originalist

In any event, this professorial detonation, especially coming as it does from hardline Federalist Society constitutional originalists, has set the cat among the Republican pigeons.

2023 September 2, Simon Schama, “The real Rino”, in FT Weekend, Life & Arts, page 2:

One who aims to discover how the writers of a document intended it to be interpreted, and to interpret it in that way.

(US politics) Specifically, one who aims to discover how the writers of the Constitution of the United States intended it to be interpreted, and to interpret it in that way.


scathe

en-noun

scathe (countable and uncountable, plural scathes)

scathes (plural)
scath (alternative)
skaith (alternative)
scaith (alternative)

From Middle English scath, scathe [and other forms], from Old Norse skaði (“damage, harm; loss; death; murder”), from Proto-Germanic *skaþô (“damage, scathe; one who causes damage, injurer”, noun) (whence Old English sċeaþa, sċeaþu (“scathe, harm, injury”)), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)keh₁t- (“damage, harm”).
Cognates
* Scots skaith
* Dutch schade
* German schaden
* Norwegian skade
* Swedish skada
* Icelandic skaði
* Polish szkoda
* Russian шко́да (škóda)
* Belarusian шко́дa (škóda)
* Ukrainian шко́да (škóda)

nb...

scade, scate, schath, schathe, schatht, sckathe, skade, skaith, skaithe, skagh, skate, skath, skathe, (Northern England, Northwest Midlands, Scotland) scaith, scaithe, schaithe, schath, schathe, skaith, skaithe, skaitht, (in names) scait, skeithe

der

(countable, Scots law, obsolete) An injury or loss for which compensation is sought in a lawsuit; damage; also, expenses incurred by a claimant; costs.


Mandate of Heaven

en-noun

Mandate of Heaven (plural Mandates of Heaven)

(figurative, often humorous) The preeminence of an incumbent or institution other than that of the rulers of China.


coryphaeus

coryphaeus (plural coryphaeuses or coryphaei)

coryphaeuses (plural)
coryphaei (plural)
coryphæus (alternative)
corypheus (alternative)
koryphaios (alternative)

/ˌkɔɹəˈfiːəs/

/ˌkɒɹɪˈfiːʌs/

Borrowed from Latin coryphaeus, from Ancient Greek κορυφαῖος (koruphaîos, “leader of the chorus in an Ancient Greek drama”), from κορυφή (koruphḗ, “top of the head, crown”) (possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂- (“head, top; horn”)) + -ῐος (-ĭos, suffix forming adjectives meaning ‘belonging to, pertaining to’).

der

Then the coryphæus finishes the remaining part of the strophe. But when they have returned to order, Bacchus again interposes by beginning the antistrophe β', which the coryphæus ought to have done.

1830, Gottfried Hermann, Gottfried Hermann, translated by John Seager, Hermann's Elements of the Doctrine of Metres, page 165:

The chorus, that is those members of the komos who have not become specialized as actors and continue singing and dancing, are headed by a coryphaeus, who sometimes addresses them, exhorting them to action, or to begin the song or the rite, or else anticipates or summarizes their words, or represents them in conversation with the actors.

1975, Francisco Rodríguez Adrados, “Festival, Comedy and Tragedy: The Greek Origins of Theatre”, in Christopher Holme, transl., [1972, Festia, Comedia y Tragedia], page 250:

Post-classical references to the famous ‘chorus-trainer’ Sannio indicate that his role extended to performing and thus taking the coryphaeus role. The coryphaeus was both leader and teacher, and in performance played a crucial role in setting the time that the other dancers followed.

2000, David Wiles, Greek Theatre Performance: An Introduction, page 135:

(Ancient Greece, drama, historical) The conductor or leader of the chorus of a drama.


Camelot

Camelot (musical)
en:Camelot (disambiguation)
en:Chrétien de Troyes
en:Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart

First attested in Old French as Camaalot in Chrétien de Troyes' Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart. In the US politics sense a reference to the contemporary musical Camelot (1960), associated with the Kennedy era.

(Arthurian legend) A mythical location in England. The stronghold of King Arthur in the Arthurian legend.

Of course you want to fund all these programs, and you want to fund all these activist campaigns. Of course you want that. The term “Camelot” was never used, but there was a Camelot feeling to it at the time that people must have felt in the early ’60s in the same way.

2025 January 17, Ross Douthat, quoting Marc Andreessen, “How Democrats Drove Silicon Valley Into Trump’s Arms”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(US politics) The administration and surrounding mystique of President John F. Kennedy.


Plymouth

From Plym + mouth, referring to the river's mouth.

A number of places in the United States:

A small city in Amador County, California.

A town in Litchfield County, Connecticut.

Litchfield County
Litchfield County#English

An unincorporated community in Orange County, Florida.

A village in Hancock County and McDonough County, Illinois.

McDonough County
McDonough County#English

A city, the county seat of Marshall County, Indiana.

A minor city in Cerro Gordo County, Iowa.

Cerro Gordo County
Cerro Gordo County#English

An unincorporated community in Lyon County, Kansas.

Penobscot County
Penobscot County#English

A large town in Massachusetts, and one of the two county seats of Plymouth County.

A sizable city in Hennepin County, Minnesota; a suburb of Minneapolis.

A former settlement in Lowndes County, Mississippi.

An unincorporated community in Carroll County, Missouri.

A village in Jefferson County, Nebraska.

Jefferson County
Jefferson County#English

A town in Grafton County, New Hampshire.

A town, the county seat of Washington County, North Carolina.

Washington County
Washington County#English

A village in Huron County and Richland County, Ohio.

A borough of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.

Box Elder County
Box Elder County#English

A small town in Windsor County, Vermont.

An unincorporated community in Putnam County, West Virginia.

A town and city in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin.

Sheboygan County
Sheboygan County#English

The Plymouth Colony, established by the Pilgrims.

A number of townships in the United States, listed under Plymouth Township.


Home Secretary

en-noun

Home Secretary (plural Home Secretaries)

(British) The British cabinet minister, responsible for law and order, who is head of the Home Office.


Home Office

(British, UK politics) The British government department, headed by the Home Secretary, responsible for security and law enforcement in England and Wales.

內政部 /内政部

ministry responsible for internal affairs


Pandu

Transliteration of Sanskrit पाण्डु (pāṇḍu).

translit

A mytho-historical figure from India, best known as the father of another group of figures, the Pandavas in Mahabharata.


Founding Father

en-noun

Founding Father (plural Founding Fathers)

At the heart of it, I thought of the Great Society as an extension of the Bill of Rights. When our fundamental American rights were set forth by the Founding Fathers, they reflected the concerns of a people who sought freedom in their time. But in our time a broadened concept of freedom requires that every American have the right to a healthy body, a full education, a decent home, and the opportunity to develop to the best of his talents.

1971, Lyndon Johnson, The Vantage Point, Holt, Reinhart & Winston, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 104:

United States of America
United States of America

American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War

(chiefly US) Any of the men who were responsible for the founding of the United States of America. Chiefly used to refer to political leaders who drafted the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution, and to military leaders who fought in the American Revolutionary War.


Pandavas

Derived from Pandu, the mytho-historical figure represented as the father of the members of this group.

A mytho-historical group of archetypes of perfection, the five acknowledged sons of Pandu, according to the Indian epic Mahabharata.


investiture

investiture (countable and uncountable, plural investitures)

From Middle French investiture, from Medieval Latin investītūra, from investīre (“to clothe”).

The Spanish constitution dictates that the king is obliged to dissolve the legislative body two months after the first failed investiture vote.

2023 July 24, Aitor Hernández-Morales, “Sánchez's tricky road to victory after shock Spanish election result”, in Politico, retrieved 2023-08-06:

(Spanish politics) The parliamentary vote required to inaugurate the Prime Minister of Spain.


Red Sea

From Middle English Red See, Reede See, Rede See, reade sea, from Old English Rēad Sǣ, a calque of Latin Mare Rubrum, itself a calque of Ancient Greek Ἐρυθρᾱ̀ θάλασσα (Eruthrā̀ thálassa); equivalent to red + sea.

der

Ἐρυθρᾱ̀ θάλασσα

(US politics) The states of the western and southern United States which consistently vote Republican in presidential elections.


TR

Theodore/Teddy Roosevelt
w:en:Theodore Roosevelt

(US politics) Initialism of Theodore/Teddy Roosevelt, 26th US president.


markup

en-noun

markup (countable and uncountable, plural markups)

(US politics) The process by which proposed legislation is debated and amended.


Juno

From Middle English Juno, from Latin Iūnō of uncertain origin. One hypothesis is derivation from Proto-Indo-European *dyúh₃onh₂- (“she of heavenly authority”), from *dyew- (“sky, heaven”) + *-Hō (“burden, authority”), reflecting her role as goddess of rulers. Another is derivation from Proto-Indo-European *h₂yúh₃onh₂- (“the young goddess”), from *h₂eyu- (“long time, lifetime”) + *-Hō (“burden, authority”), making it cognate with Latin iuvenis (“young”). Both would have produced the unattested early Latin form *Iuvō, declined with the root Iūn- and eventually normalized to Iūnō.

der

(Roman mythology) The queen of the gods, the equivalent of the Greek goddess Hera.


Madison

en-proper noun

Madison (countable and uncountable, plural Madisons)

Madisons (plural)
Maddison (alternative)
Maddison (alternative)
Madisyn (alternative)
Madyson (alternative)

From Middle English Madde (“Maud”) + -son.

Clearly quite a number of past chief executives would have been TV washouts. Jefferson, for example, is acknowledged to have been a terrible public speaker, Madison an unimpressive little man in voice and appearance.

2011 October 28, Alonzo L. Hamby, “Would Jefferson Make the Cut?”, in The New York Times:

An English surname originating as a matronymic; (US politics) used specifically of James Madison (1751–1836), a Founding Father and fourth president of the United States.


Petersburg

From Peter + -s- or Peters (surname) + -burg. Doublet of Peterborough.


pandect

Antiochus of Palestine
Lawrence Torrentinus
Russian Museum

Sense 3 (“comprehensive treatise”) is from Latin pandectēs (“book that contains everything, encyclopedia”), from Ancient Greek πανδέκτης (pandéktēs, “encyclopedia”, literally “all-receiver”), from παν- (pan-, prefix meaning ‘all’) (from πᾶς (pâs, “all”)) + δέκτης (déktēs, “receiver, recipient”) (from δέχομαι (dékhomai, “to receive”) (from Proto-Indo-European *deḱ- (“to take; to perceive”)) + -της (-tēs, suffix forming agent nouns)).
Sense 1 (“compendium of writings on Roman law”) in the plural form Pandects is from Late Latin pandectae (“the Pandects”), the plural of pandectēs, modelled after (Byzantine) Ancient Greek πανδέκται (pandéktai, “the Pandects”), the plural of πανδέκτης (pandéktēs): see further above.

refn

From the collection of the Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

der

After upwards of Thirty Years Study, and a painful Induſtry, in compiling A New Pandect or Complete Body of the Roman Civil Law; the Firſt Volume of this Undertaking craves Leave to appear in the World under the Patronage and Protection of your Lordſhip, [...]

1734, John Ayliffe, “[Dedication]”, in A New Pandect of Roman Civil Law, […], London: Printed for Tho[mas] Osborne, […], →OCLC:

And altho' there are many relations of perfect hermaphrodites, creatures that poſſeſſed the power of both ſexes, and could both beget and conceive children, yet theſe relations are treated as fabulous, notwithſtanding ſome laws concerning them are found both in the Roman and Gallic pandect.

1750 January, “We See in a Monthly Book Published at Paris, with the Royal License, an Advertisement with a New Print of a Remarkable and Famous Hermaphrodite, …”, in Sylvanus Urban [pseudonym; Edward Cave], editor, The Gentleman’s Magazine, and Historical Chronicle, volume XX, London: Printed by Edw[ard] Cave, […], published January 1755, →OCLC, page 20, column 2:

But the juriſprudence of the Pandects is circumſcribed within a period of an hundred years, from the perpetual edict to the death of Severus Alexander: [...]

1788, Edward Gibbon, chapter XLIV, in The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, volume IV, London: […] W[illiam] Strahan; and T[homas] Cadell, […], →OCLC, page 361:

And now, upon this third morning after your departure, things are but little better; for though the lamp burns in my den, and Voet on the Pandects hath his wisdom spread open before me, yet as I only use him as a reading-desk on which to scribble this sheet of nonsense to Darsie Latimer, it is probable the vicinity will be of little furtherance to my studies.

1824 June, [Walter Scott], “Letter II. Alan Fairford to Darsie Latimer.”, in Redgauntlet, […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page 27:

(Ancient Rome, law, historical) Usually in the plural form Pandects: a compendium or digest of writings on Roman law divided in 50 books, compiled in the 6th century C.E. by order of the Eastern Roman emperor Justinian I (c. 482–565).


assemblyman

"There is clearly a systemic problem," said Richard L. Brodsky, a Westchester assemblyman, who is sponsoring a bill to require that mercury gauges be replaced with nonmercury alternatives.

2000 October 8, Robert Worth, “HEALTH; A Little-Known Threat”, in The New York Times:

Thomas P. DiNapoli, a Nassau County assemblyman also interested in the job, said he would voluntarily limit those contributions to $10,000, but said that eliminating them altogether would make it unduly hard for the nonwealthy to run for the office.

2007 January 28, Nicholas Confessore, “Ex-Comptrollers Endured Controversy Themselves”, in The New York Times:

Having just elected to return the arms in question to their Catholic owners, Maryland's assemblymen were not about to authorize Nicholson's order to reconfiscate the arms and risk stirring up the anger of the colony's Catholics.

2012, Maura Jane Farrelly, Papist Patriots: The Making of an American Catholic Identity, →ISBN:

A member of the lower house of certain US state legislatures.


asphodel

en-noun

asphodel (usually uncountable, plural asphodels)

From Ancient Greek ἀσφόδελος (asphódelos). Doublet of daffodil.

Her hand he seis'd, and to a shadie bank,
Thick overhead with verdant roof imbowr'd
He led her nothing loath; Flours were the Couch,
Pansies, and Violets, and Asphodel,
And Hyacinth, Earths freshest softest lap.

1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

(Greek mythology) The flower said to carpet Hades, and a favorite food of the dead.


Pilgrim

(soccer) Someone connected with Plymouth Argyle Football Club, as a fan, player, coach etc.


Tories

the Tories (canonical)
toreys (alternative)
Toryes (alternative)
Torys (alternative)

Helped by massive tax increases piled on to the electorate by the Tories in their first post-election budget, we slowly began to win the battle.

2011, Philip Gould, The Unfinished Revolution: How New Labour Changed British Politics:

(UK politics) The British Conservative Party

(Canadian politics) The Conservative Party of Canada or one of that party's predecessors, or provincial variants


Merlin

From Middle English Merlyn, from Medieval Latin Merlinus and Old French Merlin, from Proto-Brythonic *Mor-ðin (literally “sea-hill”), from Proto-Celtic *mori (“sea”) + *dūnom (“stronghold, rampart”).

der

census-designated place
census-designated place

Josephine County
Josephine County#English

A census-designated place in Josephine County, Oregon, United States.


Daphne

From Ancient Greek δάφνη (dáphnē, “laurel, bay”).

bor

Run when you will, the story shall be chang'd; / Apollo flies, and Daphne holds the chase; / The dove pursues the griffin

c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “A Midsommer Nights Dreame”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i]:

(Greek mythology) A dryad pursued by Apollo, who was turned into a laurel tree by the river god Peneus.


dryad

From Old French driade (“wood nymph”), from Latin Dryas, Dryadis, from Ancient Greek Δρυάς (Druás, “dryad”), from δρῦς (drûs, “oak”), from Proto-Indo-European *derew(o)- (“tree, wood”); cf. Proto-Indo-European *dóru (“tree”).

der

Coordinate term: Meliai

There it had stood for years, close beside a mighty oak, under which sat often the kindly old priest, who told stories to the listening children. The young chestnut tree listened with them: the Dryad inside it, who was still a child, could remember the time when the tree was so small that it only reached a little higher than the ferns and long blades of grass.

1914, Hans Christian Andersen, “The Dryad”, in William Alexander Craigie, transl., Fairy tales and other stories:


Midas touch

From the Greek legend of King Midas, related in chapter XI of Ovid’s Metamorphoses (8 C.E.), whom Dionysus (the god of, among other things, wine and winemaking) gave the power to turn things to gold by touching them.

Midaan kosketus

ability to gain financial reward or success from one’s actions easily and consistently

(Greek mythology, literally) The ability to turn everything one touches into gold.


stade

From Latin stadium, from Ancient Greek στάδιον (stádion), a 600-foot racetrack, a distance of 600 Greek feet. Cognate with French stade. Doublet of stadium, stadion, and estadio.

doublet

(historical) Synonym of stadion: a former Greek unit of distance (variously 150–210 m at different places and times).

stadion

(dated) A track for footraces and its surrounding stadium.

(geology) in glaciation during which a secondary advance of the glaciers occurs.


stade

From Spanish estado, from Latin status (“standing”), in reference to it being roughly the height of a grown man. Doublet of estate, state, status, and estado.

(historical) A unit of length notionally based on the height of a grown man, equivalent to a fathom.

(units of measure, obsolete) Synonym of estadio: a traditional Spanish unit of measure equivalent to about 1.67 m.


Penelope

From Ancient Greek Πηνελόπη (Pēnelópē), possibly from πηνέλοψ (pēnélops, “duck”).

You would be another Penelope; yet, they say, all the yarn she spun in Ulysses' absence did but fill Ithaca with moths.

c. 1608–1609 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Coriolanus”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:

(Greek mythology) The faithful wife of Odysseus.


Nuremberg

/ˈnjʊəɹəmbəɡ/

From German Nürnberg, from Medieval Latin Norinberga. The second element is from Berg, origins of the first element unclear.


Lib Dem

The Tories are ideologically opposed to large state-run industries, and the Lib Dems can sniff an opportunity to score points in their freshly won commuting constituencies outside London.

2025 February 19, Paul Clifton, “I am absolutely committed to reforming the railway”, in RAIL, number 1029, page 40:

Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrat#English

(Australian politics, UK politics, informal) Abbreviation of Liberal Democrat.


Italianization

/ɪˌtæljənəˈzeɪʃən/

(historical) The forced cultural and ethnic assimilation of minorities in the Kingdom of Italy, with particular reference to the Fascist government (1922–1943).

італьяніза́цыя

process of forced assimilation into the Italian culture


Pythagoras

/paɪˈθæɡ.əɹ.əs/

/pɪˈθæɡ.əɹ.əs/

/paɪˈθæɡ.ɚ.əs/

From Ancient Greek Πῡθαγόρᾱς (Pūthagórās).

Pitagora

A male given name from Ancient Greek of mostly historical use, and a transliteration from modern Greek.

Gratiano:
O, be thou damn'd, inexecrable dog!
And for thy life let justice be accused.
Thou almost makest me waver in my faith,
To hold opinion with Pythagoras,
That souls of animals infuse themselves
Into the trunks of men: thy currish spirit
Govern'd a wolf, who, hang'd for human slaughter,
Even from the gallows did his fell soul fleet,
And, whilst thou lay'st in thy unhallow'd dam,
Infused itself in thee; for thy desires
Are wolfish, bloody, starved, and ravenous.

c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:

Pythagoras (c. 570 – c. 495 BC), an Ancient Greek mathematician and philosopher.

Serge Lang and Gene Murrow (1988) Geometry, →ISBN, page 203: “By Pythagoras, we find the length of the third side, |AB|² = (2a)² – a² = 4a² – a² = 3a²”

Pythagoras' theorem
Pythagoras' theorem#English

(mathematics, colloquial) Ellipsis of Pythagoras' theorem.


Proteus

Derived from Ancient Greek Πρωτεύς (Prōteús).

der+

(Greek mythology) A sea god who could change his shape at will.


siddhi

en-noun

siddhi (countable and uncountable, plural siddhis)

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit सिद्धि (siddhi).

lbor

(Hinduism, tantric Buddhism) spiritual power or psychic ability


taberna

From Latin taberna. Doublet of tavern and taverna.

(Ancient Rome) A type of shop or stall in Ancient Rome.


snapper

snappers (plural)
schnapper (alternative)

(US politics, historical) A supporter of Senator Hill's premature scheduling of the Democratic National Committee convention of 1892.


Matrixism

A minor modern religion based on the science-fiction franchise The Matrix.


Inari

(Japanese mythology, Shinto) The god of harvests, fertility, rice, agriculture, foxes, industry, and worldly success.


lila

Transliteration of Sanskrit लीला (līlā).

His face shone with joy when he read good books, thought new thoughts, heard news about the country's welfare, or when God's lila filled his mind.

2015, Tridip Suhrud, translating Govardhanram Madhavram Tripathi, Sarasvatichandra I, Orient BlackSwan 2015, p. 11

(Hinduism) The play of god’s spirit manifested in the universe; divine play, creative spiritual energy.


manifest destiny

Popularly attributed to newspaper editor John O'Sullivan (1813–1895). The phrase was first used primarily by Jackson Democrats in the 1840s to promote the annexation of much of what is now the Western United States.

昭昭天命

cultural belief in the 19th-century United States that American settlers were destined to expand across North America

The political doctrine or belief held by the United States of America, particularly during its expansion, that the nation was destined to expand toward the west.

The political doctrine or belief held by many citizens of the United States of America that their system is best, and the idea that all humans would like to become Americans.

The belief that God supports the expansion of the United States of America throughout the entire North American continent except Mexico.


manifest destiny

en-verb

manifest destiny (third-person singular simple present manifests destiny, present participle manifesting destiny, simple past and past participle manifested destiny)

manifests destiny (present singular third-person)
manifesting destiny (participle present)
manifested destiny (participle past)
manifested destiny (past)
Manifest Destiny (alternative)

The Homestead Acts allowed millions of settlers to populate unclaimed land and manifest destiny out on the frontier.

(informal) To exercise and realize manifest destiny; to enable the cultural and political expansion of the United States of America.


lagobolon

en-noun

lagobolon (plural lagobolons or lagobola)

Borrowed from Ancient Greek λᾰγωβόλον (lăgōbólon), from λαγώς (lagṓs, “hare”) + βάλλω (bállō, “to throw”).

(Ancient Greece) A hunter's stick for striking hares.


Chinese dragon

(mythology) A legendary creature, usually depicted as long and snake-like, with many claws, common in several East Asian cultures.

চীনা আজদাহা

legendary creature common in several East Asian cultures


complainer

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

(Scots law) A complainant (an alleged victim in a criminal trial).


free state

From free + state, probably a calque of German Freistaat.

(US, historical) Before the American Civil War, any of the states in which the owning of slaves was not legal.


gigantomachy

gigantomachy (countable and uncountable, plural gigantomachies)

gigantomachies (plural)
Gigantomachy (alternative)

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek Γιγαντομαχία (Gigantomakhía), from Γίγας (Gígas, “giant”) + μάχη (mákhē, “battle”) + -ια (-ia). Compare Titanomachy, Typhonomachy, centauromachy.

lbor

Γιγαντομαχία

Giants (Greek mythology)#The Gigantomachy

Here we will examine Amazonomachies, Gigantomachies, and Centauromachies; the Trojan War will be discussed in Chapter 7.

1995, Susan B. Matheson, Polygnotos and Vase Painting in Classical Athens, University of Wisconsin Press, page 234:

You often see the Gigantomachy in the sculptural decoration of Archaic temples: the statement of the authority of the gods, made by the temple itself, is reinforced by the myth told upon it.

2006, Ken Dowden, Zeus, Taylor & Francis (Routledge), page 38:

First, beginning in the 5th cent. BC, the line between religious and commemorative-political art became blurred as traditional subjects were blurred to convey political meanings (e.g. the Amazonomachy, the Gigantomachy; see AMAZONS, GIANTS).

2014, J. J. Pollitt, “Art, ancient attitudes to”, in Simon Hornblower, Antony Spawforth, Esther Eidinow, editors, The Oxford Companion to Classical Civilization, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press, page 83:

(Greek mythology) The battle of the Giants (offspring of Gaia, according to Hesiod conceived from the spilt blood of Uranus) against the Olympian gods.

gigantomakhia

uprising of the Giants against the Olympian gods


vote bank

vote banks (plural)
votebank (alternative)

(India, politics) A section of an electorate that will vote for a particular party or formation, come what may.

base

group of voters who almost always support a single party's candidates


whipsaw

en-verb

whipsaw (third-person singular simple present whipsaws, present participle whipsawing, simple past whipsawed, past participle whipsawn)

whipsaws (present singular third-person)
whipsawing (participle present)
whipsawed (past)
whipsawn (participle past)

(US politics) To accept bribes from multiple parties at once, with the intent of letting down one or more of them.


East Germany

German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic#English

(historical, 1949–1990) A former Communist country of Central Europe, existing between 1949 and 1990. Official name: German Democratic Republic. Capital: East Berlin.


Fates

"Oh, no!" said he, with a most imperturbable air, "I always make allowance for feminine weakness; I do not expect your mind to follow mine!"
"Now, the Fates forbid that it should!" thought Henrietta.

1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Influence of an Invitation”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 17:

1944, Ralph Blane, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”, Meet Me in St. Louis, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Through the years we all will be together / If the Fates allow

(Greek mythology) Atropos, Clotho, and Lachesis; supernatural beings who controlled the destiny of men and of the gods.


Ariadne

en-proper noun

Ariadne (countable and uncountable, plural Ariadnes)

(Greek mythology) The daughter of King Minos of Crete and his queen, Pasiphae.


Memphis

From Latin Memphis, from Ancient Greek Μέμφις (Mémphis), from Egyptian mn-nfr.

The name of several towns or cities in the US.

A census-designated place in Manatee County, Florida.

A small city in Macomb County and St. Clair County, Michigan.

St. Clair County
St. Clair County#English

A hamlet in the town of Van Buren, Onondaga County, New York.


daimon

A modern romanization of Ancient Greek δαίμων (daímōn, “the one who divides, dispenser, tutelary deity”), intended to distinguish its ancient Greek sense from later conceptions of demons. Compare Ancient Greek Λᾰκεδαίμων (Lăkedaímōn, “Laconian dispenser”).

cog

Phang Nga Bay
daemon (classical mythology)
spirit house

All at once, my daimōn—that other Me over whom I button my waistcoat when I button it over my own person—put it into my head to look up the story of Madame Saqui.

1890 January, Oliver Wendell Holmes [Sr.], “Over the Teacups”, in The Atlantic Monthly: A Magazine of Literature, Science, Art, and Politics, volume LXV, number CCCLXXXVII, Boston, Mass., New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company; The Riverside Press, Cambridge, →OCLC, page 121:

The object which first appears is adopted as the personal mystery, guardian spirit, or tutelary daimon of the entranced, and is never mentioned by him without first making a sacrifice.

1891, W[alter] J[ames] Hoffman, The Mide’wiwin or “Grand Medicine Society” of the Ojibwa, Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 163:

Marcus Aurelius is persuaded that God gives every man a special daimon as his guide – a belief which reappears in the Christian guardian angel.

1945, Bertrand Russell, A History of Western Philosophy: And its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day, New York, N.Y.: Simon & Schuster, →OCLC, book I, chapter 27:

He will release his pent-up rage and fear no evil, for his genius is with him, and his daimon bids him violate all the taboos of the literary marketplace.

1960, Charles I. Glicksberg, “Norman Mailer: The Angry Young Novelist in America”, in Wisconsin Studies in Contemporary Literature, volume 1, number 1, Madison, Wis.: University of Wisconsin Press, →OCLC:

(Greek mythology) A tutelary deity or spirit that watches over a person or place.


Arachne

From Latin Arachnē, from Ancient Greek ἀράχνη (arákhnē, “spider”).

der

(Greek mythology) A woman famous for her skill at weaving. She was changed into a spider by the goddess Athena.

Arachné

(Greek mythology) woman famous for her skill at weaving


Beltway

Extended from beltway (“freeway encircling a city”); compare also highway.

But given that it takes 60 votes to beat a filibuster and 66 to override a veto, and given that the GOP has since added four hard-right senators to its total, it’s safe to say that nothing will be happening inside the Beltway anytime soon.

2005 May, Bill McKibben, “Climate of Denial”, in Mother Jones:

While not the entirety of the reason why the Beltway struggles to shed its imperial hubris and adapt to the new multipolar world, (much of that is simply complacency) understanding democratism’s hold over the governing elite is vital for explaining the unique hostility found in so much of foreign policy commentary towards a soberer and more realistic appraisal of the world.

2023 April 17, Christopher Mott, “The Democratist War on Diplomacy”, in The National Interest:

(US politics) The US federal government and policy and lobbying organizations, located in Washington, D.C..


borganism

The word and concept are derived from the Borg, a race of cyborgs in the fictional Star Trek universe with a hive mind that operates as one.

(rare, idiomatic, science fiction, politics) Some forms of government.


Eastern Orthodox Church

en-proper noun

Eastern Orthodox Church (plural Eastern Orthodox Churches)

Greek Orthodox Church
Greek Orthodox Church

Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church

One of the major branches of Christianity; it comprises the Greek Orthodox Church, the Russian Orthodox Church and other patriarchates.


AIPAC

In their new 30-second ad, the J Street group hammers Stevens for accepting AIPAC support – in the form of bundled donations – in a video featuring images of violence at the US Capitol and from a recent hearing of the House select committee investigating it.

2022 July 12, Gregory Krieg, “Progressive pro-Israel group takes on AIPAC in Michigan Democratic primary fight”, in CNN:

(US politics) Acronym of American Israel Public Affairs Committee: a pro-Israel lobby in the United States.


Zippergate

From zipper + -gate, referring to the fastening on a man's trousers.

(chiefly US) The Monica Lewinsky scandal.


Hansonism

The political policies of Pauline Hanson, leader of the Australian One Nation Party.


Mayflower

A historical ship that transported the Pilgrims to America in the year 1620.


Arjuna

Arjuna (countable and uncountable, plural Arjunas)

Transliteration of Sanskrit अर्जुन (arjuna).

translit

A major character of the Mahabharata, a Sanskrit epic.


Ys

(mythology) A mythical sunken city in Brittany.


kshatriya

kshatriyas (plural)
Kshatriya (alternative)
kṣatriya (alternative)
cshatriya (alternative)
kshatri (alternative)
Khatri (alternative)
chittery (alternative)

From Sanskrit क्षत्रिय (kṣatriya, “(the warrior or military caste or a member of this caste”), from क्षत्र (kṣatra, “rule, dominion, authority”). Akin to satrap.

bor

The kshatriya could only hope to become a monk in his next life, but given the nature of his daily karma, it seemed unlikely that he could achieve even this limited goal.

2006, Karen Armstrong, The Great Transformation, Atlantic Books, published 2007, page 307:

"Bṛhannaḍā said, 'It is not the habit of a kṣatriya to flee like this; death in battle is preferable to flight in fear.'" (Mahābhārata: "Virāṭa Parva")

A member of the second-highest of the four castes or varnas in traditional Hindu society: the warrior or military caste.


CRS

en-noun

CRS (countable and uncountable, plural CRSs)

Chinese restaurant syndrome
Chinese restaurant syndrome#English

(pathology) Initialism of Chinese restaurant syndrome.


Advaita

(Hinduism) A Sanskrit philosophical term that may be literally rendered in English as nonduality: denoting that though differences and variegation appear in the human condition they are unreal or illusory and are not ultimately true.

adwajta

Hindu doctrine holding that differences in the human condition are illusory


Songun

Borrowed from Korean 선군(先軍) (seon'gun, “prioritizing the military”), McCune-Reischauer Sŏn'gun.

bor

The official policy of North Korea, by which the military gets first cut on food, clothing, medicine, and other necessities.


West Berlin

(historical, Germany) The American, British and French sectors of Berlin between 1949 and 1990.


West Germany

From informal use describing the British-, French-, and American-occupied zones of Germany following World War II, under influence from existing German Westdeutschland and Westdeutscher used to describe those areas of German-speaking Europe since the 17th and 18th centuries.

German Democratic Republic
German Democratic Republic

Federal Republic of Germany
Federal Republic of Germany#English

(historical, 1949–1990) A former country in Central Europe, distinguished from the German Democratic Republic, commonly known as East Germany. Official name: Federal Republic of Germany.

(since 1990) The former areas of the Republic during that time, distinguished from the former East German areas.

(historical, uncommon, 1945–1949) Collectively, the British-, French-, and American-occupied zones of Germany, distinguished from the Soviet-occupied zone.


Rhode

(Greek mythology) In Greek mythology, the oldest Oceanid, a daughter of Tethys and Oceanus


ashramite

(Hinduism) A person who stays at an ashram


heller

Borrowed from German Heller. Doublet of halier.

(historical) A German coin equivalent to half a pfennig, later used widely as a small coin in Central Europe and the German Empire.

heller

13th-century coin equivalent to half a pfennig


ruby slippers

From the red shoes worn by Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, that had magic properties unknown until the end of the story.

(idiomatic) A valuable feature (of software, etc.) overlooked by the user.


NPC

en-noun

NPC (countable and uncountable, plural NPCs)

Several months ago, users on 4chan and Reddit, the online message forums, started using the term NPC to refer to liberals. These people, they said, join the anti-Trump crowd not because they are led by independent thought or conscience to oppose President Trump’s policies, but because they’re brainwashed sheep who have been conditioned to parrot left-wing orthodoxy, in the manner of a scripted character.

[2018 October 16, Kevin Roose, “What Is NPC, the Pro-Trump Internet’s New Favorite Insult?”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 2022-12-30:

While watching the VOD later, xQc insinuated that Fortnite pro Bucke was an "NPC" who was only there to defend Tate and not give Piker a fair shot – and what resulted afterward has caused quite a stir in its own right.

2022 July 22, Alec Mullins, “NRG Bucke kicks off after xQc calls him an “NPC” for siding with Andrew Tate”, in Dexerto, archived from the original on 2022-09-25:

non-player character
non-player character#English

(roleplaying games, video games) Initialism of non-player character.

(Internet slang, figuratively) A person with no ability to think for themselves; a sheeple (originally referring to opponents of former US President Donald Trump).


NPC

Nationalist People's Coalition
w:Nationalist People's Coalition

(Philippine politics) Initialism of Nationalist People's Coalition.


Demoncrat

American Blacks have made huge strides over the years, but the Demoncrats invent class warfare and inequality issues.

2003 May 26, mange [username], “Re: Abe Lincoln: The Republican Party”, in alt.politics.republicans (Usenet):

The Demoncrats, truly the party of anti-Xtians and actually the embodiment of everything that is the traditional evil […]

2004 November 28, John S. Dyson, “Re: Zogby OHIO-FINAL: Bush up 48% to 44% (It's Over for Kerry)”, in alt.politics.republicans (Usenet):

The fact is Demoncrats are more intolerant of those differing from them than are Republicans.

2006 October 3, alamonation1 [username], “Re: Did Democrats Page Mark Foley?”, in alt.politics.republicans (Usenet):

(US politics, Internet slang, derogatory) A member or supporter of the Democratic Party (with an implication that its members are demonic).


Ammon

From Latin Ammōn, from Ancient Greek Ἄμμων (Ámmōn), itself from Egyptian i-mn:n-A40 (jmn).

der

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

Here, over five hundred years before, had come the founder of Alexandria, Alexander the Great, to visit the oracle of Ammon, the god figured to be like a man having the head and horns of a ram.

1898, Mary E. Bamford, Out of the Triangle:

(Egyptian mythology) Alternative form of Amun


battleground

battlegrounds (plural)
battle ground (alternative)
battle-ground (alternative)

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

Mr. Biden, the former vice president, is ahead of Mr. Trump in the Northern battlegrounds of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, as well as in the Sun Belt states of Florida and Arizona, according to a poll of likely voters conducted by The New York Times and Siena College.

2020 November 1, “Election at Hand, Biden Leads Trump in Four Key States, Poll Shows”, in New York Times:

battleground state
battleground state#English

(US politics) Ellipsis of battleground state.


Dysnomia

From Ancient Greek Δυσνομία (Dusnomía, literally “lawlessness”), from δύσνομος (dúsnomos, “lawless”).

bor

(Greek mythology) The daemon (minor deity) of lawlessness, listed by Hesiod among the daughters of Eris.


autonomous oblast

en-noun

autonomous oblast (plural autonomous oblasts)

Unlike the Armenians in the NKAO they are deprived even of those opportunities represented by autonomous oblast status.

1989, Daily report: Soviet Union, Issues 181-186, p. 75

During the early Soviet period the territory [Nagorno Karabakh] was placed under control of Soviet Azerbaijan and given the status of autonomous oblast.

1992, Rachel Denber, Robert K. Goldman, Helsinki Watch, Bloodshed in the Caucasus: escalation of the armed conflict in Nagorno Karabakh, page vii:

The autonomous oblast has the rights and bears the obligations of a kray and oblast. The legal status of the autonomous oblast is determined by federal law enacted by the Russian Federation Supreme Soviet in accordance with a representation of the autonomous oblast.

1992, Draft Constitution of the Russian Federation, Article 81

One of the administrative divisions of the former Soviet Union created for certain “smaller” nations and characterized by following features: they were given an autonomy within a union republic or, in the RSFSR, within a krai; had a status lower than an autonomous republic; had a different titular nation from that of their union republic/krai. Abbreviated as AO.

ինքնավար մարզ

autonomous entity in the Soviet Union and Russia — see also AO


ambrosial

en-adj

ambrosial (comparative more ambrosial, superlative most ambrosial)

more ambrosial (comparative)
most ambrosial (superlative)

/æmˈbɹoʊʒəl/

Partly from ambrosia and partly from Latin ambrosius, + -al.

And whilst he slept she [Venus] over him would spred / Her mantle, colour’d like the starry skyes, / And her soft arme lay underneath his hed, / And with ambrosiall kisses bathe his eyes [...]

1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book III, Canto I”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:

(Greek mythology) Pertaining to or worthy of the gods.


nepenthes

nepenth (alternative)
nepenthe (alternative)
nepenth (alternative)

Borrowed from Latin nēpenthes (“a drug bringing relief from grief”), from Ancient Greek νηπενθές (nēpenthés), neuter of νηπενθής (nēpenthḗs, “sorrow-banishing”), from νη- (nē-, “not”) + πένθος (pénthos, “grief”) (from πάσχειν (páskhein), present active infinitive of πάσχω (páskhō, “to be ill or injured in a certain way; to suffer”), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷendʰ- (“to endure, to suffer”)). Compare French népenthès (“a plant from which a drug supposedly bringing relief from grief may be obtained; such a drug”).

cog

Helen of Troy
Naples National Archaeological Museum
Villa of the Papyri

nepenthaceous

belonging to the Nepenthaceae family of plants

And how marvellous were the shapes of the nepenthes, how beautiful the colour, how delicate in form!

1863, Spenser [Buckingham] St. John, “Introduction”, in Life in the Forests of the Far East; or Travels in Northern Borneo. … With Numerous Illustrations. In Two Volumes, 2nd rev. edition, volume I, London: Smith, Elder and Co., page 11:

NEPENTHA′CEÆ, Nepenths, a natural order of Exogenous Plants inhabiting the damper and warmer parts of Asia, and having, in the place of leaves, large hollow bodies furnished with a lid, and containing water secreted from a peculiar glandular apparatus with which they are lined. […] [T]he adherent ovary of Birthworts, their highly developed calyx, axile placentation, and hermaphrodite flowers, are serious difficulties in the way of a close contact between them and Nepenths, unless the peculiar structure of the wood, the consideration of which I for the present abandon, should lead to the final establishment of the class of Homogens, in which case Nepenths and Birthworts will be brought into contact or at least a near neighbourhood.

1867, “NEPENTHA′CEÆ”, in Charles Knight, editor, Natural History or Second Division of “The English Cyclopædia”, volume III, London: Bradbury, Evans, & Co., 11, Bouverie St., Fleet St., E.C.; New York, N.Y.: Scribner, Welford, & Co., 654, Broadway, →OCLC, column 1080:

When studying the nepenthes, I was puzzled to see the use of the channel which exists on the back of the pitchers, and which is formed by two ridges furnished with spikes in most of the nepenthes, but not in all, which run up to the margin of the lip of the pitcher.

1875 July 29, Lawson Tait, “Insectivorous Plants”, in Nature: A Weekly Illustrated Journal of Science, volume XII, number 300, London, New York, N.Y.: Macmillan and Co., page 252, column 2:

Different techniques in plant tissue culture may offer certain advantages over traditional methods of propagation which include […] Production of plants from seeds that have very low chances of germinating and growing, i.e.: orchids and nepenthes.

2013, Anwar Shahzad, Taiba Saeed, “In Vitro Conservation Protocols for Some Rare Medicinal Plant Species”, in Mohd. Shahid, Anwar Shahzad, Abida Malik, Aastha Sahai, editors, Recent Trends in Biotechnology and Therapeutic Applications of Medicinal Plants, Dordrecht: Springer, →DOI, →ISBN, page 265:

A Southeast Asian carnivorous plant of the genus Nepenthes; a monkey cup or tropical pitcher plant.


mangaka

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

Borrowed from Japanese 漫(まん)画(が)家(か) (mangaka). Doublet of manhwaga and manhuajia.


treknobabble

/ˈtɹɛknəʊˌbæbəl/

I'd sooner trust treknobabble for an explanation than any thing you say.

1997 September 24, $teve2, “Re: SUNBURN : If you were not watching GITM”, in aus.tv.x-files (Usenet):

So you think up something like Voyager meets some Romulans stranded in the DQ, or some treknobabble takes down the command staff and Seven assumes command.

1999 December 29, Bozo the Proctologist, “Re: Bad Voyager Plots”, in alt.tv.star-trek.voyager (Usenet):

Even if they won using the power of treknobabble, this force ratio does not show the audience how mighty and dangerous the Imperial warships are […]

2003 December 17, Kazuaki Shimazaki, “The More Detailed Critique”, in alt.startrek.vs.starwars (Usenet):

A kind of technobabble particular to the Star Trek universe, with a particularly heavy emphasis on configurations of pseudoscientific particles and waves.


antinational

Calling Tamil Nadu a “shelter” for anti-nationals, BJP national president J P Nadda said the state administration and the DMK were giving shelter to people working against the interests of the nation.

2020 August 25, Shanmughasundaram J, “Tamil Nadu is shelter for anti-nationals, says J P Nadda”, in Times of India:

(Indian politics, Hindutva, derogatory, accusatory) One who is opposed to India, usually suggesting pro-Pakistan or leftist associations, hostility against the Hindu religion, or opposition to Hindu nationalism.


Heian

A period of Japanese history lasting from 794 to 1185.


juristic

Loan translation of obsolete Dutch juristisch.

(Scots law, South Africa) legal, juridical, pertaining to the law and jurisprudence


Phryne

From Ancient Greek Φρύνη (Phrúnē), from φρύνη (phrúnē, “toad”), a nickname often given to prostitutes of the time.

The suffrages were recently divided between Mademoiselle Lange and Madame Tallien — the Helen and Phryne of the nation.

1797, "Anthony Pasquin" (John Williams), The Pin-Basket to the Children of Thespis: With Notes Historical, Critical and Biographical, page 91:

But in the first of these instances, an impediment may be supposed to be insurmountable, which Dryden has only surmounted by the substitution of matchless beauties of his own! He wins his cause, like Phryne pleading before the Areopagus.

1835, Selections from the Edinburgh Review, page 354:

The Roman-period stories that circulated about Phryne have to do with her beauty, her nudity, and her forwardness.[…]Alciphron also crafts a letter that Phryne writes to Praxiteles; in it, Phryne toys with the theological implications of Praxiteles' use of her as a model for Aphrodite, and her statuary appearance at a sanctuary to Eros at Thespiai.

2010, Laura Salah Nasrallah, Christian Responses to Roman Art and Architecture: The Second-Century Church Amid the Spaces of Empire, page 261:

(historical) An Ancient Greek courtesan of the 4th century BC, reputedly the model for Praxiteles' Aphrodite of Cnidus and famously tried for the capital charge of impiety, during which trial she allegedly bared her breasts before the judges.


UTSL

A pun on Obi-Wan Kenobi's "Use the Force, Luke!" in Star Wars.

(Internet) Initialism of use the source, Luke.


deben

(Egyptology) A measure of weight used during the Middle Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, equivalent to about 13.6 grams.

(Egyptology) A measure of weight used during the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, equivalent to 10 kite (about 91 grams).


quadrennium

en-noun

quadrennium (plural quadrenniums or quadrennia)

quadrenniums (plural)
quadrennia (plural)

From Late Latin quadrennium, from Latin quadriennium, from quadriennis (“4-year”) + -ium (suffix forming abstract nouns).

A period of 4 years, particularly (historical) the sets of four years in the ancient Egyptian and Greek calendars.


dobla

“Prithee, Pepe,” commenced the soldier, “how many hundred doblas a year do they pay, in that service of thine, and how often do they renew that fine leathern doublet?”

1840, [James Fenimore Cooper], chapter I, in Mercedes of Castile: Or, The Voyage to Cathay. […], volume I, Philadelphia, Pa.: Lea and Blanchard, →OCLC, page 19:

(historical) A historical gold coin used in the Iberian peninsula between the 11th and 16th centuries.


vicennial

From vicennium + -al or directly from Latin vīcenniālis, from vīcennium (“20-year span”) + -ālis (“-al”, adjective-forming suffix), from vīcennis (“20-year”) + -ium (“-ium”, suffix forming abstract nouns), from vīciēs (“20 times”) + annus (“year”) + -is (suffix forming compound adjectives). Equivalent to vice- (“twenty”) + -ennial.

The feast of Constantine's vicennials fell on the 25th of July this year: it was the commencement of the twentieth year of his reign. It is supposed, that to avoid interrupting affairs or greater moment, this ceremony was deferred till the end of the council, which broke up the 25th of August.

1776, Charles le Beau, The History of Constantine the Great, page 267:

Roman coins mentioning the vota publica for Macrinus are RIC IV.1 5–13; on vota publica for the decennials and vicennials of emperors in the 2nd and 3rd c. ad, see Chastagnol 1984.

2022, Martin Hallmannsecker, Roman Ionia..., p. 110

(historical) Synonym of vicennalia, the festival and religious ritual held in the 20th year of a Roman emperor's reign.


Sidhe

From an ellipsis of Irish aos sídhe (people of the fairy mound).

1906, Augusta, Lady Gregory, A Book of Saints and Wonders, Columcille: The Friend of the Angels of God,
Even Nera from the Sidhe could not do it; he is not made much of now; our learned one is not the light of our life now he is hidden away from us.

Mythical hills of Irish and Scottish folklore, home of the sidhe race; fairyland, faerie.


sidhe

sidhe (plural)
sidh (alternative)
Sidhe (alternative)

A supernatural creature of Irish and Scottish folklore, living in Sidhe; a fairy.


NOC

NOC (countable and uncountable, plural NOCs)

(UK politics) Initialism of no overall control.


byzant

“Gramercy! good fellow,” cried Prince John, “thou pleasest me — Here, Isaac, lend me a handful of byzants.”


bezant

bezants (plural)
basant (alternative)
besant (alternative)
byzant (alternative)
bezaunt (alternative)

From Middle English besaunt, from Old French bezant, nominative bezanz, from Latin byzantius (“of Byzantium”).

(history) A coin made of gold or silver, minted at Byzantium and used in currency throughout mediaeval Europe.


futanari

futanari (countable and uncountable, plural futanari or futanaris)

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

From Japanese ふたなり (futanari, “hermaphrodite”), from 二(ふた)つ (futatsu, “two”) + 形(なり) (nari, “shape, form”) or 態(なり) (nari).

(uncountable, Japanese pornography) A genre of Japanese pornography featuring intersex or hermaphroditic characters that are depicted as attractive, usually works containing female characters with a penis and sometimes testicles.

فُوتَانَارِي

genre of pornography featuring intersex characters

(countable, Japanese pornography) An intersex or hermaphroditic character, usually female and with a penis, in such works.


greenie

From green + -ie. Environmentalist sense first attested in Australia in 1973, referring to trade unionists who supported green bans.

(Australian politics, informal, by extension) A member of the Australian Greens.


money tree

(Chinese mythology) A kind of holy tree believed to bring money and good fortune.


Dixie

1859. Unknown, but may come from the Mason-Dixon line, the boundary between the northern states and the southern states, or from the slang term dixie for a Louisiana $10 bill that had the French word dix printed on it.

(informal, US) The southern United States, especially the former Confederate States; the South.


Greek fire

“There is yet spirit in him,” said Malvoisin apart to Mont–Fitchet, “were it well directed — but, like the Greek fire, it burns whatever approaches it.”

(historical) A highly flammable substance of unknown composition first used by the Greeks of Constantinople in the 7th century C.E. to set fire to enemy ships, buildings, etc.


Empedocles

From Ancient Greek Ἐμπεδοκλῆς (Empedoklês).

A Greek philosopher who held that all matter was composed of earth, air, fire and water.


Dalmatia

From Latin Dalmatia, possibly from an Illyrian tribe called the Dalmatae who lived in the region.

(historical) A province of the Roman Empire.


the other place

[W]e all trooped from our end of the building to the House of Lords - which I'm told, for some reason, we must never refer to by name. We have to call it 'another place' or 'the other place'[.]

1999, Gyles Brandreth, chapter 3, in Breaking the Code:

(parliamentary) the other house of a bicameral legislature (used by members of one house when speaking in their own house); in the UK, the House of Lords seen from the House of Commons or vice versa; in Canada, the Senate seen from the House of Commons or vice versa.

(UK, Oxford University slang, derogatory) University of Cambridge

(UK, Cambridge University slang, derogatory) University of Oxford


precognition

precognition (countable and uncountable, plural precognitions)

/ˌpɹiːkɒɡˈnɪʃn̩/

/ˌpɹikɑɡˈnɪʃən/

/ˌpɹikɔɡˈnɪʃən/

Borrowed from Middle French precognition or its source, Latin praecognitio, from praecognōscō (“to know beforehand”). Doublet of Germanic-based foreknowledge and Greek-based prognosis. Equivalent to pre- + cognition.

‘But it seems there are some strong presumptuous proofs against you, and I came to warn you this day that a precognition is in progress, and that unless you are perfectly convinced, not only of your innocence, but of your ability to prove it, it will be the safest course for you to abscond, and let the trial go on without you.’

1824, James Hogg, The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner:

(Scots law) The practice of taking a factual statement from a witness before a trial.


pyramidology

From pyramid + -ology. Evidently coined by Charles Piazzi Smyth in 1870.

The study of pyramids (especially the Egyptian pyramids) from a supernatural or new-age perspective, rather than the historical or archaeological viewpoint.

pyramidologia

study of pyramids, but from a supernatural or new-age perspective


pyramidologist

One who studies pyramidology, who studies pyramids from a supernatural viewpoint.


Polyphemus

From Latin Polyphēmus, from Ancient Greek Πολύφημος (Polúphēmos, from πολύ (polú) + φήμη (phḗmē) + -ος (-os), literally “many-voiced”, “much spoken of”, or “abounding in songs and legends”).

der

(Greek mythology) A cyclops in Homer's Odyssey.


MOD

Ministry of Defence
w:Ministry of Defence

(UK politics) Initialism of Ministry of Defence; also MoD.


Agamemnon

/ˌæɡəˈmɛmnɒn/

/ˌæɡəˈmɛmnən/

From Ancient Greek Ἀγαμέμνων (Agamémnōn, “very resolute”).

bor

(Greek mythology) One of the most distinguished heroes of Greek mythology. He is the son of King Atreus of Mycenae and Queen Aerope and the brother of Menelaus. He is famous for rallying the Greeks in the Trojan War, yet infamous for the sacrifice of his daughter Iphigenia at the commencement of the war.


half-crown

half-crowns (plural)
half crown (alternative)
half-a-crown (alternative)

From its value of half of the crown (five-shilling) coin.

[…] though we play but half-crowns, you know you may bet half guineas with him.

1814 May 9, [Jane Austen], chapter XII, in Mansfield Park: […], volume I, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 249:

Keeping, therefore, an eye to the main chance, stimulated by the best possible motive, Helen emptied her purse on the bed, in such a manner, as to allow a stray half sovereign to escape, when she added the shillings and half-crowns to the little heap, and said, in a tremulous voice, "Here is my money."

1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XXIV, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 10:

Half-a-crown is known as an alderman, half a bull, half a tusheroon, and a madza caroon; whilst a crown piece, or five shillings, may be called either a bull, or a caroon, or a cartwheel, or a coachwheel, or a thick-un, or a tusheroon.

1859, J.C. Hotten, A Dictionary of Modern Slang, Cant, and Vulgar Words:

This is a masterly work of condensation, omitting nothing of importance and providing a most readable book that for a modest half-crown is incredibly good value.

1962 October, “New Reading on Railways: Great Western. By Cecil J. Allen, Ian Allan. 2s 6d.”, in Modern Railways, unnumbered page:

(historical) A pre-decimal coin used in Britain, Ireland and New Zealand, equivalent to 30 pence or two shillings and six pence.

Half crown (British coin)
Half crown (Irish coin)


ha'penny

en-noun

ha'penny (plural ha'pennies or ha'pence)

The more a shop looks as though it trades in farthings and ha’pennies, the more tenners and twenties you can expect to hand over at the till.

2020 September 1, Tom Lamont, “The butcher's shop that lasted 300 years (give or take)”, in The Guardian:

(historical, Ireland, UK) A halfpenny; a former British and Irish coin.


Kremlin

The Moscow Kremlin; a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia that serves as the official residence of the President of the Russian Federation.

Politburo

also a proper noun sense from a common noun sense, and also often a metonym for the senior Soviet leadership


Khrushchev

From Russian Хрущёв (Xruščóv), usually written Хрущев (Xruščev) (see note about Russian letter ё (jo)).

Khrushchov (alternative)
Khrushchyov (alternative)

A built-in remedy for Khrushchev and Kennedy.

1974, Freddie Mercury, “Killer Queen”, in Sheer Heart Attack:

Хрущёв Хрущёв#Russian

English transliteration of the Russian surname Хрущёв (Xruščóv); usually refers to the Russian revolutionary and Soviet Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU(b) Nikita Khrushchev.


franco

From Italian franco (“French”). Doublet of franc and frank.

(historical) A former currency of Lucca in Tuscany, Italy, issued between 1805 and 1808.


man in the moon

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-man in the moon.wav

nb...

Waterloo Place, London Oxford and Cambridge

ref

See S[abine] Baring-Gould (1890) “The Man in the Moon”, in Curious Myths of the Middle Ages, London: Rivingtons […], →OCLC, pages 190–191.

Non eſt inventus: there's no ſuch man to be found; let them that have the commiſſion for the concealments looke after it, or the man in the moone put for it.

1596, Tho[mas] Nashe, “Dialogus”, in Haue with You to Saffron-Walden. Or, Gabriell Harveys Hunt is Up. […], London: […] John Danter, →OCLC; republished as J[ohn] P[ayne] C[ollier], editor, Have with You to Saffron-Walden (Miscellaneous Tracts; Temp. Eliz. and Jac. I), [London: s.n., 1870], →OCLC, page 131:

235. To whom did you say that you wanted a ticket for home?—The stranger. / 236. The Man in the Moon?—Yes. / […] / 245. And I may ask you, was it also included as one of the tickets in the amount that the Man in the Moon paid you?—[…]—Yes, it was; the last received by me.

1851 March 29, Edwin James, counsel for the petitioners, William Locke, witness, “Minutes of Evidence Taken before the Select Committee on the Aylesbury Election Petition”, in Reports from Committees: […], volume 6, [London: Her Majesty’s Stationery Office], →OCLC, page 17:

There was a man named Moore, a stranger in the town, whose pedigree nobody could trace, and who was called the "Man in the Moon." He was thought to move about and dispose of money in a way which nobody could trace. He had received a sum of 500l., and out of that he had paid to Mr. Lang, innkeeper, a sum of 50l., and he did not vote at all. Next came a Thomas Stead, a shopkeeper, in Northgate, Wakefield, who had received 60l., which was paid to him by Dan Robinson, an understrapper to the "Man in the Moon." The money was thus traced to Moore, from him to Fernandes, and from him to the defendant and to Beckett's bank, where it had been placed by Mr. J[ohn] D[odgson] Charlesworth, the candidate.

1862, T[homas] Campbell Foster, W[illiam] F[rancis] Finlason, reporters, “Regina v. John Barff Charlesworth”, in Reports of Cases Decided at Nisi Prius and at the Crown Side on Circuit; with Select Decisions at Chambers, volume II (Hilary Vacation, 1860, to Hilary Vacation, 1862), London: V. & R. Stevens, Sons, & Haynes; Sweet; and Maxwell; […]; Dublin: Hodges, Smith & Co., […], →OCLC, page 330:

(obsolete, figurative) An imaginary person; also (UK politics, slang), an unidentified person who illegally pays for election expenditure and electors' expenses, as long as the latter vote as the person wishes.


hecatomb

The noun is a learned borrowing from Latin hecatombē (“great sacrifice of a hundred oxen, hecatomb”), from Ancient Greek ἑκατόμβη (hekatómbē, “great sacrifice of a hundred oxen, hecatomb; any animal sacrifice or large sacrifice”, from ἑκᾰτόν (hekătón, “hundred”) + βοῦς (boûs, “cattle, cow, ox”)).
The verb is derived from the noun.

der

O be propitious, powerfull God of Arts, / I sheathe my weapons, and doe breake my darts, / Be then appeas'd, I'le offer to thy shrine, / An Heccatombe, of many spotted kine.

1599, W. Kinsayder or Theriomastix [pseudonyms; John Marston], “Satyre. V. Totum in Toto.”, in The Scourge of Villanie. […], London: […] I[ames] R[oberts], →OCLC; republished as G[eorge] B[agshawe] Harrison, editor, The Scourge of Villanie (The Bodley Head Quartos; 13), London: John Lane, The Bodley Head […]; New York, N.Y.: E[dward] P[ayson] Dutton & Company, 1925, →OCLC, page 58:

[B]oth the muſes and the graces are his hard Miſtriſſes, though he daily Invocate them, though he ſacrifize Hecatombs, they ſtil look a ſquint, […]

a. 1632 (date written), John Donne, “[Characters.] The True Character of a Dunce.”, in Paradoxes, Problemes, Essayes, Characters, […], London: […] T. N. for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1652, →OCLC, page 68:

But haſte, conſult vve quick ſome prophet here / […] that vve may learn / By vvhat crime vve have thus incenſed Apollo, / VVhat broken vovv, vvhat hecatomb unpaid / He charges on us, and if ſoothed vvith ſteam / Of lambs and goats unblemiſh'd, he may yet / Be vvon to ſpare us, and avert the plague.

1791, Homer, “[The Iliad.] Book I.”, in W[illiam] Cowper, transl., The Iliad and Odyssey of Homer, Translated into Blank Verse, […], volume I, London: […] J[oseph] Johnson, […], →OCLC, pages 5–6, lines 74 and 76–81:

[I]n th' olden time / Some sacrifices ask'd a single victim, / Great expiations had a hecatomb.

1821, Lord Byron, Marino Faliero, Doge of Venice. An Historical Tragedy, in Five Acts. […], London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, Act I, scene ii, page 18:

[I]t is conceivable that if we were ancients some of us might be offering grateful hecatombs by mistake, and proving our honesty in a ruinously expensive manner.

[1879], George Eliot [pseudonym; Mary Ann Evans], “[Impressions of Theophrastus Such.] The Wasp Credited with the Honeycomb.”, in Impressions of Theophrastus Such, Essays and Leaves from a Note-book, Edinburgh, London: William Blackwood and Sons, →OCLC, page 107:

For the god they speedily stationed the sacred hecatomb all in good order surrounding the well-built altar.

2007, Homer, “Book 1”, in Rodney Merrill, transl., The Iliad, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan Press, →ISBN, page 40, lines 447–448:

(Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, historical) A great public sacrifice to the gods, originally of a hundred oxen; also, a great number of animals reserved for such a sacrifice.

hecatombe

great public sacrifice to the gods, originally of a hundred oxen; great number of animals reserved for such a sacrifice; great public sacrifice in other religions


Roosevelt

From Dutch roos (“rose”) + veld (“field”).

A number of places in the United States:

A census-designated place in Gila County, Arizona, probably named after Theodore Roosevelt Lake.

Breathitt County
Breathitt County#English

An unincorporated community and coal town in Breathitt County, Kentucky.

Lake of the Woods County
Lake of the Woods County#English

A minor city in Lake of the Woods County and Roseau County, Minnesota.

Crow Wing County
Crow Wing County#English

Two townships, in Beltrami County and Crow Wing County, Minnesota, both named after Theodore Roosevelt.

An unincorporated community in Douglas County, Missouri, named after Theodore Roosevelt.

A borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, formerly named Jersey Homesteads and renamed in honour of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945.

Former name of Carteret, New Jersey, renamed in 1922.

census-designated place
census-designated place

A hamlet and census-designated place in Hempstead, Nassau County, Long Island, New York, named after Theodore Roosevelt.

A town in Kiowa County, Oklahoma, named after Theodore Roosevelt.

An unincorporated community in Lubbock County, Texas.

A city in Duchesne County, Utah, named after Theodore Roosevelt.

Klickitat County
Klickitat County#English

An unincorporated community and census-designated place in Klickitat County, Washington, named after Theodore Roosevelt.

A neighbourhood in north Seattle, Washington, named after Roosevelt Way.

An unincorporated community in Pine Lake, Oneida County, Wisconsin.


Churchill

/ˈt͡ʃɜːt͡ʃɪl/

/ˈt͡ʃɜːɹt͡ʃɪl/

Any of several placenames, derived from church and hill.

An unincorporated community in Bureau County, Illinois.

Allegheny County
Allegheny County#English

A borough of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.


Pliny

Ultimately from Latin Plīnius, an Italic name of obscure origin.

The two Plinys, Lucan, (though again under the disadvantage of verse) Petronius Arbiter, and Quintilian, but above all, the Senecas, (for a Spanish cross appears to improve the quality of the rhetorician) have left a body of rhetorical composition such as no modern nation has rivalled.

1828, Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, volume 24, number 147:

Of Q. Curtius, the Demosthenes (both), Eutropius, Horace (first with a date), Homer, Justin, Livy, the two Plinies, Quintilian, Martial, Tacitus, and Virgil, the first editions; but my friend must not be allowed to have a succession of nights of undisturbed repose till he possesses the first Horace, and the first Roman edition of Virgil.

1836, Thomas Frognall Dibdin, Reminiscences of a Literary Life:


praenomen

en-noun

praenomen (plural praenomens or praenomina)

praenomens (plural)
praenomina (plural)
prænomen (alternative)
prenomen (alternative)

From Latin praenōmen, from prae- (“pre-: before”) + nōmen (“name, family name”).

Julius Caesar's praenomen was Gaius.

(historical) An Ancient Roman given name.

Tutankhamun's praenomen or throne name was Nebkheperrure, "Lord of the forms of Ra".

The old explanation was that the Greeks applied the name [λαβύρινθος (labúrinthos)] to it [the Temple of Hawara] because the prenomen or "throne-name" of its builder, Amenemhat III., would have been pronounced *Nemarîᵉ, and, by a usual interchange of n with l, transliterated into Greek as Labaris or Lamaris.

1907, Ronald M. Burrows, The Discoveries In Crete, page 121:

(historical) The throne name of a pharaoh, the fourth of the five names of the royal titulary, traditionally encircled by a cartouche and preceded by the title nswt-bjtj.

In the name Tyrannosaurus rex, "Tyrannosaurus" is the praenomen.

(zoology) The genus name in a binomial scientific name.


Confucius

Borrowed from Latin Confucius, from Mandarin 孔夫子 (Kǒng Fūzǐ, “Master Kong”).

Theſe Books mention only three Sects to have been in vogue in the World ; for of other Sects there is not the leaſt mention made. The firſt is the Sect of the Learned : The ſecond is called Sciequia : And the third Lancu. The firſt of theſe three is followed by all the Chineſes, and the adjacent People, which uſe the Chineſe Characters, as the Iſlanders of Japan, Corea, and Couchinchina : this Sect, which is that of the Learned, is taught to, and followed by none, but only thoſe and the Chineſes themſelves, and is the Antienteſt of all the Sects that were ever heard of in China : Out of this, about which a very great number of Books are writ, generally are choſen perſons fit for the Government of the Empire ; and therefore it is honoured and eſteemed above all others. The Doctrine of this Sect is not taught all at once, but they ſuck it in by degrees when they learn to Read or Write. The firſt Founder of this Sect was Confutius, the Prince of Chineſe Philoſophers, who is to this day honoured by all the Learned, with the Title of the The moſt Wiſe.

1669 [1665], John Nievhoff, “Of ſeveral SECTS in CHINA : Concerning PHILOSOPHY, and IDOL WORSHIP.”, in John Ogilby, transl., An Embassy from the Eaſt-India Company of the United Provinces, to the Grand Tartar Cham Emperour of China, London: John Macock, translation of original in Dutch, →OCLC, page 216:

The thirty eighth Year of the Cycle Confucius was preferr’d for his great Merit to be Prime Miniſter of the Kingdom of Lû, his native Country. Thro’ his wiſe Counſel the Face of Affairs was ſoon chang'd throughout the Land ; he reform’d the Abuſes that had crept into it, and reſtor’d Honeſty in dealing ; he taught young Men to reſpect the old, and honour their Parents, even after their Deceaſe ; he inſpir’d the fair Sex with Mildneſs and Chaſtity ; and caus’d Sincerity, Uprightneſs, and all other civil Virtues to prevail among the People.

1738, “Annals of the Chinese Monarchs”, in A Description of the Empire of China and Chinese-Tartary, Together with the Kingdoms of Korea, and Tibet, volume I, London, translation of original by J. B. du Halde, →OCLC, page 167:

Applicants to higher schools had to pass entrance examinations reminiscent of those administered before 1966. This change, which came under attack in the fall of 1973 during the campaign to criticize Lin Piao and Confucius, pleased middle school teachers in No. 6 Middle School in Tan-tung, Liaoning.

1977, Thomas P. Bernstein, “Mobilizing Urban Youth to Go to the Countryside”, in Up to the Mountains and Down to the Villages: The Transfer of Youth from Urban to Rural China, Yale University Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 98:

This is no longer a clue. It's a game. You may have just gotten checkmate, but we're playing Chinese checkers, and as my old friend Confucius say; the hunter has become the hunter-ed. The chaser has become the chosed. Dame Fortuna has had her franking privileges revoked. It seems the portrait has painted the artist, sketching the reverser, who has become the reverse-ed. But this time the suffixed will become the sufferer, and it appears the baby killer is about to kill a baby.

2007, Xavier: Renegade Angel, season 1, episode 4, spoken by Xavier (Vernon Chatman):

An influential Chinese philosopher who lived 551 B.C.E. – 479 B.C.E.; personal name Kong Qiu (孔丘).


Thirteen Colonies

the Thirteen Colonies (canonical plural)

(historical) The thirteen British colonies that successfully revolted in 1775-1781, forming the nucleus of the United States.


Pallas

From Ancient Greek Παλλάς (Pallás) (f.) or Πάλλας (Pállas) (m.), from πάλλω (pállō, “to poise, sway, or swing”), but explained here by the ancients as more specifically meaning to brandish something. In Athena's conventional iconography, she was often depicted with a spear or a shield. Thus the epithet was explained as referring to her brandishing these things.

(Greek mythology) Any of several people in Greek mythology:

An epithet for Athena, always used together with the name, as Pallas Athena, rather than alone.

One of the Titans, according to Hesiod the son of the Titans Crius and Eurybia.

A female given name from Ancient Greek of mythological origin; rare in English.


Pandora's box

(Greek mythology) A box given to Pandora by Zeus, whose instructions stated that it must not be opened, and were then ignored, leading to disastrous consequences.


Deutsche Mark

Deutsche Mark (plural Deutsche Marks or Deutsche Mark)

Deutsche Marks (plural)
Deutsche Mark (plural)
Deutschmark (alternative)
deutschmark (alternative)
deutsche mark (alternative)
D-Mark (alternative)

/ˈdɔɪt͡ʃmɑːk/

/ˈdɔɪt͡ʃmɑɹk/

-ɔɪt͡ʃmɑː(ɹ)k

(numismatics) The former currency unit of Germany (now replaced by the euro), abbreviated as DM or DEM.


Gunpowder Plot

(British, historical) A failed conspiracy, in November 1605, to kill the Protestant king James I of England and VI of Scotland, and to blow up the House of Lords using gunpowder, annually commemorated on Guy Fawkes Day.


Lakshmi

From Sanskrit लक्ष्मी (lakṣmī, “mark, sign”).

The Hindu goddess of wealth, the consort of Vishnu and married to Rama (in her incarnation as Sita) and Krishna (as Radha and Rukmini).


steeping

steepings (plural)
stephening (alternative)
steping (alternative)

From the name of Stephen de Fulbourn, who served as bishop of Waterford, archbishop of Tuam, and treasurer and justiciar of Ireland in the 1270s and 1280s.

(historical, numismatics) A 13th-century coin circulated in Ireland as a debased sterling silver penny, outlawed under King Edward I.


destalinization

de-Stalinization (alternative)
De-Stalinization (alternative)
Destalinization (alternative)
destalinisation (alternative)
de-Stalinisation (alternative)
De-Stalinsation (alternative)
Destalinisation (alternative)

The process, begun by Nikita Khrushchev, of discrediting and then reforming the policies of Joseph Stalin.

destalinizasiya

process of discrediting and the reforming the policies of Joseph Stalin


Dhanalaxmi

Dhanalakshmi (alternative)
Dhana Laxmi (alternative)

On the following day, the woman-folk worship Goddess Dhanalaxmi for prosperity.

1980, T. Vedantam, J. K. Barthakur, Census of India, 1971: Series 2: Andhra Pradesh, India Office of the Registrar General, page 138:

2004, http://www.deccanherald.com/deccanherald/nov112004/deep2.asp
Goddess Dhanalaxmi is propitiated on the Amavasya night in Hindu homes. Goddess Laxmi is said to have emerged from the ocean during the 'samudra manthan'. Her birth is celebrated with pujas, illuminations and crackers and festivity in every Hindu home.

(Hinduism) A Hindu goddess, one of the eight forms of Laxmi, the Hindu goddess of wealth, fortune and prosperity.


Confucianism

Confucianism (countable and uncountable, plural Confucianisms)

The Chinese New Year holiday period, being disrupted this year by the outbreak of a viral illness, has evolved over more than 3,000 years to become the most important of China’s traditional festivals.
As celebrated in China and in many other places where its known as the Lunar New Year, it is largely a secular holiday, yet it includes rituals and traditions that derive from Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, as well as from ancient myths and folk religions.

2020 January 23, David Crary, “Chinese New Year secular now but kept religious underpinning”, in AP News, archived from the original on 2022-06-15:

The school of thought and philosophy centered on Confucian principles, originating in China, including later teachings of scholars such as Zhu Xi (Chu Hsi).


procurator

procurators (plural)
procuratour (alternative)

/ˈpɹɑkjəˌɹeɪtɚ/

/ˈpɹɒkjʊˌɹeɪtə/

Anglo-Norman procuratour, from Latin prōcūrātor, from prōcūrō (“I procure”) (English procure). Equivalent to procure + -ator.

следовател

legal officer in communist country collector

(Ancient Rome) The governor of a small imperial province.

прокуратор

Ancient Rome: governor of small province


RINO

Irritated that Riordan’s key aides are Democrats, some Republican party activists sported RINO (Republican In Name Only) buttons at a Riordan speech (Los Angeles Times, 16 May 1994).

1994 September, Raphael J. Sonenshein, Politics in Black and White: Race and Power in Los Angeles, Princeton University Press, page 303:

And Bush is a RINO - Republican In Name Only. Even my dad, a lifelong Democrat, says that Bush (this one) is much more moderate […]

1998 October 28, Eric Chomko, “George W. Bush: Our Next President”, in alt.president.clinton (Usenet):

Among Republicans, there are the RINOs—Republican In Name Only. A RINO does not apply convictions based upon a biblical worldview to public policy.

2005 September, Brannon Howse, One Nation Under Man?: The Worldview War Between Christians and the Secular Left, Broadman & Holman Publishing Group, page 61:

Mr. Trump called Mr. Raffensperger a “RINO,” or Republican in Name Only, while continuing to make false claims about voting integrity in Georgia; along the way he tossed a few barbs at the state’s Republican governor, Brian Kemp, Mr. Trump’s ally and sometime-scapegoat.

[2020 November 18, Richard Fausset, Jonathan Martin, “In Georgia, a Republican Feud With Trump at the Center”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

Republican Party
w:Republican Party (United States)

(US politics, derogatory) Acronym of Republican in name only. Typically used by conservative members of the U.S. Republican Party to describe liberal Republicans or Republicans seen as liberals.


Percival

From Old French Perceval, name of a knight in a twelfth century Arthurian romance by the French poet Chrétien de Troyes. Shaped like Old French percier (“pierce”) + val (“valley”), but probably representing some Gaulish or Old Welsh name, possibly related to Welsh Peredur, from ber (“spear, lance”) (from Middle Welsh ber, from Proto-Brythonic *ber, from Proto-Celtic *beru (“spit”)) + dur (“hard metal, steel”) (see Latin durus).
Cognate with German Parzival and Parsifal.

An unincorporated community and census-designated place in Fremont County, Iowa, United States.


Ptolemaic

Via Latin Ptolemāicus from Koine Greek Πτολεμᾱϊκός (Ptolemāïkós) from Πτολεμαῖος (Ptolemaîos), a proper name derived from Epic Greek πτόλεμος (ptólemos), variant of Ancient Greek πόλεμος (pólemos, “battle, war”); equivalent to Ptolemy + -ic.

der

(historical) Of or pertaining to the Ptolemy dynasty of pharaohs, the Ptolemies, rulers of Hellenistic Egypt.

(astronomy) Of or pertaining to the astronomer Claudius Ptolemy.


scalding

en-adj

scalding (comparative more scalding, superlative most scalding)

more scalding (comparative)
most scalding (superlative)


Dáil Éireann

/dɔɪ̯l ˈɛə̯ɹən/

Unadapted borrowing from Irish Dáil Éireann.

ubor

The lower house of the Parliament of Ireland.


American Revolutionary War

the American Revolutionary War (canonical)

The American Revolution (1775–1783) of the contiguous southern 13 colonies of the British Empire on the east coast of the North American mainland


Meiji

From Japanese 明治 (meiji, “enlightened rule”).


convivium

(ecology) A geographically isolated population of a species that shows differentiation from other populations of the same species; becomes a subspecies or ecotype


satori

Borrowed from Japanese 覚 (satori), from Middle Chinese 覺 (kaewk, “to become aware, awaken to, dawn on”) (modern Mandarin 覺 /觉 (jué); referring to the creature’s mind-reading ability).

der

The Satori appears in [Toriyama] Sekien's Konjyaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki as a hairy, ape-like, mountain-dwelling creature that can read people's minds[…].

2010, Zilia Papp, “Art History Meets Gegegeno Kitaro”, in Anime and Its Roots in Early Japanese Monster Art, Folkstone, Kent: Global Oriental, →ISBN, page 112:

Satori is a ghost that can read people's thoughts and haunts the mountains. The hairy Satori appears in an Edo-period book titled Konjaku Gazu Zoku Hyakki. According to the book, Satori can read people's minds, but will not harm them. Even if a frightened person plans to kill him or her, Satori reads his or her mind and simply runs away before he or she can do any harm.

2023, Masami Kinoshita, “Super Scary Yokai”, in The Japanese Yokai Handbook: A Guide to the Spookiest Ghosts, Demons, Monsters and Evil Creatures from Japanese Folklore, Tokyo: Tuttle Publishing, →ISBN, page 29:

This is most likely a type of Yokai called a Satori. They have the ability to read people's minds. And like with Satori, the only way to get rid of them is with a sudden, unexpected attack. […] The ability to read minds is dangerous, but it doesn't give the ability to predict sudden actions.

2023, Kenji Murakami, “Yokai Countermeasures and Weaknesses”, in Zack Davisson, transl., Strange Japanese Yokai: A Guide to the Weird and Wonderful Monsters, Demons and Spirits, North Clarendon, Vt.: Tuttle Publishing, →ISBN, page 89:

(Japanese mythology) A yokai (“supernatural monster”) having the form of a mind-reading monkey-like creature said to dwell in the mountains of the historical Japanese provinces of Hida and Mino (present-day Gifu Prefecture).

覺 /觉

yokai having the form of a mind-reading monkey-like creature


midterm election

en-noun

midterm election (plural midterm elections or midterms)

midterm elections (plural)
midterms (plural)

Except in the rare case that a president leaves office early, the midterm election occurs roughly halfway through their term of office.

Most of the rational world . . . foresaw a smooth ride to victory for Democrats. They had, after all, the wind at their backs from the 2006 midterm elections.

2008 April 23, Amy Sullivan, “A Primary with No End”, in Time, retrieved 2015-07-03:

(US politics) An election held every four years to elect members of Congress in years the president is not also elected.


Grits

(Canadian politics) The Liberal Party of Canada.


Fab Four

Given the rumours of rancour and rift, the unexpected show of unity between the one-time “Fab Four” of William, Kate, Harry and Meghan has been a masterstroke in ensuring the focus over the coming days of national mourning remains firmly fixed on the late Queen Elizabeth II and the new King Charles III.

2022 September 11, Caroline Davies, “William, Kate, Harry and Meghan put Firm above their differences”, in The Guardian:

(informal, UK politics) William, Kate, Harry & Meghan


ferryman

(Greek mythology, usually preceded by the) Charon.


Spock

en-proper noun

Spock (countable and uncountable, plural Spocks)

Alternative form: Mr. Spock

This caricature called economic man was not only completely self-centered, he was also entirely rational in all his decisions, whether consuming or investing—a veritable Mr. Spock.

2010, William McDonald Wallace, The Decline and Fall of the U.S. Economy: How Liberals and Conservatives Both Got It Wrong, Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, page 48:

Phelps's calorie intake may seem superhuman, and his 6' 4", 185-pound body may recall Greek statuary, but fans are also drawn to him by a goofy grin and oversized ears that led to his being called Spock on the school bus.

2008 December 2, “Sportsman of the Year: Michael Phelps”, in Sports Illustrated:

(science fiction) In Star Trek, a Starfleet commander and science officer of the USS Enterprise, especially known for his Vulcan logic, reason, and stoicism and his distinctive pointed ears.


carene

From Latin carēnum or caroenum, from Ancient Greek κάροινον (károinon), q.v.

(historical cooking, rare, obsolete) Synonym of carenum: a reduction of must or sweet wine in ancient European cuisine.


Dodona

From Latin Dōdōna, from Ancient Greek Δωδώνη (Dōdṓnē).

(informal) Dodoni, the present settlement at the site, in modern Greece's Ioannina prefecture.


Byzantium

From Latin Bȳzantium, from Ancient Greek Βῡζᾰ́ντῐον (Būzắntĭon), named after its legendary founder, Byzas.

(historical, by extension) The Byzantine Empire.


maharishi

From Sanskrit महर्षि (maharṣi, “great seer”) from महा (mahā, “great”) + ऋषि (ṛṣi, “saint, seer”).

His lineage of teachers and masters included several famous maharishis.

2020, Avni Doshi, Burnt Sugar, Hamish Hamilton, page 66:


warp factor

From the science-fiction series Star Trek.

(science fiction) A hypothetical figure indicating a space vessel's speed greater than the speed of light.


take the red pill

en-verb

take the red pill (third-person singular simple present takes the red pill, present participle taking the red pill, simple past took the red pill, past participle taken the red pill)

takes the red pill (present singular third-person)
taking the red pill (participle present)
took the red pill (past)
taken the red pill (participle past)

If you want to be a successful bootstrapper, you have to take the red pill and determine how deep the rabbit hole called your organization goes.

2004 September 9, Guy Kawasaki, The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything, Portfolio, →ISBN, →OL, page 92:

As much as we, our generation, start to believe this fictionalized new version of reality we become complicit.... The only way out is to take the Red pill and see what things really look like.

2005 June 1, Terry Allen, Dugout, University of Texas Press, →ISBN, →OL, page 172:

In this day and time, we must begin to take the “red pill” and open our first eye to see what's really going on, and who's behind this madness involving Hip Hop videos.

2005 December 1, The Black Dot, Hip Hop Decoded: From Its Ancient Origin To Its Modern Day Matrix, →ISBN, →OL, page 144:

(idiomatic) To perceive the world in its previously unknown, usually harsher, reality.


filmi

(India, music) Music written especially for Bollywood films.


Korean War

Democratic People's Republic of Korea
Democratic People's Republic of Korea

(historical) A war fought in the Korean Peninsula from 1950–1953 between the Soviet Union-backed Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the United Nations-backed Republic of Korea.


Praetorian

Praetorians (plural)
praetorian (alternative)
pretorian (alternative)
Pretorian (alternative)
prætorian (alternative)
Prætorian (alternative)

(historical, Ancient Rome) A member of a special bodyguard force used by Roman emperors, their symbol being the scorpion.


Hoovercrat

(informal) An ally of President Herbert Hoover during his campaign and/or presidency.


Russian Empire

(historical) The Russian state from 1721 to 1917.


serfdom

en-noun

serfdom (usually uncountable, plural serfdoms)


cyathus

From Latin cyathus, from Ancient Greek κύαθος (kúathos, “ladle”), of uncertain origin. Doublet of kyathos.

(historical) A Roman unit of liquid measure reckoned as the volume of 1⅔ Roman ounce of wine and equivalent to about 45 mL although differing slightly over time.

Synonym of ladle, especially (historical) a small one used for serving wine in ancient Greece and Rome.

ladle

(historical) Synonym of kyathos (“an ancient ladle and serving beaker”).


ferula

Borrowed from Latin ferula (“giant fennel”), whose stalks were once used in punishing schoolboys. Doublet of ferule.

bor+

(obsolete) The imperial sceptre in the Byzantine Empire.


retiarius

/ˌɹɛtɪˈɑːɹi.əs/

/ˌɹɛtɪˈɛəɹi.əs/

/ˌɹiʃiˈɛəɹi.əs/

(Ancient Rome, gladiatorial combat) A gladiator who uses a casting net (a rete or iaculum) as a weapon.


cosplay

en-verb

cosplay (third-person singular simple present cosplays, present participle cosplaying, simple past and past participle cosplayed)

cosplays (present singular third-person)
cosplaying (participle present)
cosplayed (participle past)
cosplayed (past)

→ Norwegian: cosplay

→ Portuguese: cosplay

→ Russian: коспле́й (kospléj)

→ Spanish: cosplay

→ Thai: คอสเพลย์ (kɔ́ɔs-plee)

→ Ukrainian: коспле́й (kospléj)

Borrowed from Japanese コスプレ (kosupure), which is a clipping of コスチュームプレイ (kosuchūmu purei), from a compound of English costume + play.

Why has the Russian Federation decided to cosplay the Nazi Third Reich by attacking the peaceful neighboring state and plunging the region into war?

2022 March 17, Aila Slisco, “Ukrainian UN Ambassador Accuses Russians of Engaging in 'Nazi Cosplay'”, in Newsweek, retrieved 2022-03-18:

On weekends, there was usually a party. Her classmates, free from their wealthy families, cosplayed as struggling intellectuals.

2022, Ling Ma, “Office Hours”, in Bliss Montage, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN:

[…] turning conservative white men into amateur commandos cosplaying war wherever they liked and the US into a war zone.

2022 May 30, Rebecca Solnit, “US mass shootings will continue until the majority can overrule the minority”, in The Guardian:

Whilst their stability was generally an improvement on earlier German destroyers, as the vessels no longer displayed a strong desire to cosplay as U-boats, the main armament proved to be something of a problem.

2022 August 27, Drachinifel, 2:44 from the start, in Type 1936A / Narvik class - Guide 298, archived from the original on 2022-08-29:

(figurative, often derogatory, transitive) To adopt the behavior and mannerisms of another.


cosplayer

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

From Japanese コスプレイヤー (kosupureiyā). Equivalent to cos- + player or cosplay + -er.

The environments and spaces created for and by cosplay provide cosplayers with a variety of spaces for social interactions.

2006, Frenchy Lunning, Mechademia 1: Emerging Worlds of Anime And Manga, page 75:


MCP

Malayan Communist Party
w:Malayan Communist Party

(Malaysia, Singapore, politics, historical) Initialism of Malayan Communist Party (“Parti Komunis Malaya”).


Festival of Lights

From the importance of candles or light during the celebrations.

2000, Meenal Pandya, Here Comes Diwali: The Festival of Lights:

Invite a practicing Hindu from your community to speak about the Festival of Lights.

2001, Elizabeth A. Raum., Every Day a Holiday:

2008, Dianne M. MacMillan, Diwali: Hindu Festival of Lights:


GH

The ambulatory surgery center (ASC) differs from the general hospital (GH) in several respects. […] The ASC has many advantages over the GH facility, some of which are financial and others related to patient flow and satisfaction. Clearly, a facility that has a limited purpose and scope can eliminate many services and costs that are necessary in the GH.

2000, Michael Lavan, “Facilities for Ambulatory Surgery. Part A: The Freestanding Ambulatory Surgery Center”, in H. Randolph Bailey, Michael J. Snyder, editors, Ambulatory Anorectal Surgery, Springer, →ISBN, page 1:

(medicine) Initialism of general hospital.


GH

GH joint

(anatomy, medicine) Initialism of glenohumeral.


GH

(television) Initialism of General Hospital, an American daytime television medical drama first aired in 1963.


toolkit

toolkits (plural)
tool kit (alternative)

The culture of Ice Age humanity expresses a steady growth in the complexity of the tool kit, and a steady growth in complexity of artistic development.

1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 119:

A set of tools kept together, especially comprising all the tools suitable for some particular type of work.


yuri

Borrowed from Japanese 百合(ゆり) (yuri, “lily”), by analogy to 薔薇(バラ) (bara, “rose”), indicating love. See Yuri (genre) § “Terminology and etymology” at Wikipedia.

(slang) A narrative or visual work featuring a romance or sexual relationship between two or more women.

Yuri (genre)
Yuri (genre)#Terminology and etymology

ガールズラブ (gāruzu rabu, literally “girls' love”)

가르즈라부 (gareujeurabu, literally “girls' love”)


Aeolic

From Latin aeolicus, from Ancient Greek αἰολικός (aiolikós) or Αἰολικός (Aiolikós, “like the Aeolians”).

Æolic (alternative)
Æolick (alternative)
Aiolic (alternative)

(Greek mythology) Of Aeolus, the Ancient Greek god of the wind.

Of, finding its or their origin in, or borne on winds; aerial.

(geology) Owing its creation, formation, or deposition chiefly to the effects of air currents.


Pasiphae

Borrowed from Ancient Greek Πασιφάη (Pasipháē).

(Greek mythology) The daughter of Helios and the sister of Circe. She was raised as a princess at Cholchis, and then given in marriage to King Minos of Crete. With Minos, she was the mother of Ariadne, Androgeus, Glaucus, Deucalion, Phaedra, and Catreus. She was also the mother of the Minotaur.


lunula

en-noun

lunula (plural lunulae or (archaic) lunulæ)

lunulae (plural)
lunulæ (archaic plural)
lunule (alternative)

(Ancient Rome, historical) A crescent moon-shaped pendant worn by girls in Ancient Rome.


commissary

From Late Latin commissarius, from commissus, past participle of committō (“to commit, entrust to”). Doublet of commissar.

(Scots law) The judge in a commissary court.


Theseus

From Ancient Greek Θησεύς (Thēseús). His name comes from the same root as θεσμός (thesmós), Greek for “institution”.

A legendary Ancient Greek hero most famous for defeating the minotaur in the labyrinth of Crete.


Whigs

(UK politics) An 18th- and 19th-century British political party that was opposed to the Tories, and became the Liberal Party.

United States of America
United States of America

(US politics) A 19th-century political party in the United States of America.


Radha

(Hinduism) Hindu goddess of love and devotion, Grand Consort of god Krishna, Avatar of Lakshmi.


voodoo economics

Coined by George H. W. Bush during the 1980 Republican primaries.

Riot shields, voodoo economics / It's just business, cattle prods and the I.M.F / I trust I can rely on your vote

1997, “Electioneering”, in OK Computer, performed by Radiohead:

Supply-side economics
supply-side economics

(derogatory, slang) Supply-side economics, particularly in reference to policies based on the Laffer curve.


shinigami

/ˌʃɪn.ɪˈɡɑːmi/

Borrowing from Japanese 死に神 (shinigami).

(Japanese mythology) A deity and/or personification of death.


Shamsher Jang

From the Hindi शमशेर जंग (śamśer jaṅg, “sword of war”), from Classical Persian شمشیر جنگ (šamšēr jang). It was part of the full title of the Maharaja of Travancore.

uder

(Hinduism) A Hindu princely title, Sword of War.


princeps

Borrowed from Latin prī̆nceps (“first, foremost”). Doublet of prince and principe.

bor+

Its special characteristics were that the princeps was not governed by any law of procedure or confined to a particular place of judgment and, moreover, had complete freedom in the composition of his consilium.

1984, Karl Christ, The Romans: An Introduction to Their History and Civilisation, University of California Press, →ISBN, page 126:

(Ancient Rome) Title of the Roman emperor during the principate.


clop

Perhaps from German or Dutch kloppen (“to hit, knock”), from Middle Dutch cloppen (“to make a clopping sound”), of onomatopoeic origin. See also clap.

der

(slang) My Little Pony-themed pornography.


clopping

en-noun

clopping (countable and uncountable, plural cloppings)

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

According to an internal study undertaken by bronies themselves, 19.05 per cent of respondents engaged in clopping.

2013 September 9, Thomas Raethel, “The Mysterious World of Bronies”, in Critic, number 22, University of Otago, page 33:

You prove your ability to procreate by tastefully introducing your Mother to your My Little Pony collection and your fervent love of clopping (Urban Dictionary it) and your amazing fedora hat rack!

2014 May, Brian R., “Top 5: Mother's Day Gifts”, in Desire Magazine, page 19:

And the most uncomfortable question bronies get is about “clopping,” that is, masturbating to pony porn.

2015 March 10, Terrence Smith, “Galloping With the Bronies”, in Valley Advocate:

(My Little Pony fandom slang) The act of masturbating to erotic fanart of My Little Pony characters.


Heliopolis

Borrowed from Latin Hēliopolis, from Ancient Greek Ἡλίου πόλις (Hēlíou pólis, “Sun City”), from the important solar cults of Ra and Baal. Doublet of Surajpur.

der

(historical) The ancient capital of the 13th nome of Lower Egypt, located in the northern suburbs of modern Cairo, Egypt; known in Ancient Egyptian as Iunu and in later Coptic as On.


SPGB

Socialist Party of Great Britain
w:Socialist Party of Great Britain

(UK politics) Initialism of Socialist Party of Great Britain.


Thoth

Via Latin Thōth from Ancient Greek Θώθ (Thṓth), from Egyptian ḏḥwtj (“Thoth”, literally “he who is like the ibis”). Compare Coptic Ⲑⲱⲟⲩⲧ (Thōout).

(Egyptian mythology) The ancient Egyptian moon god of wisdom, learning, and magic, usually depicted as an ibis or baboon.

To November 1 add 7, and the ſum will ſhew, that the ſeventh day of Thoth fell, that year, upon the eighth day of November.

1762, John Kennedy, A Complete System of Astronomical Chronology Unfolding the Scriptures:

Now the month of Thoth was the first of the Egyptian year, because this month begins a new period.

1842, Frederick Portal, “Correspondence—Swedenborg and Champollion”, in The British Magazine and Monthly Register of Religious and Ecclesiastical Information, Parochial History, and Documents Respecting the State of the Poor, Progress of Education, Etc, volume 21:

In that case this quadrimenstruum would be the first one of the Egyptian year, Thoth, Phaophi, Hathyr, Choeac.

1989, Bernard Pyne Grenfell, Arthur Surridge Hunt, The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, volume 56:

The first month of the later ancient Egyptian civil calendar and Coptic calendar, corresponding to the first month of the season of Akhet. Since 25 BCE, when the calendar was reformed to include leap-days, Thoth has been in roughly September.


reductive

en-adj

reductive (comparative more reductive, superlative most reductive)

more reductive (comparative)
most reductive (superlative)

From Middle French réductif, from Late Latin reductivus, from the participle stem of Latin reducere (“to reduce”).

(Scots law, now rare) Pertaining to the reduction of a decree etc.; rescissory.


proxy war

proxy wars (plural)
war by proxy (alternative)

With the enhanced insurgent firepower and with Russia steadily raising the number of airstrikes against the government’s opponents, the Syrian conflict is edging closer to an all-out proxy war between the United States and Russia.

2015 October 12, Anne Barnard, Karam Shoumali, “U.S. Weaponry Is Turning Syria Into Proxy War With Russia”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

A war where two powers use third parties as a supplement to, or a substitute for, fighting each other directly.