... is hard to take, particularly from a relative,
a friend, an acquaintance, or a stranger.
—
FRANKLIN P. J ONES,businessman (1887–1929)
Mark It!
Marketing is to sales as foreplay is to sex, as courtship ... time and it had finally arrived. It was obvious she was excited
as she threw sand balls at me. I wondered aloud,“What if we had a
birthday every month?” She countered,“What if we had...
... Economist
32 ANOTHER WORD A DAY
Never attribute to malice that which can be
adequately explained by stupidity.
—
HANLON’S RAZOR
Bard Bettered
Several years ago, I heard a delightful story about Isaac Bashe-
vis ... other language, and that some
words were in fact untranslatable. As an example Singer
picked the word chutzpah,saying that its being an untranslat-
able word he was...
... this [AAA] card as a talisman against auto-
motive calamity should know that, in doing so, they lend sup-
port to an agenda in favor of road building, against pollution
control and even auto-safety ... auto-safety measures—that helps deepen the
automotive calamity afflicting the nation as a whole.”
—Harper’s Magazine
WORDS BORROWED FROM ARABIC 47
I have always imagined that paradise will b...
... took a scenic route to its present form via French, Ital-
ian,and medieval Latin/Greek, from Arabic tarjuman,from Aramaic
turgemana,from Akkadian targumanu (interpreter).
● “Soon, [Art] Buchwald ... are making money in
China’s real estate market, Singapore can’t rely on a vast
Chinese hinterland for future markets and growth.”
—Far Eastern Economic Review
154 ANOTHER WORD A DAY
Ju...
... government. A few other
words that derive from the same root (wal-) are valence, valiant, valid,
value, avail, and convalesce.
● “This leads to a tendency for realized earnings to fall below the
level ... was writing on the wall—more precisely, drawing
on the wall. Thinking of Lascaux, Altamira . . . it must be a
strong primeval urge.
—Carolanne Reynolds,West Vancouver, Canada
Work of A...
... Another
Word A Day
ffirs.qxd 7/21/05 12: 07 PM Page i
Another
Word A Day
An All-New Romp
through Some of the Most
Unusual and Intriguing
Words in English
Anu Garg
John Wiley & Sons, ... Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Garg, Anu.
Another word a day : an all-new romp through some of the most unusual and intriguing
words in English / Anu Garg.
p. cm.
Includes bibl...
... mad about his flat,he really loves his apart-
ment. An American,in exactly the same words, is angry about hav-
ing a flat tire. Well, maybe British and American are two different
languages.
This book ... 12: 08 PM Page 1
31 Kangaroo Words 132
indolent
●
rapscallion
●
amicable
●
frangible
●
scion
32 What Does That Company Name Mean? 135
cingular
●
lucent
●
prudential
●
vanguard
●
suppurate
33...
... the
Russian advances—real and imagined—in Central Asia, the
Himalayas and Tibet.”
—New York Times
gambit (GAM-bit)
noun 1. An opening in which a pawn or another piece is sacri-
ficed to obtain a strategic ... And she’s an Oxfordian, a believer in
Edward de Vere as the real Shakespeare.”
—Montreal Gazette
EARLS WHO BECAME WORDS (OR PLACES THAT BECAME WORDS) 11
Whodunit
The battle rages,...
... from gamba (leg).
●
“North Korea will no doubt try to gain maximum advantage by
playing South Korea,America and Japan off against each other.
If it fails to get the result—and the cash—it wants ... Economist
22 ANOTHER WORD A DAY
The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
—
CARL SAGAN, astronomer and author (1934–1996)
Hasta Mañana
These three possibilities for the word ano...
... mittere.
38 ANOTHER WORD A DAY
I never vote for anyone; I always vote against.
—
W. C. F IELDS, comedian (1880–1946)
cmp01.qxd 7/21/05 12: 12 PM Page 38
W
hat do a magazine and an albatross have in ... lasche (slack), ultimately from
Latin laxare (to loosen).
When you admire the “lush” decor of an apartment, sign a
“lease,” simply “relax,” or use a “laxative,” you are employing...