Podcasts about Dictionary

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 17, 2025 is: fugitive • FYOO-juh-tiv • noun Fugitive refers to a person who runs away to avoid being captured or arrested. // The FBI regularly updates and circulates its list of most wanted fugitives, and asks communities where they might be seen to be careful and on the lookout. See the entry > Examples: “The automated plate readers, as they are known, enable authorities to track when vehicles of interest pass through certain intersections. The devices can also be mounted on police cars, allowing officers to sweep up troves of license plate data as they drive around. Police say the gadgets help investigate stolen cars, locate fugitives, and solve crimes by checking who came and went from a neighborhood on any given day.” — Libor Jany, The Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2025 Did you know? Fugitive entered English as both a noun and an adjective in the 14th century, coming ultimately from the Latin verb fugere, meaning “to flee.” As a noun, it originally referred, as it still does today, to someone who flees a country or location to escape persecution or danger, as from war, making it synonymous with another fugere descendent, refugee. The noun soon expanded beyond those fleeing peril to individuals (such as suspects, witnesses, or defendants) trying to elude law enforcement especially by fleeing the pertinent jurisdiction. The adjective fugitive describes those literally running away or intending flight, but also has multiple figurative uses, being applied to that which is elusive, of short duration, or of transient interest, among other things.

Desperate to leave a dangerous relationship, Kate goes to extreme lengths to conjure the spirit of dead radio advice host Bella Donna to help her. PART ONE of TWO . This story is a sequel to the episode: ADVICE AFTER DARK. BELLADONNA noun. In Italian, a beautiful lady; in English, a deadly poison. A striking example of the essential identity of the two tongues. Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary. Created, Written, Directed, and Sound Designed by Jeff Schmidt FEATURING: CAITLYN ELIZABETH as BELLA DONNA BIX KRIEGER as KATE MICHAEL BENEFIELD as CHET Additional Voices: TIFFANY MICHELLE BROWN JOHN HENRY RICHARDSON CHANTELLE TIBBS JEFF SCHMIDT The voice of Ominous Thrill is DONNA FRANK MOORE. Be advised that this devious audio delight includes adult content and language, including graphic violence. Support OMINOUS THRILL at Ko-Fi All funds raised go toward the making of Ominous Thrill Visit OMINOUS THRILL Website Follow Jeff Schmidt on INSTAGRAM Message Jeff at OMINOUSTHRILL@GMAIL.COM OMINOUS THRILL is a proud member of the Fable and Folly network of Fiction Audio podcasts. Please support our sponsors and partners here https://fableandfolly.com/partners/ Psychological horror, psychological suspense, psychological thriller, creature feature, horror stories, scary stories, chilling stories, horror, fiction, thriller, anthology, scary, spooky, creepy, disturbing, suspense, terror, uneasy, ominous, supernatural, supernatural suspense, paranormal, heart pounding, tension, thrilling, drama, full cast, full cast horror, female lead, audio drama, audio fiction, radio drama, immersive, spatial audio, 3D Audio, Dolby Atmos, Dolby. If you like what you've heard, please give us a 5-star rating, a positive review, and tell a friend - it encourages others to listen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kate makes contact and Bella Donna is eager to help... but as the threat closes Kate has to risk everything and face the monster to make it out alive. PART TWO OF TWO This story is a sequel to the episode: ADVICE AFTER DARK. BELLADONNA noun. In Italian, a beautiful lady; in English, a deadly poison. A striking example of the essential identity of the two tongues. Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary. Created, Written, Directed, and Sound Designed by Jeff Schmidt FEATURING: CAITLYN ELIZABETH as BELLA DONNA BIX KRIEGER as KATE MICHAEL BENEFIELD as CHET The voice of Ominous Thrill is DONNA FRANK MOORE. Be advised that this devious audio delight includes adult content and language, including graphic violence. Support ⁠OMINOUS THRILL at Ko-Fi⁠ All funds raised go toward the making of Ominous Thrill Visit ⁠OMINOUS THRILL⁠ Website Follow Jeff Schmidt on ⁠INSTAGRAM⁠ Message Jeff at ⁠OMINOUSTHRILL@GMAIL.COM⁠ OMINOUS THRILL is a proud member of the Fable and Folly network of Fiction Audio podcasts. Please support our sponsors and partners here ⁠https://fableandfolly.com/partners/⁠ Psychological horror, psychological suspense, psychological thriller, creature feature, horror stories, scary stories, chilling stories, horror, fiction, thriller, anthology, scary, spooky, creepy, disturbing, suspense, terror, uneasy, ominous, supernatural, supernatural suspense, paranormal, heart pounding, tension, thrilling, drama, full cast, full cast horror, female lead, audio drama, audio fiction, radio drama, immersive, spatial audio, 3D Audio, Dolby Atmos, Dolby. If you like what you've heard, please give us a 5-star rating, a positive review, and tell a friend - it encourages others to listen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 16, 2025 is: abject • AB-jekt • adjective Abject usually describes things that are extremely bad or severe. It can also describe something that feels or shows shame, or someone lacking courage or strength. // Happily, their attempts to derail the project ended in abject failure. // The defendants were contrite, offering abject apologies for their roles in the scandal that cost so many their life savings. // The author chose to cast all but the hero of the book as abject cowards. See the entry > Examples: “This moment ... points toward the book's core: a question of how to distinguish tenderness from frugality. Is ‘Homework' about a child who took a remarkably frictionless path, aided by a nation that had invested in civic institutions, from monetary hardship to the ivory tower? Merely technically. Is it a story of how members of a family, protected by a social safety net from abject desperation, developed different ideas about how to relate to material circumstance? We're getting there.” — Daniel Felsenthal, The Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025 Did you know? We're sorry to say you must cast your eyes down to fully understand abject: in Middle English the word described those lowly ones who are rejected and cast out. By the 15th century, it was applied as it still is today to anything that has sunk to, or exists in, a low state or condition; in modern use it often comes before the words poverty, misery, and failure. Applied to words like surrender and apology, it connotes hopelessness and humility. The word's Latin source is the verb abicere, meaning “to throw away, throw down, overcome, or abandon.” Like reject, its ultimate root is the Latin verb jacere, meaning “to throw.” Subject is also from jacere, and we'll leave you with that word as a way to change the subject.

This week… Kärel and Max discuss and debate the most important issues facing our world; work beers, NFL conspiracies, The Miz Kid, used canoes, and bar top designs. Andy jumped on to discuss all the breaking news in the sports world. He broke down the Milwaukee Bucks ending Dame time and signing Myles Turner and the Brewers resurgence. The fellas dug into Jacob Misiorowski's background and found out how the Brewers acquired the young phenom. Then it was onto the NFL and its conspiracies. Max had quite the take on the Deshaun Watson downfall… I'll have whatever Max's smoking, he's out of his mind. The NFL is a fine upstanding organization and to question the shield is ludicrous! Max's views do not reflect the views of HUA or its sponsors. Shout out Heaven's Piss. Next Kärel battled the Dictionary and it's unanimous, he's getting smarter! Finally they ended things discussing their challenge. They've got a vision for the new bar top, now it comes down to execution and flattening some slabs! But before any of the nonsense, they saved the best for first, with the Beer of the Week! During the BOW the fellas rate and review a new beer. They discuss the history of the brewery and examine what's in the beer they're drinking. Then, they break down the beer by its drinkability, the probability they'd drink it again, its chugability, and the attractability of the can. Find out if Oskar Blues Brewery's Dale's Light Lager passed the HUA test.Beer of the Week: 05:45 - 59:20Sports World News: 01:03:20 - 02:38:00Kärel v.s. The Dictionary: 02:38:52 - 02:48:10Challenge Update: 02:48:15 - ENDBOW: Oskar Blues Brewery, Dale's Light Lager HUA 193 Drinking game: whenever they burp, drink! Good luck.Big shout out to the talented Adrian Pell! He created the intro and outro music for us. Check him out on IG: @AdrianPellMusicHold Us Accountable is on Patreon! Just search, ‘Hold Us Accountable.' We're just trying to earn us some beer money, nothing more nothing less! Join for just $1 a month! https://patreon.com/HoldUsAccountable920?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink If you're listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, rate and review the show, it helps us out a lot!Check out and subscribe to our YouTube Channel!⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRVYu7zopmxja1RsmVpOucQ/featur⁠We're live on Twitch, check out our page!⁠https://www.twitch.tv/holdusaccountable⁠Find us on X:⁠https://twitter.com/hua_pod?s=11&t=DqKX0s9j1XzF2xFF3dBlDA⁠If you want to let us know what you think of the show, or have an idea for the show, you can DM us on Facebook or Instagram @HoldUsAccountable

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 15, 2025 is: tantalize • TAN-tuh-lyze • verb To tantalize someone is to cause them to feel interest or excitement about something that is very attractive, appealing, etc. // She was tantalized by the prospect of a big promotion. See the entry > Examples: "Craving a culinary adventure? Look no further than Manila Street Treats, nestled within the vibrant Tapatio Produce International Market and Shops building in Elkton. This hidden gem offers a diverse menu of Filipino and international flavors that will tantalize your taste buds." — Chester County Press (Oxford, Pennsylvania), 1 Apr. 2025 Did you know? Pity poor King Tantalus of Lydia. The mythic monarch offended the ancient Greek gods, and was sentenced, according to Homer's Odyssey, to suffer in Hades the following punishment: to stand neck-deep in water, beneath overhanging boughs of a tree heavily laden with ripe, juicy fruit. But though he was always hungry and thirsty, Tantalus could neither drink the water nor eat the fruit: anytime he moved to get them, they would retreat from his reach. Our word tantalize is taken from the name of the eternally tormented king.

Is it OK to disagree with the dictionary? Well I am going to when it comes to the word peace. According to Dictionary.com, peace means - the non warring condition of a nation or group, a state of mutual harmony between people groups, a state of tranquility or serenity, or the cessation of or freedom from any strife or dissension. It is wonderful when those things happen, but can you experience peace even when life is a mess? In this podcast, I want to look at peace from a biblical point of view and as usual, I have to mix some RTF in with it.  To learn more about the ministry of Restoring the Foundations International, please visit www.restoringthefoundations.org.

Show #2451 Show Notes: The Twilight Zone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORbseYAkzRM&pp=ygUXdGhlIHR3aWxpZ2h0IHpvbmUgaW50cm8%3D LAN Ekklesia Bible Study #2: https://thelibertyactionnetwork.com/event/ekklesia-bible-study-2/ Bible disobedience: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2021/03/24/12-biblical-cases-of-civil-disobedience/ Should we pay taxes that finance abortion? https://rcsprouljr.com/should-we-pay-taxes-that-finance-abortion-2/ Romans 13 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%2013&version=KJV ‘Exempt’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/exempt ‘Immunity’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/exempt US Corporation creation: https://www.youhavetheright.com/tour1/ Jesus’ […]

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 14, 2025 is: nuance • NOO-ahnss • noun A nuance is a very small difference in something, such as color, tone, meaning, etc. // Amy's musical ear makes it easy for her to detect the subtle nuances in sampled music. See the entry > Examples: “Whether it's historians, journalists, anthropologists or poets, those outside our community have attempted to narrate our experiences. But no matter how well intentioned, they cannot fully capture the depth and truth of our story. Why? Because only we can speak with the authority of lived memory, cultural nuance and ancestral knowing.” — Ka Vang, The Minnesota Star Tribune, 1 June 2025 Did you know? The history of nuance starts in Latin with the noun nūbēs, meaning “cloud.” Nūbēs floated into Middle French as nu, also meaning “cloud,” which eventually gave rise to nuer, meaning “to make shades of color.” (The association of a word for “cloud” with gradation of color apparently comes from the perception that an object's color is weakened when mist passes over it.) Nuer in turn produced nuance, which in Middle French meant “shade of color.” English borrowed nuance from French, with the meaning “a subtle distinction or variation,” in the late 18th century. That meaning persists today, but the word has also picked up a few nuances of its own. For example, nuance is sometimes used in a specific musical sense, designating a subtle, expressive variation in a musical performance (such as in tempo, dynamic intensity, or timbre) that is not indicated in the score.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 13, 2025 is: contrite • kun-TRYTE • adjective Contrite is a formal adjective used to describe someone who feels regret for their bad behavior, or something, such as an apology, that shows such regret. // Although the mayor appeared contrite about the most recent scandal plaguing city hall, many constituents remained unpersuaded. See the entry > Examples: “At the restaurant, late into the meal, ‘Honey, Honey,' from the ‘Mamma Mia' soundtrack began to play, with [Amanda] Seyfried's 22-year-old voice issuing through the restaurant's speakers. The waitress came over, contrite. The song was just part of the usual play list. ‘Listen, I love having a stake in pop culture,' Seyfried reassured her. ‘It's really nice.'” — Alexis Soloski, The New York Times, 11 Mar. 2025 Did you know? Props to Elton John: sorry really does seem to be the hardest word. But saying it (in something other than a nonapology, of course) is an important part of being contrite—that is, feeling or showing sorrow and remorse for one's bad behavior. Contrite traces back to the Latin verb conterere, meaning “to pound to pieces,” “to crush, “to wear out or down,” or “to exhaust mentally or physically.” In Medieval Latin—the Latin used in Medieval times especially for religious or literary purposes—conterere came to mean “to crush in spirit with a sense of one's sin,” or “to render contrite.” Anglo-French speakers borrowed a form of the verb conterere and made it the adjective contrit, which was in turn adopted into English in the 1300s.

The Bridge of Dream chapter (Tyrion Five from A Dance with Dragons) delves deeply into a number of the key themes in the series. These include the subjective nature of reality, the non-thought of received ideas, and the unreliability of language/communication. These issues are central to the human experience, and their treatment in this chapter makes the case for a moral reading of the text. This is a response to the Bridge of Dream episode from Boiled Leather Audio Hour. Those guys are legendary ASOIAF podders, so please do give a listen to their work. The "non-thought of received ideas" I first encountered in Milan Kundera's Art of the Novel. He was responding to Flaubert's earlier, posthumously published Dictionary of Received Ideas. Both get at the cost and consequence to the individual and society as a whole when critical engagement with ideas fails. Please do check them out. Thank you for listening!

Scott Jagow and Stuart McMillan dive into the Dictionary of Misinformation, a 1977 book that challenges widely held beliefs. They unravel myths surrounding historical figures like Adolf Hitler and Charles Lindbergh, clarify the real story behind Delilah and Samson, and set the record straight on when the Declaration of Independence was actually signed. Plus, discover how hot dogs got their name at the 1904 World's Fair—and why bulls don't actually hate red.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 12, 2025 is: impunity • im-PYOO-nuh-tee • noun Impunity, usually used in the phrase "with impunity," refers to exemption or freedom from punishment, harm, or loss. // They mistakenly believe that they can break the camp's rules with impunity. See the entry > Examples: "For his part, [artist Adam] Leveille doesn't expect to see his painting again. ... Still, he feels compelled to speak out publicly about what happened and has asked on his Instagram account and on Reddit for anyone with information about the heist, or who might have seen his painting appear somewhere, to come forward. If anything, he just wants to let potential area art thieves know they can't steal from local artists with impunity." — Spencer Buell, The Boston Globe, 1 Feb. 2025 Did you know? Impunity, like the words pain, penal, and punish, traces to the Latin noun poena, meaning "punishment." Poena, in turn, came from the Greek poinē, meaning "payment" or "penalty." Impunity has been around since the 1500s; in 1660, Englishman Roger Coke wrote "This unlimited power of doing anything with impunity, will only beget a confidence in kings of doing what they [desire]." While royals may act with impunity more easily than others, the word impunity can be applied to beings great and small. Take, for example, this 2023 quote from the Sidmouth Herald in England: "The [yew tree] fruits are readily eaten by birds but they do not digest the seeds as they are poisonous. Only one bird, the rare and shy Hawfinch, is able to eat the seeds with impunity."

This week Chat with StuMac; Scott Jagow and Stuart McMillian discuss a book written in the 1970s called the Dictionary of Misinformation.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 11, 2025 is: rescind • rih-SIND • verb To rescind something, such as a law, contract, agreement, etc., is to end it officially. Rescind can also mean “to take back; to cancel.” // Given the appeal court's recent decision, it is likely that the law will be rescinded. // The company later rescinded its offer. See the entry > Examples: “A state environmental oversight board voted unanimously to rescind a controversial proposal that would have permitted California municipal landfills to accept contaminated soil that is currently required to be dumped at sites specifically designated and approved for hazardous waste.” — Tony Briscoe, The Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2025 Did you know? Rescind and the lesser-known words exscind and prescind all come from the Latin verb scindere, which means “to split, cleave, separate.” Rescind was adapted from its Latin predecessor rescindere in the 16th century, and prescind (from praescindere) and exscind (from exscindere) followed in the next century. Exscind means “to cut off” or “to excise,” and prescind means “to withdraw one's attention,” but of the three borrowings, only rescind established itself as a common English term. Today, rescind is most often heard in contexts having to do with the withdrawal of an offer, award, or privilege, or with invalidation of a law or policy.

This is part 5 of a 9 part series. For the full series you can go here.Long ago it is written that God said, “Remember” - yet today mankind has forgotten. Through the many clever schemes of the devil in history, most of the world has been deceived into believing tradition over truth. And what's more, a time is soon coming when the choice will have to be made between obeying the word of God or obeying the word of the devil.TIMESTAMPS:* 00:00 - Review* 14:53 - Innocent I* 19:19 - Theodosius II* 22:25 - John Cassian * 27:59 - Radisa Antic* 1:08:42 - Other Synods* 1:10:58 - Dictionary of Christian Antiquities* 1:35:57 - Underground Cities* 1:41:45 - Charlemagne* 1:46:48 - Early England, Ireland & Scottland* 2:21:31 - The Great Schism* 2:40:19 - The Ethiopian Church* 2:44:13 - Other Dissident Groups* 2:57:26 - Islam* 3:00:09 - Eugene IV* 3:01:58 - Mary's Special Day* 3:26:20 - Wrap-Up* 3:31:32 - Recapitulation This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.danceoflife.com/subscribe

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 10, 2025 is: boffo • BAH-foh • adjective Boffo is an informal word that describes things that are extremely good or successful. // The most recent film in the long-running franchise has done boffo business at the box office, a testament to the series' enduring popularity. See the entry > Examples: “A strong showing at the Senior Bowl was followed by a boffo performance at the NFL combine, where the 6-foot-4, 214-pound [Isaac] TeSlaa zoomed through the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds …” — Rainer Sabin, The Detroit Free Press, 27 Apr. 2025 Did you know? Boffo made its print debut as a noun referring to something great: a solid joke or a good punch line. It did so right around the same time—the 1930s, at the dawn of Hollywood's golden age—as boff, a noun with an identical meaning thought to perhaps come from “box office.” Within a few years, boffo began to be applied adjectivally to things that, like a good joke, were a big hit: performances, all-star casts, movies. To this day it is used mostly in the context of performing arts, spectator sports, and other entertainments.

Show #2448 Show Notes: Coach’s Latest Article: On News With Views: https://newswithviews.com/secular-christianity/ On Coach’s site: https://coachdavelive.com/weekly-word/secular-christianity Manifestation: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/manifestation IRS says churches can now endorse political candidates: https://www.npr.org/2025/07/08/nx-s1-5460886/irs-now-says-pastors-can-endorse-political-candidates LAN Ekklesia Bible Study: https://thelibertyactionnetwork.com/event/ekklesia01/ Flooding: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1038816855115558&set=a.111252911205295 […]

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 9, 2025 is: simulacrum • sim-yuh-LAK-rum • noun A simulacrum is a superficial likeness of something, usually as an imitation, copy, or representation. The plural of simulacrum is either simulacrums or simulacra. // The surprise still succeeded, thanks to the simulacrum of confusion expressed by two guests when they were spotted before the big moment. See the entry > Examples: "Under the lid, there are no strings to move the air, but rather speakers that create an uncanny simulacrum of a grand piano." — Robert Ross, Robb Report, 17 July 2024 Did you know? There is more than a crumb of similarity between simulacrum and simulate: both words come from simulāre, a Latin verb meaning "to pretend, produce a fraudulent imitation of, imitate." At the root of simulāre is the Latin adjective similis, which means "having characteristics in common." Many "similar" words trace back to similis, hence the resemblance between simulacrum and familiar terms like simultaneous, simile, and of course similarity.

The last fluent speaker for the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska died in 2006. An Oklahoma tribe helped organize the first digital Ponca dictionary, which is also available in physical copies.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 8, 2025 is: exemplary • ig-ZEM-pluh-ree • adjective Something described as exemplary is extremely good and deserves to be admired and copied. // Our research team was awarded for our exemplary work on the project. See the entry > Examples: “[Director, Oliver] Hermanus again shows highly polished craftsmanship, adding the subtlest hint of sepia tones to evoke the period in the early sections, but never to the point where the characters compete with the settings. His direction of the actors is exemplary, even with characters seen only briefly ...” — David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 May 2025 Did you know? It's usually not a good thing if someone wants to make an example of you, unless, of course, it's because you happen to be exemplary. Imitation being the sincerest form of flattery, someone or something may be deemed exemplary if they, by their example, are worthy of imitation. Like a few other English words beginning with ex—such as exceptional and extraordinary—exemplary describes that which is a cut above the rest. But though exemplary, which comes from the Latin noun exemplum (“example”), describes something “excellent,” it almost always carries the further suggestion that the thing described is an excellent model to follow.

Show #2446 Show Notes: 2 Thessalonians 2: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Thessalonians%202&version=KJV Psalm 2: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%202&version=KJV ‘Secular’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/secular The Worst Generation: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?mibextid=wwXIfr&v=1244147914030819&rdid=jnCWIw51MJkdpnXI Ray Comfort: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1375769263548886 1 Corinthians 15 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%2015&version=KJV Masonic Encyclopedia – Galahad: https://masonicshop.com/encyclopedia/topics/entry/?i=3647 Camp Mystic is a Freemason Camp: https://healthimpactnews.com/2025/camp-mystic-in-texas-is-a-freemason-camp-for-the-daughters-of-the-texas-elite/ Dave Daubenmire, […]

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 7, 2025 is: procrastinate • pruh-KRASS-tuh-nayt • verb To procrastinate is to be slow or late about doing something that should be done, or about doing or attending to things in general. // Tickets to the event are selling swiftly, so don't procrastinate—buy yours today. // Not one to procrastinate, Harry set to work on the project immediately. See the entry > Examples: "Researchers found that individuals who tend to procrastinate often do so because they fear not meeting their high standards or worry too much about failing. The study also showed that this fear of failure and the habit of overgeneralizing failures (like thinking one mistake means you're a failure) strongly connect perfectionism to procrastination." — Mark Travers, Forbes, 28 May 2025 Did you know? We won't put off telling you about the origins of procrastinate: it comes from the Latin prefix pro-, meaning "forward," and crastinus, meaning "of tomorrow." To procrastinate is to work or move slowly so as to fall behind; it implies blameworthy delay especially through laziness or apathy. English has other words with similar meanings, such as defer and postpone, but none places the blame so directly on the person responsible for choosing a later time to do something. Procrastinate is also a malleable word: English speakers have wasted no time creating clever variations, most of them delightfully self-explanatory. Don't let coinages like procrastibake, procrastinetflix, and procrasticlean pass you by; they may not meet our criteria for entry into the dictionary, but their potentials for use are undeniable.

Bag of D's in the Dictionary by Maine's Coast 93.1

This week… The fellas kicked off the 4th of July weekend with a bang! Max's parents supplied a six pack of six different beers from the Yee-Haw Brewing Company in Tennessee. Naturally they had to drink and rate all six. It was a challenge but they managed. Some were great, some were terrible but they all were fun to try. Find out which ones the fellas liked, which ones had them laughing and which ones had them scratching their heads. YEEEE-HAAAW! Next they talked about their HUA Saloon bar top challenge. They've got slabs and the lumber but do they have a plan?! Max shot at the Dart Board of Punishment. Kärel tried to spell a word and they attempted to play a new Weekly Challenge game. The fellas were laughing from the start. They hope you do as well. Tune 'em in to tune out the world, HUA 192 YEEEE-HAAAW!Beer of the Week: 09:10 - 01:49:40Challenge Update: 01:52:52 - 02:31:55Kärel v.s. The Dictionary: 02:32:30 - 02:37:35New Weekly Challenge Game: 02:40:35 - ENDBOW: Yee-Haw Brewing Company, 6 pack Smorgasbord! YEE-HAW IPA, VOL LAGER, CERVEZA, HEFE WHEAT BEER, YEE-HAZY & DUNKELHUA 192 Drinking game: every time they say “Yee-Haw” drink! Good luck.Big shout out to the talented Adrian Pell! He created the intro and outro music for us. Check him out on IG: @AdrianPellMusicHold Us Accountable is on Patreon! Just search, ‘Hold Us Accountable.' We're just trying to earn us some beer money, nothing more nothing less! Join for just $1 a month! https://patreon.com/HoldUsAccountable920?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink If you're listening on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, rate and review the show, it helps us out a lot!Check out and subscribe to our YouTube Channel!⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRVYu7zopmxja1RsmVpOucQ/featur⁠We're live on Twitch, check out our page!⁠https://www.twitch.tv/holdusaccountable⁠Find us on X:⁠https://twitter.com/hua_pod?s=11&t=DqKX0s9j1XzF2xFF3dBlDA⁠If you want to let us know what you think of the show, or have an idea for the show, you can DM us on Facebook or Instagram @HoldUsAccountable

Show #2445 Show Notes: ‘Mystic’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/mystic Camp O-At-Ka: https://campoatka.org/ Flooding Reel: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1885713675540032 2 Timothy 3:1-13 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Timothy%203%3A1-13&version=KJV Guidestones: https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=10233198261912346&set=a.10206430192287335 GBI Investigates Guidestone Explosion: https://gbi.georgia.gov/press-releases/2022-07-07/gbi-investigates-explosion-elbert-county Explosion video: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1769847710017329&ref=sharing Rachelle Video: https://www.bitchute.com/video/7OhhbXWh1cPz/ Mighty Warrior – Hosanna Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ff0yqPsKDMg&list=RDff0yqPsKDMg&start_radio=1 Proverbs 1: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Proverbs%201&version=KJV Zombies […]

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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 6, 2025 is: antic • AN-tik • noun Antic refers to an attention-drawing, often wildly playful or funny act or action. It is usually used in its plural form, and is often used disapprovingly. // It wasn't clear which students were ultimately responsible for the antics that unfolded in the cafeteria that day. See the entry > Examples: “A couple of adult gorillas, including one majestic silverback, lay indolently on the ground—seemingly reveling in the early morning sunshine, while a pair of young gorillas tumbled down from a mound and played together on the muddy earth. It was remarkable to see how similar they are to humans. They live in family groups and their movements, antics and expressions are so like ours. In fact, data shows that humans and gorillas differ in only 1.75 per cent of their DNA, far less than previously assumed. (Chimpanzees—our closest relatives—differ only 1.37 per cent from our genomes.)” — Zeineb Badawi, An African History of Africa: From the Dawn of Humanity to Independence, 2025 Did you know? When referring to one of the grotesques—the fanciful, often fantastical mural paintings found in the ruins of ancient Roman buildings—the Italian descendants of the ancient Romans used the word antico, meaning “ancient thing.” In 16th-century English, antico (itself a descendant of the Latin word for “ancient,” antiquus) became antic, and got applied as both a noun and an adjective in contexts related to decorative art—sculptures, painting, architecture, etc.—inspired by the original grotesques. Antic shifted in meaning over time, eventually gaining the senses we use more often today: antic as an adjective describes the absurd or whimsical, and antic as a usually plural noun refers to attention-grabbing, playful or funny acts and actions.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 5, 2025 is: cantankerous • kan-TANK-uh-rus • adjective A cantankerous person is often angry and annoyed, and a cantankerous animal or thing is difficult or irritating to deal with. // Although the former postman was regarded by some townspeople as a scowling, cantankerous old coot, he was beloved by neighborhood children, to whom he would regularly hand out butterscotch candies from his front stoop with a twinkle in his eye. See the entry > Examples: “The film ‘Hard Truths,' which opens in New York on Friday and nationwide in January, centers on [Marianne] Jean-Baptiste's Pansy, a cantankerous middle-aged woman who spits venom at unsuspecting shop assistants, bald babies, her 20-something son Moses (Tuwaine Barrett) and her dentist, among others.” — Simran Hans, The New York Times, 9 Dec. 2024 Did you know? A person described as cantankerous may find it more difficult than most to turn that frown upside down, while a cantankerous mule/jalopy/etc. is difficult to deal with—it may not turn in your desired direction. It's been speculated that cantankerous is a product of the obsolete word contack, meaning “contention,” under the influence of a pair of “difficult” words still in use: rancorous and cankerous. Rancorous brings the anger and “bitter deep-seated ill will” (as rancor can be understood to mean), and cankerous brings the perhaps understandable foul mood: a cankerous person suffers from painful sores—that is, cankers.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 4, 2025 is: Yankee • YANG-kee • noun Yankee can refer broadly to anyone born or living in the U.S., more narrowly to only those in the northern U.S., or even more narrowly to only those in the states of New England. The broadest use is especially common outside the U.S. // It took the children some time to adjust to being the only Southerners in a classroom full of Yankees. // After years of international travel, he'd grown accustomed to living as a Yankee abroad. See the entry > Examples: "Anthony Pettaway's coworkers at Norfab Ducting have known for the past six years he was good at getting their deliveries to the right department. They also knew from his accent that the receivables department employee was a relocated Yankee." — Jill Doss-Raines, The Dispatch (Lexington, NC), 10 June 2025 Did you know? We don't know the origin of Yankee but we do know that it began as an insult. British General James Wolfe used the term in a 1758 letter to express his low opinion of the New England troops assigned to him, and from around the same time period there is a report of British troops using Yankee as a term of abuse for the citizens of Boston. In 1775, however, after the battles of Lexington and Concord showed that colonials could stand up to British regulars, Yankee was proudly adopted by colonials as a self-descriptor in defiance of the pejorative use. Both derisive and respectable uses have existed ever since.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 3, 2025 is: desultory • DEH-sul-tor-ee • adjective Desultory is a formal word used to describe something that lacks a plan or purpose, or that occurs without regularity. It can also describe something unconnected to a main subject, or something that is disappointing in progress, performance, or quality. // After graduation, I moved from job to job in a more or less desultory manner before finding work I liked. // The team failed to cohere over the course of the season, stumbling to a desultory fifth place finish. See the entry > Examples: “One other guy was in the waiting room when I walked in. As we sat there past the scheduled time of our appointments, we struck up a desultory conversation. Like me, he'd been in the hiring process for years, had driven down from Albuquerque the night before, and seemed nervous. He asked if I'd done any research on the polygraph. I said no, and asked him the same question. He said no. We were getting our first lies out of the way.” — Justin St. Germain, “The Memoirist and the Lie Detector,” New England Review, 2024 Did you know? The Latin adjective desultorius was used by the ancient Romans to describe a circus performer (called a desultor) whose trick was to leap from horse to horse without stopping. English speakers took the idea of the desultorius performer and coined the word desultory to describe that which figuratively “jumps” from one thing to another, without regularity, and showing no sign of a plan or purpose. (Both desultor and desultorius, by the way, come from the Latin verb salire, meaning “to leap.”) A desultory conversation leaps from one topic to another, and a desultory comment is one that jumps away from the topic at hand. Meanwhile a desultory performance is one resulting from an implied lack of steady, focused effort.

Show #2444 Show Notes: LAN: https://thelibertyactionnetwork.com/ Ephesians 6: KJV: http://biblegateway.com/passage/?search=eph%206&version=KJV MSG: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=eph%206&version=MSG Galatians 5:22-23 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%205%3A22-23&version=KJV Romans 8:2 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%208%3A2&version=KJV ‘Substance’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/substance Hebrews 11:1 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=hebrews%2011%3A1&version=KJV Putin Bans Satanism: https://thepeoplesvoice.tv/putin-officially-bans-satanism-in-russia-declares-the-occult-a-cultural-threat-to-civilization/ Martyr’s Crown: https://search.brave.com/search?q=martyrs+crown&source=desktop&conversation=f67c69021b9df4573be26b&summary=1 Revelation 21:8 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=rev%2021%3A8&version=KJV Psalm 116:15 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%20116%3A15&version=KJV Ecclesiastes 7:1 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ecc%207%3A1&version=KJV Dave Daubenmire, […]

Kgomotso converses with Dr Elias Malete, Head of the Department of African Languages at UFS, about the launch of Sesotho sa Leboa dictionary. The Aubrey Masango Show is presented by late night radio broadcaster Aubrey Masango. Aubrey hosts in-depth interviews on controversial political issues and chats to experts offering life advice and guidance in areas of psychology, personal finance and more. All Aubrey’s interviews are podcasted for you to catch-up and listen. Thank you for listening to this podcast from The Aubrey Masango Show. Listen live on weekdays between 20:00 and 24:00 (SA Time) to The Aubrey Masango Show broadcast on 702 https://buff.ly/gk3y0Kj and on CapeTalk between 20:00 and 21:00 (SA Time) https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk Find out more about the show here https://buff.ly/lzyKCv0 and get all the catch-up podcasts https://buff.ly/rT6znsn Subscribe to the 702 and CapeTalk Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/v5mfet Follow us on social media: 702 on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TalkRadio702 702 on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@talkradio702 702 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkradio702/ 702 on X: https://x.com/Radio702 702 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@radio702 CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 2, 2025 is: galumph • guh-LUMF • verb To galumph is to move in a loud and clumsy way. // I could hear them galumphing around in the attic in search of old family photo albums. See the entry > Examples: “Dragons! Dragons roaring! Dragons squawking! Dragons sizing each other up! Dragons galumphing over the sand so awkwardly it reminds you that dragons are creatures of the air, not the earth.” — Glen Weldon, NPR, 28 July 2024 Did you know? Bump, thump, thud. There's no doubt about it—when someone or something galumphs onto the scene, ears take notice. Galumph first lumbered onto the English scene in 1872 when Lewis Carroll used the word to describe the actions of the vanquisher of the Jabberwock in Through the Looking Glass: “He left it dead, and with its head / He went galumphing back.” Carroll likely constructed the word by splicing gallop and triumphant, as galumph did in its earliest uses convey a sense of exultant bounding. Other 19th-century writers must have liked the sound of galumph, because they began plying it in their own prose, and it has been clumping around our language ever since.

Show #2443 Show Notes: Romans 2: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%202&version=KJV Galatians 5:14-26 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians%205%3A14-26&version=KJV Natural Laws: https://www.google.com/search?q=natural+laws&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS1145US1145&sxsrf=AE3TifMjni8P8EyTsNkfgyXXzZ030XfG1w%3A1751452454100 Laws of nature and nature’s God: https://www.google.com/search?q=laws+of+nature+and+nature%27s+god&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS1145US1145&ie=UTF-8 12 Universal Laws: https://www.reddit.com/r/selfimprovement/comments/8tvtwz/the_12_universal_laws_you_must_know_to_manifest/ 4 Spiritual Laws: https://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/biblical-laws/4-spiritual-laws/ ‘Fidelity’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/Fidelity ‘Compromise’: https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/compromise 7 Noahide Laws: https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/62221/jewish/The-7-Noahide-Laws.htm1 Dave Daubenmire, […]

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 1, 2025 is: verbose • ver-BOHSS • adjective Someone described as verbose tends to use many words to convey their point. Verbose can also describe something, such as a speech, that contains more words than necessary. // The article documenting their meeting presented an odd exchange between a verbose questioner and a laconic interviewee. See the entry > Examples: "The dense, verbose text—over which some actors stumbled, understandably, on opening night—created a dizzying journey through a war between gods and mortals fought across time and place." — Rosa Cartagena, The Philadelphia Daily News, 19 Feb. 2025 Did you know? There's no shortage of words to describe wordiness in English. Diffuse, long-winded, prolix, redundant, windy, repetitive, rambling, and circumlocutory are some that come to mind. Want to express the opposite idea? Try succinct, concise, brief, short, summary, terse, compact, or compendious. Verbose, which falls solidly into the first camp of words, comes from the Latin adjective verbōsus, from verbum, meaning "word." Other descendants of verbum include verb, adverb, proverb, verbal, and verbicide ("the deliberate distortion of the sense of a word").

When you pick up a dictionary and look up a word, have you ever stopped to consider who it was that compiled such meticulous work? Was it a scholar, or group of scholars, holed up in a musty backroom somewhere dedicating their lives to the task, or a wide group of volunteers, crowdsourcing an otherwise unthinkable workload? Or was it perhaps, a madman and murderer, working at leisure from the comfort of his asylum cell? In the case of the infamous Oxford English Dictionary, it was all of the above. SOURCES Wichester, Simon (2005) The Professor and the Madman. Harper Collins, London, UK. Johnson, Samuel (1755) A Dictionary of the English Language. W. Strahan, London, UK. Evening Mail (1872) Murder In Lambeth. Evening Mail, Mon 19 Feb 1872, p7. London, UK. South Wales Daily Telegram (1872) The Late Shocking Tragedy At Lambeth. South Wales Daily Telegram, Fri 5 April 1872, p4, Wales, UK. ------ For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories The Dark Histories books are available to buy here: http://author.to/darkhistories Dark Histories merch is available here: https://bit.ly/3GChjk9 Connect with us on Facebook: http://facebook.com/darkhistoriespodcast Or find us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/darkhistories & Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dark_histories/ Or you can contact us directly via email at contact@darkhistories.com or join our Discord community: https://discord.gg/cmGcBFf The Dark Histories Butterfly was drawn by Courtney, who you can find on Instagram @bewildereye Music was recorded by me © Ben Cutmore 2017 Other Outro music was Paul Whiteman & his orchestra with Mildred Bailey - All of me (1931). It's out of copyright now, but if you're interested, that was that. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 30, 2025 is: expunge • ik-SPUNJ • verb To expunge something is to remove it completely, whether by obliterating it, striking it out, or marking it for deletion. Expunge is most commonly applied in cases in which documentation of something is removed from an official record. // Due to an error, the charges were expunged from their record. See the entry > Examples: “... Bland et al. found that an offer to expunge a criminal record after participation in a rehabilitation program reduced crime as well as the measure of harm. This appears to indicate that motivation drives rehabilitation—which is important to consider in judging character in the present.” — Wendy L. Patrick, Psychology Today, 1 Dec. 2024 Did you know? In medieval and Renaissance manuscripts, a series of dots was used to mark mistakes or to label material that should be deleted from a text, and those deletion dots—known as puncta delentia—can help you remember the history of expunge. Puncta comes from the Latin verb pungere, which can be translated as “to prick or sting” (and you can imagine that a scribe may have felt stung when their mistakes were so punctuated in a manuscript). Pungere is also an ancestor of expunge, as well as a parent of other dotted, pointed, or stinging terms such as punctuate, compunction, poignant, puncture, and pungent.

Nijay Gupta (DPhil, University of Durham) has written several academic books including A Beginner's Guide to New Testament Studies, Paul and the Language of Faith, 15 New Testament Words of Life, and Tell Her Story: How Women Led, Taught, and Ministered in the Early Church. He has co-edited The State of New Testament Studies, Dictionary of Paul and His Letters (2nd ed.), and The State of Pauline Studies. Nijay co-chairs the Pauline Theology seminar of the Institute for Biblical Research and serves as a senior translator for the New Living Translation.  Nijay blogs here and co-hosts the Slow Theology podcast.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 29, 2025 is: impetus • IM-puh-tus • noun Impetus refers to a force or impulse that causes something (such as a process or activity) to be done or to become more active. It is often used with for and sometimes with to. // Her work provided the major impetus behind the movement. // The tragic accident became an impetus for changing the safety regulations. // The high salary and generous benefits package were impetus enough to apply for the job. See the entry > Examples: “... using the many tools now available, I built a family tree with over twelve hundred names of people living in some two dozen countries. If there is anything approaching a single story of humanity, it is surely one of movement, whatever the impetus.” — Diana McCaulay, LitHub.com, 27 Feb. 2025 Did you know? Impetus provides the “why” for something: it can be understood as a driving force (as when winning a competition is the impetus for training), an incentive (as when increased skills serve as an impetus for taking a class), or encouragement (as when difficulties are the impetus for improvements). But its root packs more of a wallop: Latin impetus means “assault” as well as “impetus,” and it comes from impetere meaning “to attack.” (Impetere itself comes from petere, meaning “to go to, seek.”) If these origins seem a tad aggressive for such a genteel-sounding word as impetus, consider phrases and idioms like light a fire under someone and push comes to shove, both used when a strong impetus is provided for someone to act, decide, or accomplish something.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 28, 2025 is: restive • RES-tiv • adjective Restive can describe a person or group feeling impatience or uneasiness, or it can describe someone who is stubbornly resistant to control. // The audience grew increasingly restive as the speaker droned on and on. // The school's focus on artistic expression helps restive youths stay engaged in their learning. See the entry > Examples: "One of the most important triggers for industrial revolution in England was the draining of the population from the rural areas into the cities. ... [T]his meant that there was a growing shortage of agricultural workers and a concomitant fall in food production both in terms of quality and quantity. The immediate consequence was that available food not only became more expensive but increasingly so with time. Under these circumstances, the workers became restive, demanding the provision of the food they needed to save themselves from starvation." — Adebayo Lamikanra, The Nation (Nigeria), 13 Apr. 2025 Did you know? Restive is descended from the Anglo-French verb rester, meaning "to stop, resist, or remain." Its initial meaning in the 15th century was "stubbornly resisting control or guidance; obstinate in refusal," and for some time the word was primarily applied to animals such as horses. Over the next few centuries, restive gained additional, closely related meanings (such as "inflexible," "sluggish," and "persistent") and the word often described people as well as animals. In the 19th century this semantic drift extended to encompass the meaning "marked by impatience or uneasiness." Although the original "balky" sense of restive hasn't died out completely, it is overshadowed by this more recent "fidgety or impatient" one. Some usage guides still recommend against using restive in this modern sense, despite well over a century and a half of skilled writers employing it. If you're among the restive (earlier meaning) ones who balk at new meanings of words, we apologize if this news makes you feel restive (newer one).

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 27, 2025 is: oblige • uh-BLYJE • verb To oblige a person or entity to do something is to require or force them to do it, either because of a law or rule, or because it is necessary. To simply oblige someone is to do them a favor. // The law obliges the government to release certain documents to the public. // When my friend said he needed someone to taste test his new recipe for the cooking competition, I was happy to oblige. See the entry > Examples: “I was irked 30 years ago when our neighbor said she intended to install a free-standing fence between our driveways. … It seemed unneighborly to humans and wildlife alike. We were a family who spent more time outdoors than in, always nearby when our neighbor pulled into her driveway. Once the fence was up, she was no longer obliged to speak to us.” — Margaret Renkl, New York Times, 2 June 2025 Did you know? If you are obliged by a rule or law you are metaphorically bound by it—that is, you are required to obey it. The idea of binding links the word to its Latin source, ligāre, meaning “to fasten, bind.” But in other common uses, the idea of binding is somewhat masked: it is applied when someone is bound by a debt for some favor or service, as in “We're much obliged to you for the help,” but in the phrase “happy to oblige” it simply expresses a willingness to do someone a favor, as in “They needed a ride and we were happy to oblige.”

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 26, 2025 is: sumptuous • SUMP-shuh-wus • adjective Sumptuous is used to describe things that are very expensive, rich, luxurious, or magnificent. // The celebratory meal was a sumptuous feast of dishes from our host's homeland. See the entry > Examples: “With comfy living areas with bistro tables, sumptuous marble bathrooms, and large private lanais with sweeping views of the ocean, mountain, or gardens, guests have ample room to spread out, relax, and really make themselves at home.” — Elizabeth Brownfield, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025 Did you know? Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens may be a few of your favorite things, but are they sumptuous? Alas, though the best things in life are often free, sumptuous is a child of the Latin word sumptus, meaning “expense,” and it typically describes things that can only be had at some significant expense. A sumptuous lifestyle, for example, is more likely to involve silver-white bling than a silver-white winter that melts into spring. Sumptus has another English relation, this one tied even more closely to conspicuous consumption: sumptuary laws are largely historical regulations limiting extravagant expenditures and habits, especially on moral or religious grounds. (The sump in consumption is coincidental; that word comes from consume, which has its roots in Latin sumere meaning “to take up, take.”)

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 26, 2025 is: sumptuous • SUMP-shuh-wus • adjective Sumptuous is used to describe things that are very expensive, rich, luxurious, or magnificent. // The celebratory meal was a sumptuous feast of dishes from our host's homeland. See the entry > Examples: “With comfy living areas with bistro tables, sumptuous marble bathrooms, and large private lanais with sweeping views of the ocean, mountain, or gardens, guests have ample room to spread out, relax, and really make themselves at home.” — Elizabeth Brownfield, Forbes, 20 Mar. 2025 Did you know? Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens may be a few of your favorite things, but are they sumptuous? Alas, though the best things in life are often free, sumptuous is a child of the Latin word sumptus, meaning “expense,” and it typically describes things that can only be had at some significant expense. A sumptuous lifestyle, for example, is more likely to involve silver-white bling than a silver-white winter that melts into spring. Sumptus has another English relation, this one tied even more closely to conspicuous consumption: sumptuary laws are largely historical regulations limiting extravagant expenditures and habits, especially on moral or religious grounds. (The sump is consumption is coincidental; that word comes from consume, which has its roots in Latin sumere meaning “to take up, take.”)

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 25, 2025 is: flotsam • FLAHT-sum • noun Flotsam refers to the floating pieces that remain after a shipwreck, or more broadly to any floating debris or wreckage. It is also used figuratively to refer to miscellaneous or unimportant material, often in the phrase "flotsam and jetsam." // Driftwood and other flotsam washed onto the beach. // Their apartment was adorned with the flotsam and jetsam of thrift stores and yard sales. See the entry > Examples: "The Vancouver multidisciplinary artist and educator [Alex Tedlie-Stursberg] works in various mediums, using found objects and natural materials scavenged from the ocean's edge and the landscape of the city. Detritus and flotsam become parts of beautiful sculptures, tableaus and assemblages in this artist's hands." — Dana Gee, The Vancouver (British Columbia) Sun, 23 Nov. 2024 Did you know? English speakers started using flotsam, jetsam, and lagan as legal terms in the 16th and 17th centuries, with flotsam itself dating to the first years of the 17th. The three words were used to establish claims of ownership of the three types of seaborne, vessel-originated goods they named. Flotsam was anything from a shipwreck (the word comes from Anglo-French floter, meaning "to float"), and jetsam and lagan were items thrown overboard to reduce the cargo weight of a ship. Lagan was distinguished from jetsam by having a buoy attached so the goods could be found if they sank. In the 19th century, when flotsam and jetsam took on extended meanings, they developed synonymous applications and are today often paired, lagan having mostly been left at sea.

The DOGGZZONE welcomes back Dennard Dayle. Today we're going to help Dennard become the world's next best selling author through cunning use of demonic favors! First we must choose the most helpful demon for our nefarious causes... Who could it possibly be?? Tune in to find out as we scour the Infernal Dictionary for the Secrets to Dennard's Success! Buy Dennard Dayle's book, "How to Dodge a Cannonball: A Novel" https://www.amazon.com/How-Dodge-Cannonball-Dennard-Dayle/dp/1250345677 NYT review: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/16/books/review/how-to-dodge-a-cannonball-dennard-dayle.html

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 24, 2025 is: noisome • NOY-sum • adjective Noisome is a formal and literary word used to describe things that are very unpleasant or disgusting; it is used especially to describe offensive smells. Noisome can also mean “highly obnoxious or objectionable” as in “we were put off by their noisome habits.” // The noisome odor of a trash can in the alley was so strong that even diners seated inside the adjacent restaurant complained to staff. See the entry > Examples: “During the fourteenth century, the bubonic plague outbreak that came to be known as the Black Death claimed thousands of victims, condemning them to a rapid and painful end. As the sufferers deteriorated, the disease tainted them with a tell-tale, repellent stench, which seemed to confirm smell as the root cause of the illness. ... Noisome dwellings were set right by fumigation, while rooms were doused with strong-smelling substances like vinegar and turpentine—anything to keep at bay the dreaded miasma.” — Ashley Ward, Where We Meet the World: The Story of the Senses, 2023 Did you know? Noisome looks and sounds like a close relation of noisy, but it's not. While noisy describes what is excessively loud, noisome typically describes what is excessively stinky. (It is also used to describe things offensive to the senses generally, as well as things that are highly obnoxious, objectionable, or simply harmful.) Noisome comes from the synonymous Middle English noysome, which combines the suffix -some, meaning “characterized by a specified thing,” and the noun noy, meaning “annoyance.” Noisy, incidentally, comes ultimately from Latin nausea, meaning “nausea.”

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 23, 2025 is: wherewithal • WAIR-wih-thawl • noun Wherewithal refers to the means, skills, resources, or money that is needed to get or do something. // The company does not have the financial wherewithal to expand into other markets at this time. See the entry > Examples: "... it is heartening to know that there are people of real influence who have the will and wherewithal to help lift the city out of the doldrums." — Scott Wright, The Herald (Scotland), 15 May 2025 Did you know? If wherewithal sounds like three words smashed together, that's because it is—sort of. Wherewithal combines where and withal, an adverb from Middle English that is itself a combination of with and all. In the past, wherewithal was used as a conjunction meaning "with or by means of which" and as a pronoun meaning "that with or by which." Today, however, it is almost always used as a noun to refer to the means or resources a person or entity has at their disposal. It refers especially to financial resources, but other means such as social influence, ability, and emotional capacity may also be termed as "wherewithal."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 22, 2025 is: bemuse • bih-MYOOZ • verb If you are bemused by something, you are confused or bewildered by it, and often also somewhat amused. // The contestant seemed somewhat bemused by the question, but gave the correct answer. See the entry > Examples: “The duck touched down on the surface of Raymond James Stadium just minutes before the Bucs scored their own touchdown. ... Many of the staff not assigned to work on the field were bemused by the sight of Anchor carrying a duck out of the stadium. They held cellphones and took pictures.” — Rick Stroud, The Tampa Bay (Florida) Times, 1 Jan. 2025 Did you know? In 1735, British poet Alexander Pope lamented, in rhyme, being besieged by “a parson much bemus'd in beer.” The cleric in question was apparently one of a horde of would-be poets who pestered Pope with requests that he read their verses. Pope meant that the parson had found his muse—his inspiration—in beer. That use of bemused harks back to a 1705 letter in which Pope wrote of “Poets … irrecoverably Be-mus'd.” In both letter and poem, Pope used bemused to allude to being inspired by or devoted to one of the Muses, the Greek sister goddesses of art, music, and literature. The lexicographers who followed him, however, interpreted “bemus'd in beer” as meaning “left confused by beer,” and their confusion gave rise to the “bewilder” sense of bemuse. The newer (and very common) use of bemuse to mean “to cause to have feelings of wry or tolerant amusement” is a topic of some dispute, as discussed here.