Definition: (verb) To give a false appearance of.
Synonyms: sham, simulate, assume.
Usage: When confronted about the crime, the suspect feigned ignorance of even the most general details.
Discuss
Month: November 2021
sled
bobber – A person who rides a bobsled or bobsleigh (meaning “short sled”). More…
pung – Once the name for a one-horse sled or wagon. More…
skate, ski, sled – The word skate was originally plural and comes from Dutch schaats, which derived from an Old French word for “stilt,” but the connection is unclear. Skate appeared in English in the mid-17th century. Ski, in English by 1755, was borrowed from Norwegian, and ultimately from Old Norse for “snowshoe.” Sled came from Flemish and Germanic sledde, between 1325 and 1388, for a “vehicle for transporting heavy goods,” and is related to sledge and sleigh. More…
toboggan – Comes from Canadian French from Micmac tobakun or Abnaki udabagan, “sled, sleigh.” More…
Timor Santa Cruz Massacre Day
The Santa Cruz Massacre Day remains among the most significant anniversaries for veterans of the Timorese independence movement, which was active during the Indonesian occupation between 1975 and 1999. In 1991, 271 protesters disappeared or were killed at the Santa Cruz cemetery in the Timor-Leste capital, Dili. That massacre sparked international outrage and kept the spotlight on the Indonesian occupation until it ended in 1999. The tone of the day remains mournful. During the occupation years, the Timorese often lit candles, and it was an occasion for public figures to rally the people. Discuss
have (some/any) qualms about (something or someone)
To have some or certain hesitations, apprehensions, uneasiness, or pangs of conscience (about something or someone). (Also often used in the negative to mean the opposite.) Watch the video
Misery Lit
Misery lit is a genre of biographical literature focused on the protagonist’s triumph over childhood trauma. Such texts typically involve physical or sexual abuse, or neglect, perpetrated by an adult authority figure, like a parent. Often written in the first person, the stories usually culminate in some sort of redemption or escape. Frank McCourt’s memoir Angela’s Ashes is deemed a seminal work of the genre, although not the first. Which book do most people think originated misery lit? Discuss
hovel
hunger
famine, famish – Famine and famish come from Latin fames, “hunger.” More…
dissatisfied, unsatisfied – Only a person can be dissatisfied, while an abstract thing (such as hunger) can be unsatisfied. More…
piece de resistance – The original context for piece de resistance is what one is able to resist by eating the big dish—pangs of hunger. More…
Gansabhauet
Gansabhauet is held only in the country town of Sursee, Lucerne Canton, Switzerland, on St. Martin’s Day. A dead goose is hung by its neck in front of the town hall, and young men draw lots to take turns trying to knock it down with a blunt saber. (Gansabhauet means “knocking down goose.”) The men—blindfolded and wearing red robes and big round masks representing the sun—get only one try at the bird. While the men whack at the goose, children’s games take place: they scale a stripped tree, race in sacks, and compete to see who can make the ugliest face. Discuss
no pressure
Said ironically to emphasize that what is being discussed carries a large amount of importance or makes one feel that one must try very hard to succeed. Watch the video
San Serriffe
On April Fools’ Day 1977, Britain’s The Guardian newspaper reported on the curious—but fictional—island nation of San Serriffe. The article described two islands—Upper Caisse and Lower Caisse—inhabited by colonists known as “colons” and “semi-colons,” who celebrate events such as the Festival of the Well-Made Play. Since the article predated personal computers, typography was not widely known, and plays on words like “sans serif” eluded many readers. What is San Serriffe’s national bird? Discuss