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Tag: Word Wednesday

Parkour and B-boying: Word Wednesday

Two words today as I just could not resist looking up parkour and B-boying after yesterday’s wonderful article by NicNac.  I was a tad surprised to find any entries at all but here they are: Merriam-Webster has this to say about parkour: parkour noun par·kour \pär-ˈku̇r, ˈpär-ˌku̇r\ Popularity: Bottom 30% of words Definition  : the sport of traversing environmental obstacles by running, climbing, or leaping rapidly and efficiently Origin and Etymology of parkour French, alteration of parcours course, route, from Medieval Latin percursus, from Latin percurrere to run through, from per- + currere to run First Known Use: 2002 So now you know! Good old M-W says this about B-boying: B–boying noun B–boy·ing \ˈbē-¦bȯi-iŋ\ Popularity: Bottom 10% of words Definition of B–boying : break dancing…

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Stories by ‘G’ Alas No More – RIP G

RIP G is a sentiment I was not expecting to express any time soon. Sadly, G passed away early yesterday morning after a fatal and sudden heart attack. Some of you read his stories here and I’m sure you enjoyed them as I did. G, Gerry, started to send me the short stories soon after he became a regular visitor to this blog. I accepted most of them with glee, only refusing one because it was a little risqué. He had talent and in his younger days had screenplays accepted by Hollywood. Gerry and I soon became online friends and I was delighted to meet him when he flew into Bacolod with his wife from Mindanao, Philippines, where he lived with his wife Priskylet Panday…

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Rigmarole: Word Wednesday

“Well that was a right old rigmarole,” must have been said by millions in all English speaking countries. It’s such a quaint word but so effective. Merriam-Webster has this to say: rigmarole noun rig·ma·role \ˈri-gə-mə-ˌrōl, ˈrig-mə-\ Popularity: Bottom 50% of words Simple Definition of rigmarole : a long, complicated, and annoying process, description, etc. Source: Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary Bottom 50 percent! Oh my! It deserves to be on the tip of everybody’s tongue 🙂 Full Definition of rigmarole 1:  confused or meaningless talk 2:  a complex and sometimes ritualistic procedure Examples of rigmarole in a sentence We had to go through the rigmarole of installing, registering, and activating the software before we found out it wouldn’t work. He just told us what to do without…

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Mendacious: Word Wednesday

The word “mendacious” popped into my mind for no earthly reason. But I thought while it’s there I may as well make use of it 🙂 Merriam-Webster has this to say: Popularity: Top 30% of words Simple Definition  : not honest : likely to tell lies : based on lies Full Definition of mendacious : given to or characterized by deception or falsehood or divergence from absolute truth <mendacious tales of his adventures> mendaciously adverb mendaciousness noun Examples n a sentence Indeed, the racist and Malthusian elements in Darwin’s work are subjects on which the new secularists are either silent, delicate, or mendacious. —Eugene McCarraher, Commonweal, 15 June 2007 A choice item in the collection of mendacious stories that were circulated about Columbus after his…

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Word Wednesday Fun: Antipodes

The Antipodes The Antipodes is often used by us British to describe those “kith and kinfolk” dwelling in Australia or New Zealand. I had occasion to use it today in a freelance article. It was one of those moments when the word sprang into my mind and as a precaution I checked its meaning. I was correct and it was the right word in the context that I was writing. What surprised me, and on reflection I fail to understand why I was surprised, was reading the literal meaning of the noun antipode. I was so used to hearing “the Antipodes” used to describe Australia and New Zealand that I had become impervious to any other meaning. Following the usual pattern, the Merriam-Webster definition first followed by…

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Word Wednesday – Savvy – January 13, 2016

Savvy? Savvy is the first word to feature in this, my inaugural regular Word Wednesday. One word in the mighty lexicon of the English language will be chosen each week. The idea is to help all writers to improve their vocabulary. It matters not whether you are writing a novel, a school essay, a thesis or a job application; a wide vocabulary improves the end result. If you wish to choose a word please let me know and I will endeavor to accommodate your wish. A love of words goes a long way towards one’s enjoyment of a book or any story spoken or written. My interest goes beyond the word per se as I often wonder about its origins. I hope this series will sometimes…

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