A new edition of the Oxford Junior Dictionary was published. A sharp-eyed reader noticed that there had been a culling of words concerning nature. Under pressure, Oxford University Press revealed a list of the entries it no longer felt to be relevant to a modern-day childhood. The deletions included acorn, adder, ash, beech, bluebell, buttercup, catkin, conker, cowslip, cygnet, dandelion, fern, hazel, heather, heron, ivy, kingfisher, lark, mistletoe, nectar, newt, otter, pasture, and willow. The words introduced to the new edition included attachment, block-graph, blog, broadband, bullet-point, celebrity, chatroom, committee, cut-and-paste, MP3 player, and voice-mail.
Tag: words
Why Everyone’s Saying ‘YAAAAAASSSSSS’ Now
The word “yes” is an extremely dull way to express the varied sentiments of “yes.”
The Meaning of “Culture”
It goes without saying that “culture” is a confusing word, this year or any year.
Cormac McCarthy’s Vocabulary Is Better Than Yours: Blood Meridian {spoilers!}
sprent
anchorite
tailorwise
carbolic
chancel
halms
scantlin(g)
vernier
hasping
jacal
purlieus
bistre
sotol
kerfs
scoria
ratchel
porphyry
mare imbrium
apishamore
marl
ignis fatuus
cibolero
enfilade
acequias
spanceled
azoteas
debouched
topers
chert
eskers
escopeta
shakos
caparisoned
serried
devonian
charivari
catafalque
ciborium
guttapercha
shacto
vedette
suzerain
almagre
roweled
withy
criada
sutlers
billets
spalls
whinstones
scrog
chorines
alameda
vigas
guisado
sclera
baldric
lemniscate
tiswin
demiculverin
revetment
holothurians
morral
alcalde
skelps
baize
cabildo
lazarous
scow
thaumaturge
atavistic
scapular
fard
sprues
alparejas
mansuete
replevined
pampooties
skifts
burins
dosshouse
pitero
matracas
nickered
bagnios
scapegrace
peignoirs
A Wealth of Words by E. D. Hirsch, Jr., City Journal WInter 2013
There’s a positive correlation between a student’s vocabulary size in grade 12, the likelihood that she will graduate from college, and her future level of income. The reason is clear: vocabulary size is a convenient proxy for a whole range of educational attainments and abilities—not just skill in reading, writing, listening, and speaking but also general knowledge of science, history, and the arts. If we want to reduce economic inequality in America, a good place to start is the language-arts classroom.
A Wealth of Words by E. D. Hirsch, Jr., City Journal WInter 2013
Scott Adams Blog: Sleep Tip 03/21/2011
Here’s a tip for falling asleep. I don’t think you’ll see it anywhere else. It goes like this: Don’t think words.
(via)
Laconic (adj.) – Online Etymology Dictionary
I never knew the word was connected with the Spartans. Awesome:
“concise, abrupt,” 1580s, probably via L. Laconicus, from Gk. Lakonikos, from Lakon “person from Lakonia,” the district around Sparta in southern Greece in ancient times, whose inhabitants were famously proud of their brevity of speech. When Philip of Macedon threatened them with, “If I enter Laconia, I will raze Sparta to the ground,” the Spartans’ reply was, “If.”
One source of this story is Plutarch’s On Talkativeness.
One cannot be too careful with words, they change their minds just as people do.
Words to Be Aware Of – Lone Gunman
Wish. Try. Should. Deserve.
Other people’s words are the bridge you use to cross from where you were to wherever you’re going.
Zadie Smith, “Other People’s Words, Part One,” in Changing My Mind: Occasional Essays (via)
And this, my friends, is why I’m an inveterate collector of quotes. Nice find, Austin.
“City of Words” by Vito Acconci.
Phonestheme – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The word refers to the “systematic pairing of form and meaning in a language” where “a word with a phonestheme in it has other material in it that is not itself a morpheme.”
For example, the English phonestheme “gl-” occurs in a large number of words relating to light or vision, like “glitter”, “glisten”, “glow”, “gleam”, “glare”, “glint”, and so on
I love this stuff. Here’s a list of English phonesthemes.
- /st/ is stable, stalwart, staunch, steadfast, steady, stolid, stout, and sturdy
- /sk/ scuffles, skips, scuttles, scoots, scampers, scurries, and skedaddles
- /dr/ drips, dribbles, drools, dredges, drizzles, drops, droops, and drags with the dross, dregs and the dreck
Say What?: An Interview with Etymonline.com’s Douglas Harper | David C. Carver | Drunken Koudou
Anagnorisis – Wikipedia
A moment in a play or other work when a character makes a critical discovery. Anagnorisis originally meant recognition in its Greek context, not only of a person but also of what that person stood for.
Astroturfing – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Astroturfing denotes political, advertising, or public relations campaigns that are formally planned by an organization, but are disguised as spontaneous, popular “grassroots” behavior.
Emotive conjugation – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
“Humans’ tendency to describe their own behavior more charitably than the behavior of others.”
Akrasia – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
“The state of acting against one’s better judgment.” See also phronesis.
Forer effect – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
And now I know the name for this. (via)
The Forer effect (also called the Barnum Effect after P.T. Barnum’s observation that “we’ve got something for everyone”) is the observation that individuals will give high accuracy ratings to descriptions of their personality that supposedly are tailored specifically for them, but are in fact vague and general enough to apply to a wide range of people. This effect can provide a partial explanation for the widespread acceptance of some beliefs and practices, such as astrology, fortune telling, and some types of personality tests.
Copacetic – Online Etymology Dictionary
We’re not quite sure where “copacetic” came from.
1919, but it may have origins in 19c. Amer.Eng. Southern black speech. Origin unknown, suspects include Latin, Yiddish (cf. Heb. kol b’seder), Italian, Louisiana French (coupe-sétique), and Native American. None is considered convincing by linguists.
While I’m on the topic, I should mention that the Online Etymology Dictionary is one of my favorite sites ever. I usually make a couple visits every day.
Copacetic – Online Etymology Dictionary
Mark Larson 