coaster

Hollywood Dream – The Ride
Universal Studios Japan

From coast (“to glide along without adding energy; to make a minimal effort; to slide downhill (especially, to slide on a sled upon snow or ice)”) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns). Coast is derived from Middle English costeien (“to travel along a border or coast; to go alongside (something), skirt; to accompany, follow; to travel across, traverse; to be adjacent to, to border;”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman [Term?], Old French costoier (“to be at the side of”) [and other forms] (modern French côtoyer (“to pass alongside; (figuratively) to rub shoulders”)), from Latin costicāre, from costa (“rib; side, wall”); see further at etymology 1.
The sense 2.1 (“small stand or tray”) is from the fact that the object and the decanter or wine bottle on it “coast” or travel around a tabletop from person to person. The sense 2.2.2 (“useless compact disc or DVD”) refers to the fact that the object is only useful as a drink coaster.

nb...

cost, costay, coste, costey, costie, coost, coostie, costen, costien

kelkka

something that coasts or is used to coast

Something that coasts or is used to coast.

A small, flat or tray-like object on which a bottle, cup, glass, mug, etc., is placed to protect a table surface from drink spills, heat, or water condensation.

падста́ўка

small object on which a cup, etc., is placed to protect a table surface

подста́вка

бутылку, кружку, под стакан

(computing, slang) A useless compact disc or DVD, such as one that was burned incorrectly or has become corrupted.


at gunpoint

(by extension) Under coercion in general.


gramps

Hey gramps, get off the road!


low-key

en-adj

low-key (comparative more low-key, superlative most low-key)

more low-key (comparative)
most low-key (superlative)

She deserves an Oscar for her low-key performance in that movie.

For a low-key, somewhat predictable meal, dinner at Basem's offers good value.

1984 November 18, Patricia Brooks, “Specials Best at Low-Key Spot”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

From the Samba band and colourfully-clad dancers that made a lap of Wembley before kick-off - even prompting some neat moves from one or two Brazilian journalists - to the roars of delight every time Neymar got on the ball, it was still a night that contained entertainment despite the increasingly low-key fare on the pitch.

2017 November 14, Phil McNulty, “England 0-0 Brazil”, in BBC News

The relatively low-key opening was attended by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, who declared "We have a brand-new station serviced with brand-new lines and new publicly owned trains.

2023 October 18, Chris Howe, “Network News: Headbolt Lane station opens on Merseyrail”, in RAIL, number 994, page 22

(by extension) Restrained, subtle, not trying to attract attention.


Mira

* Borrowed from Hindi मीरा (mīrā), name of a 16th century Indian poetess, also affectionately called Mirabai.
* As occasionally borne by anglophones in the West, the name may also be borrowed from Slavic, or be a short form of Miranda.

Dorothy's daughters were of exceptional beauty and the sisters could complain only that the Hindi names Dorothy had chosen - Mira, Leela, Lena - were meant to pass as Western ones.

1961, V. S. Naipaul, A House for Mr Biswas, Penguin Books, published 1977, page 366

(by extension) A female given name from India.


third rail

Today's rapidly developing third rail (at least in some states) is supporting driver's licenses for illegal immigrants, as favored by New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer.

2007 November 12, Jonathan Alter, “Congenital Lawyer Redux”, in Newsweek, page 48

Despite ethnic resentment and suspicion, they [Ukraine's leaders] never contemplated breaking up the country. This was the third rail of Ukrainian politics, and very few were willing to touch it. Secession was taboo.

2014 March 29, Stephen Sestanovich, “Putin's reckless gamble”, in The New York Times

(by extension) Anything that is dangerous to come into contact with, or is best avoided.


groupie

2019, S. James Gates Jr., Cathie Pelletier, Proving Einstein Right
A bit of an eclipse groupie, he had paid the thirty guineas fee to join the BAA's first expedition, to Norway, in 1896.

(by extension, informal) Any dedicated fan of something.


pallet

From Middle English paillet, from Anglo-Norman paillete (“bundle of straw”), from Old French paille (“straw, chaff”), from Latin palea (“chaff”).


streamline

en-verb

streamline (third-person singular simple present streamlines, present participle streamlining, simple past and past participle streamlined)

streamlines (present singular third-person)
streamlining (participle present)
streamlined (participle past)
streamlined (past)

(transitive, by extension) To simplify or organize a process in order to increase its efficiency.


come of age

come of age (third-person singular simple present comes of age, present participle coming of age, simple past came of age, past participle come of age)

comes of age (present singular third-person)
coming of age (participle present)
came of age (past)
come of age (participle past)

Eager to find a better life, you joined the Alliance military when you came of age. You volunteered for an expedition to Akuze: a lush world on the outskirts of Alliance space that had suddenly dropped out of contact.

2008, BioWare, Mass Effect, Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →OCLC, PC, scene: Profile Codex entry

(idiomatic, by extension) To mature, or become fully developed.


pooper

(rare) One who poops; or, poops well.
(by extension) An infant.

One who poops; or, poops well.
An infant.


Home Depot

The common noun follows from the proper noun.

She told me her name was Zola, took hold of my elbow, and guided me into the store, which turned out to be a veritable Home Depot for New Agers.

1995, Jane Heller, Crystal Clear, page 85

The room itself was no larger than an ordinary living room, but it appeared to be a Home Depot of modern weaponry.

2003, Loren D. Estleman, Something Borrowed, Something Black, page 89

The media, which bombard us with TV shows, movies, catalogs, ads, and magazines, serve as a kind of Home Depot of personas to draw from and put on.

2004, Susan Douglas, Meredith W. Michaels, The Mommy Myth: The Idealization of Motherhood and how it Has Undermined Women, page 19

As such, this building is literally like a Home Depot of services!

2004, Christopher Eldridge, Conceptual Communal Home Design, page 113

This is the Home Depot of sex toys sites: It has all the basics, an enormous range of models and styles, and tips on building your own.

2006, Violet Blue, The Adventurous Couple's Guide to Sex Toys, page 99

It's almost like a Home Depot model for a church. You go in, get what you need, and leave.

2006, Andrew Beaujon, Body Piercing Saved My Life: Inside the Phenomenon of Christian Rock, page 113

First, you just don't go down to the radioactive material center, like a Home Depot, and get some nuclear material.

2007, W. j. Caniano, The Powers That Be: America's Dirtiest Secrets, page 97

(by extension) A place where a shopper can find everything related to a particular field.

kodintavaratalo

shop for everything in a particular field


mangy

en-adj

mangy (comparative mangier, superlative mangiest)

mangier (comparative)
mangiest (superlative)

We stayed in a really mangy hotel in New York.

Specter Knight: 'YOUR QUEST TO BECOME KING OF CARDS HAS NOT... GONE UNNOTICED.' / King Knight: 'AH, WORD HAS REACHED THE SLUMS, HAS IT? AM I TO TRAVEL WITH AN ENTOURAGE OF MANGY BEGGARS, NOW?'

2019 December 10, Yacht Club Games, Shovel Knight: King of Cards, Nintendo 3DS, level/area: Spectral Ravine

(by extension) Worn and squalid-looking; bedraggled or decrepit.


sequela

en-noun

sequela (plural sequelae or (archaic) sequelæ)

sequelae (plural)
sequelæ (archaic plural)

Learned borrowing from Latin sequēla (“aftermath, sequel; consequence, result”), from sequor (“to follow; to come or go after, pursue”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sekʷ- (“to follow”)) + -ēla (suffix forming abstract nouns from verbs). Doublet of sequel.
The plural form is a learned borrowing from Latin sequēlae.

der

Initially he dosed himself [with opium] to quell neuralgia associated with 'gout' and nervous shooting pains in the limb and head, unable to bear the agonies these complaints produced on what Humphry Davy would call his 'excessive sensibility'. Self-dosing brought emotional and physical sequelae of its own.

2003, Roy Porter, “Dependent Bodies”, in Flesh in the Age of Reason, London: Allen Lane, Penguin Group, part IV (The Science of Man for a New Society), page 407

That which follows; a consequence, an effect.

(rare) People who adhere to the opinions or teachings of another; followers.


Talmudic

(by extension) Making extremely fine distinctions in a manner reminiscent of the Talmud; hairsplitting.


pyx

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

The noun is derived from Late Middle English pix, pixe (“vessel for holding a host, pyx; hip bone socket, pyxis”) [and other forms], from Late Latin pyxis (“vessel for holding a host”), Latin pyxis (“small box for medicines or toiletries; box holding sample coins for testing; hip bone socket; sailor's compass”), from Koine Greek πυξίς (puxís), Ancient Greek πῠξῐ́ς (puxís, “box; box or tablet made of boxwood; cylinder”), from πῠ́ξος (púxos, “box tree; boxwood”) + -ῐς (-is, suffix forming feminine nouns). Doublet of box, piseog, and pyxis.
The verb is derived from the noun.

ref

From the collection of the Musée de Cluny in Paris, France.

der

(by extension, rare) A (small) box; a casket, a coffret.


emboss

en-verb

emboss (third-person singular simple present embosses, present participle embossing, simple past and past participle embossed)

embosses (present singular third-person)
embossing (participle present)
embossed (participle past)
embossed (past)

From Middle English embosen, embose, enbose (“of game: to become exhausted from hunting”), possibly from em- (a variant of en- (prefix meaning ‘in, into’)) + Old French bos, bois (“woodland, woods”) (modern French bois) (from Late Latin boscus, Medieval Latin boscus (“woodlands, woods”), ultimately from Proto-West Germanic *busk (“bush, thicket”), from Proto-Germanic *buskaz (“bush, thicket”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH- (“to appear; to be; to become; to grow”)). Doublet of imbosk (“to conceal or hide (not necessarily in a forest or wood)”).
Sense 2 (“to make (a hunted animal) foam at the mouth”) is probably influenced by emboss (“to decorate (something) with bosses”; etymology 1, sense 5), likening the flecks of foam to decorative bosses.

der

(by extension, transitive, chiefly passive voice, obsolete) To drive (a hunted animal) to exhaustion by chasing it; to exhaust; hence, to make (a hunted animal) foam at the mouth due to exhaustion from being chased.

(transitive, archaic) To cause (an animal's body, a person's mouth, etc.) to be covered with foam.

saada vaahtoamaan

to cause (an animal’s body, a person’s mouth, etc.) to be covered with foam

(transitive, obsolete) To cause (someone, their heart or soul, etc.) to become extremely fatigued; to exhaust.

(intransitive, obsolete) Of a person: to foam at the mouth; also (figurative), to be furious, to rage.


lazaretto

en-noun

lazaretto (plural lazarettos or lazarettoes or lazaretti)

lazarettos (plural)
lazarettoes (plural)
lazaretti (plural)

/ˌlæzəˈɹɛtəʊ/

/ˌlæzəˈɹɛtoʊ/

/ˌlæzəˈɹɛti/

/ˌlæzəˈɹɛti/

Jesus
Lazzaretto Vecchio
Venetian Lagoon

Borrowed from Italian lazzareto (archaic), lazzaretto, lazzeretto, from lazzaro (“leper”) + -etto (diminutive or meliorative suffix). Lazzaro is derived from Medieval Latin lazarus (“leper”), from Lazarus, from Ancient Greek Λᾱ́ζᾱρος (Lā́zāros), from Hebrew אֶלְעָזָר ('el'azár, literally “God has helped”), from אֵל ('él, “God; a deity, god”) + עָזַר ('azár, “to assist, help”). Lazarus is a Biblical character mentioned in the parable of Jesus known as “The rich man and Lazarus” who is described as being a beggar covered in sores: see Luke 16:20–21. Doublet of lazar and lazaret.
The plural form lazaretti is borrowed from Italian lazzaretti, lazzeretti.

der

After a large quantity of proviſions had been hoiſted up to get out the powder, the ſmoke was ſtill found to aſcend from below; this circumſtance, […] convinced them that the fire muſt be in the lazaretto below, where ſome purſers beds were now recollected to have been very improperly ſtowed; […] no doubt was entertained that theſe beds had got wet and had taken fire.

1798, George Vancouver, chapter IV, in John Vancouver, editor, A Voyage of Discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, and Round the World; […], volume II, London: […] G. G. and J. Robinson, […]; and J. Edwards, […], →OCLC, page 86

(by extension, nautical) A place at the front of the tweendecks of a merchant ship where provisions are stored.


Plutonian

en-adj

Plutonian (comparative more Plutonian, superlative most Plutonian)

more Plutonian (comparative)
most Plutonian (superlative)

The adjective is derived from Latin Plūtōnius (“of or relating to Pluto, Greek and Roman god of the underworld”) + -an (suffix forming adjectives). Plūtōnius is from Ancient Greek Πλουτώνιος (Ploutṓnios, “of or relating to Pluto”), from Πλούτων (Ploútōn, “Pluto”) (from πλοῦτος (ploûtos, “riches, wealth”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *plew- (“to fly; to flow; to run”)) + -ων (-ōn)) + -ιος (-ios, suffix forming adjectives). The English word is cognate with Middle French plutonien (modern French plutonien). The noun is derived from the adjective.

plutonien

of, pertaining to, or supporting plutonism — see also Plutonic

I am dying, Egypt, dying, / Ebbs the crimson life-tide fast, / And the dark Plutonian shadows / Gather on the evening blast; […]

1850–1860, William H[aines] Lytle, “Antony and Cleopatra”, in William T[urner] Coggeshall, editor, The Poets and Poetry of the West: With Biographical and Critical Notes, Columbus, Oh.: Follett, Foster and Company, published 1860, →OCLC, page 566, column 1

Yet when [Frank] Brangwyn immortalised Cannon Street Station, most Plutonian of London terminals, they began to admire.

1950, Hamilton Ellis [i.e., Cuthbert Hamilton Ellis], Four Main Lines, London: George Allen & Unwin, →OCLC, page 11

(by extension) Of, relating to, or having characteristics associated with the underworld; dark, gloomy; mournful.

plutonský

of, relating to, or having characteristics associated with the underworld — see also gloomy, mournful

plutonic

(by extension, geology) Synonym of plutonic (“of or pertaining to rocks formed deep in the Earth's crust, rather than by volcanoes at the surface of the Earth”)

One system, now called the Plutonian, regards, the earth's crust on which we now live, as the debris of two former worlds, and our present continents as the elevations of the bottom of the sea by subterranean heat. If this theory be founded on fact, why do not our rocks present us with beds of shell-fish in families as are now living at the bottom of the sea?

1822, Joseph Sutcliffe, The Geology of the Avon, being an Enquiry into the Order of the Strata and Mineral Productions of the District Washed by Its Streams, Bristol: Printed by Philip Rose, […]; for Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, […]; and Thomas Blanchard, […], →OCLC, pages 3–4

The country around Aberdeen is almost entirely composed of primitive rocks. Of these there are two sets, Neptunian and Plutonian. […] the Plutonian rocks are granite, with feldspar, or granitic porphyry. […] the great bodies of Plutonian granite, as those exposed in the celebrated granite quarries, render it probable that the stratified Neptunian rocks owe much of their contorted and broken aspect, and also, in some degree, their position, to the action of this igneous rock.

1830 July–September, “Notes. … 2. Walk from Aberdeen to Castleton of Braemar—Country around Castleton—From Castleton to Spittal of Glen Shee and Blair Gowrie. …”, in Robert Jameson, editor, The Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal, Exhibiting a View of the Progressive Discoveries and Improvements in the Sciences and the Arts, Edinburgh: Printed for Adam Black, […]; London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, & Green, →OCLC, pages 269–270

(by extension, geology, historical) Synonym of plutonic (“of, pertaining to, or supporting plutonism, the theory that the rocks of the Earth were formed in fire by volcanic activity, with a continuing gradual process of weathering and erosion, then deposited on the sea bed, re-formed into layers of sedimentary rock by heat and pressure, and raised again”)


cesspool

From earlier sesspool. Origin uncertain.
Perhaps from Italian cesso (“privy, toilet”) + English pool. Alternatively, an alteration of English dialectal suspool, from suss, soss (“puddle; mire”) + pool. Another possible derivation is from a folk etymology (influence from pool) from earlier cesperalle, alteration of Middle English suspiral, from Middle French souspirail (“air hole”), from soupirer, souspirer (“to sigh, breathe”), from Latin suspirare.


pacemaker

→ Danish: pacemaker

→ Swedish: pacemaker

(by extension, medicine) A medical implement that is used to stimulate a heart to beat by simulating the action of the natural pacemaker.


dress rehearsal

en-noun

dress rehearsal (plural dress rehearsals)

Although the train derailment ended up not being very serious, the emergency services' response served as a dress rehearsal in case of a much worse disaster.

Sunday, November 6, was spent in a second full-scale dress rehearsal of the complete weekday electric timetable, [...] during which the public were invited to make their first trial of the trains—and 15,000 did so.

1960 December, “The Glasgow Suburban Electrification is opened”, in Trains Illustrated, page 712

And if anybody thinks that that was not a dress rehearsal for what they may try to attempt in January of 2025, I’m sorry to say, but I think that’s a very naïve assumption.

2024 April 12, Shane Goldmacher, quoting Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, “Ocasio-Cortez Never Steered Money to a Key Arm of Her Party. Until Now.”, in The New York Times

(by extension) Any complex activity that serves to prepare for a more important iteration of it later.


aquaplane

en-verb

aquaplane (third-person singular simple present aquaplanes, present participle aquaplaning, simple past and past participle aquaplaned)

aquaplanes (present singular third-person)
aquaplaning (participle present)
aquaplaned (participle past)
aquaplaned (past)

PIE word
 *h₂ékʷeh₂
The noun is derived from aqua- (prefix meaning ‘water’) + plane (“flat or level surface”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pleh₂- (“flat”)).
The verb is derived from the noun, and is analysable as aqua- + plane (“to glide; to soar; to skim a water surface”).

prefix

So much water. They were held up by it, the tyres skating over a film of rain. Aquaplaning. Flying his sister’s fancy car through the wet air. Touching nothing.

2015, Anne Enright, “Shannon Airport”, in The Green Road, New York, N.Y., London: W[illiam] W[arder] Norton & Company, part 2, page 203

(by extension, chiefly British, automotive) Of a car or other road vehicle: to lose traction with the road due to the vehicle's tyres sliding on a film of water on the road.

olla vesiliirrossa

of a car, etc.: to lose traction with the road due to the vehicle’s tyres sliding on a film of water on the road


salt mine

(by extension) Any laborious work situation, especially in a confined space.


musette

2011 Tour de France
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Thor Hushovd

From both of the following:
* Late Middle English musette (“type of bagpipe”), from Middle French musette, Old French musette (“type of bagpipe”) (modern French musette), from muse (“bagpipe”) + -ette (diminutive suffix). Muse is derived from muser (“to play the bagpipe; (figuratively) to flatter”), perhaps from musel (“muzzle (protruding part of an animal’s head)”) (alluding to a bagpipe player puffing out the cheeks), from Late Latin mūsus (“muzzle”); further etymology uncertain, perhaps expressive of protruding lips and/or influenced by Latin mūgiō (“to bellow, low, moo”), from Proto-Indo-European *mug-, *mūg- (onomatopoeia of the lowing of cattle).
* Borrowed from French musette in the 18th century.
Sense 2 (“small bag or knapsack with a shoulder strap”) is due to the resemblance of the original knapsack to the bag of bagpipes.

ref

From the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, New York, U.S.A.

musette

any of various small bagpipes having a soft sound, especially with a bellows

(historical) Any of various small bagpipes having a soft sound, especially with a bellows, which were popular in France in the 17th and early 18th century.

(by extension) A pastoral air or tune that has a drone imitating such an instrument; also, a dance performed to this music.

musette

pastoral air or tune that has a drone imitating this instrument; dance performed to this music


adytum

Borrowed from Latin adytum, from Ancient Greek ἄδυτον (áduton, “innermost sanctuary; shrine”), inflected form of ἄδυτος (ádutos, “not to be entered”).

der

Although it was the custom for the priestesses to affect a holy fury, a species of temporary insanity, in the delivering of their oracles, yet it was also the custom to write them on the leaves of trees, and to deposit them at the entrances of their caves, or the adyta of their temples; and it was the object of the devotee to secure them before they were dispersed by the winds; […]

1829, Godfrey Higgins, chapter I, in The Celtic Druids; or, An Attempt to Shew, that the Druids were the Priests of Oriental Colonies who Emigrated from India, […], London: Rowland Hunter, […]; Hurst & Chance […]; and Ridgway and Sons, […], →OCLC, section XXVI (Holy Fury), page 31

The adytums or inner circles of Abury and Stonehenge bear such an analogy to the holy of holies in Solomon's temple, as to induce the belief that they were formed subsequently to the temple of Jerusalem, with which the Tyrian workmen were quite familiar.

1846, G[eorge] Oliver, “Lecture XV. On the Number and Classification of the Workmen at the Building of King Solomon’s Temple.”, in The Historical Landmarks and Other Evidences of Freemasonry, Explained; […] In Two Volumes, volume I, London: Richard Spencer, […], →OCLC, footnote 16, page 411

[page 185] Before ascending the river to the Falls, I went up a beautiful clear stream that enters the Mississippi two miles above the capital, to visit Fountain Cave, a remarkable cavern out of which this tiny river flows. […] [page 186] The scene in the interior, illuminated by torches, and contemplated by an excited imagination, was truly enchanting; and I was anxious to penetrate the gloomy adytum still further.

1853 July, “Sketches on the Upper Mississippi”, in Harper's New Monthly Magazine, volume VII, number XXXVIII, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, publishers, […], →OCLC, pages 185 and 186

The ground plan, which I now lay before the Society, shows all that is left of the temple of Somnath, the astytar mundup, namely, and the adytum. The building adheres very nearly to the usual form of a Goozerat temple, as above described, but is larger than most examples, and contains some interesting "episodes of plan," as they have been termed. The most happy of these occurs in the prudukshunâ or aisle for circumambulation around the adytum.

1864 April 14, A[lexander] Kinloch Forbes, “Art. II.—Puttun Somnath.”, in Journal of the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, volume VIII, number XXIII, Bombay: [Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic] Society’s Library, […]; London: Trübner & Co., […], published January 1865, →OCLC, page 54

They [the Hermetists] met for instruction in a sacred place, an adytum or shrine, which was apparently set apart solely for this purpose, and where they believed they could create conditions suitable for the reception of the inspiration of the Divine Mind by the instructor and for the handing of it on to the pupils— […]

1913 January, G[eorge] R[obert] S[towe] Mead, “Mystical Experiments on the Frontiers of Early Christendom”, in The Nineteenth Century and After: A Monthly Review, volume LXXIII, number CCCCXXXI, New York, N.Y.: Leonard Scott Publication Co.; London: Spottiswoode & Co. Ltd., printers, →OCLC, page 179

(by extension) A private chamber; a sanctum.


playpen

(figuratively, by extension) An area or domain in which a person can exercise their activities or endeavors freely.


autopilot

en-noun

autopilot (countable and uncountable, plural autopilots)

I've been doing this 12 hours non-stop, and am so hungry and tired that I've stopped thinking: I'm now on autopilot.

But while the wackiness gets exasperating fast (a running joke about Hazel’s father, played by Ray Romano on autopilot, having a sex doll for a wife is even unfunnier than it sounds), Milioti works overtime to keep us invested.

2021 March 31, Benjamin Lee, “Made for Love review – Black Mirror-esque comedy needs an upgrade”, in The Guardian

(by extension, figuratively) A state of mind where one no longer thinks about doing one's actions, but acts mechanically.


face to face

ja-r

フェイス・トゥ・フェイス

→ Japanese: フェイス・トゥ・フェイス (feisu tu feisu)

→ Spanish: face to face

Finally, there I was, face to face with death.

(by extension) Closely encountering (a thing or situation).


limelight

en-noun

limelight (countable and uncountable, plural limelights)

Remember Rappin' Duke? Duh-ha, duh-ha
You never thought that hip-hop would take it this far
Now I'm in the limelight 'cause I rhyme tight
Time to get paid, blow up like the World Trade

1994, 0:41 from the start, in Juicy (Hip Hop), spoken by The Notorious B.I.G.

(by extension) Attention, notice, a starring or central role, present fame.


problem child

[A]n ambitious supersonic carrier fighter called the F3H Demon . . . proved too heavy for its Navy-specified Westinghouse engine (in itself a problem child), and turned into a $265 million fiasco.

1959 January 26, “Payoff for Pioneers”, in Time

Locally and across the nation, middle schools have generally been regarded as the problem child for school systems.

2009 April 16, Theresa Vargas, “Superintendent Thinks Small in Plan to Revamp Middle Grades”, in Washington Post, retrieved 2009-06-11

(idiomatic, by extension) Someone or something persistently difficult or vexing; a frequent source of trouble or annoyance.


windrow

karhe

A line of gravel left behind by the edge of a grader’s blade.

(by extension) A ridge or berm at a perimeter

(Canada) A line of snow left behind by the edge of a snowplow’s blade.

(by extension) A long snowbank along the side of a road.


four-letter word

four-letter word (plural four-letter words)

From the frequency of the most common swear words being composed of or spelt with four letters.

People say that you were born lazy / because you think that work is four-letter word

1968, “Work Is a Four-Letter Word”, performed by Cilla Black

To me, coming from you, 'Friend' is a four letter word

1996, “Friend Is a Four-Letter Word”, in Fashion Nugget, performed by Cake

“Tech” is not yet a four-letter word, but it could soon become one.

2018 January 20, Eve Smith, “The techlash against Amazon, Facebook and Google—and what they can do”, in The Economist

(by extension) A swear word or any words considered to be taboo in a given scenario (regardless of length of word).


choreography

choreography (countable and uncountable, plural choreographies)

/ˌkɔɹiˌɑɡɹəfi/

/ˌkɒɹiˌɒɡɹəfi/

Borrowed from French chorégraphie, from Ancient Greek χορεία (khoreía, “dance”) + -γραφίᾱ (-graphíā, “written form (of a word, etc.), spelling”); By surface analysis, choreo- + -graphy.

(uncountable) The art of creating, arranging and recording the dance movements of a work, such as a ballet.

(by extension) The art of creating and arranging sequences of movement for performances of any kind, such as in fight choreography.

the delicate choreography of a marathon transplant operation involving several surgical suites

(by extension, figurative) The art of creating and arranging any activities that involve social coordination or orchestration.


foothold

(by extension) A secure position from which it is difficult to be dislodged.


fixer

(Philippines, by extension) Someone who is often paid that helps a customer cut through red tape, especially for government processes or applications.


bondage

bondage (countable and uncountable, plural bondages)

Inherited from Middle English bondage (“serfdom”), from British Medieval Latin bondagium (“an inferior tenure held by a bond or husbandman”), from Middle English bond (“tenant farmer, serf”), from Old English bonda (“householder, husband, head of a family”), of Old Norse origin. Sense development influenced by the unrelated terms bond and bind.

der

He lived in financial bondage to his cocaine habit; no matter how much he earned, it all seemed to disappear up his nose.

(by extension) The state of lacking freedom; constraint.


Jonah

From the Hebrew יוֹנָה (yonáh, “dove”). Doublet of Jonas.

‘My first agent, and he's dead. It's incredible. I feel like a complete Jonah.’

1979, John Le Carré, Smiley's People, Folio Society, published 2010, page 61

(slang, by extension) Any person or object which is deemed to cause bad luck; a jinx.


curative

en-adj

curative (comparative more curative, superlative most curative)

more curative (comparative)
most curative (superlative)

a curative jury instruction to disregard the sheriff's testimony


how's the weather

(by extension, idiomatic) Indicating a change of subject to unimportant topics.


classmate

→ Japanese: クラスメート (kurasumēto)

→ Korean: 클래스메이트 (keullaeseumeiteu)

The Class 87 is the only main line-certified member of the fleet left in the UK, although there are 21 classmates in use overseas [...]

(by extension) A member of a different sort of class, such as locomotives etc.


pull up

en-verb

pull up (third-person singular simple present pulls up, present participle pulling up, simple past and past participle pulled up)

pulls up (present singular third-person)
pulling up (participle present)
pulled up (participle past)
pulled up (past)

I'm pulling up to the club tonight, want to join?

You can always pull up to your favorite national chain such as Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts who is offering a free cup with any purchase on Wednesday or any fast food restaurant.

2021 September 21, Tina Adkins, “September 29 is National Coffee Day! Here's some local places for the best coffee in town!”, in New Bern Sun Journal

Staying true to form, Thompson took to Instagram on Saturday to announce his return. Sharing a clip from "Space Jam," Thompson captioned the post, "How I'm pulling up to chase [Center] tomorrow."

2022 January 9, “NBA players celebrate Klay Thompson's return after more than two years”, in ESPN

Kanye's gotten into some scrapes before and normally when he's in trouble, I pull up immediately. This time I was like, you know what? Let me see what's gonna happen first.

2022 November 13, Dave Chappelle (quoted), Sarah Grant, “'SNL': Watch Dave Chappelle on Kanye West, Kyrie Irving, and Why America Isn't Really Over Trump”, in Rolling Stone

(idiomatic, especially of a vehicle) To arrive at a halt; to approach and stop at a particular point.

(by extension, slang, originally African-American Vernacular) To travel somewhere, especially to meet someone else; to come to.


grog

en-noun

grog (countable and uncountable, plural grogs)

→ Armenian: գրոգ (grog)

→ Azerbaijani: qroq

→ Belarusian: грог (hroh)

→ Bulgarian: грог (grog)

→ Catalan: grog

→ Chinese:

desc

Mandarin: 格羅格酒／格罗格酒

Mandarin: 格羅格酒／格罗格酒, 格罗格酒 (géluógé jiǔ)

→ Dutch: grog

→ Finnish: grogi

→ French: grog
→ Romanian: grog

→ Georgian: გროგი (grogi)

→ German: Grog

→ Hebrew: גְּרוֹג (grog)

→ Italian: grog

→ Japanese: グロッグ (guroggu)

→ Korean: 그로그 (geurogeu)

→ Macedonian: грог (grog)

→ Polish: grog

→ Portuguese: grogue

→ Russian: грог (grog)

→ Spanish: grog

→ Ukrainian: грог (hroh)

An allusion to Admiral Edward Vernon (nicknamed “Old Grog” after the grogram coat he habitually wore), who in 1740 ordered his sailors' rum to be watered down.

I quite understood their drift, and after a stiff glass of grog, or rather more of the same, and with each a sovereign in hand, they made light of the attack, and swore they would encounter a worse madman any day for the pleasure of meeting so 'bloomin' good a bloke' as your correspondent.

1897, Bram Stoker, Dracula, published 1993, page 142

(by extension, Australia, New Zealand) Any alcoholic beverage.

գրոգ

alcoholic beverage made with rum and water


laywoman

Carmen is not a professional anthropologist, but strictly a laywoman.

(by extension) A woman who is not a professional in a given field.


Body of Christ

(by extension) The consecrated bread of the Eucharist, considered to be the flesh of Jesus Christ.


brains trust

(by extension) Any group of advisors, whether experts or just friends or acquaintances, who are willing to offer their knowledge or ideas on a topic or issue.


spring break

en-noun

spring break (countable and uncountable, plural spring breaks)

(by extension) The week of vacation from school that occurs during the winter-spring semester, which does not necessarily fall within the official season of spring.


shoo-in

From a sense of the verb shoo, where racehorses would fall back and allow a chosen rider to win a fixed race. See 1910 quotation.

She's very popular and good with numbers, so I expect she'll be a shoo-in for treasurer.

Participation in primaries was often more important than in the general election because the Democratic Party nominee was a shoo-in for success in the general election.

2007, Governors Speak, by Jack D. Fleer, page 47

Despite this heady mix, Milei is broadly considered the undisputed shoo-in president appealing particularly to young underprivileged men.

2023 August 27, Uki Goñi, “The ‘false prophet’ v the pope: Argentina faces clash of ideologies in election”, in The Observer, →ISSN

(by extension, colloquial, originally US) A candidate or contestant generally agreed upon as the presumptive winner; a favorite, somebody who is well-liked or widely agreed upon.

gedoodverfde winnaar

candidate that is the presumptive winner


jubilee

jubilee (countable and uncountable, plural jubilees)

/ˌd͡ʒuːbɪˈliː/

senses 3.3 and 3.4 when spelled jubile, obsolete

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

From Late Middle English jubile (“Jewish practice of celebrating the end of a fifty-year period; (Roman Catholicism) year declared by the Pope for remission of sins; celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of an event; (figuratively) occasion of rejoicing”) [and other forms], from Middle French jubile, from Old French jubilee, jubileus (modern French jubilé), from Late Latin iūbilaeus (adjective, also treated as a noun), from Ancient Greek ἰωβηλαῖος (iōbēlaîos, “of a jubilee”), from ἰώβηλος (iṓbēlos, “jubilee”) + -ῐος (-ios, suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’ forming adjectives). Ἰώβηλος (Iṓbēlos) is derived from Hebrew יובל (yōḇēl, “ram, trumpet made from a ram’s horn; jubilee”) (because a ram’s horn trumpet was originally used to proclaim the event; see Leviticus 25:9), influenced by Latin iūbilum (“a cry, a shout”) and iūbilō (“to cheer, shout or sing joyfully”). Cognate with Italian giubileo, Spanish jubileo.

der

(Roman Catholicism) A special year (originally held every hundred years, then at more frequent intervals, and now declarable by the Pope at any time and also for periods less than a year) in which plenary indulgences and remission from sin can be granted upon making a pilgrimage to Rome or other designated churches.

xubileu

(Roman Catholicism) special year in which plenary indulgences and remission from sin can be granted upon making a pilgrimage

The 70th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne will be a good deal more earthbound: The 95-year-old monarch plans to spend a quiet Sunday at her country estate, Sandringham, where her father died on Feb. 6, 1952. Four days of festivities to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee are scheduled for June.

2022 February 6, Mark Landler, “Queen Elizabeth, anchor in a storm-tossed Britain, marks 70-year reign”, in The New York Times, New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-02-06

A major anniversary of an event, particularly the fiftieth (50th) anniversary of a coronation or marriage.

jubile

major anniversary of an event, particularly the 50th anniversary of a coronation or marriage


gateway drug

It has been said that LINQ is a gateway drug for functional programming

2014, Dave Fancher, Book of F#: Breaking Free with Managed Functional Programming, page XX

Darn you, Downton Abbey, for being the gateway drug for all things BBC.

2019, Emily Padraic, Under My Skin, page 3

(by extension, figurative) Any thing or area of interest that tends to lead to deeper involvement.


magic number

(sports) A metric used to determine a team's required performance to make the playoffs.

(by extension) The lowest such number that assures a team a playoff berth.


styptic

en-adj

styptic (comparative more styptic, superlative most styptic)

more styptic (comparative)
most styptic (superlative)

Learned borrowing from Latin stypticus, itself borrowed from Ancient Greek στυπτικός (stuptikós), from στύφω (stúphō, “to contract”).

The growth on top was a scrubby plant, unknown anywhere else on Malta, which was believed to have styptic qualities – it could staunch bleeding when packed on top of a wound […].

1973, Nicholas Monsarrat, The Kapillan of Malta

But I waited while he dabbed at the cut with styptic powder.

1959, Daniel Keyes, Flowers for Algernon

(medicine, by extension) That stops bleeding; especially, in a minor way, topically.


nitpicking

en-noun

nitpicking (countable and uncountable, plural nitpickings)

"Of all life's pleasures, I like nitpicking the best." -- Wally in Dilbert

(figuratively, by extension) A process of finding or pointing out tiny details or errors, particularly if the pointed-out details seem insignificant or irrelevant to all but the finder.

تَمَحُّلُ النَّقْد

any process of finding or pointing out tiny details or errors


imprimatur

imprimatur (plural imprimaturs or imprimantur)

imprimaturs (plural)
imprimantur (plural)

/ˌɪm.pɹɪˈmɑː.tə/

/ˌɪm.pɹɪˈmɑː.tʊə/

/ɪmˈpɹɪmətə/

/ɪmpɹɪˈmɑtʊɹ/

/ɪmˈpɹɪmətɚ/

/ɪmˈpɹɪmətʊɹ/

From Latin imprimātur (“let it be printed”), third person singular present subjunctive passive form of imprimere (“to imprint”).

Children, the final imprimatur to family life, are being borrowed, adopted, created by artificial insemination.

1988, New York Times, Gay fiction comes home

Even with the imprimatur of Tynan and Hobson, the play was not an instant hit.

2015 March 30, Michael Billington, “Look Back in Anger: how John Osborne liberated theatrical language”, in The Guardian

The author suggests that Grace is hoping to meet at church a respectable marriage candidate who will have the imprimatur of her pastor and the church community.

2024 May 18, Jane Shaw, “When belief is a business”, in FT Weekend, Life & Arts, page 8

(by extension) Any mark of official approval.


syrinx

/sɪˈɹɪnd͡ʒiːz/

Learned borrowing from Latin sȳrinx (“reed; reed pipe, panpipes”), from Ancient Greek σῦριγξ (sûrinx, “panpipes; pipe-shaped object”), from Pre-Greek. Doublet of syringe.
The plural form syringes is a learned borrowing from Latin sȳringes.

der

And novv vvhen the people of all ſorts came flocking to the Court, in a tumultuous manner, Agathocles [grandson of Agathocles of Syracuse], taking the King vvith him, vvent and hid himſelf, in a place called Syringes, vvhich vvas a gallery or vvalk, vvhich had every vvay three vvalls and gates to paſſe, before one could come unto it.

1658, James Ussher, “The Sixth Age of the World. [The Macedonian Empire.]”, in The Annals of the World. […], London: […] E[van] Tyler, for J[ohn] Crook, […], and for G[abriel] Bedell, […], →OCLC, page 374

There are alſo (in Egypt) Syrinxes, certain ſubterraneous and vvinding receſſes, vvhich (as it is ſaid) men skilled in antient rites, foreknovving the coming of the deluge, and fearing that the memory of their ceremonies ſhould be blotted out, hevved and faſhioned out of quarries in ſeveral places, vvith immenſe labour, and carved on the vvalls vvhich they had ſo hevvn, many kinds of fovvls, and vvild beaſts, and figures of animals innumerable, vvhich they called hieroglyphick (ſo ſome read the text) or ſacred characters.

1733, [Patrick Delany], “Dissertation XIV. Of Other Testimonies Relating to the Deluge.”, in Revelation Examined with Candour. Or, A Fair Enquiry into the Sense and use of the Several Revelations Expressly Declared, or Sufficiently Implied, to be Given to Mankind from the Creation, as They are Found in the Bible. […], 2nd edition, volume I, London: […] C[harles] Rivington, […], →OCLC, pages 247–248

Further the Ramesseion (the Osmandyeion of the Descript.) with the alley of sphinxes, the Menephtheion (palace at Kurnah) and other monuments as late as Ptolemy the First's time. Grottoes and syrinxes all around.

1850, C. O. Müller [i.e., Karl Otfried Müller], F[riedrich] G[ottlieb] Welcker, “History of Art in Antiquity. Appendix. The Nations Not of Greek Race.”, in John Leitch, transl., Ancient Art and Its Remains; or A Manual of the Archæology of Art. […], new edition, London: A[rchibald] Fullarton and Co., […], →OCLC, note 3, page 216

(archaeology, Egyptology) Chiefly in the plural: a narrow channel cut in rock, especially in Ancient Egyptian burial chambers.

Ancient Egyptian
Ancient Egyptian#Adjective

ura

The division of fluid-filled cavities, or syrinxes, into those lined with ependyma (hydromyelia) and those not so lined (syringomyelia) is probably somewhat artificial.

1989, Margaret M[iriam] Esiri, D. R. Oppenheimer, “The Cut-up”, in Diagnostic Neuropathology: A Practical Manual, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Blackwell Scientific Publications, page 32, column 2

The myelin around the syrinx shows changes similar to edematous white matter, probably due to tearing of the tissues and transudation of serous fluid into them.

1990, W[alter] J[osef] Huk, “Malformations of the CNS [Central Nervous System]”, in W. J. Huk, G[ünther] Gademann, G[erd] Friedmann [et al.], translated by Terry Telger, Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Central Nervous System Diseases: Functional Anatomy—Imaging—Neurological Symptoms—Pathology, Berlin; Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg: Springer, part IV (Special Topics), page 164, column 1

A syrinx (Latin, "tube") is a neuroglial cell-lined, fluid-filled cavity ("syringomyelia" in the spinal cord; "syringobulbia" in the brain stem) possibly due to an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid, genetic malformations, or the proliferation and subsequent regression of embryonic cell nests. A syrinx within the central canal interrupts the decussating spinothalamic tract fibers resulting in bilateral loss of pain and temperature sensations around the level of the lesion.

2024, N. Nevin, M. M. Danzi, E. Ulanowski, M. R. Wiegand, “Orthopaedic Neurology”, in Jeffrey D. Placzek, David A. Boyce, editors, Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Secrets, 4th edition, St. Louis, Mo.: Elsevier Health Sciences, page 161

(neurology, pathology) Any of several abnormal tube-shaped structures in the body, especially a rare, fluid-filled neuroglial cavity in the brain stem or within the spinal cord.

фистула

any of several abnormal tube-shaped structures in the body

This tube is named the Windpipe, Trachea, or Aspera-arteria; […] its lower extremity, or the part at which it bifurcates, is the Lower Larynx, or the Syrinx. Besides acting as a pipe to the lungs, it is also the organ of the voice, the air in passing through it causing its membranes so to vibrate, and being so acted upon by the muscles attached to it, as to give rise to the various cries and notes emitted by birds, although the palate, the tongue, and the mandibles also operate in modifying the sounds thus produced.

1839, William MacGillivray, “Practical Ornithology. Fifth Lesson.”, in A History of British Birds, Indigenous and Migratory: […], volume II (Cantatores, Songsters), London: […] [W. Burness] for Scott, Webster, and Geary, […], →OCLC, page 19

The role of the syrinx in psittacine sound production is still under examination, and probably differs from that of songbirds. […] For species with relatively simple syringes but complex vocal behavior (such as Grey parrots), these data imply that other structures must modify syringeal output.

1999, Irene Maxine Pepperberg, “How Does a Grey Parrot Produce Human Speech Sounds?”, in The Alex Studies: Cognitive and Communicative Abilities of Grey Parrots, Cambridge, Mass.; London: Harvard University Press, published 2002, page 293

The primary sound-producing organ in a bird is the syrinx and the secondary system aiding sound production consists of the larynx, mouth, tongue and laryngeal muscles. […] Birds vocalise by expelling air over the elastic membranes of the syrinx housed within the inter-clavicular sac, an air sac in the pleural cavity.

2007, Gisela Kaplan, “Emotions, Vocal Behaviour and Communication”, in Tawny Frogmouth (Australian Natural History Series), Collingwood, Melbourne, Vic.: CSIRO Publishing, page 121

The organ responsible for producing sounds during song is the syrinx, located where the trachea joins the bronchi of the two lungs[…]. Four to six muscles on either side are attached to the syrinx, and sound is produced when air is expelled through it. The flow of air induces part of the syrinx wall to vibrate and generate sound, in a similar way to the operation of the human larynx.

2010, Peter Simmons, David Young, “Nerve Cells and Animal Signalling: Songs of Crickets, Electric Fish and Birds”, in Nerve Cells and Animal Behaviour, 3rd edition, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, page 247

(ornithology, zootomy) The voice organ in birds, located at or near where the trachea and the bronchi join.


lockout

It's another front-row lockout for Mercedes on the starting grid of the Japanese Grand Prix.

(by extension) The exclusion of certain people from a place, event, situation, etc.


Baileys

Brand name, originally adopted from the name of a restaurant.


logbook

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

1670s, log + book, originally a record of a ship’s speed and progress, from a wooden float (chip log, or simply log) used to measure speed.

корабен дневник

nautical: book in which details from journey are recorded

"If you're accused of profiling or pretextual stops, you can bring your daily logbook to court and document that pulling over motorists for 'stickler' reasons is part of your customary pattern," Remsberg writes, "not a glaring exception conveniently dusted off in the defendant's case."

2019, Malcolm Gladwell, Talking to Strangers

(by extension) A book in which events are recorded; a journal, especially of travel.


stir-crazy

en-adj

stir-crazy (comparative more stir-crazy, superlative most stir-crazy)

more stir-crazy (comparative)
most stir-crazy (superlative)

First attested around 1925, from prison slang stir (“jail or prison”).

After so many days of rain, the kids started to get a bit stir-crazy.

And many, at the same time, are anxious and bored and underemployed and overemployed and stir-crazy and uncertain and lonely and terrified.

2020 March 19, Megan Garber, “The Utter Weirdness of Small Talk in a Pandemic”, in The Atlantic

(slang, by extension) Restless, uncomfortable, or impatient due to inactivity or confinement.


suitor

From Middle English sutour, from Anglo-Norman suytour, seuter, from Late Latin secutor (“follower, pursuer”).

uder

[…] and Mortimer asserted he had no shortage of suitors ready, willing, and able to make acquisition loans […]

2016, Gary D. McGugan, Three Weeks Less a Day, page 43

The Betaville blog wrote earlier this week about market speculation that Adevinta was attracting takeover interest, without naming the suitors.

2023 September 21, Silas Brown, Dinesh Nair, Swetha Gopinath, “Blackstone, Permira Explore Bid for eBay-Backed Adevinta”, in Bloomberg.com

(by extension) A person or organization that expresses an interest in working with, or taking over, another.


travois

Trésor de la langue française informatisé

PIE word
 *tréyes
The noun is derived from Michif travawy (IPA⁽ᵏᵉʸ⁾: /tɹæˈvɔɪ/), from Canadian French travail (“travois”), from French travail, from Middle French travail, from Old French travail (“frame for restraining horses and cattle for medical treatment or shoeing”), from Late Latin tripālium (“torture device consisting of three stakes”), from Latin tripālis (“having, or propped up by, three pales or stakes”) (from tri- (prefix meaning ‘three’) + pālus (“pale, stake”)) + -ium (suffix forming nouns).
The spelling travois and pronunciations /ˈtɹævwɑ(ː)/, /tɹævˈwɑ/ are probably influenced by French -ois (suffix forming adjectives relating to particular countries, regions, or cities, their associated inhabitant names, and the local languages or dialects).
The verb is derived from the noun.

IPA

IPA⁽ᵏᵉʸ⁾: /tɹæˈvɔɪ/

noncog

A similar piece of equipment used to transport something by dragging; especially a stretcher dragged by a horse, mule, etc., used to transport an ill or injured person.

purilaat

(Canada, US, forestry, archaic) A sled dragged by a horse or ox to transport logs, with one end of each log on the sled and the other end touching the ground.


anorexic

en-adj

anorexic (comparative more anorexic, superlative most anorexic)

more anorexic (comparative)
most anorexic (superlative)

/ænəˈɹɛksɪk/

He was also a poet on 'L' plates having published one very slim (to the point of anorexic) collection of verse.

2005, Kathy Lette, A Stitch in Time, page 17

(by extension) Thin, skinny, insubstantial.


Palladian

From Latin Palladius (“of or relating to Pallas”) + -an (suffix forming adjectives from nouns). Palladius is derived from Pallas (from Ancient Greek Παλλάς (Pallás), genitive Παλλάδος (Palládos), an epithet of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom) + -ius (suffix forming adjectives from nouns).

suffix

(by extension, rare) Of or relating to knowledge, study, or wisdom.


appetizing

en-adj

appetizing (comparative more appetizing, superlative most appetizing)

more appetizing (comparative)
most appetizing (superlative)

Calque of French appétissant, French -ant being equivalent to -ing. See also appetite


corner the market

en-verb

corner the market (third-person singular simple present corners the market, present participle cornering the market, simple past and past participle cornered the market)

corners the market (present singular third-person)
cornering the market (participle present)
cornered the market (participle past)
cornered the market (past)

It will not do to say that the Irish have a monopoly on stupidity, yet there have been times when I thought they nearly cornered the market.

1916, Elbert Hubbard, “Vol. 12: Great Scientists-John Tyndall”, in Little Journeys

(idiomatic, by extension) To have exclusive possession; to possess something to a high or excessive degree.


anal-retentive

en-adj

anal-retentive (comparative more anal-retentive, superlative most anal-retentive)

more anal-retentive (comparative)
most anal-retentive (superlative)

From anal + retentive. First use appears c. 1936 in the writings of Marjorie Brierley.

(by extension) Overly obsessive concerning small details.

anaalis-retentiivinen

overly obsessive concerning small details


rollercoaster

→ Korean: 롤러코스터 (rolleokoseuteo)

→ Japanese: ローラーコースター (rōrākōsutā)

→ Polish: rollercoaster

Univerbation of roller coaster, after the rolling and coasting motions to which the riders are subjected.

Our relationship was quite a rollercoaster. Finally, I had enough of it and left her.

The stock market has been quite the rollercoaster in the last few weeks.

Morgan's men reversed their fortunes and swept into the final with three successive victories, including a memorable semi-final demolition of Australia.
In the final, the rollercoaster continued, only for the heroics of Stokes to leave England as worthy champions, matching the achievement of the England women's team on the same ground two years ago.

2019 July 14, Stephan Shemilt, “England win Cricket World Cup: Ben Stokes stars in dramatic finale against New Zealand”, in BBC Sport, London

(figurative, by extension) Any situation in which there are ups and downs, or violent changes.

merry-go-round

situation in which there are violent changes


metamorphism

en-noun

metamorphism (countable and uncountable, plural metamorphisms)

From metamorphosis + -ism, after French métamorphisme.

December 28 2015, Barrett Pall writing in the Huffington Post, 11 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Be Happy
Ultimately, being happy means that even when things aren’t perfect you still understand how blessed you truly are. You remain in a constant state of uncomfortable change, evolution and metamorphism because you know that this is a process that requires care and love.

(by extension) Any dramatic change from one thing to another


cardinal sin

(by extension) Any action that is highly discouraged within a particular field.


mog

en-verb

mog (third-person singular simple present mogs, present participle mogging, simple past and past participle mogged)

mogs (present singular third-person)
mogging (participle present)
mogged (participle past)
mogged (past)

Derived from AMOG (“alpha male of group”). The word first appeared on fitness forums and imageboards around 2016 and was popularized around 2021.

You live on an alternate world I take it? Joker mogs any MCU film. Batman will too.

2022 January 2, @AceX_50, Twitter, archived from the original on 2024-02-22

Hyderabad is enough to mog any Pakistani city in infrastructure.

2023 July 6, @btarunr, Twitter, archived from the original on 2024-02-22

Internet absolutely mogs real life because here you can meet so many smart and intelligent people. I met a few here who I'm genuinely sure are in the top 10 of the smartest humans alive right now.

2024 February 22, @Ilurkedshadows, Twitter, archived from the original on 2024-02-22

(transitive, stative, Internet slang, by extension) To be superior to (something); to beat, outclass.


publican

Probably from public house (“(Britain) bar or tavern, often also selling food and sometimes lodging, pub”) or public (“open to all members of a community”) + -an (suffix forming agent nouns), apparently originally used humorously.

suffix

(Commonwealth, by extension) The manager or owner of a hotel.


publican

From Middle English publican [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman publican, pupplican, Middle French publicain, and Old French publican, publicain, pupplican (“tax collector”) (modern French publicain), and from their etymon Latin pūblicānus (“tax collector”), from pūblicum (“state revenue”) + -ānus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’, usually indicating relationships of origin, position, or possession). Pūblicum is a noun use of the neuter form of pūblicus (“of or belonging to the people, state, or community; general, public”), ultimately from Proto-Italic *poplos (“army”), further etymology unknown.
Sense 3.2 (“person excommunicated from the church; person who does not follow a Christian religion”) refers to Matthew 18:17 of the Bible: see the King James Version quotation under sense 1.
cognates
* Catalan publicà
* Italian pubblicano
* Middle Dutch publicaen, puppilicaen, pupplicaen (modern Dutch publicaan (obsolete), publikaan)
* Middle High German publicān, publicāne (early modern German Publican).
* Middle Low German pūblicān
* Old Occitan publican, puplican
* Portuguese publicano
* Spanish publicano

ref

The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], 1611, →OCLC, Luke 19:9–10, column 2: “This day is ſaluation come to this houſe, forſomuch as he alſo is the ſonne of Abraham. For the ſonne of man is come to ſeeke, and to ſaue that which was loſt.”

nb...

publicane, publycan, publycane, pubplican, pubplycan, pupblican, pupblycan, puplican, puplicane, pupplican, pupplicane

(by extension, archaic) Any person who collects customs duties, taxes, tolls, or other forms of public revenue.


metonym

See also: symbol, model, microcosm, archetype, exemplar, proxy

Chapter 1, using the railway as a metonym, explored the relationship between past and present, and argued that diachronic, or historical, time was dissolved in the proliferation of present moments, or synchronic time.

2011, Geraldine Lawless, Modernity's Metonyms: Figuring Time in Nineteenth-century Spanish Stories, Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press, page 155

(by extension) A concept, idea, or word used to represent, typify, or stand in for a broader set of ideas.


Nestorianism

en-noun

Nestorianism (countable and uncountable, plural Nestorianisms)

From Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople (consecrated 428).

(by extension, sometimes derogatory) The beliefs and practices of the Church of the East.


tale of the tape

(by extension) Statistics given to compare two people or entities.


small change

He's a self-satisfied klutz who aspires to be a con artist. . . . Compared with Lawrence, Freddy is small change.

1988 December 14, Vincent Canby, “Movie Review: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels”, in New York Times, retrieved 2016-05-25

(idiomatic, by extension) A person or thing of little importance or value.


ingrain

Inherited from Middle English engreynen, from the French phrase en grain; reinforced by the phrase (dyed) in grain. See grain.

(figurative, by extension) Thoroughly inwrought; forming an essential part of the substance.


patroness

From Middle English patronesse, from Late Latin patronissa, from Classical Latin patrōnus; equivalent to patron + -ess.

If I buy a ticket for a Flower Show, or a Music Show, or any sort of Show, and pay pretty heavy for it, why am I to be Patroned and Patronessed as if the Patrons and Patronesses treated me?

1865, Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend

But a diary here and there survives from which we may see the patroness more closely and less romantically.

1932, Virginia Woolf, The Second Common Reader (Donne After Three Centuries), page 30

(dated, more generally) A woman who sponsors or supports a given activity, person etc.; a female patron.


fiefdom

fiefdom (countable and uncountable, plural fiefdoms)

[Bill Clinton] was just walking around, looking in all the offices, like he was surveying his fiefdom. He had a big grin on his face.

2008, David Maraniss, First In His Class: A Biography Of Bill Clinton, Simon and Schuster

Hollande told cheering supporters in his rural fiefdom of Corrèze in south-west France that he was best-placed to lead France towards change, saying the vote marked a "rejection" of Sarkozy and a "sanction" against his five years in office.

2012 April 23, Angelique Chrisafis, “François Hollande on top but far right scores record result in French election”, in The Guardian

Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX was run as the “personal fiefdom” of founder Sam Bankman-Fried, with one of the company’s units spending $300m on real estate in the Bahamas for the use of its executives, a court heard on Tuesday.

2022 November 22, Dominic Rushe, “FTX was run as ‘personal fiefdom’ of Sam Bankman-Fried, court hears”, in The Guardian

(by extension, chiefly derogatory) Any organization in the control of a dominant individual.


cacodaemonic

en-adj

cacodaemonic (comparative more cacodaemonic, superlative most cacodaemonic)

more cacodaemonic (comparative)
most cacodaemonic (superlative)

From Ancient Greek κακοδαίμων (kakodaímōn, “ill-starred”), from κακός (kakós, “bad”) + δαίμων (daímōn, “genius, divinity”).


humpback

[…] the cows stood about with gloomy eyes and hump-backs, surly and dangerous […]

1902, Somerset Maugham, chapter 16, in Mrs Craddock, London: Heinemann, published 1955, page 157

On the bare hills one begins to see unfamiliar silhouettes of animals against the sky. […] the peaked humpbacks of gnu on a ridge […]

1969, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, “Immersion in Life”, in Earth Shine, New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, page 52

A humped back (deformity in humans caused by abnormal curvature of the upper spine).

(by extension) A hump or protuberance on the shoulders or back of an animal.


buckyball

Blend of buckminsterfullerene + ball, used as an abbreviation for buckminsterfullerene

(by extension) The most common types of spheroidal fullerenes, C₆₀ and C₇₀ usually; with C₇₂ and C₇₆ sometimes also included.

(by extension) Any spheroidal fullerene, from C₂₀ on upwards.


fettered

en-adj

fettered (comparative more fettered, superlative most fettered)

more fettered (comparative)
most fettered (superlative)


lockup

(marketing, by extension) A fixed layout involving one or more logos and possibly related text.


muller

The noun is derived from Late Middle English molour, moler; further origin uncertain, possibly:
* from mull (“(Northern England) something reduced to fine particles”, noun) or mull (“(chiefly Northern England) to grind to powder, crumble, powder, pulverize”, verb) + -er (suffix forming agent nouns) (see etymology 2); or
* from an unattested Anglo-Norman or Middle French noun, from Old French moldre, moudre (“to grind”) (modern French moudre), from Latin molere, the present active infinitive of molō (“to grind, to mill”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to crush, grind”); or
* a variant of mullet (“(obsolete) stone for grinding”) + -er; mullet is derived from French molette (“pestle”).
The verb is derived from the noun.

affix

(by extension) A device used for crushing or grinding.


unison

en-noun

unison (usually uncountable, plural unisons)

From Middle English unisoun, from Middle French unisson, from Medieval Latin ūnisonus (“having the same sound”), from ūni- + sonus (“sound”).

der

(by extension) Two or more voices speaking or singing the same words together.


prepossess

en-verb

prepossess (third-person singular simple present prepossesses, present participle prepossessing, simple past and past participle prepossessed)

prepossesses (present singular third-person)
prepossessing (participle present)
prepossessed (participle past)
prepossessed (past)

From pre- (prefix meaning ‘before, earlier in time’) + possess.
cognates
* Late Latin prepossessus (“seized beforehand”)

cog

(by extension) To cause (someone) to have a previous inclination against, for, or to something; to bias or prejudice; specifically, to induce in (someone) a favourable opinion beforehand, or at the outset.


squeaky clean

We performed at the birthday party and we kept the plot squeaky clean.

(by extension) Beyond reproach, honest; morally clean or suitable for mixed audiences.


harvesting

en-noun

harvesting (countable and uncountable, plural harvestings)

American regulations at the time prohibited organ harvesting from brain-dead patients if their hearts were still beating.

2018, Sandeep Jauhar, Heart: a History, page 187

(by extension) The gathering of any resource.


postcode

The Environment Agency says it is mainly the most deprived postcodes that are the most flood-prone.

2007 July 3, Polly Toynbee, “If Chelsea were under water, it would be taken seriously”, in The Guardian

(by extension) The region denoted by a postcode.


countersign

en-verb

countersign (third-person singular simple present countersigns, present participle countersigning, simple past and past participle countersigned)

countersigns (present singular third-person)
countersigning (participle present)
countersigned (participle past)
countersigned (past)

From Middle French contresigne. Equivalent to counter- + sign.

(transitive, by extension) To add a second signature to a document, affirming the validity of the signature of another person.


ascendant

PIE word
 *h₂éd
The adjective is derived from Late Middle English ascendent (“ascending, rising; increasing in quantity; (astronomy) rising above the horizon”) [and other forms], borrowed from Old French ascendant, from Latin ascendentem, the accusative singular of ascendēns (“ascending, rising”), the present participle of ascendō, adscendō (“to climb up, go up, move upwards; to rise; to spring up”), from ad- (prefix meaning ‘(up) to’) + scandō (“to ascend, climb, mount; to clamber”) (from Proto-Indo-European *skend- (“to climb, scale; to dart; to jump; to scan (poetry)”)). The English word is analysable as ascend (verb) + -ant (suffix forming adjectives from verbs with the sense of ‘doing [the verbal actions]’).
The noun is probably derived from the adjective, though it is attested earlier than the latter.

suffix

suffix forming adjectives from verbs with the sense of ‘doing 􂀿the verbal actions􂁀’

Chiefly in in the ascendant: an act of ascending or rising.

One man has the ascendant over another.

(figurative) Synonym of ascendancy (“commanding influence; dominant control; superiority, supremacy”)

ascendancy

Given his father’s ghastly demise, one would not expect such glee from the ascendant to his throne.

A person who ascends or goes up; specifically (usually followed by to), a person who ascends to a throne or assumes some other position of power.

Something which is higher than the things around it; a peak, a summit; specifically (typography), synonym of ascender (“the portion of a lowercase letter that extends above the midline”)

Something which leads or slopes upwards, such as a flight of stairs or an upward incline.

(rare) A person who supports a policy of ecclesiastical or national supremacy.


bait and switch

Jon: Hey, Garfield, let's get a pizza!
[…]
Jon:On the way we'll stop at the vet.
Garfield: It's the old bait and switch!

(by extension) Any similar deceptive behavior, especially in politics and romantic relationships.


regular expression

en-noun

regular expression (plural regular expressions)

(computing, more generally) Any pattern for text matching or searching, frequently offering more or less functionality than a theoretical regular expression.


betaine

betaine (countable and uncountable, plural betaines)

From New Latin, from Latin bēta (“beet”) + -ine.

(countable, organic chemistry, by extension) Any similar compound, based on sulfur or phosphorus etc, having an onium ion with no hydrogen atom adjacent to the anionic atom.


flump

Ruth said: 'I recently treated myself to a fitted, hot pink dress for a night out and banished that image of being a fat, pink flump for good.'

2015 June 9, Martha Cliff, “'I looked like a blobby blancmange': Obese mother-of-five beat her sugar cravings to lose SIX STONE... after hating how she looked in pink dress at a friend's wedding”, in Daily Mail

In reality I felt like a fat flump, my belly still bulging like a saggy balloon.

Peggy: Who you calling a flump?!

2018 March 8, Jennifer Russell, “All the best one liners from tonight's new episode of Still Game”, in Glasgow Live

(by extension) A fat out-of-shape person.


caravanserai

/ˌkæɹəˈvænsəɹaɪ/

/ˌkɛɹəˈvænsəˌɹaɪ/

Borrowed:
* from Middle French carvansera, carvassera (modern French caravansérail, carauanserrail (obsolete), caravansara (obsolete)); or
* directly from its etymon Ottoman Turkish كاروانسَرای (karvanseray), كَروانسَرای (kervanseray) (modern Turkish kervansaray), from Old Anatolian Turkish [script needed] (kārvān-serā); or
* directly from its etymon Persian کاروانسرای (kârvânsarây), from کاروان (kârvân, “caravan; convoy”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ker- (“army”)) + سرای (sarây, “courtyard, hall; dwelling, house; inn; mansion, palace”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *terh₂- (“to cross over; to pass through; to overcome”).
cognates
* Dutch karavanserai, carewansera (obsolete)
* German Karawanserei, Caravansera (obsolete)
* Italian caravanserraglio, carvasarà (obsolete), carvanserà (obsolete)
* Portuguese caravançará, caravançarai
* Spanish caravasar

der

Casting my fortunes at Mrs. Thompson's, I soon became initiated into the etiquette and usage of that polite caravansary; and I now write of that era of two-pronged forks, and when "saveall" was the choicest dish, and the observances at the table not altogether Chesterfieldian.

1891, George W[ashington] Cullum, “Period from July 31, 1812, to July 28, 1817. Brevet Brig.-General Joseph G[ardner] Swift, Superintendent.”, in Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. […], 3rd edition, volume III (Nos. 2001 to 3384), Boston, Mass., New York, N.Y.: Houghton, Mifflin and Company […], →OCLC, page 617

Only in Paris, a cosmopolitan caravansary in itself, did Americans and other foreigners fall nicely into the picture and spoil nothing in the charm of the place.

1952 May, George Santayana, “I Like to Be a Stranger”, in Edward Augustus Weeks, editor, The Atlantic, Washington, D.C.: The Atlantic Monthly Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-02-16, section 2

(by extension) A place resembling a caravanserai (sense 1) as being a place for resting temporarily, or a meeting place (especially one that is busy, or where people of different cultures encounter each other).

levähdyspaikka

(by extension) Synonym of caravan (“a convoy of travellers, their cargo and vehicles, and pack animals”)

caravan

By the bye it is as well to mention, for the benefit of the inexperienced, that there are no Inns in Ireland; all are hotels, from the lowest road cabin to the splendid caravanserai, with all its appurtenances of luxury and ease.

1838, “a Pedestrian” [pseudonym], “Cork”, in A Guide to the Lakes of Killarney and the South of Ireland, London: J. Onwhyn, […], →OCLC, page 56

(by extension, archaic) A hostelry, an inn; also (humorous), an (upscale) hotel.


beat one's meat

en-verb

beat one's meat (third-person singular simple present beats one's meat, present participle beating one's meat, simple past beat one's meat, past participle beaten one's meat or beat one's meat)

beats one's meat (present singular third-person)
beating one's meat (participle present)
beat one's meat (past)
beaten one's meat (participle past)
beat one's meat (participle past)

He had had the theory that all this space stuff was just the Soviet Union beating its meat, shooting off into space. Other than that he couldn't imagine the slightest use for it all. Space was, after all, space — with nothing in it.

1991, William Barton, Michael Capobianco, Fellow Traveler, Spectra

(slang, by extension) To waste time; to engage in an unproductive activity.


sitrep

I didn’t appreciate it yet, but the bike I’d bought was a little too big for me and I wasn’t sitting in the optimal position. One day, a few weeks in, I posted a sitrep: ‘Frustrating day with delays, crazy truck drivers, no room at the inn, comms playing up — but covered over 110km!’

2016, Chris Graham, Five Minutes of Amazing: My Journey Through Dementia, London: Sphere, page 41

(by extension) An update or report on the status of something or someone.


dioxin

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

PIE word
 *dwóh₁
From di- (prefix meaning ‘double; two’) + ox(ygen) + -in (suffix indicating a neutral chemical compound), a reference to the fact that the compound has two oxygen atoms.

二噁英

any of a broad range of toxic or carcinogenic halogenated polycyclic compounds

The 2,4,5-T used by Courtney and co-workers [...] was contaminated with approximately 30 ppm of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (dioxin). [...] The present work describes the results of our teratogenic studies on hamsters with samples of 2,4,5-T containing varying amounts of dioxin and with samples of 2,4-D from different manufacturers.

1971 November–December, T. F. X. Collins, C. H. Williams, “Teratogenic Studies with 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D in the Hamster”, in Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, volume 6, number 6, New York, N.Y.: Springer-Verlag, →DOI, →OCLC, →PMID, page 559; reprinted in Selected Technical Publications: July–December 1971, Washington, D.C.: Food and Drug Administration, Public Health Service, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, 1971, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 163

When manufacture of 2,4,5-T is controlled carefully, dioxin contamination is less than 1 ppm. Dioxin was identified in 1962 as the culprit of damage and death in 1957 of uncounted numbers of chicks. Dioxin produces neurological disturbances and is teratogenic.

1973 September, James Edward Huff, John S. Wassom, “Chlorinated Dibenzodioxins and Dibenzofurans”, in Douglas H. K. Lee, Hans L. Falk, editors, Environmental Health Perspectives (DHEW Publication; no. (NIH) 74-218), experimental issue number 5, Research Triangle Park, N.C.: National Institute of Environmental Health Science, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, →OCLC, page 307, column 1

Dioxin—2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)—is not manufactured commercially but is present as an impurity in 2,4,5-trichlorophenol (TCP). Minute traces may be present in the herbicide 2,4,5-T and in the antibacterial agent hexachlorophene, which are produced from trichlorophenol.

1998, “Guide to Chemicals”, in Jeanne Mager Stellman, editor, Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety, 4th edition, volume IV, Geneva, Switzerland: International Labour Office, section 104.286 (Hydrocarbons, Halogenated Aromatic), page 287, column 2

Dioxin or TCDD is a chemical contaminant that occurs as chlorine byproduct of the paper bleaching manufacturing process. Although it is useless on its own, dioxin is a common environmental contaminant. Dioxin was also released as a contaminant of the pesticide Agent Orange, which was used as a defoliant by U.S. forces in Vietnam. The highest concentrations of dioxin result from the incineration of medical waste.

2002, Elaine A. Moore, “Environmental Triggers of Autoimmune Disease”, in Autoimmune Diseases and Their Environmental Triggers, Jefferson, N.C., London: McFarland & Company, page 82

persistent organic pollutant
persistent organic pollutant

(countable, organic chemistry) Any of a broad range of toxic or carcinogenic halogenated polycyclic compounds that occur as byproducts of herbicides.

(uncountable, specifically, loosely) The compound 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD; molecular formula C₁₂H₄Cl₄O₂), a persistent organic pollutant of the environment which is generally produced as a byproduct of organic synthesis or when organic materials are burned.


rattan

en-noun

rattan (countable and uncountable, plural rattans)

He who first acts as striker asks the other how many blows of the rattan he will bear on his forearm without crying out.

1906, Walter William Skeat, Charles Otto Blagden, Pagan Races of the Malay Peninsula

[…]the rattan is still a valued instrument of discipline[…]

2008, Jean-François Bayart, Andrew Brown, Global Subjects: A Political Critique of Globalization

(by extension) A cane made from this material.


lovetap

Surely you forget the manner in which my hospitality has already been requited[…] with a love-tap received over the shoulders of one of my men, by so gentle an instrument as the butt of a musket!

1824, James Fenimore Cooper, The Pilot: A Tale of the Sea, page 363

She hadn’t hit her head very hard. It was only a love tap compared to some of the bone-crushing smashes I’d seen delivered against those beams.

1967, Richard Brautigan, A Confederate General from Big Sur, page 97

The car in Figure 2.7 has just been involved in an accident. […] An insurance adjuster must now decide whether this was a mere love tap or something that requires authorizing thousands of dollars for a new fender.

2006, Dan Margulis, Professional Photoshop: The Classic Guide to Color Correction, 5th edition, page 81

(by extension) A strike or collision with relatively little force, or causing relatively little damage.


flotilla

From Spanish flotilla, diminutive of flota (“fleet”), from French flotte.

flotilla of tiny ducklings

2021, Liz Trenow, The Secrets of the Lake

(by extension) A small group of things or people


stirrup

From Middle English stirop, stirope, from Old English stiġrāp (“stirrup”), a compound of stiġe ("ascent, descent, a going up or down"; related to stīġan (“to climb”)) and rāp (“rope”), equivalent to sty + rope.
Cognate with Dutch stegereep, stegelreep (“stirrup”), Old Saxon stigerēp (“stirrup”), Middle High German stereip, stegreif ("stirrup"; > German Stegreif (“improvisation”)), Icelandic stigreip (“stirrup”).

gloss

"ascent, descent, a going up or down"; related to <i class="Latn mention" lang="ang">stīġan</i> (“to climb”)

"stirrup"; > German <i class="Latn mention" lang="de">Stegreif</i> (“improvisation”)

(by extension) Any piece shaped like the stirrup of a saddle, used as a support, clamp, etc.

(climbing) A portable, flexible ladder-like device used in climbing.


khaya

From the Nguni group of languages khaya (“home”).

(South Africa, loosely) Servants' quarters separated from the main house.


coryphée

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

der

It was likewiſe cuſtomary to drink hard at theſe kinds of feaſts; yet it ſeems, according to the ſame author [Posidonius], that the coryphee, or head-gueſt, always began firſt, and put the cup, or rather pitcher, about to his next neighbour, till it had gone round: for, it ſeems, they all drank out of the ſame veſſel, and no man could drink till it came to his turn, nor refuſe when it did.

1748, George Sale et al., “The Antient State of the Gauls, to Their Conquest by Julius Cæsar, and from thence to the Irruption of the Franks”, in An Universal History, from the Earliest Account of Time. […], volume XVIII, London: Printed for T[homas] Osborne, […]; A[ndrew] Millar, […]; and J. Osborn, […], →OCLC, book IV (The History of the Carthaginians), section IV, pages 630–631

[...] Louis the Fourteenth,—that glory, / That Coryphée of all crown'd pates, / That pink of the Legitimates— [...]

1823, Thomas Brown, the Younger [pseudonym; Thomas Moore], “Fable VIII. Louis Fourteenth’s Wig.”, in Fables for the Holy Alliance, Rhymes on the Road, &c. &c., London: Printed for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, […], →OCLC, page 62

And now, whip—whip—whip—as fast as St. Francis [of Assisi] himself, or St. Dominic Loricatus, coryphee of flagellants, could himself have flagellated.

1834, [Edward Moor], “Fragments—Second. Paganism—Papacy—Hinduism—Nuns—Coronation—&c. &c.”, in Oriental Fragments, London: Smith, Elder, and Co., […], →OCLC, page 107

Dined with Bryan: company, Shiel, Wyse, and a Mr. Finlay. Talked of an infinity of subjects, Shiel giving some good mimicries of Dan, and having evidently no vast respect for his great Coryphée.

1836 February 27, Thomas Moore, “[Diary of Thomas Moore.] 1836.”, in Lord John Russell [John Russell, 1st Earl Russell], editor, Memoirs, Journal, and Correspondence of Thomas Moore, volume VII, London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, published 1856, →OCLC, page 145

Beneath this dramatic duel of "coryphées" on the open political scene, shifts have taken place in the relations between classes, and, no less important, profound changes in the psychology of the recently revolutionary masses.

1937, Leon Trotsky, “The Soviet Thermidor”, in Max Eastman, transl., The Revolution Betrayed: What is the Soviet Union and Where is It Going?, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Doran & Company, →OCLC, page 88

Even the coryphee of the Annales school, Fernand Braudel, affirms the historian's traditional concern about time – although, as we will see below, he himself did more than any other historian to undermine the profession's preoccupation with time, movement and development.

1980, Ilse N. Bulhof, “Structure, Development, and Progress: Dilthey’s Views on the Concrete Course of History”, in Wilhelm Dilthey: A Hermeneutic Approach to the Study of History and Culture (Martinus Nijhoff Philosophy Library; 2), The Hague, Boston, Mass.: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, →DOI, page 187

You would have smiled inwardly on seeing with what admirable facility these coryphées of liberalism of 1828, these makers of 1830, easily sabre the first principles of civil liberty that we others, old royalists, would not abandon at any price.

1985, Alexis de Tocqueville, “13. To Gustave de Beaumont [Paris, April 4, 1832]”, in James Toupin, Roger Boesche, transl., edited by Roger Boesche, Selected Letters on Politics and Society, Berkeley, Los Angeles, Calif, London: University of California Press, pages 79–80

(by extension) The chief or leader of an interest or party.


wingman

(by extension) A friend who accompanies one to offer (or receive) support, especially in flirting with love interests.


gumball machine

en-noun

gumball machine (plural gumball machines)


West End

(by extension) The English theatre industry


spitchcock

American Journal of Philology
Johns Hopkins University Press

The noun is derived from Middle English spiche-coke (“eel split lengthwise and broiled”). The further etymology is uncertain; the following possibilities have been suggested:
* From Middle English *speche, *spiche (“to split”) + cock, coken (“to allow (something) to cook; to cook”) (from cok (“person who cooks food, cook”), from Old English cōc (“a cook”), from Vulgar Latin *cocus, from Latin coquus (“a cook”), from coquō (“to cook”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pekʷ- (“to cook; to ripen”)).
* From spik (“animal fat, especially lard”) (from Old English spiċ (“bacon; lard”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *spēy- (“to stretch; to succeed, thrive”)), spik, spike (“large nail; pointed stud”) (possibly from Old Norse spík, spíkr (“nail”), also ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *spēy-), or spit, spite (“rod for cooking meat, spit; pointed object”) (from Old English spitu, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *spey- (“sharp point; stick”)) + cok (“male of the common domestic fowl, cock, rooster”) (from Old English coc, cocc, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *kukkaz (“cock, rooster; chicken”) and of imitative origin).
The verb is probably derived from the noun.

inh

(by extension, archaic or obsolete) An eel (or other fish) prepared in this way.

змиорка на шиш

eel or other fish prepared by spatchcocking


mackintosh

en-noun

mackintosh (countable and uncountable, plural mackintoshes)

From Charles Macintosh (1766–1843), who patented a type of rubberized cloth in 1823. Former trademark. The letter k is a later addition.

c. 1924, A.A. Milne, "Happiness", in When We Were Very Young
John had great big waterproof boots on;
John had a great big waterproof hat;
John had a great big waterproof mackintosh --
And that (Said John) is that.

The screeching of brakes, the monotonous blare of motor horns, the clip-clip of shoes on slippery pavements, the rustling of wet mackintoshes were all part of the great metropolis.

1936, F.J. Thwaites, chapter XXII, in The Redemption, Sydney: H. John Edwards, published 1940, page 214

(by extension) Any waterproof coat or raincoat.


high-water mark

high-water mark (plural high-water marks)

The Gettysburg campaign was the high-water mark of the Confederacy's invasions of the North.

(by extension, figurative) The peak or apex of something; the maximum level; the furthest or highest point.


storefront

Brands are now able to set up storefronts to sell within Facebook and Instagram, where they were previously relegated to advertising for outside sales channels.

2021 October 2, John Herrman, “Will TikTok Make You Buy It?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

(by extension) An e-commerce website offering goods or services to the public.


workhorse

Those old machines are not very glamorous, but even 20 years after their introduction, they are still the workhorses of the industry.

Captain Harry Kane was the workhorse and creator, while Sterling and Rashford provided the finishing flourishes that put England in dreamland at the interval.

2018 October 15, Phil McNulty, “Spain 2-3 England”, in BBC Sport

"Class 08s have been the workhorses of ports, distribution centres and depots across Britain's railway for more than 60 years," said Positive Traction Director Alistair Gregory.

2023 November 1, “Network News: Strong industry interest as Positive Traction launches '08e'”, in RAIL, number 995, page 18

(by extension) Someone or something that does a lot of work; something or someone who works consistently or regularly.


speedrun

en-verb

speedrun (third-person singular simple present speedruns, present participle speedrunning, simple past speedran or speedrunned, past participle speedrun)

speedruns (present singular third-person)
speedrunning (participle present)
speedran (past)
speedrunned (past)
speedrun (participle past)

From speed + run. There are isolated attestations of the term as far back as the 19th century, mostly hyphenated as speed-run and in an engineering context; it is unlikely that these cases influenced the modern form.

John decided to speedrun his trip to the grocery store.

Dre said in an interview that he created SCAM to poke fun at other "shitcoins" or cryptocurrencies that are clearly pump-and-dump schemes, but at the same time make some money for people willing to put money behind it without any lofty talk to convince people anything more noble is going on. In doing so, SCAM is speedrunning the path of many cryptocurrencies: It hit a $70 million market cap (the snapshot current value of all tokens in circulation) almost immediately after launching, then slumped to $7 million, then $5 million, and now sits at $2.5 million.

2021 May 3, Edward Ongweso Jr, “This TikToker's 'SCAM' Cryptocurrency Took Off and He Can't Believe It”, in VICE, archived from the original on 2023-06-05

I maintain that the first burrito he ever speedran was the most delicious, was folded with the most care, and had the best ratio of fillings, but burrito speedrunning is not about the flavour, it's about the time.

2023 March 19, Ben Sledge, “Inside The Chaotic World Of Burrito Speedrunning”, in The Gamer, archived from the original on 2023-06-03

While DeSantis' allies have been speedrunning his political vendettas through the legislature, the Yale and Harvard alum embarked on a national tour ostensibly to promote his literary opus entitled The Courage to Be Free: Florida's Blueprint for America's Revival.

2023 April 12, Justin Miller, “DeSantis vs. Abbott: Tallahassee My Texas”, in The Texas Observer, Austin, T.X.: The Texas Democracy Foundation, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2023-04-12

The result is an ouroboros of faith and science, where an intentional blurring of lines has created a society where a civilization is speedrunning through its development unaware that there are hands pushing them along.

2023 July 14, Zosha Millman, Joshua Rivera, “Foundation season 2 storylines aren't all the same kind of sci-fi”, in Polygon, archived from the original on 2023-07-21

(by extension, Internet slang) To do something or undergo some process as quickly as possible.


crotch rocket

(by extension) Any high performance powered vehicle which is ridden astride, such as a snowmobile, or, jetski.


starved

en-adj

starved (comparative more starved, superlative most starved)

more starved (comparative)
most starved (superlative)

(by extension) Deprived of nourishment or of something vital.


gunzel

Burton Lazars
Dashiell Hammet
Michael Quinion
Newsweek
Random House

Origin uncertain; possibly from gunsel (“stupid or contemptible fellow, creep; young man kept for homosexual purposes, catamite”), from Yiddish גענדזל (gendzl, “gosling”), from Middle High German gensel,
diminutive of gans (“goose”) (compare German Gänslein (“gosling”), from Gans (“goose”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂éns (“goose”)).
There is an unverified suggestion that the word was first used in the 1960s by staff of the Sydney Tramway Museum in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, to describe shabbily dressed trainspotters. They were apparently influenced by the word gunsel (“a gun-carrying hoodlum”), which had been popularized in the film The Maltese Falcon (1941) based on the 1929 novel of the same name by American author Dashiell Hammet (1894–1961).

I ask him about Australian trainspotters. 'Do such people exist?' / 'We call them train gunzels. A gunzel is a person who is really stuck on one thing. In Sydney you get guys on the platforms. This carriage here is the CDF924 – that's the number for Matilda's Restaurant. The guys on the platform will say, "Oh, I haven't seen that for a while"[…]'

2016, Tom Chesshyre, Ticket to Ride: Around the World on 49 Unusual Train Journeys, Chichester, West Sussex: Summersdale Publishers

(Australia, by extension) An enthusiast or geek with a specific interest.


wide-eyed

wide-eyed (comparative more wide-eyed, superlative most wide-eyed)

more wide-eyed (comparative)
most wide-eyed (superlative)

The magician’s trick left the audience wide-eyed.

Country life doesn’t protect you from real life. A rural childhood may leave you wide-eyed a bit longer about some things, but it doesn’t confer the insulating innocence that some parents seem to hope.

2014 December 20, Rebecca Ley, “City versus country childhoods”, in The Guardian

zrobić wielkie oczy (literally make big eyes̠)


fitful

fitful (comparative more fitful, superlative most fitful)

more fitful (comparative)
most fitful (superlative)

From fit (“convulsion, seizure; sudden burst of activity”) + -ful (suffix forming adjectives from nouns, with the sense of being full of, tending to, or thoroughly possessing the quality expressed by the noun).

suffix

His breathing was fitful.

Troubled by her unfinished work, she fell into a fitful sleep.

So fitful has Britain’s economy been that any good news is understandably snatched at.

2012 October 27, “The economy: Don’t say ‘green shoots’: Britain emerges from its second recession in four years”, in The Economist, London: Economist Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2012-10-29

(by extension) Characterized by sudden bursts of activity with periods of inactivity in between; intermittent, irregular, unsteady.

на пресекулки

characterized by sudden bursts of activity with periods of inactivity in between — see also intermittent, irregular


down payment

After decades of empty rhetoric, that's the down payment that we need on energy independence.

2009 February 5, Barack Obama, My Door is Always Open

2009 April 4, Barack Obama, NATO summit
These commitments of troops, trainers, and civilians represent a strong down payment on the future of our mission in Afghanistan and on the future of NATO.

After all, when you buy a car, you're making a large down payment on future journeys - buying an annual rail pass or railcard should be no different.

2022 March 9, Ben Jones, “RAIL Supplement: Return Ticket”, in RAIL, number 952, page 26 (supplement)

(by extension) Any initial commitment signifying an intention to carry out a larger future commitment, even though no legal rights or obligations are secured.


record label

(by extension) The record company itself, as identified by its logo.


essentials

(by extension) The information required to have a basic understanding of a topic.


a.

(linguistics, by extension) Abbreviation of transitive.

Abbreviation of active.
Abbreviation of transitive.


Broadway

From broad + way. The Old English words "brad weg" have been used to name wide roads and associated settlements for over a thousand years. Documented examples include Broadway, Somerset and Broadway, Worcestershire, England, which are listed in the Domesday Book census of 1086AD as "Bradewie" and "Bradeweia" respectively.
Sense of “government of Manitoba” is from the address of the Manitoba Legislative Building, on Broadway in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Since he got the recording contract, he's gone all Broadway.

(by extension of the proper noun senses) Flashy; showy.


switchback

The noun is derived from switch (“to turn (a train) from one railway track to another using a switch”, verb) + back (“so as to reverse direction and return”, adverb).
The verb is derived from the noun.

compound

(aviation) A flight path consisting of a series of steep ascents and descents, generally flown as a stunt.

jyrkästi ylös ja alas kulkeva lentorata

(chiefly British) A path or road having a series of steep ascents and descents.

serpentiinitie

Coordinate term: horseshoe curve

Already, we enter some airport bathrooms through a brief switchback of walls, so that we don’t ever grasp a door handle.

2019 April 25, Samanth Subramanian, “Hand dryers v paper towels: the surprisingly dirty fight for the right to dry your hands”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-12-21

(chiefly Canada, US, road transport) A sharp bend in a path or road which causes a traveller to almost reverse their direction of travel, especially one of a series of such bends on an incline; a hairpin bend; also a path or road having such a series of bends.


cowrie

Mid-17th century, borrowed from Hindi कौड़ी (kauṛī).

turtle cowrie

Chelycypraea testudinaria, syn. Cypraea testudinaria

(by extension, dated) Any gastropod of the genus Cypraea; its shell.

(by extension) Any gastropod of the family Cypraeidae; its shell.


straitjacket

en-verb

straitjacket (third-person singular simple present straitjackets, present participle straitjacketing, simple past and past participle straitjacketed)

straitjackets (present singular third-person)
straitjacketing (participle present)
straitjacketed (participle past)
straitjacketed (past)

But it has not always been like this. The last time human remains hit the headlines occurred when the government-sponsored Palmer Report was published. It was deeply antagonistic to research on human remains, and recommended straitjacketing archaeological research within the same framework as medical science.

2004 October 31, Robert Foley, “The Flores remains could have been lost to science”, in The Observer, →ISSN

Where most primates have a respectable pair of grasping rear hands we have two changelings: long arched pads with rounded chins at one end and stumpy thumbs straight-jacketed to baby fingers at the other.

2012, Caspar Henderson, The Book of Barely Imagined Beings, page 118

she couldnʼt wait to go to college, have a career and leave her parentsʼ straitjacketed lives behind

2019, Bernardine Evaristo, Girl, Woman, Other, Penguin Books (2020), page 280

A Labour opposition that has straitjacketed its pledges and ambitions with its fears of blowing its strongest chance in years to gain power.

2023 August 7, Nesrine Malik, “British people are kinder and less divided than politicians give us credit for”, in The Guardian

(by extension) To restrict the freedom of, either physically or psychologically.


tag-team

tag-team (third-person singular simple present tag-teams, present participle tag-teaming, simple past and past participle tag-teamed)

tag-teams (present singular third-person)
tag-teaming (participle present)
tag-teamed (participle past)
tag-teamed (past)

Our spouses and children have become friends, and we have tag-teamed as presenters in local settings and at national conferences.

2010, Mark J. Allman, Tobias L. Winright, After the Smoke Clears: The Just War Tradition and Post War Justice

(by extension) To alternate working with someone else in order to accomplish a task.


stand-alone

This standalone will delight and draw readers of Christian romantic suspense like […]

(by extension) Something that is not a part of some series or sequence.


gridlock

en-noun

gridlock (countable and uncountable, plural gridlocks)

But no party appeared on track to secure an absolute majority, leaving one of Europe’s largest countries headed for gridlock or political instability.

2024 July 8, Adam Nossiter, Aurelien Breeden, “5 Takeaways From France’s Snap Election”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

(figuratively, by extension) Any paralysis of a complex system due to severe congestion, conflict, or deadlock.


kick-off

(by extension) The opening sequence of any event.