Search found 1104 matches

by MTC
Fri Mar 08, 2024 6:52 pm
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Lambaste
Replies: 2
Views: 124

Re: Lambaste

Very timely in view of the State of the Union speech. Almost as though you had it in your hip pocket.
by MTC
Mon Sep 18, 2023 6:57 pm
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Amok
Replies: 3
Views: 5876

Re: Amok

You could write a book about “amok.” The word has even found its way into the psychiatric lexicon. I recommend the Wikipedia article as a starting place for those who would like to learn more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Running_amok
by MTC
Mon Sep 18, 2023 3:27 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Philosophunculist
Replies: 3
Views: 3691

Re: Philosophunculist

Philosophunculist reminds me of a group of words formed with the suffix “aster,” such as “poetaster.” According to Wikipedia: Used to form diminutive and pejorative nouns, labeling someone pretending to be what they are not. ‎poet + ‎-aster → ‎poetaster (“unskilled poet”) ‎critic + ‎-aster → ‎critic...
by MTC
Fri Aug 25, 2023 8:36 pm
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Issue
Replies: 1
Views: 2418

Re: Issue

A good word to illustrate how words change meaning or add a new sense, in particular the sense of “problem.” Over my lifetime —with some irritation—I’ve heard the word increasingly used that way. Was the first use of the new “problem” sense intentional or negligent? Should we applaud an unnamed, unk...
by MTC
Fri Jul 07, 2023 5:10 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Chiliasm
Replies: 7
Views: 6518

Re: Chiliasm

When does the 1000 year period begin?
by MTC
Fri Apr 14, 2023 9:50 pm
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Virtual
Replies: 7
Views: 9360

Re: Virtual

Quite surprised to see no reference to the virtual world and closely related A.I., especially after the ominous warning letter from tech titans like Musk and Wozniak. We have seen how virtual reality can be manipulated for propaganda purposes. This site badly needs a transfusion of engaged millennia...
by MTC
Thu Apr 13, 2023 4:41 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Caterpillar
Replies: 5
Views: 3918

Re: Caterpillar

I fondly think of the mushroom-pushing caterpillar in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and not-so-fondly of the stabbing pain which followed putting an especially spiny specimen in my pocket during first grade.
by MTC
Tue Jan 31, 2023 10:09 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Fabulist
Replies: 1
Views: 2806

Re: Fabulist

Baron von Munchausen holds the dubious distinction of being one of the most famous fabulists in history. So famous in fact a psychiatric condition was named after him: Munchausen's syndrome is a rare psychological and behavioural condition in which somebody fabricates or induces symptoms of illness ...
by MTC
Mon Jan 30, 2023 7:14 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Reticent
Replies: 8
Views: 5883

Re: Reticent

A strong opinion sparks a strong reaction. But, please don’t take it personally, Mr. Myer. No insult intended. As you and other well-educated Goodwordians will know, opinions about language change roughly divide into two opposing camps, prescriptivist and descriptivist. I found the following summary...
by MTC
Sun Jan 29, 2023 4:38 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Reticent
Replies: 8
Views: 5883

Re: Reticent

I’m with Dr. GoodWord on this one. (Always a safe bet.) That said, I see Merriam-Webster disagrees: 'Reticent' can be used to mean both “inclined to be silent or uncommunicative in speech” or “reluctant.” While some find the “reluctant” sense inelegant, it has been in widespread use for a number of ...
by MTC
Tue Dec 27, 2022 9:30 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Derogate
Replies: 1
Views: 2795

Re: Derogate

Derogate also has a special meaning in a legal context: Derogation, in civil law and common law, is the partial suppression of a law. In contrast, annulment is the total abolition of a law by explicit repeal, and obrogation is the partial or total modification or repeal of a law by the imposition of...
by MTC
Mon Dec 19, 2022 4:40 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Comport
Replies: 1
Views: 2677

Re: Comport

If you find time hang heavy on your hands, you might try
distinguishing “comportment” and “deportment.” It’s a lively exercise—not as exciting as the football final in Qatar, mind you, but interesting enough.
by MTC
Sat Dec 17, 2022 5:02 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Abscission
Replies: 3
Views: 3361

Re: Abscission

You may recall from your school days (possibly painfully:)

“In common usage, the abscissa refers to the (x) coordinate and the ordinate refers to the (y) coordinate of a standard two-dimensional graph.”

Wikipedia
by MTC
Tue Nov 08, 2022 4:47 am
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Truth
Replies: 5
Views: 4818

Re: Truth

“truth:” the only word in the English language whose use
immediately impugns the speaker’s credibility; a noun mostly honored by its absence in human affairs.
by MTC
Mon Oct 31, 2022 6:04 pm
Forum: Good Word Discussion
Topic: Hightail
Replies: 3
Views: 3396

Re: Hightail

About the natural origins of “hightail,” I found the following from an 8-22-06 article by Kathy Kish in the 10-31-22 edition of the Bluefield Daily Telegraph: “If a deer sees or smell a predator, it raises its tail straight up in the air. This behavior is called “flagging.” A deer may then run away,...

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