibly correspond to waþ (“hunt”) + sige (“victory”), or possibly related to hwæte (“wheat”). There are other theories; more on Wikipedia.
The surname derives from the town, and most places in the United States are named for George Washington.

DC

The federal district and city are coterminous and the city government administers the district, so are jurisdictionally equivalent

Washington state
Washington state#English

Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest#English

Washington state (a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States; capital: Olympia; largest city: Seattle)

Several other locations in the United States, most of which are named for George Washington:

A ghost town in Autauga County, Alabama.

Litchfield County
Litchfield County#English

A town in Litchfield County, Connecticut.

Berkshire County
Berkshire County#English

A small town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts.

An unincorporated community in Macomb County, Michigan.

A small town in McClain County, Oklahoma, named for Caddo chief "Little Boy" Washington.

Eau Claire County
Eau Claire County#English

An unincorporated community in Door County, Wisconsin.


Cleopatra

From Middle English Cleopatra, from Ancient Greek Κλεοπάτρα (Kleopátra), meaning "glory of her father", from κλέος (kléos, “glory”) + πατήρ (patḗr, “father”).

Kleopatra

a given name of women in the Ptolemy dynasty

A given name of women in the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt; notably Queen Cleopatra VII of Egypt (69–30 BCE); last of the Ptolemy line.


Luke

From Latin Lūcās, from Koine Greek Λουκᾶς (Loukâs). See the Greek entry for more.

כרוזותא דלוקא

Kārōzūtā’ d'Lūqā’

ܟܪܘܙܘܬܐ ܕܠܘܩܐ

Kārōzūtā’ d'Lūqā’

Soiscéal Naofa Íosa Críost de réir Lúcáis

A town in Maryland, United States; named for papermaker William Luke.


Führer

Borrowed from German Führer, modelled after Italian Duce.

(historical, Nazism, definite) Adolf Hitler when he was the chancellor of Nazi Germany.


axis of evil

2002 State of the Union Address
George W. Bush
axis of evil

Coined by American political commentator David Frum in 2002 and first used publicly by President George W. Bush in the 2002 State of the Union Address. Possibly from a historical analogy to the German-Italian-Japanese axis. Extended to astrophysics by Portuguese scientist João Magueijo in 2005.

coin

I discussed Iraq with Gerhard during his visit to the White House on January 31, 2002. In my State of the Union address two days earlier, I had outlined the threats posed by Iraq, Iran, and North Korea. “States like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world,” I said. The media seized on the phrase “axis of evil.” They took the line to mean that the three countries had formed an alliance. That missed the point. The axis I referred to was the link between the governments that pursued WMD and the terrorists who could use those weapons. There was a larger point in the speech that no one could miss: I was serious about dealing with Iraq.

2010, George W. Bush, Decision Points, →ISBN, →OCLC, →OL, page 233:

Communist China is on a mission for dominance. At the helm of the New Axis of Evil, China has indicated they will invade independent countries and destroy democratic leadership to achieve that end. My recent visit to Taiwan made it abundantly clear that the leaders in Taiwan want the United States and our allies to stand with them as they fight to keep their independence.

2022 September 9, Marsha Blackburn, “We must stand with Taiwan”, in Tullahoma News, Tullahoma, Tennessee, archived from the original on 2022-09-11:

weapons of mass destruction
weapon of mass destruction

A group of states accused by George W. Bush of sponsoring terrorism and seeking weapons of mass destruction, originally defined as Iran, Iraq, and North Korea.

مِحْوَر اَلشَّرّ

states supposedly sponsoring terrorism and seeking weapons of mass destruction


Herodotus

/həˈɹɒdətəs/

/həˈɹɑːdətəs/

From Latin Hērodotus, from Ancient Greek Ἡρόδοτος (Hēródotos).

An ancient historian who lived from 484 to 425 BC.


Shakespeare

→ Vietnamese: Sếch-xpia

A common Middle English surname meaning spearman, corresponding to shake (“to brandish a weapon”) + spear.

William Shakespeare, an English playwright and poet of the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.

A village in Perth East township, Ontario, Canada, named after the playwright.


Hitler

The surname Hitler is a variation of Hiedler, a surname applied to those who resided near a Hiedl (“subterranean river”) (Bavarian dialect). Earlier theories derived the surname from Hüttler (also spelled Huettler), either meaning "one who lives in a hut", from Hütte (“hut”), or from hüten (“guard, look after”).

The British ruling class are fighting against Hitler, whom they have always regarded and whom some of them still regard as their protector against Bolshevism. That does not mean that they will deliberately sell out; but it does mean that at every decisive moment they are likely to falter, pull their punches, do the wrong thing. Until the Churchill Government called some sort of halt to the process, they have done the wrong thing with an unerring instinct ever since 1931.

1941, George Orwell, The Lion and the Unicorn, Pt. II:

What is one curious about when he asks, What is evil? The question makes no sense, unless the questioner is satisfied with such answers as: Death is evil, pain is evil, Hitler is evil.

1964, David Hugh Freeman, A Philosophical Study of Religion, page 241:

...the description we give of God’s knowledge concerning Hitler has to be different after Hitler’s death; it is manifest that there has been a change on Hitler’s side, and that this, in view of the logic of omniscience, makes a difference to what we can truly say about God’s knowledge; it is not manifest that there must have been a real change of mind on God's side. And Aquinas can say this...

1977, Peter Thomas Geach, Providence and Evil, page 41:

Mueller is even less convincing in his suggestion that World War II might never have happened if Hitler had never been born.

1994, Karen A. Rasler, William R. Thompson, The great powers and global struggle, 1490-1990:

People do evil things (Hitler, Stalin, Saddam Hussein).

2007, Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion:

Ellipsis of Adolf Hitler; Führer of the Nazi Party and chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945; particularly as the embodiment of Nazism.


Hesiod

Semi-learned borrowing from Latin Hēsiodus, from Ancient Greek Ἡσίοδος (Hēsíodos).

slbor

Ancient Greek poet and rhapsodist of the 8th century BCE, known as the first author of didactic verse


Democritus

From Ancient Greek Δημόκριτος (Dēmókritos).

A Greek philosopher (c.460-c.370 BC). The originator of the atomic theory together with his teacher Leucippus.


Einstein

Borrowed from German Einstein.
* The common noun is an eponym of Albert Einstein.

Men of Science More or Less Agog Over Results of Eclipse Observations.
EINSTEIN THEORY TRIUMPHS
Stars Not Where They Seemed or Were Calculated to be, but Nobody Need Worry.
A BOOK FOR 12 WISE MEN
No More in All the World Could Comprehend it, Said Einstein When His Daring Publishers Accepted it.

1919 November 10, “LIGHTS ALL ASKEW IN THE HEAVENS”, in New York Times:

Einstein said he could never understand it all / Planets spinning through space

1977, James Taylor (lyrics and music), “Secret O' Life”, in JT, Columbia Records:

Gaston: Picasso, Einstein, Schmendiman. Somehow it doesn't have a ring.

1993, Steve Martin, Picasso at the Lapin Agile:

We're sitting in a coffee shop in Sunnyvale, California. It's late. I've had a few beers, and my dinner date has downed a few plum wines. I peer deep into his eyes, trying to figure out why so many people throughout the high tech universe think Henry Massalin could be the Einstein of our time.

1996 December, Gary Andrew Poole, “Qua”, in Wired, →ISSN:

If Einstein, my dear / Were a toll booth cashier / I imagine he too would be [bored]

2000 January 22, Listener Limerick Challenge: Wait, Wait...Don’t Tell Me!, spoken by Carl Kasell, via National Public Radio:

theoretical physicist
theoretical physicist

theory of relativity
theory of relativity

Albert Einstein, the world-famous 20th-century theoretical physicist who developed the theory of relativity.


Xenophanes

From Ancient Greek Ξενοφάνης (Xenophánēs). The name means “of foreign appearance” and is composed of ξένος (xénos, “foreign”) + φαίνω (phaínō, “appear”).

Lucretius was the Xenophanes of Roman culture, a great theorist (visionary), an ardent disciple of Universal Nature, an enemy of all superstition, false gods, and false fear of death, […]

1931, Hermann Schneider, Margaret Minna Green, The History of World Civilization, volume 2, page 614:

No Xenophanes arose amongst the Jews to rebuke them for ascribing to Jahweh acts which would be accounted a shame and a disgrace amongst men; […]

1970, John Arthur Passmore, The Perfectibility of Man, page 77:

Euthyphro is no Xenophanes but as a religious and thinking man he can turn to great teachers; […]

1985, Michael Despland, The Education of Desire, page 33:

The pre-Socratic philosopher Xenophanes of Colophon; by extension or reference, any profound or transformative religious thinker.


Uzziel

From Hebrew עֻזִּיאֵל (“strength of God”).


Philip

en-proper noun

Philip (countable and uncountable, plural Philips)

From Middle English Philip, ultimately from Ancient Greek Φίλιππος (Phílippos), name of ancient kings of Macedonia, from φίλιππος (phílippos, “fond of horses”), from φιλέω (philéō, “I love”) + ἵππος (híppos, “horse”).

af

A small city, the county seat of Haakon County, South Dakota, United States.

appeal from Philip drunk to Philip sober


Plutarch

Via Latin Plūtarchus from Ancient Greek Πλούτᾰρχος (Ploútarkhos).

I am indebted to […]those masterly pen and ink portraits of many of our deceased ministers drawn by the lamented Professor Stoever, in the Evangelical Review, whom I designated some years ago as the Plutarch of the Lutheran Church of America.

1878, John G. Morris, Fifty Years in the Lutheran Ministry, →OL, page 11:

Some day a Plutarch, without a Plutarch's prejudice will arise, and with malice toward none but charity for all, he will write the life of the statesman, Gladstone.

1895, Elbert Hubbard, Gladstone, →OL, page 100:

I must in candor admit that the Plutarch of piracy is sometimes more edifying than entertaining.

1903, Samuel McChord Crothers, The Gentle Reader, →LCCN, →OL, page 132:

The classical historian and essayist Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus (46-120 C.E.). Often used as a byword for a biographer, to suggest that the writer is especially skilled or has other attributes associated with Plutarch.


Isaac

en-proper noun

Isaac (countable and uncountable, plural Isaacs)

→ Pohnpeian: Aisek

From Middle English Ysaac, from Latin Isaac, from Ancient Greek Ἰσαάκ (Isaák), from Hebrew יצחק (Yiṣḥāq, literally “he laughs, he will laugh”). Explained in Genesis as referring to his mother Sarah’s laughing when she was told she would have a son at her old age. The verb is masculine, however, perhaps due to its use as a boy’s name.

der

Isaac Region, a local government area in central Queensland, Australia, named after the Isaac River.


brillig

'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves / Did gyre and gimble in the wabe

A nonce word in Lewis Carroll's Jabberwocky, explained by Humpty Dumpty as "four o'clock in the afternoon — the time when you begin broiling things for dinner."


Jackson

en-proper noun

Jackson (countable and uncountable, plural Jacksons)

Cape Girardeau County
Cape Girardeau County#English

A number of places in the United States:

A city, the county seat of Cape Girardeau County, Missouri.

Beaverhead County
Beaverhead County#English

An unincorporated community in Beaverhead County, Montana.


Tennyson

From a Middle English variant of Dennis + -son.


Franklin

en-prop

Franklin (countable and uncountable, plural Franklins)

From Middle English frankelein (“freeholder”), see franklin. The place names are mostly named after American statesman Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790).

named-after

census-designated place
census-designated place

A census-designated place in Merced County, California.

Sacramento County
Sacramento County#English

A census-designated place in Sacramento County, California.

A borough of Cambria County, Pennsylvania.

Milwaukee County
Milwaukee County#English

A city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin; suburb of Milwaukee.

Manitowoc County
Manitowoc County#English

Sheboygan County
Sheboygan County#English

An unincorporated community in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin.


Alfred

→ Danish: Alfred

Esperanto: Alfredo

Faroese: Alfred

→ Finnish: Alfred

French: Alfred

→ German: Alfred

Greek: Αλφρέδος (Alfrédos)

Italian: Alfredo

Norman: Alfred

→ Norwegian: Alfred

Portuguese: Alfredo

desctree

Spanish: Alfredo
Cebuano: Alfredo
Tagalog: Alfredo

→ Swedish: Alfred

From Middle English Alfred, from Old English Ælfrǣd, from ælf (“elf”) + rǣd (“counsel”). Doublet of Alfredo and Avery.
The modern pronunciation with /f/ is a spelling pronunciation; the name in Old English was pronounced with [v], as shown in its Middle English descendant Alured (in which u stands for modern v).

Unfortunately for me my father had combined diplomacy with a study of Anglo-Saxon history and, of course with my mother's consent, he gave me the name of Alfred, one of his heroes ( I believe she had boggled at Aelfred ). This Christian name, for some inexplicable reason, had become corrupted in the eyes of our middle-class world; it belonged exclusively now to the working class and was usually abbreviated to Alf. Perhaps that was why Doctor Fisher, the inventor of Dentophil Bouquet, never called me anything but Jones, even after I married his daughter.

1980, Graham Greene, Doctor Fisher of Geneva, or the Bomb Party (fiction), →OCLC:

You give a kid a name like Cameron / or Alfred, or something like that, / and they end up wearing glasses / and looking at computers for the rest of their life.

1998, Steven Herrick, A Place Like This (fiction), University of Queensland Press, →ISBN, page 86:

A town, the county seat of York County, Maine, United States.

A town in Allegany County, New York, United States.

Alfred and Plantagenet
Alfred and Plantagenet#English

A community of Alfred and Plantagenet township, Ontario, Canada.


Vercingetorix

From Latin Vercingetorix, from Gaulish *Werkingetorīx (literally “super-warrior-king, king of super-warriors”), from Gaulish *wer- (“over”) + *kingess (“warrior”) + *rīx (“king”), from Proto-Celtic *uɸor- (“over, super-”) + *kengets (“warrior”) + *rīxs (“king”), from Proto-Indo-European *upér (“over, above”) + *(s)keng- (“to limp, walk lamely”) + *h₃rḗǵs (“ruler”).

der

72 BCE–46 BCE, the chieftain of the Arverni, leader of the great Gallic revolt against the Romans in 53–52 BCE.


JFK

John Fitzgerald Kennedy
w:John F. Kennedy

(US politics) Initialism of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th US president.


JFK

A half-dollar coin in honor of president John F. Kennedy.


JFK

en-verb

JFK (third-person singular simple present JFKs, present participle JFKing, simple past and past participle JFKed)

JFKs (present singular third-person)
JFKing (participle present)
JFKed (participle past)
JFKed (past)

I am not saying choosing McCain would necesarrily^([sic]) lead to Kerry getting JFKed but Democratic presidential runners need to be aware of the problem.

2004 April 5, JonZ, “Poll Picks McCain as Kerry's Vice President”, in alt.politics.bush (Usenet):

The way he is decimating the CIA will more likely get him JFKed.

2009 November 14, Eddie Haskell, “Obama resists Pentagon pressure on Afghanistan quagmire - will he be JFKed?”, in alt.fan.rush-limbaugh (Usenet):

If Obama tried to do the right thing he'd be JFKed. If Obama tried to live up to his promises, if he opposed the neocons and military-industrial complex ...

2010 June 20, Johnny Asia, “If Obama tried to do the right thing he'd be JFKed”, in alt.politics (Usenet):

(transitive, slang) To put to death; to assassinate, especially for political reasons.


Bushism

From Bush + -ism, named after American presidents George W. Bush (1946–) and George H. W. Bush (1924–2018).

named-after

A turn of phrase employed by President George W. Bush that is unintentionally comical due to grammatical errors, malapropisms, etc.


Saint George

Saint George
Saint George (disambiguation)

The parishes are named after Saint George (d. 303).

Charlotte County
Charlotte County#English

A civil parish of Charlotte County, New Brunswick, Canada.


Augustus

From Latin Augustus, from augustus (“majestic, venerable”). Doublet of august.

And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Luke 2:1:

The Roman emperor Augustus, also called Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (63 B.C.E. – 14 C.E.); heir to Julius Caesar


Bushian

en-adj

Bushian (comparative more Bushian, superlative most Bushian)

more Bushian (comparative)
most Bushian (superlative)

2004 October 23, Geoffrey K. Pullum, “Bushian tautologies? I don't think so”, in Language Log:

Of or pertaining to a person named Bush, in particular and usually President of the United States, George W. Bush:


Laplace

en-proper noun

Laplace (countable and uncountable, plural Laplaces)

(countable) A surname from French, famously held by:

(mathematics) Pierre-Simon Laplace, French mathematician 1749-1827, used attributively in the names of various mathematical concepts named after him (see "Derived terms" below)


Plato

Via Latin Plato, from Ancient Greek Πλάτων (Plátōn), from πλατύς (platús, “broad, wide”), either because of Plato's robust body, or wide forehead or the breadth of his eloquence.

My name is Plato Jones. Plato Constantine Jones. Plato because my mother is Greek, and Jones because my father is Welsh, and Constantine after his father, my grandfather, who is Constantine Llewellyn Jones.

1993, Nina Bawden, The Real Plato Jones, Houghton Miffin Harcourt, →ISBN, page 1:

The Greek philosopher, 427–347 BC, follower of Socrates.


Odysseus

(Greek mythology) The son of Laertes and Anticlea and father of Telemachus. A Greek leader during the Trojan War, he was responsible for the Trojan horse. He was also king of Ithaca, hero of the Iliad and protagonist of the Odyssey.

Odusseus

son of Laertes; Greek leader during the Trojan War


Jabberwocky

The name of a nonsense poem from the children's book Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (1872) by Lewis Carroll. Apparently based on the Jabberwock, the monster described therein, with the suffix -y in imitation of classical epics such as the Odyssey.

A nonsensical poem that appears in Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll.


Rebecca

The Vulgate (Latin) form of biblical Rebekah, from Hebrew רִבְקָה (Rivka, “enchantingly beautiful, captivating, snare”).

der

Colonel George Rice Trevor testified that the Rebeccas attacked poor-houses as well as tollgates.

2019, Marsha R. Robinson, Disobedient Histories in Ancient and Modern Times, page 82:

(historical) One who protested in the Rebecca Riots; a Rebeccaite.


bully pulpit

From bully (“(US, slang) very good”) + pulpit (“raised desk, lectern, or platform for an orator or public speaker”), said to have been coined by the United States President Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) who used the term to refer to his office, by which he meant a terrific platform from which one can advocate an agenda: see the 1909 quotation.

compound

He [Theodore Roosevelt] was sitting at his desk reading to us his forthcoming Message. He had just finished a paragraph of a distinctly ethical character, when he suddenly stopped, swung round in his swivel chair, and said: "I suppose my critics will call that preaching, but I have got such a bully pulpit!"

1909 February 27, Lyman Abbott, “A Review of President Roosevelt’s Administration: Its Influence on Patriotism and Public Service”, in Lyman Abbott, editor, The Outlook, volume XCI, New York, N.Y.: The Outlook Company, →OCLC, page 430, column 1:

“The only option is to continue raising the issue, making it a political fight and using the bully pulpit to get more attention,” the [White House] source said.

2024, unnamed source, quoted in: James Oliphant, Joseph Ax, and Bad Brooks, Republicans scramble to contain backlash from IVF court ruling, Reuters, published in: The Christian Science Monitor, February 26 2024

At a leadership level, Ms. Hurst wishes that lawmakers would use their bully pulpit to convene constituents for more of the sorts of conversations that took place in Portugal.

2024 July 10, Stephen Humphries, Alfredo Sosa, “Stick, meet Carrot. How Portland police and activists teamed up to fight addiction.”, in The Christian Science Monitor:

(US, chiefly politics) An advantageous position from which to express one's views, especially a political office.


Hercules

head

Hercules (plural Herculeses or Hercules or (obsolete) Herculesses or (obsolete) Hercules's)

Herculeses (plural)
Hercules (plural)
Herculesses (obsolete plural)
Hercules's (obsolete plural)

From Latin Herculēs, from Etruscan 𐌇𐌄𐌓𐌂𐌋𐌄 (hercle), from Ancient Greek Ἡρακλῆς (Hēraklês), apparently cognate of Ἥρα (Hḗra, “Hera”) and, according to Haudry, from Proto-Indo-European *yóh₁r̥ (“year, season”) + κλέος (kléos, “glory”).

der

Contra Costa County
Contra Costa County#English

A city in Contra Costa County, California, United States.


Heine

A surname from German, notably of Heinrich Heine, a German poet.


scrooge

From the character Ebenezer Scrooge in the Charles Dickens' novel A Christmas Carol.

A miserly person; a person with an excessive dislike of spending money or other resources.

A person who is grumpy about the Christmas holidays.


scrooge

en-verb

scrooge (third-person singular simple present scrooges, present participle scrooging, simple past and past participle scrooged)

scrooges (present singular third-person)
scrooging (participle present)
scrooged (participle past)
scrooged (past)

So he scraped and scratched and scrabbled and scrooged, then he scrooged again[.]

1908, Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows, London: Wordsworth Classics, published 1993, page 12:

(UK, US, dialect) To crush or press; to squeeze (past, into, together, etc.).


Napoleon

From French Napoléon, from Italian Napoleone, name of an early saint, of uncertain origin; possibly from the Germanic clan name Nibelung. By folk etymology explained as Napoli (“Naples”) + leone (“lion”).

Alternative form: Napoléon

Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821), a French military commander and political leader.


Malthus

Enough for us to understand that Heuschrecke is a disciple of Malthus ; and so zealous for the doctrine, that his zeal almost literally eats him up.

1831, Thomas Carlyle, “Helotage”, in Sartor Resartus: The Life and Opinions of Herr Teufelsdröckh. […], London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, 3rd book, page 156:

Thomas Malthus, English demographer and political economist, who proposed the view that population growth always exceeds the growth of the necessary food supply.


Baloo

The use as a proper noun stems from its use as the name of a bear in Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book. The character was named from the Hindi word भालू (bhālū, “bear”).


Abigail

From Hebrew אֲבִיגַיִל (avigáyil, “Abigail”, literally “my Father's joy” or “fountain of joy”).

bor

The name of Abigail Adams is naturally closely associated with those of her illustrious father and mother, - - - Born in 1765, the mother's quaint Christian name was given to the little girl

1912 Edith Tunis Sale: Old Time Belles and Cavaliers. J.B.Lippincott 1912. page 178

A female given name from Hebrew, used since the 16th century, and currently quite popular.


Barak

And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the Lord God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Judges 4:16:

(biblical) The commander of the army of Deborah in the Old Testament.

A male given name from Hebrew of biblical origin, often representing a transliteration of a modern Israeli name.

A surname transferred from the given name, often representing a transliteration of a modern Israeli name.


Barak

From Arabic بَارَك (bārak, “he who is blessed”). Cognate with the biblical name Baruch of Hebrew origin. The usage of the root ب ر ك (b r k) as a male name meaning "blessing" occurs in the Ancient Semitic Sabean (barqac), in Palmyrene (baraq), and as a Divine name in Assyrian Ramman-Birqu and Gibil-Birqu


Bloody Mary

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Bloody Mary.wav


Aquila

Salute Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 2 Timothy 4:19:

An early Christian, the husband of Priscilla.


Cook

en-proper noun

Cook (countable and uncountable, plural Cooks)

Audio (US)

Audio (AU)

some speakers from Northern England and Ireland

cuck (most accents without the foot-strut split)

The Shire of Cook, a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia.


Dryden

An English and Scottish habitational surname from Old English, from Old English drȳġe (“dry”) + denu (“valley”).


Drake

* As an English surname, from both senses of the noun drake meaning "male duck" and "dragon."
* As a German surname, from Low German drake (“dragon”), related to the above.
* As a Dutch surname, Americanized/West Flemish variant of Draak, also related to the above.

An unincorporated community in Yavapai County, Arizona.


Elvish

These difficult runes are written in Elvish.


Dickens

From Dicken, a medieval diminutive form of Dick + the patronymic suffix -s.

A small city, the county seat of Dickens County, Texas, United States.


Abraham

Etymology tree
Hebrew אַבְרָהָםbor.
Ancient Greek Ἀβραάμ (Abraám)bor.
Latin Ābrahāmbor.
Old English Abraham
Middle English Abraham
English Abraham
From Middle English Abraham, from Old English Abraham, from Late Latin Ābrahām, from Ancient Greek Ἀβρᾱᾱ́μ (Abrāā́m), from Hebrew אַבְרָהָם ('aḇrāhām, “Abraham”). Glossed as אַב (aḇ, “father of”) + הֲמוֹן (hăˈmōn, “multitude of”) in Genesis 17:4–5; or from Hebrew אַבְרָם ('aḇrām, “Abram”). Doublet of Ibrahim and Avraham.

etymon

Neither ſhall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name ſhall bee Abraham: for a father of many nations haue I made thee.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 17:5, column 2:

As one would expect of caravan people around 1900 B.C., the caravan people depicted in the Khnum-hotpe grave had donkeys, whereas the Bible says that Abraham and his people, who according to the traditional interpretation are supposed to have lived at the same period, already possessed camels.

1980, Werner Keller, chapter 7, in William Neil, transl., The Bible as History, page 93:

The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles

Oxford University Press
w:Oxford University Press

(Abrahamism) A prophet in the Old Testament, Qur'an and Aqdas; a Semitic patriarch son of Terah who practiced monotheism, father of the Jewish patriarch Isaac by Sarah and the Arab patriarch Ishmael by Hagar.

"Lincoln wasn't a Jew, was he?" he said. "I'm sure not," I said. […] "The name Abraham is very suspicious, to say the least," said Goebbels. "I'm sure his parents didn't realize that it was a Jewish name," I said. "They must have just liked the sound of it. They were simple frontier people. If they'd known the name was Jewish, I'm sure they would have called him something more American, like George or Stanley or Fred."

1961, Kurt Vonnegut, Mother Night, Dell, published 1975, page 28:


Abraham

Charles G[odfrey] Leland
w:Charles Godfrey Leland

John S[tephen] Farmer
w:John Stephen Farmer

(archaic, British slang, chiefly London) A shop selling cheap and low-quality clothes, especially in the East End of London.


Duke

en-proper noun

Duke (countable and uncountable, plural Dukes)

A township in Harnett County, North Carolina, United States.


Fermi

Fermi (countable and uncountable, plural Fermis or Fermies)


Fowler

From fowler. The medical term is named after Dr. George Ryerson Fowler, the German surgeon developer of the position.

A number of places in the United States:


Barca

2000 April 19, BBC Online, "Football News":

There's only one Barca

Chelsea and Barca clash once again

Giovani committed to Barca

association football
association football

(informal, soccer) FC Barcelona, a prominent Spanish association football club.


Galileo

/ˌɡæl.ɪˈleɪ.əʊ/

/ˌɡæl.ɪˈlæɪ.əʉ/

principle of relativity
principle of relativity

Galileo Galilei (1564–1642), an Italian thinker and key figure in the scientific revolution who improved the telescope, made astronomical observations, and put forward the basic principle of relativity in physics.


Euripides

From the Ancient Greek Εὐρῑπῐ́δης (Eurīpídēs).

Ευριπίδης Ευριπίδης#Greek

A male given name from Ancient Greek, mostly representing a transliteration of the modern Greek Ευριπίδης (Evripídis).


Draco

Borrowed from Latin Dracō, itself a borrowing from Ancient Greek Δρᾰ́κων (Drákōn). Doublet of dracone, dragon, and dragoon.

Draco
Draco (constellation)
Draco (lawgiver)
Draco Dwarf

(Greek mythology) One of Actaeon's hounds.


Hardy

* As an English, Scottish, and French surname, from Middle English hardy, hardi, from Old French hardi (“hardy, daring, stout, bold”).
* As an Irish surname, via mac giolla deacair (“son of the hard lad”) as a calque of the above.
* Also as a Scottish surname, variant of Hardie.

der

A minor city in Sharp County and Fulton County, Arkansas.

Mendocino County
Mendocino County#English

An unincorporated community in Mendocino County, California.

An unincorporated community in Grenada County, Mississippi.

A census-designated place in Cascade County, Montana.


Gad

Borrowed from Biblical Hebrew גָּד (gad), a son of Jacob.

bor+

(biblical) The seventh son of Jacob, by his wife's handmaid Zilpah.

One of the Israelite tribes mentioned in the Torah, descended from Gad.


Dorcas

From Ancient Greek δορκάς (dorkás, “gazelle”), translation of Tabitha in the Bible.

uder

A female given name from Ancient Greek of biblical origin.


Ali

From Arabic عَلِيّ (ʕaliyy, literally “high, exalted”), from the Arabic root ع ل ي (ʕ-l-y).

bor

Haydar

birth name & common epithet in Shia literature

The Muslim caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib, considered by Shias to be Muhammad's first successor (imam).


Ali

A diminutive of the female given name Alison or of its variants.

A diminutive of the male given name Alistair or of its variants.


Joh

How Joh inspired a generation.

Nationals shake off Joh era.

Abolishing compulsory voting would take Queensland back to Joh era, says Wayne Swan.

diminutive of Johannes — notably used in reference to:

(Australian politics) Sir Johannes “Joh” Bjelke-Petersen (1911–2005), Premier of Queensland 1968–1987.


Joh

Various origins:
* Borrowed from German Joh.
* Variant of Cho, a Korean surname.


Ira

From a Hebrew name עִירָא ('ira), from a word meaning "watchful".

An unincorporated community in Laclede County, Missouri.

An unincorporated community in Scurry County, Texas.


Bach

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *bʰeg-der.
Proto-Germanic *bakiz
Proto-West Germanic *baki
German Bachbor.
English Bach
From German Bach. The surname was brought to the Anglo-Saxon world by immigrants from other Germanic countries. Doublet of Beach.

etymon

(music) Johann Sebastian Bach, a German organist and composer.


Bach

Borrowed from Vietnamese Bạch. Doublet of Bai.


Hamlet

François de Belleforest
Hamlet
Hamlet (disambiguation)#Places
Hamlet (name)
Saxo Grammaticus

From Latin Amlethus, as written by 13th-century Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, and borrowed into English by way of François de Belleforest's French Hamlet, originally rendered as Hamblet in English. Ultimately from Old Danish Amlethæ, corresponding to Old Norse Amlóði (“fool”), claimed to be suggestive of the way that Hamlet acts in the play, from ama (“to annoy”).

A William Shakespeare play about the Danish royal family.

The eponymous main character of William Shakespeare's play, whose father's ghost, murdered by Hamlet's uncle, exhorts him to seek revenge.


Ion

(Greek mythology) Son of Creusa and Xuthus, and the ancestor of Ionian people.


Poisson

After Siméon Denis Poisson (1781–1840), French mathematician.

Poisson distribution
Poisson distribution

Poisson distribution
Siméon Denis Poisson


Lincoln

en-proper noun

Lincoln (countable and uncountable, plural Lincolns)

From Old English Lindcoln, Lindcylene, from Latin Lindum Colonia, from Proto-Brythonic *llɨnn (“pool”), from Proto-Celtic *lindos (“lake, liquid”), in reference to the Brayford. In the United States, many of the places established since 1865 are named after Abraham Lincoln.

Talladega County
Talladega County#English

A number of places in the United States:

A city in Talladega County, Alabama, named after Benjamin Lincoln.

census-designated place
census-designated place

Bonneville County
Bonneville County#English

A census-designated place in Bonneville County, Idaho.

A city in Burleigh County, North Dakota.

Allegheny County
Allegheny County#English

A borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.

Providence County
Providence County#English

A town in Providence County, Rhode Island.

An unincorporated community in Loudoun County, Virginia.

Eau Claire County
Eau Claire County#English

Trempealeau County
Trempealeau County#English

A town in Trempealeau County, Wisconsin.

Athabasca County
Athabasca County#English

A community of Athabasca County, Alberta.


Newton

Inherited from Middle English Neweton, from Old English nēowa tūn (“new town”). Compare same construction in Italian Napoli (“Naples”) and in Arabic نَابُلُس (nābulus, “Nablus”).

Vilanova

surnames derived from the equivalents of “new town”

The name of many English-speaking places, including:

A city, the county seat of Harvey County, Kansas, named after Newton, Massachusetts.

A city, the county seat of Catawba County, North Carolina.

Manitowoc County
Manitowoc County#English

A town and unincorporated community therein, in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin.


Poppy

"It is a very pretty name, Mma. I should like to be called Poppy."
The compliment drew a smile. "I used to be very embarrassed about it," said Poppy. "I used to try to hide my name from people. I thought it was a very silly name."
Mma Ramotswe shook her head. There was nothing embarrassing about the name Poppy, but there was no telling what names people would find embarrassing.

2006, Alexander McCall Smith, Blue Shoes and Happiness, →ISBN:

(chiefly UK) A female given name from English, a flower name used since the end of the 19th century.


Pope

From pope; also used in Ireland/Scotland as a surname meaning "papa, father."

An unincorporated community in Marengo County, Alabama.


Lot

And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Genesis 12:5:

(biblical) A nephew of Abraham in the Bible and Quran.

A male given name from Hebrew of biblical origin; rare today.


Lot

One of the departments of Occitanie, France, formerly in Midi-Pyrénées. Capital: Cahors (INSEE code 46)


Scrooge

The fictional character Ebenezer Scrooge.


Pascal

Pascal (countable and uncountable, plural Pascals)

From Latin Paschālis, from paschālis (“Paschal; of or pertaining to Easter”), from pascha (“Easter”) + -ālis (suffix forming adjectives), for birth on Easter, or in honor of the 9th-century pope Paschal I (died 824). Doublet of Paschal. The programming language was named after French mathematician, philosopher and physicist Blaise Pascal (1623–1662).

(countable) A male given name from Latin used in medieval England; today occasionally borrowed from French.

(countable) A surname transferred from the given name.

The French mathematician and physicist Blaise Pascal (1623–1662).

programming language
programming language

(computer languages) An imperative procedural programming language intended to encourage good programming practices through the use of structure.


Rufus

A minor city in Sherman County, Oregon, United States.


Kim

Clipping of Kimball and Kimberley as a male name, and of Kimberley and Kimberly as a female name.

The half-caste woman who looked after him (she smoked opium, and pretended to keep a second-hand furniture shop by the square where the cheap cabs wait) told the missionaries that she was Kim’s mother’s sister; but his mother had been nursemaid in a colonel's family and had married Kimball O’Hara, a young color-sergeant of the Mavericks, an Irish regiment.

1900 December – 1901 October, Rudyard Kipling, chapter I, in Kim (Macmillan’s Colonial Library; no. 414), London: Macmillan and Co., published 1901, →OCLC, page 1:

Kim McCone ― (name of an Irish linguist)

A male given name transferred from the surname.

Bizarre as was the name she bore, Kim Ravenal always said she was thankful it had been no worse. […] It is no secret that the absurd monosyllable which comprises her given name is made up of the first letters of three states — Kentucky, Illinois, and Missouri — in all of which she was, incredibly enough, born.

1926, Edna Ferber, Show Boat, Doubleday, Page & Co, page 1:

It will take some getting used to, a husband named Kim. She has known girls named Kim since she was a squirt in a sunsuit. Quite a few really. Kimberleys and plain Kims.

1991, Don DeLillo, Mao II, Viking, →ISBN, page 16:

A female given name transferred from the surname, of 1940s and later usage.


Kim

Centring on the tension between the Kims, a basement-dwelling family of “dirt spoons” in Seoul, and the Parks, a family at the opposite end of the social spectrum, Parasite’s plot is predicated on the widening gap between the haves and the have nots in Asia’s fourth-biggest economy.

2020 February 16, Justin McCurry, Nemo Kim, “Parasite: how Oscar triumph has exposed South Korea’s social divide”, in The Observer:


Benjamin

Benjamin (countable and uncountable, plural Benjamins)

From Late Latin Benjamin, from Ancient Greek Βενιαμίν (Beniamín), from Biblical Hebrew בִּנְיָמִין (binyamīn, literally “son of the right/south or son of days”). Authorities differ on the meaning of the original Hebrew. Philo of Alexandria, the Samaritan Pentateuch The Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs and Midrash Leḳaḥ-Ṭob understand יָמִין to mean "days" (a meaning attested in Daniel 12:13) understanding the name to mean "son of days (i.e. old age)" (compare to the direct translations into Arabic بِنْ يَومِين (bin yawmīn) "son of the days" and Arabic بِنْ يَمِين (bin yamīn) "son of the right hand"), a formula paraphrased in Genesis 40:22 where Benjamin is described as a child of Jacob's old age. Rashi in his commentary on Genesis also gives this as a possible meaning but favors an understanding of יָמִין to mean "right" in the sense of "the south", noting that Benjamin was the only son of Jacob born in the south. Jerome understood the name to mean "son of the right hand" and Gesenius speculated that this expression might have meant "son of good fortune".

cog

بِنْ يَومِين

Arabic بِنْ يَومِين

A small city, the county seat of Knox County, Texas, United States.


Snark

Coined by Lewis Carroll as a nonce word in The Hunting of the Snark (1874). According to Beatrice Hatch, Carroll created this word as a blend of snail + shark.

A fictional animal in Lewis Carroll’s The Hunting of the Snark.

A ketch built by Jack London named after Lewis Carroll's poem The Hunting of the Snark