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Impeach – WordWednesdayFun

Impeach is a ‘trending’ word according to Merriam-Webster. Here is why –

Trend Watch – Impeach

Lookups spiked following the impeachment of Brazil’s president by that country’s Chamber of Deputies.

Impeach spiked on April 17th and 18th, following news reports of the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, the president of Brazil, by that country’s Chamber of Deputies. In Brazil, as in the United States, the lower house of Congress votes on impeachment, and the matter is then passed to the Senate.

Lookups for ‘impeach’ spiked after the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, the president of Brazil, by that country’s Chamber of Deputies. The word means “to charge a public official with a crime done while in office.”

Although impeach has been used in the English language since the 14th century, it has not always been restricted to the commonly used modern sense of “to charge (a public official) with a crime done while in office”; other meanings over the years have included the bringing of a more generalized accusation, the act of hindering or impeding someone, and the act of challenging or disparaging someone (“he has impeached my honor”).

The word came to Middle English from the Middle French empecher, which was itself descended from the Late Latin word impedicare (“to entangle, fetter“). Impedicare contains the root ped– (meaning “foot”) and so impeach shares an etymological connection with many other English words, such as breviped (“having short legs”) and expedite (“to remove the difficulties from”).

Two United States presidents have been impeached: Andrew Johnson, in 1868, and Bill Clinton, in 1998. Both were acquitted. A third president, Richard Nixon, came close in 1974, as articles for impeachment were drawn up by the House, but he resigned before the matter was put to a vote.

Simple Definition

  • : to charge (a public official) with a crime done while in office

  • : to cause doubts about the truthfulness of (a witness, testimony, etc.)

Full Definition

  1. transitive verb
  2. 1a:  to bring an accusation against b:  to charge with a crime or misdemeanor; specifically:  to charge (a public official) before a competent tribunal with misconduct in office c:  to remove from office especially for misconduct

  3. 2:  to cast doubt on; especially:  to challenge the credibility or validity of <impeach the testimony of a witness>

Origin of impeach

Anglo-French empecher, from Old French empeechier to hinder, from Late Latin impedicare to fetter, from Latin in- + pedica fetter, from ped-, pes foot

And, of course here comes good old Urban Dictionary and it is a rather predictable and tiresome entry –

TOP DEFINITION
impeach
What should be done to George W. Bush.
IMPEACH Bush!
by AnyoneButBush ’04 August 30, 2003

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2 Comments

  1. Adam Lawrence Adam Lawrence

    I like the fact that Merriam-Webster tracks the words that are trending . They’re a nerdish but cheeky bunch – those M-W editors (e.g., the videos on things like “lay vs. lie” or the debate over whether or not “irregardless” is a word – it is!).

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