• exigency •
Pronunciation: eg-zi-jên-see • Hear it!
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: 1. An unforeseen crisis or emergency, an urgent necessity. 2. (Law) A requirement, need, or expectation.
Notes: Today's noun may be used with or without the final (redundant) suffix -y: exigence is equally acceptable though less often used. Both these nouns are derived from the adjective exigent [eg-zê-jênt] "pressing, urgent", as in exigent circumstances. There is a sibling adjective, exigible "demandable, that could be required", as an exigible duty on imports, a duty that could be charged whether it actually is or not.
In Play: Our lives are filled with exigent circumstances: "Malcolm was late for work because of a family exigency: his tie got caught in the food disposal and his head was held in the sink for a quarter hour." Of course, what is exigent is a matter of taste and opinion: "Charlotte was faced with a major exigency when she arrived home to discover her apartment was bereft of anything chocolate."
Word History: This Good Word comes from another Latin present participle, exigen[t]s "demanding", of the verb exigere "to demand, require". The passive participle is exactus, the origin of our verb (to) exact as to exact a high price. This verb is a combination of ex "out (of)" and agere "to drive, initiate, lead, carry out", which means that its past participle is actus, ancestor to English act. However, this verb is also the source of agent, someone who carries out tasks on your behalf. Synagogue comes from the Greek equivalent of this verb, synagein "to bring together" based on syn "with" + agein "bring, lead, direct".
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• The Good Dr. Goodword
I seriously question that lack of all food but chocolate would be exigent!
Suzanne D. Williams, Author
http://www.feelgoodromance.com
http://www.feelgoodromance.com
Well, what if she had been dreaming about returning home to relax with a wonderful piece of very dark chocolate, together with a demi tasse of ristretto (that's a very concentrated espresso), only to find that she was out of coffee?Well that's easy for you to say, but what did you mean?Maybe Charlotte was upset that she didn't have a suitable beverage to was the chocolate down.
mark I-usta-be-able-to-read Bailey
"Time is nature's way of keeping everything from happening all at once. Lately it hasn't been working."
Anonymous
Anonymous
actually, I'm trying to get my brain around
mark chimps-are-impervious-to-chocolate Bailey
but thinking is hard for Chimps. My female relatives say "Just hand over the chocolate and no one will get hurt"have a suitable beverage to was the chocolate down."
mark chimps-are-impervious-to-chocolate Bailey
Today is the first day of the rest of your life, Make the most of it...
kb
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- Great Grand Panjandrum
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Change the "s" in "was" to "ter," add some soap or detergent, and then use the resulting solution to devine what one should do with, or to, the chocolate, taking the effects of gravity into consideration (based on the ultimate adverb).actually, I'm trying to get my brain around...have a suitable beverage to was the chocolate down."
Regards//Larry
"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
-- Attributed to Richard Henry Lee
"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
-- Attributed to Richard Henry Lee
...or easier yet, just add an "h" to "was"...Change the "s" in "was" to "ter," add some soap or detergent, and then use the resulting solution to devine what one should do with, or to, the chocolate, taking the effects of gravity into consideration (based on the ultimate adverb).actually, I'm trying to get my brain around...have a suitable beverage to was the chocolate down."
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