Words of the Day
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aspectual 'after'construction: BE +after+ V-ing: perfective aspect Found in Irish English; originates from Irish. Examples: - We kept thinking she was after dying on us (i.e. We thought she had died on us) French - Broken Harbour - I only wanted to know what's after happening (i.e. -what has happened) (ibid) - some fella’s after buying up the three houses at the top of the Place (i.e. has bought the three houses) French - Faithful Place - now everyone’s after getting all worried about property prices (i.e. now everyone has gotten all worried) (ibid) - I’m only after narrowing it down this afternoon (French - The Likeness) - And you're after coming all the way from England to find out who done it? (French - In the Woods) |
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aspectual 'done'In African American English: done + past tense = perfective meaning - “I’m grown, li’l girl,” she says. “Don’t ask me what I do. Anyway, I come home and thatheffadone covered my catfish in some damn cornflakes and baked it!” (Angie Thomas - The Hate U Give) - Daddy drives off. “Done lost y’all minds,” he says. “People rioting, damn near calling the National Guard around here, and y’all wanna play ball" (ibid) - “I done faced a whole lot worse than some so-called King. Ain’t nothing he can do but kill me, and if that's how I gotta go for speaking the truth, that's how I gotta go." (ibid). |
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avant-garde
avant-garde (n.)
(also avant garde, avantgarde); French, literally "advance guard" (see
avant+
guard(n.)). Used in English 15c.-18c. in a literal, military sense; borrowed again 1910 as an artistic term for "pioneers or innovators of a particular period." Also used around the same time in a political sense in communist and anarchist publications. As an adjective, by 1925.
- The artwork. The prior year the equity partners at Scully & Pershing had - The Berlin that Schrödinger left bore little resemblance to the city |
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bifurcateformal if a road,riveretcbifurcates, itdividesinto twoseparateparts from Medieval Latin bifurcatus, from Latin bi- (seebi-) + furca, the root offork. Examples: - PARTING THOUGHTS - By arranging these dominoes in a network with looping,bifurcatingand |
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but, post-clausallyIn informal (spoken) Irish English, 'but' does not appear in initial position of the clause that it introduces, but comes after it: - That there was Jenny’s wedding, but. - We haven’t got the Spains, but. - “You’re not, but." - “Not this time, but." = But not this time. - “Something personal, but." - "Another thing, but." Etc. All examples from Tana French - Broken Harbour (2012). Here 'but' seems to be used with the meaning of 'however' (which is more likely to be used in writing). |
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carcinogenic |
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caterwaulingcat‧er‧waul /ˈkætəwɔːl $ -tərwɒːl/ verb [intransitive] to make aloudhighunpleasantnoiselike the sound acatmakes late 14c., caterwrawen, perhaps from Low German katerwaulen "cry like a cat," or formed in English from cater, from Middle Dutch cater "tomcat" + Middle English waul "to yowl," apparently from Old English *wrag, *wrah "angry," of uncertain origin but all somehow imitative. - I think I might have screamed out loud, I was so happy to be outside, - With a mellifluous name suggesting bucolic tranquility, Rep. Mark Meadows, a North Carolina Republican, is an unlikely object of the caterwauling recently directed at him and the House Freedom Caucus he leads. (WaPo, April 13, 2017) |
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catkins/ˈkætkɪn/ noun [countable]British English a long softflowerthat hangs in groups from thebranchesof trees such as the willow Etymology: 1570s, from Dutchkatteken"flowering stem of willow, birch, hazel, etc.," literally "kitten," diminutive of katte "cat" (seecat(n.)). So called for their soft, furry appearance. Examples: - The wind is blowing, blowing over the grass. - I threaded my way through a small growth of fresh-budding river - “I’m sure, Watson, a week in the country will be invaluable to you,” he |
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caveat emptorcaveat emp‧tor /ˌkæviæt ˈemptɔː, ˌkeɪv- $ -tɔːr/ noun [uncountable] law term: theprinciplethat thepersonwhobuyssomething isresponsibleforcheckingthat it is notbroken,damagedetc - Oh, Watson!’ Holmes chided me, laughing heartily. ‘The pendant is part of - “Well, you see, it’s complicated, because—” I wasn’t worried about the |
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