tacit \TAS-it\, adjective:
1. implied or understood without being openly expressed
2. saying nothing; silent
The word on the Hill is that Mr. Waxman enjoys the tacit support of übergreen Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who dislikes Mr. Dingell's independence.
-- The Wall Street Journal, 11/11/2008
Boeing and Airbus don't want to cannibalize sales of the B737 and A320. So there seems to be a tacit agreement to sweep the issue (of single-aisle replacement aircraft) under the carpet for now.
-- Aude Lagorce, MarketWatch, 6/18/2007
c 1575, from French tacite, from Latin tacitus "that is passed over in silence, done without words, assumed, silent," from tacere "to be silent," from Proto Indo-European base *tak- "to be silent."
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
sacrilege
sacrilege \SAK-ruh-lij\, noun:
an intentional injury to anything held sacred; disrespectful treatment of something sacred
A big, catchy ad on Page One of the print edition would be considered sacrilege. The editorial staff wouldn't stand for it and anyone who bought it would come in for loud criticism from purist.
-- William Spain, MarketWatch, 3/28/2003
San Francisco's Finest: In this town, it's sacrilege to attempt naming the "top" restaurant.
-- Los Angeles Times
c 1300, from Old French sacrilege, from Latin sacrilegium and sacrilegus "one who steals sacred things," from sacer "sacred" + legere "take, pick up." Transferred sense of "profanation of anything held sacred" is attested from 1390.
an intentional injury to anything held sacred; disrespectful treatment of something sacred
A big, catchy ad on Page One of the print edition would be considered sacrilege. The editorial staff wouldn't stand for it and anyone who bought it would come in for loud criticism from purist.
-- William Spain, MarketWatch, 3/28/2003
San Francisco's Finest: In this town, it's sacrilege to attempt naming the "top" restaurant.
-- Los Angeles Times
c 1300, from Old French sacrilege, from Latin sacrilegium and sacrilegus "one who steals sacred things," from sacer "sacred" + legere "take, pick up." Transferred sense of "profanation of anything held sacred" is attested from 1390.
Monday, December 29, 2008
ramble
ramble \RAM-buhl\, verb, noun:
1. to wander about
2. a walk for pleasure without predetermined destination
3. to talk or write about one thing and then another without useful connection
As you ramble along them, it is difficult not to feel something of a peeping-tom; this is Surrey at its most intimate, with arches over garden gates framing views of tile-hanging and leaded lights.
-- Clive Aslet, Telegraph.co.uk, 11/17/2008
Pierce and Carmen were on a northward walk markedly better organized than our own: having rambled throughout Europe, they had entrusted a local company to plan their trip.
-- Gregory Dicum, New York Times, 2/3/2008
c 1443, unknown origin, perhaps frequentative of romen "to walk, go" of via romblen "to ramble." The vowel change was probably influenced by Middle Dutch rammelen, a derivative of rammen "used of the night wanderings of the amorous cat."
1. to wander about
2. a walk for pleasure without predetermined destination
3. to talk or write about one thing and then another without useful connection
As you ramble along them, it is difficult not to feel something of a peeping-tom; this is Surrey at its most intimate, with arches over garden gates framing views of tile-hanging and leaded lights.
-- Clive Aslet, Telegraph.co.uk, 11/17/2008
Pierce and Carmen were on a northward walk markedly better organized than our own: having rambled throughout Europe, they had entrusted a local company to plan their trip.
-- Gregory Dicum, New York Times, 2/3/2008
c 1443, unknown origin, perhaps frequentative of romen "to walk, go" of via romblen "to ramble." The vowel change was probably influenced by Middle Dutch rammelen, a derivative of rammen "used of the night wanderings of the amorous cat."
Sunday, December 28, 2008
qualify
qualify \KWOL-uh-fahy\, verb:
1. to make or become fit or competent
2. to give legal power; to make or become legally capable
3. to make less strong; to modify or limit the strength or meaning of
4. to characterize by attributing some quality to
To qualify, the homeowner must provide proof that he has suffered a hardship, such as losing a job, that made it impossible to keep up with payments.
-- Renae Merle, The Arizona Republic, 11/12/2008
If they conclude that they're likely to lose less by allowing delinquent borrowers to go to foreclosure rather than refinance into Hope loans, they would be free to do so, even if their borrowers qualify and want to participate.
-- Kenneth R. Harney, The Washington Post, 7/19/2008
by 1465, from Middle French qualifier "to characterize by attributing a quality," from Latin qualis "of what sort" + facere "to make."
1. to make or become fit or competent
2. to give legal power; to make or become legally capable
3. to make less strong; to modify or limit the strength or meaning of
4. to characterize by attributing some quality to
To qualify, the homeowner must provide proof that he has suffered a hardship, such as losing a job, that made it impossible to keep up with payments.
-- Renae Merle, The Arizona Republic, 11/12/2008
If they conclude that they're likely to lose less by allowing delinquent borrowers to go to foreclosure rather than refinance into Hope loans, they would be free to do so, even if their borrowers qualify and want to participate.
-- Kenneth R. Harney, The Washington Post, 7/19/2008
by 1465, from Middle French qualifier "to characterize by attributing a quality," from Latin qualis "of what sort" + facere "to make."
Saturday, December 27, 2008
paltry
paltry \PAWL-tree\, adjective:
1. almost worthless; trifling
2. of no worth; contemptible, despicable
The Denver defense is in tatters, ranking among the worst in the league, surrendering 31 points to a Raiders team that had been averaging a paltry 12.8 per game.
-- Mark Kiszla, Denver Post, 11/24/2008
It has long been acknowledged, for instance, that the British Secret Intelligence Service has compensated for its paltry size - it has about one-tenth the manpower of the CIA - by leveraging the reputation of its most famous fictional spy, James Bond.
-- Kelly M. Greenhill, Los Angeles Times, 5/28/2007
Almost everything on the vastly unimaginative happy hour menu contains pico de gallo and sour cream, including small, wizened potato skins containing a few paltry crumbles of bacon.
-- Nikki Buchanan, The Arizona Republic, 11/25/2008
by 1565, probably associated with dialectic palt, pelt "trash," cognate with Middle Low German and East Frisian palte "rag," and Middle Dutch palt "broken or torn fragment." Comparative and superlative forms are paltrier and paltriest.
1. almost worthless; trifling
2. of no worth; contemptible, despicable
The Denver defense is in tatters, ranking among the worst in the league, surrendering 31 points to a Raiders team that had been averaging a paltry 12.8 per game.
-- Mark Kiszla, Denver Post, 11/24/2008
It has long been acknowledged, for instance, that the British Secret Intelligence Service has compensated for its paltry size - it has about one-tenth the manpower of the CIA - by leveraging the reputation of its most famous fictional spy, James Bond.
-- Kelly M. Greenhill, Los Angeles Times, 5/28/2007
Almost everything on the vastly unimaginative happy hour menu contains pico de gallo and sour cream, including small, wizened potato skins containing a few paltry crumbles of bacon.
-- Nikki Buchanan, The Arizona Republic, 11/25/2008
by 1565, probably associated with dialectic palt, pelt "trash," cognate with Middle Low German and East Frisian palte "rag," and Middle Dutch palt "broken or torn fragment." Comparative and superlative forms are paltrier and paltriest.
Friday, December 26, 2008
oblique
oblique \oh-BLEEK\, adjective, noun:
1. something oblique, such as a line or figure
2. in military use, by turning 45 degrees
3. not straight up and down or across; slanting
4. a muscle attached at an oblique angle to the structure that it controls
5. having unequal sides; situated obliquely instead of transverse or longitudinal
6. not straightforward; indirect
Both novels were direct and oblique, not mentioning 9/11 but addressing the question of how you retain your humanity after the unthinkable has entered your life.
-- Charles Taylor, New York Times, 11/21/2008
Theodor Geisel's response to Hitler was more oblique than Stauffenberg's, but as effective. Yertle, king of the pond, commands all the turtles to stack themselves up so he can be top of the heap. Someone's riding for a fall.
-- Telegraph.co.uk, 1/19/2008
by 1425, from Middle French oblique, from Latin obliquus "slanting, sidelong, indirect," from ob "against" + root of licinus "bent upward," from Proto Indo-European base *lei- "to bend, be movable."
1. something oblique, such as a line or figure
2. in military use, by turning 45 degrees
3. not straight up and down or across; slanting
4. a muscle attached at an oblique angle to the structure that it controls
5. having unequal sides; situated obliquely instead of transverse or longitudinal
6. not straightforward; indirect
Both novels were direct and oblique, not mentioning 9/11 but addressing the question of how you retain your humanity after the unthinkable has entered your life.
-- Charles Taylor, New York Times, 11/21/2008
Theodor Geisel's response to Hitler was more oblique than Stauffenberg's, but as effective. Yertle, king of the pond, commands all the turtles to stack themselves up so he can be top of the heap. Someone's riding for a fall.
-- Telegraph.co.uk, 1/19/2008
by 1425, from Middle French oblique, from Latin obliquus "slanting, sidelong, indirect," from ob "against" + root of licinus "bent upward," from Proto Indo-European base *lei- "to bend, be movable."
narcissism
narcissism \NAHR-suh-siz-em\, noun:
excessive love or admiration for oneself; in psychoanalysis, gratification manifested in admiration and love of oneself
Dr. Marion Solomon, a Los Angeles psychologist and author of "Narcissism and Intimacy," said that true narcissists are startled when their spouses say they are miserable in the relationship.
-- Jan Hoffman, New York Times, 7/20/2008
They found that the number of "Friends" on a person's Facebook and the number of "wallposts" they have there correlated with their narcissism. That figures, Buffardi suggests, as narcissists tend to have lots of shallow relationships rather than a few solid ones.
-- Jennifer Huget, The Washington Post, 9/26/2008
by 1822, from Greek Narkissos, beautiful youth in mythology (Ovid, "Metamorphosis," iii.370) who fell in love with his own reflection in a spring and was turned to the flower narcissus.
excessive love or admiration for oneself; in psychoanalysis, gratification manifested in admiration and love of oneself
Dr. Marion Solomon, a Los Angeles psychologist and author of "Narcissism and Intimacy," said that true narcissists are startled when their spouses say they are miserable in the relationship.
-- Jan Hoffman, New York Times, 7/20/2008
They found that the number of "Friends" on a person's Facebook and the number of "wallposts" they have there correlated with their narcissism. That figures, Buffardi suggests, as narcissists tend to have lots of shallow relationships rather than a few solid ones.
-- Jennifer Huget, The Washington Post, 9/26/2008
by 1822, from Greek Narkissos, beautiful youth in mythology (Ovid, "Metamorphosis," iii.370) who fell in love with his own reflection in a spring and was turned to the flower narcissus.
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