Jedi mind trick

en-noun

Jedi mind trick (plural Jedi mind tricks)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Jedi mind trick.wav

From the Star Wars films, the first of which—Star Wars—was released in 1977. In the films, members of the Jedi order are able to use a metaphysical power called the Force to implant suggestions in other people’s minds to induce them to act as the Jedi wish.

I watched the show to see what kind of guy he was, and the character on the show ain't too bright, so I figured if he came up to me I could use the Jedi mind trick on him. Mr T would go, “I heard you did some jokes about me!” “No, you didn't!” “Maybe I didn't!”

1987, Eddie Murphy Raw, spoken by Eddie Murphy:

Screamin’ “Brand new!”, when they just sanitized the old shit / Suppose it's just another clever Jedi mind trick

1998 September 29, “Thieves in the Night”, in Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star, performed by Black Star:

You have to estimate your own starting weights, using trial and error. There's no way to get around it. I've met personal trainers who were phenomenally good at figuring out their clients' starting weights. […] Maybe it's some kind of Jedi mind trick. But unless you have one of those trainers, you have to figure it out on your own.

2005, Lou Schuler, Alwyn Cosgrove, “Charting Your Progress”, in The New Rules of Lifting: Six Basic Moves for Maximum Muscle, London: Avery, →ISBN, part 4 (Programs), page 205:

"It's the Fourth Law of Magic," I said. "You aren't allowed to control the mind of another human. But … hell, it's of the first things a lot of these stupid kids try—the old Jedi mind trick. Sometimes they start with maybe getting homework overlooked by a teacher or convincing their parents to buy them a car.[…]"

2006 May 2, Jim Butcher, chapter 5, in Proven Guilty […] (The Dresden Files; 8), New York, N.Y.: Roc, →ISBN, page 27:

Brian was a good diversion. For every girl that went loopy over him, there was one less chick she had to worry about being in Craig's face. All she had to do was stay as far away from Brian as possible … you know, just in case that Jedi mind trick thing melted the BF shield.

2007, Paula Chase, “Hottie Jedi Mind Tricks”, in Don’t Get It Twisted (A Del Rio Bay Clique Novel), New York, N.Y.: Dafina Books for Young Readers, Kensington Publishing Corp., →ISBN, page 60:

(idiomatic) A mental feat such as apparently inducing someone to act a certain way or reading someone's mind, achieved as if by magic or telepathy.

Jedi
Star Wars
Star Wars Databank
the Force

絕地控心術 /绝地控心术

mental feat achieved as if by magic or telepathy


Macaulayism

From Macaulay + -ism, from the name of Thomas Babington Macaulay, who was instrumental in introducing English as a medium of instruction for higher education in India.

(India, derogatory) The act of westernization of upper class Indians using educational reform.


Clintonista

(sometimes derogatory) A devoted admirer of one or more of the U.S. public figures in the Clinton family: Hillary, Bill, or Chelsea.


green state

(US politics) A state where the Green Party of the United States (GPUS) is influential.

(US politics, idiomatic, informal, uncommon) A U.S. state perceived as environmentally friendly.


Reds

In reference to the ancient Roman and medieval Byzantine racing faction, a calque of Latin russātī (“Reddish-Brown-Clads”) or factio russata (“the reddish-brown-clad faction”) and Byzantine Greek Ῥούσιοι (Rhoúsioi, “Reds”).

bor

(informal, politics) Synonym of Communist Party in various contexts.


Pontus

From Latin Pontus, from Ancient Greek Πόντος (Póntos, “Black Sea, Pontus”), from πόντος (póntos, “sea”), from Mycenaean Greek 𐀡𐀵 (po-to). Doublet of pons.

Pont

a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea

(Greek mythology) A sea god, particularly of the Black Sea.

(historical) A province of the Roman Empire covering the area of the ancient kingdom.


I approve this message

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-I approve this message.wav

the elective law passed in 2002
w:Stand By Your Ad provision

(US politics) a phrase said by candidates for federal office to show their consent to comply with the elective law passed in 2002.


bija

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The origin or cause of things.


Maitreya

Transliteration of Sanskrit मैत्रेय (maitreya, “friendly, benevolent”).


Govinda

PIE word
 *gʷṓws
From Sanskrit गोविन्द (Govinda, “finder of cows”).


Clintonize

en-verb

Clintonize (third-person singular simple present Clintonizes, present participle Clintonizing, simple past and past participle Clintonized)

Clintonizes (present singular third-person)
Clintonizing (participle present)
Clintonized (participle past)
Clintonized (past)


Pax Romana

Learned borrowing from Latin Pāx Rōmāna, from pāx (“peace”) + Rōmāna (“Roman”), apparently coined by Seneca the Younger in 55 CE and popularized in English by Edward Gibbon in his c. 1776 Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.

(historical) The long period of relative peace and minimal expansion by military force experienced by the Roman Empire between 27 BCE and 180 CE.

The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire


Pax Americana

From Latin pāx (“peace”) + Americāna (“American”) after the model of the imperial Roman Pāx Rōmāna and earlier British Pāx Britannica.

Earlier this month Boston's WBUR radio station titled a special on US imperial power with the Latin tag Pax Americana. Tom Wolfe has written that the America of today is “now the mightiest power on earth, as omnipotent as… Rome under Julius Caesar”.

2002 September 18, Jonathan Freedland, “Rome, AD… Rome, DC?”, in The Guardian:

A war like this — a voluntary war of aggression — would be a sign that Putin believed that Pax Americana was over and that the U.S., the European Union and their allies had become too weak to exact painful consequences.

2022 February 21, David Leonhardt, “Why Ukraine Is Different”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

The period of relative peace in the Western world since the end of World War II in 1945, coinciding with the military and economic dominance of the United States.


and your little dog too

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-and your little dog too.wav

From a line spoken by the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz to Dorothy and her dog Toto: "I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog too!".

(humorous) A statement that not only will the person being addressed be punished but their conspirators will also.


cowardly lion

After a character in L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900).

"This $13 billion mutual fund, which calls itself "classic growth investing, the Janus way," is in reality a cowardly lion." -Forbes

"California is right; we trust Washington state will follow in court. Earlier court decisions against the EPA's Cowardly Lion position on global warming suggest legal action may have good prospects." -Seattle Post Intelligencer

"On the cowardly “lion” derisive nickname: The 49ers PR people are saying that Georgatos/Brown merely overheard a few players joking about that in the locker room, and that Smith was in on it–it was just jocularity among QBs, meaning nothing, and used out of context in the story. That’s what they’re saying." -http://www.mercextra.com/blogs/kawakami/2007/12/12/whos-with-me-on-alex-smiths-side-plus-more-notes-on-the-smith-nolan-feud-and-clumsy-attempted-cover-up/

(figuratively) A person who acts tough but misses a golden opportunity out of fear or cowardice.

Cowardly Lion
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz


yellow brick road

en-noun

yellow brick road (plural yellow brick roads)

yellow brick roads (plural)
yellow-brick road (alternative)

From the classic film The Wizard of Oz and the book series on which it was based. Originally the literal road to the Emerald City, which was paved with yellow bricks possibly to invoke the notion of gold.

But we're coming up on a bend in the yellow brick road, and going 'round it could cause the party lights to go dark quickly.

2007 December 10, Morgan Housel, “The Impending Destruction of the U.S. Economy: Part 1”, in The Motley Fool:

But for Clinton the yellow brick road that led inevitably to the Democratic nomination has suddenly become a little bumpy.

2007 December 21, “Hillary's mountain gets higher”, in The Sydney Morning Herald:

Smash the emergency glass, press the big red button and just STOP. Step off the Yellow Brick Road, get mixed up with some flying monkeys and throw yourself into all manner of trouble. Trust me. IT'S YOUR LAST CHANCE.

2011 August 19, Emma Kennedy, “Relax - a gap year's supposed to be fun”, in The Guardian:

(idiomatic, often humorous) A proverbial path to a Promised Land of one's hopes and dreams.


Ganga

Transliteration of Hindi गंगा (gaṅgā) or Sanskrit गङ्गा (gaṅgā). Doublet of Ganges.

The river Ganges, especially as a deity.


seva

Giving loving service to God and human beings is known as seva. According to Hindu scriptures it is the highest form of dharma. Some seva can produce good karma, which enables the atman to proceed towards moksha where it will be united with God. There are many ways Hindus can perform seva—for example, by worshipping regularly or by giving time and money to noble causes.

2002, Lynne Gibson, Hinduism, Heinemann, →ISBN, page 56:

(Hinduism, Sikhism) Selfless service that is performed without any expectation of reward for performing it.


Quinquatria

Quinquatrias (plural)
Quinquatrus (alternative)

An ancient Roman festival in honour of Minerva.


Srimati

From Sanskrit श्रीमत् (śrīmat, “beautiful, charming, lovely, pleasant, splendid, glorious”).


running mate

running mates (plural)
running-mate (alternative)

My first decision after being assured of victory was to choose my running mate. I decided that I needed to compensate for my lack of experience in Washington, and seriously considered Senators John Glenn, Frank Church, Scoop Jackson, Ed Muskie, and Walter Mondale.

2011, Jimmy Carter, White House Diary, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 5:

Noem’s latest justification for fatally shooting Cricket at her farm[…]comes as fellow Republicans have all but written off her chances of being chosen as Donald Trump’s running mate in November’s presidential election.

2024 May 5, Ramon Antonio Vargas, Edward Helmore, “Kristi Noem defends killing dog: ‘I’m tired of politicians pretending to be what they’re not’”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(US politics) A candidate for the US vice-presidency.

ticketmate

political candidate on the same ticket or for US vice-presidency


Lares

en-noun

Lares pl (normally plural, singular Lar)

Lar (singular)
lares (alternative)
Lars (alternative)
Lares (alternative)

From Latin Lares, plural form of lār, from Etruscan [Term?].

Coordinate term: lemures

(Roman mythology) The household deities watching over one's family and tutelary deities watching over some public places.


value voter

(US politics) One who participates in elections and makes decisions based on issues such as religion, abortion, capital punishment and same-sex marriage.


Putin

LL-Q1860 (eng)-I learned some phrases-Putin.wav

Transliteration of Russian Пу́тин (Pútin).

transliteration

Пу́тин Путин#Russian

A transliteration of the Russian surname Пу́тин (Pútin).

Vladimir Putin; Russian president, 2012–current


Bidet

That's Joe Bidet.

1995 June 29, DDuchaine, “Steriods& Alzado”, in misc.fitness (Usenet):

Every minute it continues, it makes the aftermath problems more frightening to me," said Sen. Joe "Buckwheat" Bidet, Democrapic Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. Speaking to the Council on Foreign Relations, a leftist group of foreign policy wonks, Bidet said he feels that a little careful bombing might be needed to help protect U.S. Special Forces operations, but it creates a scary problem. Bidet stressed that, like most Democratic weenies, he is afraid to challenge President Bush - but the "honeymoon' might get rockier soon."

2001 October 25, Crusader, “Steriods& Alzado”, in alt.politics (Usenet):

If Obama chose Joe Robinet Bidet for a running mate, he's not just covering his ass, he's cleaning it!

2008 August 25, Dennis, “it's Biden”, in sci.military.naval (Usenet):

Trump calls Biden (Joe BIDET) 'another low I.Q. individual' after 2020.

2019 March 18, allise...@gmail.com, “Hey Fred ! ! ! Here's you another song to enjoy ...”, in rec.radio.shortwave (Usenet):

Kamala Harris became the first woman to be given presidential powers on Friday as Joe Biden briefly transferred authority while he underwent a colonoscopy. Whether he's shitting his pants or farting on royalty, the *fake* president is usually causing a stink. Now they're even shoving cameras up his arse to prove it can talk.

2021 November 20, The Genetically Unmodified Paul Pot (Still a natural human being as God created), “Stinky Joe Bidet undergoes colonoscopy”, in alt.sports.soccer.manchester.united (Usenet):

(Internet slang, US politics, derogatory, humorous) Joe Biden.


demesman

(historical) A member of the same deme; a member of the same township in Attica in Greece of the Classical period.


fourpence

A former British silver coin, worth four pence.


upanayana

/uːpəˈnɑːjənə/

An Aryan boy had to undergo the upanayana that initiated him into the study of the Veda and the sacrificial procedure, or he would never be able to build a fully realized atman.

2006, Karen Armstrong, The Great Transformation, Atlantic Books, published 2007, page 83:

(Hinduism) An initiation ceremony undergone by Hindu boys over the age of seven belonging to the highest three castes, marking the start of their formal education.


BN

(Malaysian politics) Initialism of Barisan Nasional (“National Front”).


JM

(UK politics, slang) Initialism of John Major, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1990 to 1997.


SG

Although Supergirl fans will relish page 4, I believe the first panel of 5 says it all: after a full force ramming by SG, PG just casually tosses her into a wall. Now *that's* Power Girl.

1997 October 25, Lightning, “REVIEW Power Girl #1, uhm, I mean Supergirl #16”, in rec.arts.comics.dc.universe (Usenet), message-ID <62tta5$a7g$1@206.230.70.77>:

Actually, a point could be made that the animated Supergirl is much more like Power Girl than the pre Crisis Supergirl.
For one thing she adopted the name Karen (Karen Starr was the name Kara Zor-L created), also she wears PG's costume colors and has a strong resentment toward's Clark's overprotectiveness. The only difference is that the animated SG has the Kara Zor-El personality more than she does Power Girl's.

1998 May 6, CaptT...@webtv.net, “Re: Why is TV kind of pre-Crisis and comics Post-Crisis”, in rec.arts.comics.dc.universe (Usenet), message-ID <6iouoe$1jf$1@newsd-134.iap.bryant.webtv.net>:

I kinda hate how they made Power Girl (Kara/SG pre-Crisis on World 2 or 3?) evil and a clone of SG. One of my fav comics growing up was Supes, and PG and I think Green Arrow going after Vandal Savage.

2005 September 21, tan...@bellsouth.net, “Re: JLU - WOW”, in alt.tv.cartoon-network (Usenet), message-ID <SL7Ye.4284$xg3.1881@bignews4.bellsouth.net>:

(comics) Initialism of Supergirl (“DC Comics superheroine”).


ST

(linguistics, Egyptology) Initialism of Standard Theory.


aition

From Ancient Greek αἴτιον (aítion, “cause”).

This helps us to understand why Greek initiatory rituals are so often accompanied by an explanatory story—technically, the aition—in which the god appears twice, as the adversary of the people and as their protector. These aitia typically follow a three-part scenario […]

2020, David M. Halperin et al., editors, Before Sexuality, Princeton University Press, →ISBN, page 123:

(Greek mythology) An origin story or myth in Ancient Greece.


Reformer

(Canadian politics) A member of the Reform Party of Canada, which existed from 1987 to 2000.


Mycenaean Greek

The most ancient attested form of the Greek language, spoken on the Greek mainland and on Crete in the 16th to 11th centuries BC, written in Linear B script.

Wiktionary’s coverage of Mycenaean Greek terms


Asura

Asuras (plural)
asura (alternative)
asur (alternative)

Transliteration of Sanskrit असुर (asura). Doublet of Ahura. Compare English Æsir.

translit

(Hinduism) Power-seeking deities involved in constant conflict with the more benevolent Devas.


Shani

(Hinduism) The Hindu god associated with the planet Saturn


buccina

Borrowed from Latin būcina, buccina. Doublet of buisine and posaune.

Coordinate term: buisine

(historical, music) A curved brass instrument used by the Ancient Roman army.


Roundhead

From round + head, from their short-cropped hairstyle.

(informal, historical) A supporter of parliament during the English Civil War.


Vayu

(Hinduism) The god of wind in Hindu and Vedic religion. A primary deity, father of Bhima and the spiritual father of Lord Hanuman.


Mahabharata

/mə.ɦɑːˈbʱɑː.ɾə.t̪ə/

Transliteration of Sanskrit महाभारत (mahābhārata).

Maha-Bharata (alternative)
Maha-bharata (alternative)
maha-bharata (alternative)
Maha Bharata (alternative)
Maha bharata (alternative)
maha bharata (alternative)
Mahābhārata (alternative)
mahābhārata (alternative)
Mahā-Bhārata (alternative)
Mahā-bhārata (alternative)
mahā-bhārata (alternative)
Mahā Bhārata (alternative)
Mahā bhārata (alternative)
mahā bhārata (alternative)

(Hinduism, mythology) An ancient Sanskrit epic concerning some text of the Bhagavad Gita, including elaborations on theology and morality.


Vasuki

(Hinduism) The god of snakes in Hindu mythology.


Balarama

Borrowed from Sanskrit बलराम (balarāma).

(Hinduism) Balarama, son of Vasudeva, and Rohini, brother of Subhadra, and Krishna, who uses a plough as his weapon.


faithless elector

en-noun

faithless elector (plural faithless electors)

(US politics) A delegate selected to participate in an electoral college and assigned to a particular candidate who votes for a different candidate, usually to protest the already-determined outcome of the vote.


Super Tuesday

(US politics) The day in February or March on which a large number of states hold their primary elections for the process of nominating presidential candidates.


thiasarch

(Ancient Greece) The leader of a thiasus.


thiasus

From Latin, from Ancient Greek θίασος (thíasos).

(historical, Ancient Greece) A group of singers and dancers assembled to celebrate the festival of one of the gods.


synoecism

synoecisms (plural)
synœcism (alternative)

From Ancient Greek συνοικισμός (sunoikismós), from συνοικίζειν (sunoikízein, “to make live with, to unite under one city”), from σύν (sún, “together”) + οἰκίζειν (oikízein, “to colonise”).

They always remained separate states and were never synoikised.

1886, English History Review, I, pg 636:

Legends...current before the villages were synoecised into Athens.

1887, Andrew Lang, Myth, Ritual & Religion, I, pg 266:

When the town was first formed...by the synœcism of the neighboring villages.

1922, Ernest Arthur Gardner, Mantineia, Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. XXX. 529/2:

(Ancient Greece) The unification of towns, tribes etc. under one capital city or polis.


Romanist

This is enough & too much, that when the Romaniſts doe boaſt that their iuriſdiction is ſpirituall, it is eaſy to ſhewe that there is nothing more contrary to the order inſtitute of Chriſte, and that it hath no more likeneſſe to the auncient cuſtome than darkneſſe hath to light.

1587 [1536], John Calvin, translated by Thomas Norton, The Institution of Christian Religion, London: H. Midleton, translation of Institutio Christianae Religionis (in Latin), page 406:

In quarrels with the Pope if the Clergy ſhould diſown to be ſubject to that temporal Prince who conteſts with him, if they refuſe to contribute for the defence of the Nation, if they foment any ſecret deſigns at the Popes command, then the ſtricteſt Romaniſt would preſently ſee the inſecurity of that Kingdom.

1674, William Squire, Some more Considerations proving the Unreasonableness of the Romanists in Requiring us to Return to the Communion of the Present Romish-Church, H.M., pages 112-113:

The manner of the Romanists however hanging their Churches with red Damask, & making Musick in a regular Orchestra there—is a despicable Effort—and defeats its own purpose completely, by turning the house of God into a Theatre […].

1786 June 27, Hester Thrale Piozzi, Thraliana:

The foundations of present views of Roman civil procedure were laid by the Austrian Romanist Moriz Wlassak [...]

1951, Hans Julius Wolff, Roman Law: An Historical Introduction, University of Oklahoma Press, →ISBN, page 229:

(law) A scholar of Roman law and jurisprudence.

The principal magazines devoted to the subject are—Jahrbuch für romanische und englische Literatur (ed. Wolff, Ebert, and Lembcke), later only für romanische Literatur; Archiv für das Studium der neueren Sprachen (ed. Herrig), of a more popular character; Romania (a quarterly, ed. Gaston Paris and Paul Meyer, since 1872), contains ariticles of the most eminent Romanists; Revue des Langues Romanes (Montpellier, from 1870 onwards), chiefly devoted to Provençal; Romanische Studien (ed. Boehmer); Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie (ed. Gröber, since 1877); and Romanische Forschungen (ed. Vollmöller, since 1884).

1886, Encyclopaedia Britannica, volume 20, PRU-ROS, page 668:

(humanities) A scholar of Romance languages; a Romanicist.

(historical, Ireland, derogatory) someone perceived to be in favor of Rome Rule in Ireland.


Romanist

en-adjective

Romanist (comparative more Romanist, superlative most Romanist)

more Romanist (comparative)
most Romanist (superlative)

Even in England the Romanist tradition not only remained alive but received strong new impulses in Oxford and Cambridge, where the teaching of the "civil"—i.e., Roman—law was never interrupted.

1951, Hans Julius Wolff, Roman Law: An Historical Introduction, University of Oklahoma Press, →ISBN, page 207:

(law) Pertaining to Roman law and jurisprudence.

The 'Germanist' view has been countered with the 'Romanist' or 'continuity' view, which holds that the Germanic barbarians created little that was new.

2005 [1995], “The Barbarian invasions”, in The New Cambridge Medieval History (The New Cambridge Medieval History), volume 1, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, →DOI, →ISBN, page 36:

(historiography) Pertaining to the school of thought which emphasises the continuity of legal and cultural institutions between Rome and later medieval Europe, downplaying the role of external influences or innovation in the decline of the Roman Empire.


Reaganite

en-adj

Reaganite (comparative more Reaganite, superlative most Reaganite)

more Reaganite (comparative)
most Reaganite (superlative)

/ˈɹeɪɡənaɪt/

This is a show about light and dark, and as deftly as it mimics the glaring neon of Reaganite consumer culture, it tweaks the conspiracy theories blooming in the shadows.

2019 July 4, Sophie Gilbert, “The American Paranoia of Stranger Things 3”, in The Atlantic:

(US politics) Of or pertaining to Ronald Reagan (1911–2004), 40th president of the United States (1981–1989).


Reaganite

/ˈɹeɪɡənaɪt/

(US politics) A supporter of Ronald Reagan (1911–2004), 40th president of the United States (1981–1989), and/or policies that he endorsed.


DEM

Democratic Party
w:Democratic Party (United States)

(US politics) Abbreviation of Democratic Party.


hierodule

From Ancient Greek ἱερόδουλος (hieródoulos), from ἱερός (hierós, “sacred”) + δοῦλος (doûlos, “slave”).

(historical, chiefly Ancient Greece) A temple slave, often one performing religious prostitution.


death tax

(US politics, derogatory, dysphemistic) inheritance tax


Lancelot

en-proper noun

Lancelot (countable and uncountable, plural Lancelots)

Lancelots (plural)
Launcelot (alternative)

From Middle English Launcelot, from Old French Lancelot, from Frankish *Lanzo, hypocoristic form of names beginning in *Land-, from Proto-Germanic *landą (“land”), and diminutive Old French endings -el and -ot.
Related to Old English Landbeorht (modern English Lambert).

(Arthurian legend) One of the Knights of the Round Table, a lover of Guinevere.


astrict

en-verb

astrict (third-person singular simple present astricts, present participle astricting, simple past and past participle astricted)

astricts (present singular third-person)
astricting (participle present)
astricted (participle past)
astricted (past)

Latin astrictus, past participle of astringere. See astringe.

to astrict lands


cognatus

Learned borrowing from Latin cognatus (“kinsman”). Doublet of cognate and connate.


Number 10

No 10 (alternative)
No. 10 (alternative)
Number Ten (alternative)

There are honourable people in the government and principled advisers working in Number 10, even if their unheralded service is obscured by the crass antics of spin doctors and the demagoguery of some ministers.

2009 April 23, Bagehot, “Who's Nasty Now?”, in The Economist, page 61:

10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street#English

(UK politics) Synonym of 10 Downing Street.


Heraclitus

From Latin Hēraclītus, from Ancient Greek Ἡράκλειτος (Hērákleitos).

A transliteration of the Ancient Greek male given name Ἡράκλειτος (Hērákleitos), notably borne by Heraclitus of Ephesus, a pre-Socratic Ionian philosopher.


Thales

A pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from Miletus in Asia Minor.


jiva

Borrowed from Sanskrit जीव (jīva). Doublet of quick.

1886, Nandalal Dhole (translator), Mādhava [Mādhavācharya], A Hand Book of Hindu Pantheism: The Panchadasi, Heeralal Dhole, page 209,
Though in the Panchadasi, Vidyarana Swami mentions Jiva to be a reflection in the internal organ, and as that internal organ is not present in the profound slumbering condition, consequently, then, there should be no Jiva also; but as Prajna, almost ignorant—a form of Jiva—continues in dramless profound slumber, therefore what the Swami purports to mean is, the particle of ignorance modified or changed into the form of internal organ, and intelligence reflected therein is called Jiva, and that ignorance is never wanting in prfound slumber, consequently Prajna also is not wanting then.

Some followers of Vācaspati Miśra consider jīva to be limited by the inner sense organ. Being limited, jīva is in this case, distinct from the substratum consciousness of objects which is the all-pervasive consciousness sākṣī. According to this view, jīva is not the material cause of the universe either.

2006, Sanjukta Gupta, Advaita Vedanta and Vāiṣṇavism: The Philosophy of Madhusūdana Sarasvatī, Routledge, page 50:

(Jainism, Hinduism) All living beings; the essence or soul of such beings.


eightpence

[…] I went for a night to a lodging-house in Bow, where the charge was only eightpence.

1933 January 9, George Orwell [pseudonym; Eric Arthur Blair], chapter XXV, in Down and Out in Paris and London, London: Victor Gollancz […], →OCLC:

(historical, numismatics) A former coin worth eight pence; the monetary amount of eight pence.


chamcha

Borrowed from Hindi चम्चा (camcā, “sycophant, hanger-on, lackey”, literally “spoon”).

bor

1989. Stuart Auerbach. Washington Post. (Mar. 26) “Nehru and His Nation”
M J Akbar has been called a chamcha to the Gandhi family, and some of that slavish devotion shows up in his uncritical acceptance of Nehru’s government-dominated economic program and the erosion of the country’s grass roots political structure as a result of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty.

Chamcha Sycophant (lit. ‘spoon’). 1997. Ghulam Nabi Azad. India Today (June 23) p. 13: I have my own standing in the party. I cannot be anybody’s chamcha (stooge).

1994. William Dalrymple City of Djinns: A Year in Delhi (Dec. 1) “Glossary” p. 340

1997. Sudhir Vaishnav. Times of India. (Aug. 24) “A very political exercise”
Several hangers-on. They are available aplenty everywhere in the country and are often known in the local market as Chamcha.

No doubt, the United Kingdom also had their sycophants—toadys, bachhas, jholichuks and hukkabardars—but chamchas of the modern vintage they had none. Chamchas are a breed apart.

1998 January 17, “In Praise of Chamchagiri”, in P.S. Sharma Times of India:

Leaders’ chamchas get lucky”: All three have pulled strings in their respective parties to get Assembly poll tickets for their puppets and close confidants, better known in political parlance as chamchas.

2004. Krishnakumar. Midday (Mumbai, India) (Sept. 21)

(India, colloquial) A sycophant and hanger-on or lackey.


amrita

From Sanskrit अमृत (amṛta, “immortal, immortality”). Compare also Ancient Greek ἀμβροσία (ambrosía, “ambrosia”).

cog

amreeta (alternative)
amrit (alternative)

(Hinduism) The water of life; the drink of the Hindu gods.


LBJ

I got a letter from L.B.J,
it said, "This is your lucky day",
it's time to put your khaki trousers on.

1965, “Lyndon Johnson Told the Nation”, Tom Paxton (lyrics), Tom Paxton (music):

This required a legislative program, the Great Society, that would complete the New Deal and earn LBJ a place alongside FDR in the pantheon of heroic Democratic reformers.

2022, Gary Gerstle, chapter 2, in The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order […] , New York: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, Part I. The New Deal Order, 1930–1980:

Lyndon Baines Johnson
w:Lyndon B. Johnson

(US politics) Initialism of Lyndon Baines Johnson, 36th US president.


Pandora

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Πανδώρᾱ (Pandṓrā, “all gifts”).

bor

(Greek mythology) The first woman on earth, who had been given a box by the gods and instructed not to open it, but who disobeyed the instructions out of curiosity, releasing all manner of evils into the world.


CRP

The only major source whom the reporters reveal by name is Hugh Sloan, the slight young Nixon operative who resigned as treasurer of the Committee to Re-Elect the President when he learned of C.R.P.’s sordid political involvements. Sloan led the reporters onto the fact that funds for the burglary came from C.R.P.

1974 April 22, “The Press: Woodstein Meets Deep Throat”, in Time, →ISSN:

(historical, US politics) Initialism of Committee to Re-elect the President, which raised money for Richard Nixon's campaign for 1972 reelection.


crepida

Learned borrowing from Latin crepida, from Ancient Greek κρηπίς (krēpís). Doublet of crepis.

There was likewise found an abundant variety of shoes; the heavy caliga, or sandal, worn by the Roman soldiers, studded under the sole with large-headed nails, the calceus or buskin (3) and the more delicate crepida (4), or slipper looped in the leather on each side of the instep, in like manner with the buskin.

1854, “Ancient London.—No. IX.”, in The Home Friend; A Weekly Miscellany of Amusement and Instruction, volume IV, number 91, London: […] Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge […], pages 300–301:

The museum, though small, contains some very interesting objects classified in groups. In one case are Roman and other shoes, sandals, and crepidæ; […]

1866 July 20, “The Annual Congress of the Archæological Institute”, in The Building News and Engineering Journal: […], volume XIII, London: […] Proprietor of the “Building News,” [John Passmore Edwards] […], page 484, column 3:

The sole of the crepida was usually thick and leather covered the sides and heel of the foot. The crepida, considered the shoe for traveler, young man and warrior, varied in style for civilian and soldier.

1948, R[uth] Turner Wilcox, “Roman Footwear”, in The Mode in Footwear, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons; London: Charles Scribner’s Sons, Ltd, page 31:

What restlessness could have made the goddess trample the earth so fast under the crepidae twisted up on her legs like the sandals of our Romanian frontier guards.

1984, Romanian Review, volume 38, page 74:

Crepidae often covered the foot up to or including the ankle, and they sometimes covered the toes, not a regular feature of the sandal. An excellent example of crepidae with high layered, multicolored soles is depicted in the room of the initiation in the Villa of the Mysteries at Pompeii, as worn by Ariadne.

1994 December, Norma Goldman, “Roman Footwear”, in Judith Lynn Sebesta, Larissa Bonfante, editors, The World of Roman Costume (Wisconsin Studies in Classics), Madison, Wis.: University of Wisconsin Press, published 2001, →ISBN, part I (Roman Garments, Hairstyles, Accessories), page 114, column 1:

He had even been known to go out and about dressed in ancient Macedonian style to mimic his hero – the flat kausia hat and the crepidae shoes.

2019, Alex Gough, Emperor’s Knife (The Imperial Assassin; 2), London: Canelo, published 2022, →ISBN:

(Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome) A type of footwear consisting of a sole attached to the foot with fairly elaborate straps, distinguished by the Ancient Greeks and Ancient Romans from sandals proper but now usually considered a style of sandal.


Ancient Macedonian

The Hellenic language of Ancient Macedonians, probably related to Ancient Greek, spoken in Macedon from 808 BCE till 168 BCE


Ha

(Egyptian mythology) A god of the deserts to the west of Egypt, associated with the underworld (duat) and pictured as a man wearing the symbol for desert hills on his head.


Silvanus

From Latin Silvanus, a Latin cognomen, from silva (“forest”). The name Silas, from the early Christian apostle, was Latinised as Silvanus by Paul.


Kama Sutra

the Kama Sutra (canonical)
Kamasutra (alternative)

Little is known about the Kama Sutra’s author, Vatsyayana, who claimed to be a celibate monk who had compiled all of the accumulated sexual knowledge from several previous authors as a form of his own meditation and contemplation of the deity.

2018, Scott Christianson, Colin Salter, 100 Books that Changed the World, Batsford Books, →ISBN:

A Sanskrit treatise (sutra) setting forth rules for sensuous and sensual pleasure, love, and marriage in accordance with Hindu law.


advocation

en-noun

advocation (countable and uncountable, plural advocations)

From Latin advocātiō. Doublet of advowson

(Scots law) The process of removing a cause from an inferior court to the supreme court.


Argos

(Greek mythology) The dog of Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey.

(Greek mythology) Alternative form of Argus (“many-eyed servant of Hera”)


catgirl

catgirls (plural)
cat girl (alternative)
cat-girl (alternative)

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

But publishers cannot survive on cute catgirls alone.

2009, Jason S. Yadao, The Rough Guide to Manga, page 222:

Back in 1997, the Japanese magazines made a big deal out of the fact that the catgirl detective anime Hyper Police was on at one in the morning[…]

2010, Jonathan Clements, Schoolgirl Milky Crisis: Adventures in the Anime and Manga Trade:

"Why do we need to leave the mall first?" "Even if I can undo this myself, I don't know how to do it or how it works! I might become more cat-like first, or turn you into a cat, or unleash a shockwave of catness that turns everyone in the mall into cat girls!"

2016 October 7, Dan Shive, El Goonish Shive - EGS:NP (webcomic), Comic for Friday, Oct 7, 2016:

(Japanese fiction) A female fictional character who has a cat's ears, tail, or other feline characteristics on an otherwise humanoid body.

貓人 /猫人

female character with feline characteristics


Laetitia

(Roman mythology) The goddess of gaiety.


Mao

As the revered Mao has said, 'There cannot be two suns in the same sky.'

1968, Edward S. Aarons, Assignment—Nuclear Nude, Fawcett Publications, page 135:

RN: You think you should not have gone?
TN: Yeah, I think it was a bad one to do. It was a good idea, but we shouldn't have gone to the University of Maryland … It was the motliest crew you've ever seen.
RN: Well, that's my view about going to the universities. Well, I hope it didn't bother you too much.
TN: No, it didn't. It was just—I know, I was just embarrassed because the Chinese issued a complaint.
RN: A complaint about what?
TN: Oh, you know, that they were being rude to the chairman—they were insulting Chairman Mao. There was nothing we could do! It's a free country!

1972, James Warren, “More Nixon Tapes A selection from recordings in the National Archives”, in The Atlantic:

A common surname from Chinese, from Mandarin, usually referring to Mao Zedong.

A card game, named after Mao Zedong, in which players attempt to shed all their cards without violating certain unspoken rules.


Mao

A branch of the Omotic languages spoken in Ethiopia.


CON

Conservative Party
w:Conservative Party (UK)

(UK politics) Abbreviation of Conservative Party.


apella

From Ancient Greek ἀπέλλα (apélla, “assembly”).

uder

(Ancient Greece, politics) The popular deliberative assembly in the Ancient Greek city-state of Sparta, corresponding to the ecclesia in most other Greek states.


Titanian

Titanean (alternative)
Titanic (alternative)

As whom the fables name of monstrous size, / Titanian or earth-born, that warred on Jove, […]


Chancellor of the Exchequer

cabinet minister
cabinet minister#English

The official title held by the British cabinet minister, who is responsible for all governmental economic and financial matters, including the treasury.

財政大臣 /财政大臣

minister responsible for governmental finances and treasury


shonen

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

From the Japanese 少年 (shōnen, “few years”).

shōnen (alternative)
shounen (alternative)

(anime, manga) A style of Japanese animation and comics aimed at a younger male audience.


shonen

en-adj

shonen (comparative more shonen, superlative most shonen)

more shonen (comparative)
most shonen (superlative)
shōnen (alternative)
shounen (alternative)

(anime, manga) Being in the style of shonen comics or animation.


latifundium

From Latin lātifundium, from lātus (“wide, extensive”) + fundus (“ground, base, estate, farm”). Doublet of latifundio.

The conclusive military victory of Philip V left the grandees stranded, still rich and still powerful on their latifundia, but stripped of the ‘aristocratic republicanism’ they had previously enjoyed.

2007, Tim Blanning, The Pursuit of Glory, Penguin, published 2008, page 251:

His vision for the future of the African continent in the Age of the Aerotropolis seems to be as a vast latifundium sown with GM wheat.

2011, Will Self, “The frowniest spot on Earth”, in London Review of Books, XXXIII.9:

(chiefly in the plural) A great landed estate with absentee ownership and labor often in a state of partial servitude.

Latifundium

great land estate with absentee ownership


Narayana

A male given name from Sanskrit used in India.


Agni

(Hinduism) A Hindu and Vedic deity of fire.


Methone

From Latin Methōnē, from Ancient Greek Μεθώνη (Methṓnē). Doublet of Methoni and Modon.

(Greek mythology) One of the Alkyonides.


Eurydice

From Latin Eurydicē, from Ancient Greek Εὐρυδίκη (Eurudíkē).

(Greek mythology) A nymph and the wife of Orpheus.

(Greek mythology) The name of various figures in Greek mythology.


Erebus

From Latin Erebus. Doublet of rajas.
[Alt: Mount Erebus]

(Greek mythology) One of the Greek primordial deities who was the personification of darkness and shadow, brother-husband of Nyx and son of Chaos.

Nay, were he Deul, as he is no man,
Yet in reuenge of faire Zenocrate,
UUhome he detayneth in deſpight of vs,
This arme ſhould ſend him downe to Erebus,
To ſhroud his ſhame in darkneſſe of the night.

c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act IIII, scene i:

(Greek mythology) The dark and gloomy cavern between the earth and Hades; the underworld.


Euphrosyne

Translingual: Euphrosyne

From Ancient Greek Εὐφροσύνη (Euphrosúnē).

(Greek mythology) One of the three Charites and the goddess of joy.


Kievan Rus

Kiev Rus (alternative)
Kyiv Rus (alternative)
Kyïv Rus (alternative)
Kyyiv Rus (alternative)
Kievan Rus' (alternative)
Kyivan Rus (alternative)
Kyivan Rus' (alternative)
Kyïvan Rus (alternative)
Kyjivan Rus (alternative)
Kyyivan Rus (alternative)

(historical) A medieval principality in Eastern Europe centred around Kiev; considered an early predecessor of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.


lustrate

en-verb

lustrate (third-person singular simple present lustrates, present participle lustrating, simple past and past participle lustrated)

lustrates (present singular third-person)
lustrating (participle present)
lustrated (participle past)
lustrated (past)

From Latin lustrātus (“lustrated”), perfect passive participle of lustrō (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from lustrum (“ritual purification”) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix), q.v. In reference to imparting luster, further via senses of Middle French lustre, from Old Italian lustro.

af

We must purge, and cleanse, and lustrate the whole city.

c. 1650, Henry Hammond, Miscellaneous Theological Works..., Vol. 3, Sermon 23, p. 503 (1850 ed.)

"Well," said Hypatia, more and more listlessly; "it might be more prudent to show them first the fairer and more graceful side of the old Myths... I wish to lustrate them afresh for the service of the gods."

1853, Charles Kingsley, chapter 20, in Hypatia:

Mid-zenith hangs the fascinated day
In wind-lustrated hollows crystalline.

1909, Edith Wharton, “An Autumn Sunset”, in Artemis to Actaeon and Other Poems:

(transitive) Synonym of purify, to ritually cleanse or renew, particularly to do so with a propitiatory offering or (historical) the lustration, quinquennial ritual of the Roman censor to cleanse the city after a census.


Godzilla

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

From Japanese ゴジラ (Gojira), blend created for the movie from the words ゴリラ (gorira, “gorilla”) and 鯨 (kujira, “whale”).
The phonetic shift from Goji- to Godzi- was probably to imply relation to the word God.

What other television show would feature a gorgeously designed sequence where a horrifically mutated Pierre and Marie Curie, their bodies swollen to Godzilla-like proportions from prolonged exposure to the radiation that would eventually kill them, destroy an Asian city with their bare hands like vengeance-crazed monster-Gods?

2012 May 20, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Marge Gets A Job” (season 4, episode 7; originally aired 11/05/1992)”, in The Onion AV Club:

A fictional Japanese monster (kaiju) from a series of science-fiction films.


Romulus

(Roman mythology) The legendary founder of Rome and the twin brother of Remus.


Remus

(Roman mythology) The legendary founder of Rome and the twin brother of Romulus.


Dioscuri

From Latin Dioscūrī, from Ancient Greek Διόσκουροι (Dióskouroi, “the youths of Zeus”).

der

Or, alas, might not one rather attribute it to Diana in the shape of Hunger? To some twin Dioscuri, OPPRESSION and REVENGE; so often seen in the battles of men?

1837, Thomas Carlyle, chapter III, in The French Revolution: A History […], volume I (The Bastille), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLC, book IV (States-General):

Cæsar, either more ambitious or less confident in his services, raised a new and costly row of columns in front of the Capitol. He built a temple to the Dioscuri, and he charmed the populace with a show of gladiators unusually extensive.

1879, James Anthony Froude, chapter XI, in Cæsar: A Sketch, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., →OCLC, page 108:

(Greek mythology) The twin brothers Castor and Pollux together.


Cydonia

From Latin Cydonia, from Ancient Greek Κυδωνία (Kudōnía), q.v.

Kydonia (alternative)
Cydonea (alternative)

(historical) Former name of Chania, a city on the island of Crete, Greece.

(historical) A former state on the island of Crete around the city.


Minos

At length we arrived at the gate of Elysium. Here was a prodigious crowd of spirits waiting for admittance, some of whom were admitted, and some were rejected; for all were strictly examined by the porter, whom I soon discovered to be the celebrated judge Minos.

1749, Henry Fielding, “A Journey from this World to the Next”, in Thomas Roscoe, editor, The Works of Henry Fielding: Complete in One Volume, Henry G. Bohn, published 1851, page 602:

That the Cyclades were subject to Minos, is confirmed by numerous traces; and the general belief of the ancients was, that he founded colonies even in Lemnos and Thrace.

1856, Leonhard Schmitz, Connop Thirlwall, A History of Greece From the Earliest Times to the Destruction of Corinth, 4th edition, Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, page 37:

Whether or not Minos really existed and ruled at Knossos, the ruins on Kephala hill today are known by the name Evans gave them.

2003, Chris Scarre, Rebecca Stefoff, The Palace of Minos at Knossos, Oxford University Press, page 38:

(Greek mythology) The mythological first king of Crete, a son of Zeus by Europa, who imprisoned the Minotaur in a labyrinth and after death was made a judge of the dead in Hades; a putative corresponding historical person.

Dante Alighieri
Gustave Doré
Inferno (Dante)


Pelops

From Ancient Greek Πέλοψ (Pélops, “dark face, eye”).

uder

(Greek mythology) A Greek mythological figure, the son of Tantalus, and king of Pisa in the Peloponnesus.


circumduction

en-noun

circumduction (countable and uncountable, plural circumductions)


Tritonian

(Greek mythology) Of or pertaining to the classical Greek god Triton.


duumvir

One of two persons jointly exercising the same office in Republican Rome.


duumvirate

duumvirates (plural)
diumvirate (alternative)
duovirate (alternative)

From Latin duumvirātus, from duumvir + -ātus. Equivalent to duumvir + -ate (forms nouns denoting rank or office, here the group of people involved with it).

af

(historical) Any of several offices of the Roman Republic held by two joint magistrates known as duumvirs.


Avalon

From Latin Avallōnia and īnsula Avallōnis, from Proto-Brythonic *aβaln (“apple tree”), from Proto-Celtic *abalnā, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ébōl.

(Arthurian legend) An island, represented as an earthly paradise in the western seas, to which King Arthur and other heroes were carried at death.

Avalon

earthly paradise in the western seas, in the Arthurian legend


mecha

From Japanese メカ (meka), from an abbreviation of the English mechanical.

Having deprived her of both her mecha and her lover, Masato looks set for a nasty end, but Miku arrives to save him.

1997, Helen McCarthy, The anime movie guide:

A transformation occurs when a mecha character, vehicle, or weapon unfolds and reassembles itself in a totally new form.

2002, Christopher Hart, Anime mania: how to draw characters for Japanese animation:

Porco Rosso evinces a deep fascination with mechanical objects of all sorts but it is by no means a mecha movie...

2006, Dani Cavallaro, The animé art of Hayao Miyazaki:

Each week the good guys fight the bad guys and vanquish them in a mecha battle, only to have the bad guys reappear intact the following week.

2007, Frenchy Lunning, Mechademia 2: Networks of Desire:

[…] to be a “lifter”—to pilot a mecha that can also transform into an air board […]

2007, Robin E. Brenner, Understanding manga and anime, page 170:

In this section, I show you mechas that are large enough to be piloted by humans from the inside. Although most of them are designed for combat, some function as transportation or construction mechas.

2011, Kensuke Okabayashi, Manga For Dummies, page 275:

(anime, manga) A large armoured robot on legs, typically controlled by a pilot seated inside.


epinicion

en-noun

epinicion (plural epinicions or epinicia)

Borrowed from Ancient Greek ἐπινίκιον (epiníkion).

(Ancient Greece) A song or ode in celebration of triumph or victory.


SEU

Social Exclusion Unit
w:Social Exclusion Unit

(UK politics, historical) Initialism of Social Exclusion Unit.


Lavinia

Latin Lavinia, of obscure meaning. Lavinium was a town in ancient Latium.

(Roman mythology) The daughter of Latinus and wife of Aeneas.


first minister

first ministers (plural)
First Minister (alternative)

The Welsh first minister has defended his decision to travel to Qatar for the World Cup, saying he feels that the citizens of Wales want their country’s leader there despite concerns about human rights and working conditions.

2022 November 20, Steven Morris, “Welsh first minister defends trip to World Cup in Qatar”, in The Guardian:

Yousaf is almost certain to be confirmed as Scotland’s next first minister in a nominal vote at Holyrood on Tuesday but now has to bridge those divides by bringing the SNP’s warring wings together.

2023 March 27, Severin Carrell, Libby Brooks, “Humza Yousaf elected leader of Scottish National party”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(UK politics) A leader of a devolved government such as Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland.


The old prospector told them how, in the days of the 49ers, […] the Mexicans had been treated in a way they had practically never forgiven. The land was free. Discovery and appropriation of a mining claim gave title, provided it was staked out and a notice scratched on a tin plate affixed to the claim stake, and likewise provided that the size of the claim accorded with the crude ruling for that region.

(historical) A miner or other person who took part in the California Gold Rush of 1849.

(American football) A player for the San Francisco 49ers, an NFL team.

(sports) A student or player on a sports team at California State University, Long Beach (more commonly known as “Long Beach State”, founded in 1849).

(sports) A student or player on a sports team at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (more commonly known as “Charlotte” in a sports context).


haa

(pornographic manga) The sound of heavy breathing when sexually aroused.


Kaiserin

Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein
Baden bei Wien

From German Kaiserin. The rose was named after Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein by the German rose breeder Peter Lambert in 1891.

Alternative form: kaiserin

We should have expected the Kaiser to curse them and the weather, not to weep. Weeping? Kaisers and Kaiserins and Count Zeppelins should be made of sterner stuff.

[1917], Herbert Warren, “‘And such a brave Zepp he was’”, in The “Land & Water” Edition of Raemaekers’ Cartoons, volume II, London: […] “Land & Water,” […], →OCLC, page 86:

The Kaiserin, who rarely or never took a hand in politics, was tempted by this personal provocation, and lodged a request that [Alfred von] Kiderlen[-Waechter] “along with his mistress” might be left in Bucharest—a suitable place for him.

1933, Joachim von Kürenberg, translated by E[mily] O[verend] Lorimer, “A Closed Door”, in His Excellency the Spectre: The Life of Fritz von Holstein, London: Constable and Company Ltd., →OCLC, page 227:

The Kaiser’s and Kaiserin’s journey to the Holy Land furnishes another occasion to Empress Marie to vent her feelings with regard to William II.

1938, Edward J[ohn] Bing, “Nicholas on the Throne”, in The Secret Letters of the Last Tsar: Being the Confidential Correspondence between Nicholas II and His Mother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, New York, N.Y.; Toronto, Ont.: Longmans, Green and Co., →OCLC, page 128:


Old West

It can well be imagined what disaster could descend upon a camping party in a wilderness such as the Old West, amidst the enemies which that wilderness supported.

1918, Stewart Edward White, chapter 5, in The Forty-Niners:

In the Old West—anyway in the old westerns—morality and mechanics went gun-in-hand.

2005 September 18, Richard Corliss, “Movies: Sticking to Their Guns”, in Time:

(historical) The western part of the United States during the 19th-century era of expansion and settlement.


IJN

Imperial Japanese Navy
w:Imperial Japanese Navy

(US, military, nautical) Initialism of Imperial Japanese Navy, the navy of Imperial Japan, predecessor of the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force, usually in reference to WWII.


PLA

(historical, trading) NYSE stock-ticker symbol for Playboy Enterprises, Inc., now PLBY.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus
w:Pokémon Legends: Arceus

(fandom slang, video games) Initialism of Pokémon Legends: Arceus.


tengu

(Japanese mythology, Shinto, mythology) A mythical Japanese creature, typically birdlike and having a long nose.


South Park

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-South Park.wav

Allegheny County
Allegheny County#English

A township in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States.


galge

Borrowed from Japanese ギャルゲー (gyarugē), a shortening of ギャルゲーム (gyaru gēmu), a wasei-eigo derived from English gal + game.

(video games) A video game centered around interactions with attractive anime-style girls.


Tang dynasty

A Chinese dynasty that lasted from 618–907 C.E..


Nyepi

A Hindu Balinese day of silence, fasting, and meditation that falls on Bali's Lunar New Year.


Democratic

The most recent Democratic president of the United States is Joe Biden.

The vote was 54-46. The vote was mostly along party lines though Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania joined Republicans in supporting Bondi.

2025 February 4, Shania Shelton and Morgan Rimmer, “Senate votes to confirm Pam Bondi as attorney general”, in CNN:

(US politics) Of, pertaining to, or supporting the Democratic Party.


Mara

From Sanskrit मर (mara), from Proto-Indo-European *mer- (“to die”). Doublet of mortality.

(Hinduism) The Hindu god of death; opposite of Kama.


Disneyfy

en-verb

Disneyfy (third-person singular simple present Disneyfies, present participle Disneyfying, simple past and past participle Disneyfied)

Disneyfies (present singular third-person)
Disneyfying (participle present)
Disneyfied (participle past)
Disneyfied (past)

From Disney + -fy, with reference to the Disney theme parks.

Jazz was not always an accepted music, and, of course, today we have the problem of remaining faithful to the cultural roots of jazz, not just candifying, Disneyfying the music.

1994, United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Subcommittee on Public Lands, National Parks, and Forests, Workshop and hearing on New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park:

The overall feel on today is prehistoric. There is a mood of dilophosauri and raptors lurking hungrily in the oak copses—of the savagery that lurks to recapture even the most Disneyfied of environments in the absence of vigilance.

1996, Douglas Coupland, “Postcard from Palo Alto”, in Polaroids from the Dead, New York, N.Y.: ReganBooks, →ISBN, part 2 (Portraits of People and Places), page 117:

Every summer, the most popular European destinations get stuffed to the gills with tourists, who outnumber locals by many multiples, turning hot spots into sweaty, selfie-stick-clogged, “Disneyfied” towns.

2018 August 29, Farhad Manjoo, “‘Overtourism’ Worries Europe. How Much Did Technology Help Get Us There?”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2018-08-29:

Frieze has become a corporate snooze. Have the galleries been actively encouraged by its big-business owners to Disneyfy themselves?

2023 October 11, Jonathan Jones, “Frieze London art fair review – a graveyard of creativity for tasteless one percenters”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-10-11:

(transitive, usually derogatory) To make something (especially a location) more acceptable or marketable by removing potentially distasteful, controversial or boring elements, particularly at the cost of its history and culture.


Indra

Transliteration of Sanskrit इन्द्र (índra).

translit

(Hinduism, Vedic religion) The god of war and weather; also the King of the Gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hinduism.


Sarasvati

The Hindu goddess of knowledge and the arts.


Parvati

(Hinduism) A Hindu goddess, the goddess of love, devotion and power; nominally the second consort of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction and rejuvenation.


buddhi

(Hinduism) A transpersonal faculty of mind higher than the rational mind that might be translated as ‘intuitive intelligence’ or simply ‘higher mind’. It is ‘that which knows’, ie. able to discern truth from falsehood.


MTFBWY

may the Force be with you
may the Force be with you#English

(text messaging) Initialism of may the Force be with you.


Celtiberian

Celtiberians (plural)
Celt-Iberian (alternative)

Celtiberian
Celtiberian language
Celtiberians

A member of a Celtic people living in the Iberian Peninsula, chiefly in what is now north central Spain, before and during the Roman Empire.


CCF

ccf (alternative)
Ccf (alternative)
C.C.F. (alternative)
C. C. F. (alternative)

(Canadian politics, historical) Initialism of Co-operative Commonwealth Federation.


Vritra

(Hinduism) An Asura and also a serpent or dragon, the personification of drought and enemy of Indra. Vritra was also known in the Vedas as Ahi ("snake"), and he is said to have had three heads.


Yama

Borrowed from Sanskrit यम (yamá). Doublet of Enma.

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The Hindu lord of death, who rides a buffalo.

যম

the Hindu lord of death, who rides a buffalo


Aditya

(Hinduism) Any of a group of solar deities, the sons of Aditi and Kashyapa.


Aditya

A male given name from Sanskrit mainly used in India and Nepal.


Bhaga

(Hinduism) One of the Adityas, a god of wealth and marriage in Hinduism. In the Rigveda Bhaga is the god who supervises the distribution of goods and destiny to each man corresponding to his merits.


Nataraja

From Sanskrit नटराज (naṭarāja), from नर्त (narta, “dancing”) + राजन् (rājan, “king”).

(Hinduism) The dancing posture of the Hindu god Shiva, who performs his divine dance as a part of his activities of creation and destruction.


silovik

From Russian силови́к (silovík), from си́ла (síla, “force”) + adjective suffix -ов (-ov, “-able/-ible”) + agent suffix -ик (-ik, “-ist, -er”), adjective: силово́й (silovój, “of or related to force”).

[T]he so-called siloviki have installed themselves deep inside the country’s boss class – something that did not happen to anything like the same degree during the Cold War.

2023, Robert Service, “The Misinformation Game”, in Literary Review, number 520:

(politics) A member of the Russian military, police, or intelligence services (chiefly the KGB or, later, the FSB), or a politician with a background in such services.

ուժային

former member of the security services and the military, any power structure (Russia)


Ancient Rome

The civilization associated with Rome from the 9th century BCE to the 5th century C.E. and the Roman Empire centered on it.

Roma e lashtë

civilization associated with Rome from the 9th century BC to the 5th century AD


Chimera

Apulia
Chimera (mythology)
Chimera of Arezzo
Etruscan civilization
Louvre
Mount Chimaera
Strabo

As the mythological beast, a variant case form of chimera, q.v. As an ancient mountain, directly from Latin mons Chimaera (“Mount Chimera”), from Ancient Greek Χίμαιρα (Khímaira), attested in Strabo.

Chimaera (alternative)
chimera (alternative)
chimaera (alternative)

CHIMERA, a fabulous monſter...

1771, Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1st ed., Vol. II, p. 184

(Greek mythology) A supposed fire-breathing monster in Lycia with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and tail of a dragon or snake, killed by the hero Bellerophon.

քիմեր

Greek myth: monster killed by Bellerophon

CHIMERA... The foundation of the fable was, that in Lycia there was a burning mountain, or vulcano, of this name; that the top of this mountain was ſeldom without lions, nor the middle, which had very good graſs, without goats; that ſerpents bred at the bottom, which was marſhy; and that Bellerophon rendered the mountain habitable.

(geography, Ancient Greece) A fire-spewing mountain in Lycia or Cilicia, presumed to be an ancient name for the Yanartaş region of Turkey's Antalya Province.


Jim Crow law

From the song Jump Jim Crow (c. 1830) which mockingly portrayed African-Americans. It became a generic term for African-Americans in the early- to mid-19th century.

(US, historical) Any law that racially segregated public facilities and which was enacted in Southern and border states in the United States between 1876 and 1965.


SEATO

Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
w:Southeast Asia Treaty Organization

(historical) Initialism of Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, in existence from 1955 to 1977.


dhyana

en-noun

dhyana (countable and uncountable, plural dhyanas)

From Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna, literally “meditation”). Doublet of Zen and Chan.

bor

Thus the Kaivalyopanisad accords equal importance to Sraddha (faith-regard), devotion (bhakti) and meditation (dhyana) for the attainment of the highest knowledge.

The beginning must be made with pathawi-kasina, and then the dhyánas, &c., must be taken alternately, as from the first dhyána to the third, then to ákásánancháyatana, and so on to the end.

1860, Robert Spence Hardy, Eastern monachism, page 262:

Each of the three planes may be experienced through developing the dhyānas in meditation - so here we have yet another way of describing higher states of consciousness.

1997, Meditation: The Buddhist Way of Tranquillity and Insight, page 86:

(Hinduism, Buddhism) A type of profound meditation.


bat phone

bat phones (plural)
batphone (alternative)
bat-phone (alternative)

From bat- + phone, after Commissioner Gordon's secure line to the Batphone in the 1960s-era Batman television show.

(informal) A telephone that has a direct connection to an important caller, or is only used for important calls


shakha

From Sanskrit शाखा (śā́khā, “a branch; arm etc.”).

uder

It is held that the ancient Rishis or saints, like the Jewish patriarchs, lived far beyond the ordinary span of existence, and hence had time to learn all the Vedas and their commentaries. But this was impossible for their short-lived descendants, and hence each Veda has been divided into a number of Shākhas or branches, and the ordinary Brāhman only learns one Shākha of one Veda.

1916, R. V. Russell, The Tribes And Castes Of The Central Provinces Of India, page 360:

(Hinduism) Either a school of the Vedas, or the traditional texts followed by a school.


Ushas

From Sanskrit उषस् (uṣás, “dawn”). Doublet of Aurora and Eos.

Of the goddesses there are only two who have any marked individuality, viz., Ushas, the dawn, and Sarasvati, the goddess of the river of that name, and afterwards the goddess of speech.

1999, Shyam Singh Shashi, Encyclopaedia Indica, page 16:

(Vedic religion, Hinduism) Vedic and Hindu female deity, personifying the dawn, usually mentioned in plural. She is portrayed as welcoming birds and warding off evil spirits, and as a beautifully adorned young woman riding in a golden chariot on her path across the sky.


Dyaus Pita

From Sanskrit द्यौष्पितृ (dyauṣ-pitṛ). Doublet of Jupiter.

Thus in the early Vedas we find records of Dyaus-Pita, or “Father-Heaven,” accompanied by Prithvi or “Mother-Earth”; also Ushas or “Dawn-Goddess”; Surya, or the “Sun-God”; Vayu or the “Wind-God”; and Agni, the “Fire-god”.

1998, Yogi Ramacharaka Ramacharaka, The Philosophies and Religions of India, Kessinger Publishing, page 250:

(Hinduism) In the Vedic religion, the Sky Father, husband of Prithvi and father of Agni and Indra.


Ashvamedha

Borrowed from Sanskrit अश्वमेध (áśva-medhá, “horse-sacrifice”), an oxytonic tatpuruṣa compound of अश्व (áśva, “horse”) and मेध (médha, “animal sacrifice”).

bor

A peculiar verse in the Yajurvedic Ashvamedha tells us that in the sacrifices that were performed by the devas, Agni was the horse, and he conquered the earth (23/17). The idea of using the Ashvamedha horse for extending the rule to the neighbouring territories arose from this.

1996, Jayant Gadkari, Society and Religion: From Rugveda to Puranas, page 32:

(Hinduism) One of the most important Vedic sacrificial rituals related to kings, and name of the Rigvedic hymns 1.162-163 which deal with horse sacrifice.


Kore

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek κόρη (kórē, “girl, maiden”).

lbor

(Greek mythology) The birth name of Persephone/Proserpina, the queen of the Underworld/Hades, and goddess of the seasons and of vegetation. She is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter; and the wife of Hades.


walk in the snow

en-noun

walk in the snow (plural walks in the snow)

From a remark by Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Eliott Trudeau (1919-2000) on February 29, 1984, describing how he made his decision to retire.

Mr. Trudeau told reporters yesterday he made the decision to put an end to almost 16 years in office after a long, solitary walk Tuesday night through a blinding Ottawa blizzard. . . . "It was a great walk in the snow."

1984 March 1, Charlotte Montgomery, Thomas Walkom, “Pierre Trudeau steps down. New leader likely by end of June”, in Globe and Mail, Toronto, page 1:

"I went for a walk in the snow last night—and I'm staying." So said Jean Chretien on January 15th, varying the phrase with which Pierre Trudeau announced his sudden resignation as Canada's prime minister in 1984.

2002, “Shuffle in the snow; Politics in Canada”, in The Economist, volume 362, number 8256, page 49:

Even in defeat, Ignatieff could not shake even one more Trudeau comparison. Trudeau's historic long walk in the snow came in February 1984.

2006 December 4, Mike Blanchfield, Norma Greenaway, “Ignatieff takes his own walk in the snow”, in Calgary Herald, Alberta, page A9:

(Canada, chiefly politics, idiomatic) An occasion when a momentous career decision is made, especially a decision to resign or retire.


PQ

(Canadian politics) Initialism of Parti Québécois - a political party of the province of Quebec, Canada


Sapta Sindhu

From सप्त (sapta, “seven”) + सिन्धु (síndhu, “river, stream”). This expression in English incorporates a grammatical error: Sindhu is the nominative singular; used with "seven", the noun should, of course, be in the plural: Sindhava:/Sindhavas, सप्तसिंधव: (saptasiṃdhava:, “seven rivers”), which is the term used in Sanskrit.

The settlers in Sapta Sindhu composed the Rig Veda, the first of the Vedas, the ancient sacred writings of the Hindu religion.

2006, Marshall Cavendish Corporation, World and Its Peoples, page 316:

(Hinduism, India) The seven sacred rivers in Indian mythology, often referred to in Rigveda and in Zend Avesta. They are often located in the Punjab region in northwestern India / northern Pakistan.


Hypnos

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Ὕπνος (Húpnos, literally “Sleep”).

bor

(Greek mythology) The god and personification of sleep. The son of Nyx and Erebus, twin brother of Thanatos, husband of Pasithea, and the father of the Oneiroi. His Roman counterpart is Somnus.


jivanmukta

jivanmuktas (plural)
jivanmukti (alternative)

Borrowed from Sanskrit जीवन्मुक्ति (jīvanmukti, “emancipation while still alive”).

bor+

(Hinduism) A person who, in the Advaita philosophy of Hinduism, has attained nirvikalpa samadhi — the realization of the Self, Parasiva — and is liberated from rebirth while living in a human body.

(Hinduism) A liberated being (not necessarily paramukta).


devadasi

From the Sanskrit देवदासी (devá-dāsī, “female servant of a deity”), from देव (devá, “deity, god”) and दासी (dāsī, “a female servant or slave”).

bor

It would be a century before the daughter of another devadasi mesmerized audiences around the world.

2017, Sunil Khilnani, Incarnations, Penguin, page 372:

(Hinduism, historical) A girl who underwent the Hindu religious practice of being "married" to a deity. In addition to taking care of the temple, she learned and practiced Bharatanatyam and other classical Indian arts, and enjoyed high social status.


Samkhya

From Sanskrit सांख्य (sāṃkhya, “enumerating, reckoning up”).

uder

(Hinduism) One of the six schools of classical Indian philosophy.


Nyaya

From Sanskrit न्याय (ny-āyá, “syllogism, inference”).

(Hinduism) One of the six orthodox or astika schools of Hindu philosophy — specifically the school of logic.


astika

From Sanskrit आस्तिक (āstika, “orthodox, believing, pious, faithful”), from अस्ति (asti, “to be, exist”) + -क (-ka).

bor

(Hinduism) A philosophical school or individual accepting certain tenets fundamental to Hinduism, by various definitions:

The existence of atman (roughly "soul").

The existence of ishvara (a supreme deity).


nastika

Borrowed from Sanskrit नास्तिक (nāstika, “heterodox”), from नस्ति (nasti, “to not exist”), negative of अस्ति (asti, “exists”).

(Hinduism) Not astika, see there for more.


adoratrice

Calque of Egyptian dwꜣt (“adoratrice”), from dwꜣ (“to worship, to praise”) + -t (feminine ending).

A kind of female quasi-royal priestess in Ancient Egypt.


surrogatum

1800s. Latin, neuter singular of surrogatus

(Scots law) A thing put in the place of another; a substitute.


Shakti

From Sanskrit शक्ति (śákti, “power, energy”).

In yoga the feminine principle is Shakti, the Great Goddess experienced by all initiates of the Tantric process of transformation.

1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 115:

(Hinduism) The Hindu concept or personification of the divine feminine aspect, sometimes referred to as 'The Divine Mother'. Shakti represents the active, dynamic principles of feminine power.


Pathet Lao

From Lao ປະເທດລາວ (pa thēt lāo), from ປະເທດ (pa thēt, “country, state”) + ລາວ (lāo, “Lao”).

A communist nationalist movement and political party in Laos, which took power in 1975 after a civil war.


rakshasa

A race of one-eyed beings / All feared and shunned / Rakshasa demon

2006, Mastodon (lyrics and music), “Circle of Cysquatch”:

(Hinduism) A member of a race of mythical fanged demons that eat human flesh and blood, somewhat like vampires.


feed the dragon

en-verb

feed the dragon (third-person singular simple present feeds the dragon, present participle feeding the dragon, simple past and past participle fed the dragon)

feeds the dragon (present singular third-person)
feeding the dragon (participle present)
fed the dragon (participle past)
fed the dragon (past)

The dragon is a cultural symbol of China.

People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China

(idiomatic) To outsource (jobs) to the People's Republic of China.

(idiomatic) To buy or sell products labeled as "Made in China."


Izanagi

Borrowed from Japanese 伊邪那岐 (いざなぎ, Izanagi).

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) A Japanese creator god; he is Izanami's elder brother and spouse, and the father of Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, Susanoo and Kagutsuchi.


Izanami

Borrowed from Japanese 伊邪那美 (いざなみ, Izanami).

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) A Japanese creator goddess who is also (along with the Shinigami and Enma) a goddess of death and the underworld; she is Izanagi's younger sister and spouse, and the mother of Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, Susanoo and Kagutsuchi.


Amaterasu

/ɑːmətɛɹˈɑːsuː/

Borrowed from Japanese 天照 (Amaterasu), from 天 (ama, “sky, the heavens”) + 照らす (terasu, “to illuminate something”).

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) The Japanese sun goddess, and most important Shinto deity; she is the daughter of Izanagi and Izanami and the sister of Susanoo, Tsukuyomi, Ōyamatsumi, and Kagutsuchi.


Capitoline

From Latin Capitolīnus (adj. & n.), from Capitolium (“Capitoline Hill”) + -inus (“-ine: forming adjectives”), from the oblique stem of caput (“head”) + -ō (“forming nouns”) or -ōlus (“-ole: forming diminutives”) + -ium (“forming location names”).

Capitoline Hill
Constantine the Great
Museum of Roman Civilization

He said to meet him on the Capitoline.

Synonym of Capitoline Hill, the highest of the seven hills of Rome.


Savitr

From Sanskrit सवितृ (savitṛ, “stimulator, rouser, vivifier”).

bor

However, Savitṛ represents, as has been rightly pointed out by Sāyaṇa, the natural phenomenon of the setting and rising sun, whereas Sūrya represents the sun after it is risen and before it approaches the setting frame.

2003, Malati J. Shendge, The Civilized Demons: The Harappans in Rigveda, Abhinav Publications, →ISBN, page 319:

(Hinduism) A solar deity (Deva) and one of the Adityas. He is sometimes identified with, and at other times distinguished from, the chief Sun deity Surya.


Surya

From Sanskrit सूर्य (sū́rya, “the sun or its deity”). Doublet of sun.

(Hinduism) The chief solar deity, one of the Adityas, son of Kasyapa and one of his wives Aditi, of Indra, or of Dyaus Pita (depending by the versions). Portrayed with golden arms and hair, Surya drives through the heaven in his triumphal chariot harnessed by seven horses or one horse with seven heads, which represent the seven colours of the rainbow or the seven chakras.


Rāhu

Transliteration of Sanskrit राहु (rāhu).

(Hinduism, Buddhism) The ascending lunar node. An asura and god of the solar eclipse.

(Tibetan Buddhism) A supernatural being in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, particularly the Nyingma lineage. Usually depicted as dark blue in colour and having nine heads one of which is that of a raven. He has a face in his belly the mouth of which swallows up the moon or sun during eclipses. He is master of the nine planets and the god of solar and lunar eclipses.


Ketu

(Hinduism) The descending lunar node. In Hindu mythology, Ketu is generally referred to as a "shadow" planet, believed to have a tremendous impact on human lives and also the whole creation.


coronato

(historical) An old silver coin of 15th-century Italy, introduced during the reign of Ferdinand I of Aragon.


Kamadeva

Borrowed from Sanskrit कामदेव (kā́ma-deva).

bor+

Kama (alternative)
Madan (alternative)
Manmatha (alternative)
Manmathudu (alternative)

(Hinduism) The Hindu deity of love, son of the goddess Sri and the incarnation of Pradyumna, Krishna's son.


bhakti

en-noun

bhakti (countable and uncountable, plural bhaktis)

It should be obvious by now that bhakti is not merely pious thoughts of "love" but rather fearless action. Nārada asks nothing less of the bhakta than complete surrender and complete dedication unto the will of Bhagavān. But if at any point one feels himself unable to reach the ideals taught by Nārada, he is not condemned. Lord Kṛṣṇa also says that if we cannot achieve the topmost surrender, then we should do what we can and try to progress gradually.

1991, A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Nārada-bhakti-sūtra, The Secrets of Transcendental Love, page 114:

The offering of Bhakti is a specific activity, either mental or physical, through which a devotee can finally attain the knowledge of the Supreme Reality. So, Karma and Jñāna are not antagonistic to the Bhakti Mārga, rather, they are indispensable parts of it.

2004, Muhammad Sirajul Islam, Sufism and Bhakti, A Comparative Study, page 78:


Vasu

Borrowed from Sanskrit वसु (vásu, “dwelling, dweller”).

bor

(Hinduism) Any of the attendant deities of Indra, and later Vishnu. They are eight elemental gods representing aspects of nature.


Euamerion

From Ancient Greek Εὐαμερίων (Euameríōn), from εὐ- (eu-) + ἁμἐρα (hamera) + -ίων (-íōn).

af

(Greek mythology) Alternative name for Telesphoros


quadriga

en-noun

quadriga (plural quadrigae or quadrigas)

From Latin quadrīgae, literally "four yoked", from quattuor (“four”) + iugum (“yoke”).

(historical) A team of four horses, or sometimes other animals, especially as used in chariot racing.


Gaullism

Gaullism (countable and uncountable, plural Gaullisms)

French gaullisme, from Charles de Gaulle.

A French political ideology based on Charles de Gaulle's thoughts and actions.

Gaulish

not cognate with each other nor with Gaullism, despite seeming so


Gaullist

One who believes in or follows the ideals of Gaullism.

gaullistinen

one who believes in or follows the ideals of Gaullism


Obama

Translingual: Obamadon, Obamus, Etheostoma obama (spangled darter), Tosanoides obama, Caloplaca obamae (Obama lichen)

Corruption of by-name Luo Mobam (“born with a crooked back”), itself from Luo obam (“to lean or bend”).

(The Browns gave the Obamas an ornate penholder made from the timber of a Victorian antislave ship.)

2009 March 4, Helene Cooper, “Obama’s Star Turn at Summit Gets Mixed Results”, in The New York Times:

From his studies of these thinkers and activists, Mr. Obama took what he called the “Niebuhrian” lesson that we can have “a cleareyed view of the world and the realities of cruelty and sin and greed and violence, and yet, still maintain a sense of hope and possibility, as an act of will and leap of faith.”

2020 December 8, Michiko Kakutani, “Obama, the Best-Selling Author, on Reading, Writing and Radical Empathy”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

United States of America
United States of America

Barack Obama, 44th president of the United States of America.


Mentor

en-proper noun

Mentor (countable and uncountable, plural Mentors)

From Ancient Greek Μέντωρ (Méntōr, “Mentor”).

(Greek mythology) Odysseus's trusted counselor. He was assigned the responsibility of raising Odysseus's son Telemachus while Odysseus was away fighting in Troy.


deuteragonist

From Ancient Greek δευτεραγωνιστής (deuteragōnistḗs, literally “second actor”), originally in Greek drama, from ἀγωνιστής (agōnistḗs, “a combatant, pleader, actor”).
By surface analysis, deuter- (“second”) + agonist (“combatant, participant”).

der

δευτεραγωνιστής

surf

The first disposition accords with the attested reality of Nero acting in masks resembling his own features or those of women with whom he was in love (Suet. Nero 21.3), especially Poppaea (Dio 63.9.5), and generates a set of roles for the deuteragonist all of which focus on failed counsel; it also underlines the parallelism between the Seneca-Nero and Nero-Prefect scenes, and reinforces the view that the First and Second Prefect are not identical.

2008, A. J. Boyle, editor, Octavia: Attributed to Seneca, Oxford University Press, page 93:

In the distribution of the other roles between the deuteragonist and the tritagonist, the same criteria must have applied. When two characters had an important part in a tragedy and could not be played by a single protagonist, the second was played by the deuteragonist.[…]The tritagonist, even more than the deuteragonist, had to play several secondary roles.

2018, Jacques Jouanna, translated by Steven Rendall, Sophocles: A Study of His Theater in Its Political and Social Context, Princeton University Press, page 201:

(historical, ancient Greek drama) An actor playing a role (potentially all roles) requiring a second actor to be present on the stage, opposite the protagonist.


one country, two systems

Coined by Chinese politician and paramount leader from 1978 to 1989 Deng Xiaoping in 1982 as part of the People's Republic of China proposal to reunify Taiwan. Calque of Chinese 一國兩制 /一国两制 (yī guó liǎng zhì).

cal

The principle of “one country, two systems” was first proposed by Deng Xiaoping in the early 1980s as way to reconcile the communist mainland with historically Chinese territories—Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau—that had capitalist economies.

2017 June 29, “Has “one country, two systems” been a success for Hong Kong?”, in The Economist, →ISSN:

Policy for the reunification of China as one country, but with areas like Hong Kong and Taiwan with separate economic and political systems.

一國兩制 /一国两制

slogan for the reunification of China as one country


Sexet

(Egyptian mythology) Egyptian goddess of malevolent fire, sister of Bast, the bringer of ill-fortune


Aurelian

From Latin Aurelianus, derivative of the gens name Aurelius (“golden”).

A male given name from Latin, of mostly historical use in English.


adminicle

From Latin adminiculum (“support pole”).


Qing dynasty

A farmer who pretended to be a princess descended from the Qing dynasty to swindle people out of more than 2 million yuan ($315,000) has been sentenced to 13 - 1/2 years in prison for fraud, a court said.

2015 September 9, “Chinese farmer pretended to be princess to commit fraud”, in AP News, archived from the original on 2022-10-13:

The last dynasty of China, lasting from 1644 to 1912 C.E..


Putinism

Indeed Putinism elided the differences between consensus, centrism and conformity.

2004, Cameron Ross, Russian Politics Under Putin, Manchester University Press, page 60:

Putin may now calculate he can call off the dogs of war, having achieved his aims and able to pocket his gains very cheaply. The Georgia campaign becomes the triumphant climax of Putinism. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/aug/16/georgia.russia1

2008 August 16, Ian Traynor, “Six days that broke one country - and reshaped the world order”, in The Guardian:

And so it was Surkov who in 2004 announced that Putinism, this strange new hybrid of Soviet-type authoritarianism and free-market morals, was based on the concept of ‘sovereign democracy’.

2014, Marc Bennetts, Kicking the Kremlin: Russia’s New Dissidents and the Battle to Topple Putin, Oneworld Publications:

Navalny’s boyish charm, quick wit and detailed accounts of the dodgy deals and luxurious homes of the elite have made his Internet-distributed videos oopular as devastating indictments of the open-mawed corruption of late Putinism.

2019, Mark Galeotti, We Need to Talk About Putin: Why the West gets him wrong, and how to get him right, London: Random House:

(politics) The political policies of Vladimir Putin; the Russian political system during Putin’s tenure in power.

putinizëm

the political policies of Vladimir Putin


OSI

More recently the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Special Investigations (OSI), which is responsible for prosecuting Nazis and collaborators alleged to have entered this country illegally, closed out an investigation of Poppe’s immigration to the United States without bringing any charges against him. This action was taken in part because the OSI determined that Poppe had disclosed his relationship with the SS to U.S. intelligence prior to his immigration, thus making it highly unlikely that the OSI could successfully prosecute Poppe for illegal entry into the United States.

2014, Christopher Simpson, “nine”, in Mark Crispin Miller, editor, Blowback: America’s Recruitment of Nazis and Its Destructive Impact on Our Domestic and Foreign Policy, New York: Open Road Media, published 1988, →ISBN, page 85:

Office of Special Investigations
w:Office of Special Investigations

(US politics) Initialism of Office of Special Investigations.


Copt

Borrowed from French copte, from Arabic قُبْط (qubṭ, “Copts”), from Coptic ⲅⲩⲡⲧⲓⲟⲥ (guptios, “Egyptian”), ⲕⲩⲡⲧⲁⲓⲟⲥ (kuptaios, “Egyptian”), from Late Ancient Greek Αἰγύπτιος (Aigúptios), from earlier Αἴγυπτος (Aíguptos), from Egyptian Hwt-t:O1-kA:Z1-p:t-H-A40 (ḥwt-kꜣ-ptḥ, “Egypt; temple of Ptah's ka”). Doublet of Gypsy. More at Egypt.


senpai

senpais (plural)
senpai (plural)
sempai (alternative)

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

Borrowed from Japanese 先(せん)輩(ぱい) (senpai). Doublet of sunbae.

(anime and manga, fandom slang) An upperclassman or elder student, in the context of Japan.


decadrachm

(historical) A unit of currency in Ancient Greece, worth ten drachmas.


daalder

From Dutch daalder. Doublet of thaler and dollar.

A historic unit of currency of the Netherlands, equivalent to one-and-a-half guilders.


half-noble

An ancient unit of currency of England, equivalent to half a noble.


Republicrat

This hybrid voting behavior may be called "Republicrat", and obviously it must depress Republicanism in Southern congressional, state, and local politics.

1966, Allan P. Sindler, Political Parties in the United States, page 70:

(US politics, derogatory) A United States politician who is a member of one of the two major political parties (Democrat and Republican), but frequently votes with the other party.

We need to make people understand that decisions being made on local levels are often far more influential in our lives and probably the only real way — unless we're able to radically change the way our one-party Republicrat system works — to make change.

2001, Daniel Sinker, We Owe You Nothing: Punk Planet : the Collected Interviews, page 290:

Both wings of the ruling "Republicrat" Party try to outdo themselves in announcing new, ever more draconian measures to restrict, repress, restrain, and eliminate the poor.

2004, Howard Zinn, Anthony Arnove, Voices of a People's History of the United States, page 567:

Rather, we have a single Republicrat party of greedy, self-serving, amoral, power-driven professional politicians...

2005, Holliston Perni, A Heritage of Hypocrisy: Why 'They' Hate Us, page 4:

(US politics, derogatory, attributive) The two-party system, characterized as a single organization that excludes the participation and views of third parties.


Sutratman

From Sanskrit sutra (“thread”) and atman (“self”).

(Hinduism) The "String Soul" or "Thread-Self": the cosmic soul, one aspect of the cosmic supreme being.


Snake

en-proper noun

Snake (countable and uncountable, plural Snakes)

en:Snake (disambiguation)
en:Snake (zodiac)
en:Snake River

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

(astrology, timekeeping) The sixth of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar.

(video games) An early computer game, later popular on mobile phones, in which the player attempts to manoeuvre a perpetually growing snake so as to collect food items and avoid colliding with walls or the snake's tail.

A river in the northwestern United States, tributary to the Columbia.


Leander

From Ancient Greek Λέανδρος (Léandros), from λέων (léōn, “lion”) + ἀνήρ (anḗr, “man”).

Leander, he would have lived many a fair year, though Hero had turned nun, if it had not been for a hot midsummer night.

(Greek mythology) The lover of Hero who swam every night across the Hellespont to meet her, and finally was drowned.


yellow dog

yellow dogs (plural)
Yellow Dog (alternative)
yaller dog (alternative)
yallar dog (alternative)

Carolina dogs were called yellow dogs because many had yellow coats. The fact that many mongrel dogs also had yellow coats lead to the term's application to any worthless item or person. For the etymology of the term Yellow Dog Democrat, see that entry.

What led Rick Perry to pronounce the Yellow Dogs dead?

2011, William Earl Maxwell, Ernest Crain, Adolfo Santos, Texas Politics Today: 2011-2012 Edition, page 125:

Yellow Dog Democrat
Yellow Dog Democrat#English

(US politics, uncommon) Short for Yellow Dog Democrat.


Tin Man

The Tin Woodman, a metallic character in the fictional Land of Oz who travels with Dorothy, the Scarecrow, and the Cowardly Lion to the Emerald City in search of a heart.


speos

A tomb or temple carved from the solid rock


dixer

From Dix + -er. See Dorothy Dixer for more.

(Australian politics) Synonym of Dorothy Dixer (“a planted parliamentary question”).


Procrustes

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Προκρούστης (Prokroústēs).

bor+

(Greek mythology) A celebrated legendary highwayman of Attica, who tied his victims upon an iron bed, and, as the case required, either stretched or cut off their legs to adapt them to its length.


Megaera

From Ancient Greek Μέγαιρα (Mégaira, “the jealous one”), from μεγαίρω (megaírō, “to grudge, envy”).

bor

(Greek mythology) One of the Furies, Erinyes in Greek mythology, the cause of jealousy and envy, who punishes people who commit crimes, especially marital infidelity.


Pickett's charge

en-noun

Pickett's charge (plural Pickett's charges)

Pickett's charges (plural)
Pickett's Charge (alternative)

A reference to an event during the American Civil War, wherein 16,000 Confederate infantrymen attacked Union positions; the attack failed, with several thousand Confederate casualties.


fandub

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

The fandub Evangelion: ReDeath is shown every year at Fanime.

(US, anime) An anime title that has been dubbed by fans.


Stymphalides

From Latin Stymphālides, from Ancient Greek Στυμφαλίδες ὄρνιθες (Stumphalídes órnithes, “birds of Stymphalus”).

der

Στυμφαλίδες ὄρνιθες

(Greek mythology) In Greek mythology, a flock of metallic man-eating birds that haunted Lake Stymphalis in Arkadia. They were slain by Herakles as part of his sixth Labour, who took advantage of their sensitive sense of hearing.


filial piety

The virtue of showing respect and doing good deeds for one's parents, elders, and ancestors, as understood in Confucian ethics and commonly observed in the East Asian cultural sphere.


Haumea

From Hawaiian hau (“ruler”) (archaic) + mea (“reddish brown”), "red ruler".

(Hawaiian mythology) The goddess of fertility and childbirth.


yajna

en-noun

yajna (countable and uncountable, plural yajnas)

yajnas (plural)
yajña (alternative)
yagna (alternative)
yadnya (alternative)
yagnya (alternative)
yagya (alternative)

The visit to Pushkar is, however, a little more than the obligatory obeisance done at the site where Brahma carelessly dropped a lotus blossom as he was wondering where to perform a yagnya.

1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 501:

(Hinduism) A ritual of sacrifice to the Devas.


yamboo

(historical) A small gold or silver ingot formerly used as currency in some parts of China.


Avernus

From Latin Avernus, from Ancient Greek ἄορνος (áornos), ἄϝορνος (áwornos, “birdless”), from ἀ- (a-, “without”) + ὄρνις (órnis, “bird”). The lack of birds was likely due to fatal gases like carbon dioxide seeping from the volcanically active lake.

His fiery eies are fixt vpon the earth.
As if he now deuiſ’d some Stratageme:
Or meant to pierce Auernus darkſome vauts.
To pull the triple headed dog from hell.

c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act I, scene ii:

The entrance to Hell or the underworld, or the underworld itself.


Uncle Scrooge

From a Disney character, named in reference to Charles Dickens' fictional miser Ebenezer Scrooge.

It is an anomaly of our times that an Uncle Sam spending at a rate of some $128 billion yearly should become an Uncle Scrooge in the treatment of government workers!

1967, Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, “Federal Pay Legislation: Hearings, Ninetieth Congress, first session”, in parliamentary debates, U.S. Congress, page 282:


Red Army Faction

(historical) A far-left terrorist organization active from 1970 to 1998, mainly in West Germany and West Berlin.


Rovian

en-adj

Rovian (comparative more Rovian, superlative most Rovian)

more Rovian (comparative)
most Rovian (superlative)
Roveian (alternative)

There is something called a “Rovian” style of campaigning, and it's meant as an insult. President Barack Obama said many times during the campaign that he wanted to end “the Karl Rove era of politics.”

2010, Karl Rove, Courage and Consequence […] , Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 64:

The misdeeds were many, and he was known by all who knew him to be a ridiculous man, but this new plan was too much, was Caligulian, Roveian, and she had no obligation to cooperate.

2016, Dave Eggers, Heroes of the Frontier, Penguin UK, →ISBN:

Of or pertaining to the political theory that a lie told often enough will be accepted as the truth, and that the truth is no longer relevant to democratic politics.


OAV

Initialism of original animation video, a direct-to-video Japanese anime.


OVA

(anime) Initialism of Original Video Animation, a direct-to-video anime.


Shudra

Shudras (plural)
Sudra (alternative)
Súdra (alternative)
Shoodur (alternative)
Shuddery (alternative)
Soora (alternative)
Soodra (alternative)
Sooder (alternative)
Soudra (alternative)

A Sudra knows that his lot in life has been cast by divine fiat, and he does not expect the perquisites of a Brahmin.

1951 October, Helen Mayer Hacker, “Women as Minority Group”, in Howard W. Odum, Katherine Jocher, editors, Social Forces, volume 30, number 1, Williams & Wilkins, →DOI, page 60:

A member of the Hindu varna (caste) of workers.


Brahmana

Brahmanas (plural)
Brāhmaṇa (alternative)

Borrowed from Sanskrit ब्राह्मण (brā́hmaṇa). Doublet of brahmin.

(Hinduism) Any of several ancient Hindu religious prose texts that explain the relationship of the Vedas to the sacrificial ceremonies.


xenelasy

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ξενηλᾰσῐ́ᾱ (xenēlăsĭ́ā, “expulsion of foreigners”) + English -y (suffix forming abstract nouns denoting a condition, quality, or state). Ξενηλᾰσῐ́ᾱ (Xenēlăsĭ́ā) is derived from ξενηλατεῖν (xenēlateîn, “to expel a foreigner”) + -ῐ́ᾱ (-ĭ́ā, suffix forming feminine abstract nouns); and ξενηλατεῖν (xenēlateîn) is from ξένος (xénos, “foreigner; stranger”) (probably from Pre-Greek) + ἐλαύνω (elaúnō, “to drive, set in motion; to drive away”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁elh₂- (“to drive somewhere”)) + -ειν (-ein, suffix forming infinitives of verbs).

der

The old discipline and the public mess (as far as the rich were concerned) had degenerated into mere forms—a numerous body of strangers or non-citizens (the old xenêlasy, or prohibition of resident strangers, being long discontinued) were domiciled in the town, forming a powerful moneyed interest; […]

1846, George Grote, “Laws and Discipline of Lykurgus at Sparta”, in History of Greece, 2nd edition, volume II, London: John Murray, […], published 1849, →OCLC, part II (Historical Greece), pages 537–538:

Le Roi was in London, cook to a gambling house, while the Baron Squrzenstern Von Hairontuft, had been warned off the premises by a process nearly allied to the Spartan "Xenelasy," so Desmond was left alone.

1853, chapter III, in Passion and Pedantry, […], volume I, London: Thomas Cautley Newby, […], →OCLC, pages 39–40:

For the effect produced at Sparta by their institution of Xenelasy,—the prohibiting the residence of foreigners—is produced at Crete by the isolation their insular position brings with it. 'Their distance is equivalent to xenelasy.'

1855, Richard Congreve, “Πολιτικων Β [Politikōn B]”, in Aristotle, ΑΡΙΣΤΟΤΕΛΟΥΣ ΤΑ ΠΟΛΙΤΙΚΑ [Aristotelous ta Politika]: The Politics of Aristotle […], London: John W[illiam] Parker and Son […], →OCLC, footnote 15, page 93, column 1:

Where no actual prohibition exists, the conditions on which foreigners are admitted are sometimes so onerous as practically to exclude them. […] There is indeed little difference between the restrictive laws of modern European and American policy and the rude xenelasy of the Spartans, or the selfcomplacent exclusive system of the Chinese.

1863, William Edward Hearn, “Of the Circumstances which Determine the Extent of Exchange”, in Plutology: Or The Theory of Efforts to Satisfy Human Wants, Melbourne, Vic.: George Robertson, […], →OCLC, § 4, pages 261–262:

Massive expulsion of (enemy) aliens—xenelasy—has often occurred in the past, e.g., by France on the outbreak of the Franco-German war of 1870, by Turkey on the occasion of her wars with Greece in 1897 and with Italy in 1911[…].

1972, J[an] H[endrik] W[illem] Verzijl, “The Law Relating to Aliens”, in International Law in Historical Perspective, part V (Nationality and Other Matters Relating to Individuals), Leiden, South Holland: A[lbertus] W[illem] Sijthoff, →ISBN, section 2 (Admission, Sojourn and Expulsion of Aliens), page 425:

(Ancient Greece, historical) The practice of expelling foreigners in Doric Crete and Lacedaemonia.


three-line whip

en-noun

three-line whip (plural three-line whips)

From the triple underlining of very important votes on “the whip” — a document detailing upcoming business distributed weekly to British MPs by party managers.

Since the metaphysical status of egg-casing is not one on which the church has yet pronounced, opposition appears based on "yuck" and nothing else. But yuck has become diktat, with Catholic MPs up to cabinet level being given a three-line whip by their bishops.

2008 April 12, Simon Jenkins, Richard Harries, “Atheist versus Bishop”, in The Guardian:

Deputy Chief Whip Craig Whittaker told them it will be a “100% hard” three-line whip, saying: “This is not a motion on fracking. This is a confidence motion in the Government.”

2022 October 19, Ashley Cowburn, quoting Craig Whittaker, “Liz Truss declares fracking vote tonight a ‘confidence motion’ in her government”, in Mirror:

(UK politics) A directive to MPs from party leaders to vote in a particular way in parliament, despite what the MP might believe or what his or her constituents might like.


spad

spads (plural)
SpAd (alternative)
SpAD (alternative)

SPAD Special Advisor

1997 November 5, Reddy Hannah with Wimbush, Angela and Linesberry, Debbie, “Abbreviations and Acronyms”, in Dr. Russell G. Swenson, editor, Defense and Intelligence Abbreviations and Acronyms, Washington, DC: Joint Military Intelligence College, archived from the original on 2017-09-18, page 192:

A successful stint as a spad can be a crucial political apprenticeship - as many of the current crop of professional politicians including the Miliband brothers, David Cameron and George Osborne can testify - so long as they stay in the dark.

2009, Ben Wright, Hidden world of the political advisers, BBC:

The hit BBC sitcom satirising the inner workings of Whitehall and the so-called spads contains "more than a grain of truth", the head of the cross-party public administration select committee has warned.

2012, Avoid The Thick of It-style spad appointments, ministers told, The Guardian

(UK politics, informal) A government adviser, often in a political or media role.


Aeolus

From the Latin Aeolus, from the Ancient Greek Αἴολος (Aíolos, “moving, swift”).

der

(Greek mythology) The name of a number of characters in Greek mythology, including the founder of the Aeolian race, and a god with power over wind.


manhua

en-noun

manhua (countable and uncountable, plural manhuas)

Borrowed from Mandarin 漫畫 /漫画 (mànhuà), from Japanese 漫(まん)画(が) (manga). Doublet of manga and manhwa.

(comics) A comic originating in China or Taiwan.


nundine

nundines (plural)
nundines (alternative)

From Latin nundinae (“ninth-days”), a clipped form of nundinae feriae (“ninth-day festivals”), from its observance every eighth day (9 counting inclusively) and from the Latin practice of treating most recurring calendrical days as plurals.

A market or fair held every eight days, particularly (historical) in Roman contexts.


Confucianist

en-adj

Confucianist (comparative more Confucianist, superlative most Confucianist)

more Confucianist (comparative)
most Confucianist (superlative)

Related to the teachings of Confucius; Confucian.


Confucianist

A follower of the teachings of Confucius; a Confucian.


favorite son

(US politics) A male candidate chosen by a state delegation for an initial ballot, in the knowledge that other delegations will not prefer this candidate, for the purpose of negotiation.


Solid South

(US politics, historical) The electoral support of the Southern United States for Democratic Party candidates for nearly a century from 1877, the end of the Reconstruction, to 1964.


Disneyana

items related to The Walt Disney Company, especially collectibles.


Holi

Borrowed from Hindi होली (holī), from Sanskrit होली (holī).

A Hindu festival, held in the spring, in which people throw coloured powders at each other during noisy street celebrations.


convention bump

en-noun

convention bump (plural convention bumps)

(US politics) The rise in support (as shown in polls) a presidential candidate receives after the national party nominating convention.