yarb has adopted no words, looked up 0 words, created 94 lists, listed 7830 words, written 8082 comments, added 0 tags, and loved 195 words.
Comments for yarb
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You know I spent a couple of nights in Bray in Ireland last year. Despite the palindromic potential, I did not think of you.
January 8, 2020
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Heya yarb.
January 8, 2020
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(but only at the appropriate moments)
September 18, 2019
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Agreed! Yarb is excellent.
September 18, 2019
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I have missed yarb coming on this site to say 'This is excellent' at the appropriate moments.
September 18, 2019
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Yes, Bogota. And beyond, hikingly.
November 8, 2014
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I think that might not be too harsh, mads.
Zuzu, not all eds are fascists - only the majority - but it would still be a funny joke. He did write quite a lot of the later cantos while he was locked up (in a psychiatric ward, I think) but I'm only 1/3 of the way through. Now distracted by the complete Calvin & Hobbes which my son recommended.
March 26, 2014
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Ah. It's 14 ways for the blackshirts (it's by Umberto Eco).
March 26, 2014
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madmouth: Pound? I'd make a joke about all editors being fascists, but it's not true--so it wouldn't be funny, and then what's the point? But... also... you'd said something about the Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird, which reminds me that I once read something about Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackshirt.
yarb: Didn't he write some of those cantos when he was in a cage or in a cell or something?
and ry: I was thinking some of the same things about religion over on your lies--1 list.
March 26, 2014
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He's certainly a strong presence in his own work, completely unlike Joyce and much more directly than Eliot, but more than that, he's a prickly presence... I think he challenges the reader very directly, polemically. In a work as long and (at times) claustrophobic as the Cantos it's like being locked in the basement with that nutty throwback.
March 25, 2014
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2 words:
glorified
editor
March 25, 2014
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I've been wanting to know more about The Lost Generation--I checked out a biography of Sylvia Beach and thought maybe it was time to read Ulysses, but I haven't gotten very far yet. I *have* read a little Eliot (all thanks to bilby's comments about the hyacinth girl), but Pound has always scared me.
March 25, 2014
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Joyce is a different animal, I don't think he ought to be in that famous triumvirate... Obviously Eliot and £ are very close to each other but £ is like Eliot's misbegotten, basement-confined progeny... undecorous, malformed, deranged. I like the Homeric strand of the Cantos and one or two other things but the stuff on monetary policy and the early politics of the USA is awful. And I've never liked troubadours, Chanson de Roland and all that, either.
March 25, 2014
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The Can't-os... I think Flann O'Brien was right:
My grasp of what he wrote and meant
was only 5 or 6 %.
The rest was only words and sound -
my reference is to Ezra £.
March 25, 2014
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I've had Gargantua and Pantagruel on my list forever--though lately I've been distracted by the Joyce/Pound/Eliot triumvirate and some of their detractors. Which Pound are you reading?
March 25, 2014
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Really I ought to re-read Rabelais first. I read a bit about the "carnivalesque" at uni but that was before I read Rab. Perhaps I'll make that my reward when I eventually finish the Pound-cake I've been trying to digest for some months now.
March 25, 2014
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Ha--I was hoping you could recommend one for me! I'm always starting in on Toward a Philosophy of the Act, but I'm always wishing I could read Rabelais and His World (especially this time of year, when the circus is in town).
March 25, 2014
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Pretty sure I did at uni... but it would have been a rather superficial reading. Recommend me a volume!
March 25, 2014
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Have you read any of Bakhtin's stuff about Rabelais?
March 25, 2014
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If you're still looking for prizes, you should ask the bear about miniature trebuchets.
March 13, 2013
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Is it time for another identify-the-wordienik?
March 1, 2013
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Plumbum. Is it the new crumb bum?
September 7, 2012
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You are what in Italian we call uno str<3'aordinario membro della comunità internet, che pensa come un uomo sobrio e si diverte come uno sbr'onzo.
January 13, 2012
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You two <3'shouldn't send too many messages in a row or I can't see them, but you also' crack me up.
January 13, 2012
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Screw <3'the people who read your comment and don't understand! It's fun to be back with' you!
January 13, 2012
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I heart <3' that Prolagus and I have figured out we can send secret messages to' you.
January 13, 2012
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Yarb, clivose is derived from Latin clῑvōsus, which means hilly, steep, precipitous.
Cliff is derived from Old English and Middle English words.
July 25, 2011
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Yarb, I just came across your villanelle on sustainism and am truly impressed. Kudos!
July 24, 2011
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oh, Yarb-thing - why in the world haven't we had a coffee yet??
June 13, 2011
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*favorited*
June 8, 2011
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Visiting the parentals in North Wales with pitstops in London at either end.
May 8, 2011
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Hey! Whereabouts in the UK, yarb?
May 7, 2011
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Hurrah! Now I'm treating myself to a well=deserved vacation (really: I'm in the UK this week).
May 7, 2011
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You won! You won!
May 6, 2011
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You cannot escape the charge that you have previously engaged in the amazing pastime that is IDENTIFY THE WORDIE.
You are therefore prime target material for inviting to IDENTIFY THE WORDIENIK.
The whole of the bit of Wordnik that joins in on this would be truly honoured should you participate this time round.
Easily find the right page right now because it is currently the most commented on list shown on the Community page.
April 14, 2011
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Marvelous! I've half a mind to join you in a re-read, although this sudden interest in Greek is taking up more time than I intended it to at the outset.
hh: it's always a pleasure to have one's lists pillaged, especially by such a luminary as you.
March 16, 2011
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I'm diving into Gargantua and Pantagruel. I will never think of bacon in the same way again.
March 16, 2011
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Thanks for your comments on my list Things We've Seen Moved By Ants, and providing a link to your list Of Ants and Men. I'll raid terms from that list to add to various of my lists, if you please, beginning with topochemical.
March 10, 2011
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glad to hear it
March 9, 2011
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Thank for adding “appendice” to my list; I particularly enjoyed the associated comments.
P.S.: Have you tried “nuncle”? It’s Shakespearean, rebracketed, and proscribed, so you can hardly loose.
January 28, 2011
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Check the Wordnik blog for tips for searching comments, lists, etc.
December 8, 2010
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its witty
December 5, 2010
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test the line talking bird with wit
December 5, 2010
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It wasnt you who insulted the crown and if you help me defend it i shall offer you my friendship
December 5, 2010
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Hey yarb do you know anyone who can promote the single and give it the rightfully Halfholy place in the shops of england it should have?
December 4, 2010
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thx 4 listing Thor.. how could I have missed that god!?
November 30, 2010
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thx 4 listing Brazil.. how could I have missed that movie!?
October 22, 2010
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Fantastico! I hear there was a bad mudslide in Oaxaca--ten cuidado.
September 28, 2010
Comments by yarb
yarb commented on the word stone
I think it must be from stonewall yes. I suspect it's being applied to soccer from some more traditional North American sport like maybe hockey.
August 14, 2024
yarb commented on the word notch
In North American sports reporting, to score:
"Needing the victory to have any hope of advancing, Canada pressed hard after notching the equalizer."
— cbc.ca, 28/07/24
July 29, 2024
yarb commented on the word stone
In North American sports reporting, to make a save (from):
"'We have zero points and we're very happy,' said Canadian goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan, who stoned Grace Geyoro in injury time to keep the game tied."
— cbc.ca, 28/07/24
July 29, 2024
yarb commented on the word vixenish
My all-time top-score in Scrabble.
September 23, 2022
yarb commented on the list put-me-back-on-my-bike-UToeNCrf6-wRMQ-Aibl_k
Added a couple of anglo and six frog terms. Never heard of a team usage exception but a therpeutic use exemption is a thing.
August 31, 2022
yarb commented on the word Yanatas
"I retired in good order to my cabin, and began upon the Yanatas."
— Some Experiences of an Irish R.M., Somerville & Ross
You Are Now Able to Avoid Sea-Sickness
August 30, 2022
yarb commented on the word bohereen
"...the obstacle revealed itself to him and me as consisting not of one bank but of two, and between the two lay a deep grassy lane, half choked with furze. I have often been asked to state the width of the bohereen, and can only reply that in my opinion it was at least eighteen feet..."
— <i>Some Experiences of an Irish R.M.</i>, Somerville & Ross
August 18, 2022
yarb commented on the word turducken
A tofucken?
May 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word skydiving
Have you tried tilting her, bilby?
May 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word skydiving
Give us a snack, vm. A pepperoni or a packet of chips?
May 2, 2022
yarb commented on the word cully
"Meanwhile the French siren, balked in her design upon her English cully, who was so easily disheartened, and hung his ears in manifest despondence, rather than run the risk of making a voyage that should be altogether unprofitable, resolved to practise her charms upon the Dutch merchant."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
May 2, 2022
yarb commented on the word understrapper
"...his understrapper, according to his instructions, came afterwards to the inn..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
May 2, 2022
yarb commented on the word bourrique
"In the mean time, the noise of the bourrique, the cries of the painter, and the lady's scream, had alarmed the whole house..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
French word for an ass.
May 2, 2022
yarb commented on the list words-in-first-3-wordle-word-guess-list-fEttSrihG8
I usually start with stare or spate.
April 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word 7458
I miss lots of folks from back in the day. Dontcry, Uselessness, Reesetee, Chained_bear, and of course my alter-ego Arby. And many more.. Only recently found my way back here myself. But I'm glad you're still around, and of course the stalwarts Zuzu and Bilby. I have a feeling things are gonna come back together somehow.
March 27, 2022
yarb commented on the word 7458
Feels like I have to roll a nat 7457 to access the full comments there.
March 25, 2022
yarb commented on the word arse
Citation on ogle.
March 25, 2022
yarb commented on the word ogle
The painter's mistress finished her conquest, by exerting her skill in the art of ogling, accompanied by frequent bewitching sighs and some tender French songs, that she sang with such pathetic expression, as quite melted the resolution of Pallet, and utterly subdued his affection. And he, to convince her of the importance of her victory, gave a specimen of his own talents, by entertaining her with that celebrated English ditty, the burden of which begins with, "The pigs they lie with their a--s bare."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 25, 2022
yarb commented on the word priestcraft
Jolter no sooner perceived the Hollander was a Jew, than he entered into an investigation of the Hebrew tongue, in which he was a connoisseur; and the doctor at the same time attacked the mendicant on the ridiculous maxims of his order, together with the impositions of priestcraft in general, which, he observed, prevailed so much among those who profess the Roman Catholic religion.
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 25, 2022
yarb commented on the word mopstick
Within ten yards of the door they found Tom, with his back to a wall, defending himself with a mopstick against the assault of three or four soldiers
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 25, 2022
yarb commented on the word 7458
Did 7457 run out of room for comments?
March 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word 7457
In hexadecimal it's 1D21, which in Dungeons and Dragons means "roll one twenty one-sided die".
March 18, 2022
yarb commented on the word fueling chute
Ha ha
March 10, 2022
yarb commented on the word ram-cat
"Tom very gravely replied, “he did suppose the food was wholesome enough, for he had seen the skin and feet of a special ram-cat, new flayed, hanging upon the door of a small pantry adjoining to the kitchen.”"
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 9, 2022
yarb commented on the word privity
"The doctor, struck with the manner as well as the matter of this intimation, went immediately to Pallet's room and demanded to know the cause of such a sudden determination without his privity or concurrence..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 9, 2022
yarb commented on the word knock up
"It was about eleven o'clock at night when they arrived at Senlis, which was the place at which they proposed to lodge, and where they were obliged to knock up the people of the inn, before they could have their supper prepared."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 9, 2022
yarb commented on the list have-a-pickle-DjYwdhoxYq
For some reason countries have been delisted from Wordnik. Citation for Jordan:
"Pallet, looking behind, and seeing three men standing upon the footboard armed with canes, which his fear converted into fusils, never doubted that his friend's suspicion was just, but, shaking his Jordan at the imaginary guard, swore he would sooner die than part with his precious ware."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 9, 2022
yarb commented on the word sillykicaby
Citation on lick oneself whole.
Also in Peregrine Pickle as sillikicaby.
March 9, 2022
yarb commented on the word lick oneself whole
"But by this time these insinuations had lost their effect upon the painter who told him, with an arch sneer, that he did not at all question his learning and abilities, and particularly his skill in cookery, which he should never forget while his palate retained its function; but nevertheless advised him, for the sake of the degenerate eaters of these days, to spare a little of his sal ammoniac in the next sillykicaby he should prepare; and abate somewhat of the devil's dung, which he had so plentifully crammed into the roasted fowls, unless he had a mind to convert his guests into patients, with a view of licking himself whole for the expense of the entertainment."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 9, 2022
yarb commented on the list urchins-Q6jhG5tG9_
There was a kid at my school called Urchin. I lost touch with him but I expect he's still called Urchin to this day.
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the list urchins-Q6jhG5tG9_
More urchins than a chapter of Dickens.
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word hardiesse
"To this remonstrance the officer made no reply, but shrugged up his shoulders in silent astonishment at the hardiesse of the prisoner..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word exempt
Citation on raree-show.
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word raree-show
"At last Pickle, being tired of exhibiting this raree-show, complied with the repeated desires of his companion, and handed her into the coach; which he himself had no sooner entered, than they were surrounded by a file of musqueteers, commanded by an exempt, who, ordering the coach-door to be opened, took his place with great deliberation, while one of his detachment mounted the box, in order to direct the driver."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word premunire
"...he could not help uttering a soliloquy aloud, in which he cursed his fate for having depended upon the promise of such a wag; and swore, that if once he was clear of this scrape, he would not bring himself into such a premunire again for the whole kingdom of France."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word domino
"...the painter allowed himself to be habited in a suit belonging to the landlady, who also procured for him a mask and domino..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word egg-urchin
I think that would be an odd kind of a sponge, only just about spongieuse.
March 4, 2022
yarb commented on the word egg-urchin
I'm told one can't have one's cake-urchin and also eat it.
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word oölemma
Does this have horns?
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word egg-urchin
Team globular!
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word egg-urchin
I heart egg-urchin, and egg heart-urchin.
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word egg-urchin
Itsy-bitsy teeny-weeny yellow polka-dot echini
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word spongieuse
French name for the gypsy moth - https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/03/science/spongy-moth-romani.html
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the list an-obsolete-form-QFYoW1JmA
Adorable and somewhat sad
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the list hedgepiglet
Thank you, vendingmachine!
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word coronary cushion
"...secretion of the horny walls".
March 3, 2022
yarb commented on the list wiltons-words
Why did Wordnik cancel France?
March 2, 2022
yarb commented on the list have-a-pickle-DjYwdhoxYq
And when we were done we could set the dial for 1594 and play hey passe repasse come aloft until we wept our urine upward.
March 2, 2022
yarb commented on the word puke
"...he flew into another apartment, where Pickle found him puking and crossing himself with great devotion..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the list have-a-pickle-DjYwdhoxYq
Thanks Ruzuzu! It's peak 18th century! I'd give anything to go back in time and see them act the comedy of Prince Arthur.
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word thynnus
"After having prescribed an application of oil to the count's leg, he expressed his sorrow for the misadventure, which he openly ascribed to want of taste and prudence in the painter, who did not think proper to return, and make an apology in person; and protested that there was nothing in the fowls which could give offence to a sensible nose, the stuffing being a mixture of pepper, lovage, and assafoetida, and the sauce consisting of wine and herring-pickle, which he had used instead of the celebrated garum of the Romans; that famous pickle having been prepared sometimes of the scombri, which were a sort of tunny-fish, and sometimes of the silurus, or shad-fish: nay, he observed that there was a third kind, called garum haemation, made of the guts, gills, and blood of the thynnus."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word sauce
"Before Pickle could accomplish his escape, he was sauced with the syrup of the dormouse pie, which went to pieces in the general wreck..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word havoc, ruin, and confusion
Citation on irruption of intolerable smells.
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word irruption of intolerable smells
"...he applied his instruments to one of the birds; and when he opened up the cavity, was assaulted by such an irruption of intolerable smells, that, without staying to disengage himself from the cloth, he sprang away, with an exclamation of “Lord Jesus!” and involved the whole table in havoc, ruin, and confusion."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word salacacabia
"Peregrine, who could scarce refrain from laughing in his face, appeased his indignation by telling him how much the whole company, and especially, the marquis, was mortified at the accident; and the unhappy salacacabia being removed, the places were filled with two pies, one of dormice liquored with syrup of white poppies, which the doctor had substituted in the room of toasted poppy-seed, formerly eaten with honey, as a dessert; and the other composed of a hock of pork baked in honey."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word succedaneum
"...when Pallet recovered his recollection, and swore that he would rather swallow porridge made of burning brimstone, than such an infernal mess as that which he had tasted, the physician, in his own vindication, assured the company, that, except the usual ingredients, he had mixed nothing in the soup but some sal ammoniac instead of the ancient nitrum, which could not now be procured; and appealed to the marquis, whether such a succedaneum was not an improvement on the whole."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word silly-kickaby
Citation on spoon-meat.
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word spoon-meat
"...the marquis being asked by the painter which of the silly-kickabys he chose, was, in consequence of his desire, accommodated with a portion of the soup-maigre; and the count, in lieu of spoon-meat, of which he said he was no great admirer, supplied himself with a pigeon..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word quietist
"...the marquis admitted his apology with such rueful complaisance, as were sufficient to awake the mirth of a quietist."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word pulivilio
"But the baron, who was neither so wieldy nor supple in his joints as his companions, flounced himself down with such precipitation, that his feet, suddenly tilting up, came in furious contact with the head of the marquis, and demolished every curl in a twinkling, while his own skull, at the same instant, descended upon the side of his couch, with such violence, that his periwig was struck off, and the whole room filled with pulvilio."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word citizen of the world
"The doctor, affronted at the insinuation, told him with some warmth that he was mistaken in his conjecture, his affections and ideas being confined to no particular country; for he considered himself as a citizen of the world."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1752
March 1, 2022
yarb commented on the list cities-named-after-another-state-cyXkmYNFLMR6
There's an Ohio City in Colorado, but it's hardly even a village.
February 25, 2022
yarb commented on the list pure-science
A list of beauty!
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word guet
"The publican, enraged at the indignity which had been offered to him and his family, went out into the street, and implored the protection of the guet, or city guard, which, having heard his complaint, fixed their bayonets and surrounded the door, to the number of twelve or fourteen."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word fanfaron
"Peregrine, glowing with resentment, called him a fanfaron, and withdrew in expectation of being followed into the street."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word ecuyer
"A certain ecuyer, or horsedealer, belonging to the king, being one day under the hands of a barber, who happened to cut the head of a pimple on his face, he started up, and drawing his sword, wounded him desperately in the shoulder."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word loge
"...they were both going to the opera. Pickle gladly embraced this opportunity of becoming acquainted with a person of such rank, and, ordering his own chariot to follow, accompanied the count to his loge, where he conversed with him during the whole entertainment.
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word stomacher
"...Thomas, resenting such ungenerous behaviour, bestowed such a stomacher upon the officious intermeddler, as discomposed the whole economy of his entrails, and obliged him to discharge the interjection Ah! with demonstrations of great anguish and amazement."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word liard
Citation on Swiss.
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word Swiss
"...he was acquainted with all the places which were visited by strangers on their first arrival at Paris; and he knew to a liard what was commonly given to the Swiss of each remarkable hotel..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
Presumably in the sense of "hireling".
February 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word canaille
"He was instantly surrounded by the whole congregation of this canaille..."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
February 3, 2022
yarb commented on the word shark
"He desired Mr. Jolter to keep his pupil out of the clutches of those sharking priests who lie in wait to make converts of all young strangers, and in a particular manner cautioned the youth against carnal conversation with the Parisian dames, who, he understood, were no better than gaudy fire-ships ready primed with death and destruction."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
February 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word puffanemometer
Device to measure the airspeed of puffins.
February 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word puffanemometer
"...the wind maintained ninety-seven miles per hour for six hours on July 19, while the puffanemometer indicated several 'breaks' of one hundred and fifty miles per hour."
— Mawson, Home of the Blizzard, 1915
February 1, 2022
yarb commented on the word Ferrara
"Perry perceiving his disaster, wheeled about, and now finding leisure to produce his weapon, returned upon his disarmed foe, brandishing his Ferrara, threatening to make him shorter by the head if he would not immediately crave quarter and yield."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 29, 2022
yarb commented on the word yearn
"The nature of this message had an instantaneous effect upon the constitution of the pacific Pickle, whose bowels yearned with apprehension..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 29, 2022
yarb commented on the word parcel
"...finally, turning to Gam, he threw him out at the window, among a parcel of hogs that fed under it."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
I'm familiar with this in the form passel.
January 29, 2022
yarb commented on the word ensigncy
"...she had already sent the draft to a friend in London, with directions to deposit it in the hands of a certain banker, for the purchase of the first ensigncy to be sold..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 21, 2022
yarb commented on the word leave in the lurch
"...upon drawing his hanger, and laying about him in the dark, the other two fled, leaving their companion, whom he had disabled, in the lurch."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 21, 2022
yarb commented on the word capissens
“Yes, yes,” answered the publican, “I have cooled his capissens, as the saying is: I have played such a tune about his ears, that I'll be bound he shan't long for music this month. A goatish, man-faced rascal! Why, he's a perfect parish bull, as I hope to live.”
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
I have no idea what this refers to, and nor did James Garfield. In his diary for November 1872 we find the following remarks:
November 11th: "In the evening read further in Peregrine Pickle. I do not quite remember the date when it was written, but I am trying the experiment of determining its date from the internal evidence of the book, its historical reference and the state of the arts as exhibited in the peculiarity of speech and the like."
12th: "I find many words used in Peregrine Pickle, which are now nearly or quite obselete, such as "thof" for "though"; "wool" for "will"; "thingumbob", which though recognized, is now obsolescent; "rumbo", a kind of drink, does not appear in our modern dictionaries."
13th: "Smollett uses the word "tipping" for "giving"; "charleton", in the sense of "conjuror"; and "canal", in the sense of "medium." He uses, also, the word "capissens", which I do not find in the dictionary."
14th: "Peregrine Pickle becomes very weary with its endless repetitions and disagreeable intrigues. Taste in England must have been gauged on a low level if this story was popular."
January 21, 2022
yarb commented on the word orthian
"...when he used to hear his empress singing the loud orthyan song among the servants below, he would often in whispers communicate to the lieutenant hints of what he would do if so be as how he was not deprived of the use of his precious limbs."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word dossil
"This new treaty being settled, and a dossil of lint, with a snip of plaster, applied to our adventurer's wound, he parted from the brother of his dear Emilia..."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word fierte
"Though Pickle was extremely mortified at his miscarriage in this adventure, he was also struck with the behaviour of his antagonist, which affected him the more, as he understood that Godfrey's fierte had proceeded from the jealous sensibility of a gentleman declined into the vale of misfortune."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word German flute
"He had made great progress in the gymnastic sciences of dancing, fencing, and riding; played perfectly well on the German flute; and, above all things valued himself upon a scrupulous observance of all the points of honour."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
Apparently a normal flute.
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word mumble
"Sophy, seeing him disconcerted, interposed in his behalf, and chid her cousin for having practised such unnecessary affectation; upon which, Emilia, softened into compliance, held out her finger as a signal of her condescension. Peregrine put on the ring with great eagerness, and mumbled her soft white hand in an ecstasy which would not allow him to confine his embraces to that limb, but urged him to seize her by the waist, and snatch a delicious kiss from her love-pouting lips..."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word benighted
"...they had performed something more than one half of their journey, when they were benighted near an inn, at which they resolved to lodge..."
— Smollet, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word salt-box
Citation on merry-andrew.
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word merry-andrew
"...he returned the salute, and raised such a clatter about the squire's pate, that one who had heard without seeing the application, would have taken the sound for that of a salt-box, in the hand of a dexterous merry-andrew, belonging to one of the booths at Bartholomew-fair."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word toaster
"This choleric gentleman, who was a country squire, no sooner saw his rival, than he began to brandish his cudgel in a menacing posture, when our adventurous youth, stepping back with one foot, laid his hand upon the hilt of his sword, which he drew half way out of the scabbard. This attitude, and the sight of the blade which glistened by moonlight in his face, checked, in some sort, the ardour of his assailant, who desired he would lay aside his toaster, and take a bout with him at equal arms."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the word mediatrix
"Mr. Pickle thanked her in the most rapturous terms, and, in the transport of his expectation, kissed the hand of his kind mediatrix--a circumstance which had a remarkable effect on the countenance of Emilia..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 20, 2022
yarb commented on the list in-conchology-2VMvKoRv_hDY
I can in good conch-sense recommend this list.
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word drift
Citation on improvided.
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word improvided
"...as they were improvided with a male attendant, insisted upon squiring the ladies to their lodgings. Emilia saw his drift, which was no other than to know where she lived..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word orgia
Citation on consistory.
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word consistory
"It was a constant practice with them, in their midnight consistories, to swallow such plentiful draughts of inspiration, that their mysteries commonly ended like those of the Bacchanalian orgia..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the list have-a-pickle-DjYwdhoxYq
"...he tore the letter with his gums (teeth he had none), spit with furious grimaces, in token of the contempt he entertained for the author, whom he not only damned as a lousy, scabby, nasty, scurvy, skulking lubberly noodle, but resolved to challenge to single combat with fire and sword..."
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word asperse
"Mr. Pickle used to tell him at the club, that his hopeful favourite had ridiculed him in such a company, and aspersed his spouse on another occasion..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word in terrorem
Beats me. Pretty much anything is nounable under the right circumstances, though.
January 19, 2022
yarb commented on the word succedaneous
"...our courier betook himself to the house of Mrs. Gauntlet with the haunch of venison and this succedaneous letter..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 18, 2022
yarb commented on the word indraught
Citation on run chuck.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word embay
Citation on run chuck.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word run chuck
"The old gentleman was very much startled when he heard there was a lady in the case, and very emphatically observed, that a man had better be sucked into the gulf of Florida than once get into the indraught of a woman; because, in one case, he may with good pilotage bring out his vessel safe between the Bahamas and the Indian shore; but in the other there is no outlet at all, and it is in vain to strive against the current; so that of course he must be embayed, and run chuck upon a lee-shore."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word portress
"As he approached the gate, his agitation increased; he knocked with impatience and concern, the door opened, and he had actually asked if Mrs. Gauntlet was at home, before he perceived that the portress was no other than his dear Emilia."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word undress
"...he had not waited above ten minutes, when Emilia entered in a most enchanting undress, with all the graces of nature playing about her person, and in a moment riveted the chains of his slavery beyond the power of accident to unbind."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word Damon
"...they seemed to relish each other's conversation, during which our young Damon acquitted himself with great skill in all the duties of gallantry..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word a most egregious coxcomb
"...he frequented public walks, concerts, and assemblies, became remarkably rich and fashionable in his clothes, gave entertainments to the ladies, and was in the utmost hazard of turning out a most egregious coxcomb."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word Delia
"With this complexion and these qualifications, no wonder that our hero attracted the notice and affections of the young Delias in town, whose hearts had just begun to flutter for they knew not what."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
Can anyone shed light on this usage of the name Delia? It seems to be referring to young ladies in general.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word in terrorem
Citation on horse.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word horse
"...our unfortunate hero was publicly horsed, in terrorem of all whom it might concern."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word fleam
"...he was found by his disconsolate helpmate and some friends whom she had assembled for his assistance. Among these was a blacksmith and farrier, who took cognizance of his carcase, every limb of which having examined, he declared there was no bone broken, and taking out his fleam, blooded him plentifully as he lay."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word casemate
"...leveled his weapon with such force and dexterity at his head, that had the skull been made of penetrable stuff, the iron edge must have cleft his pate in twain. Casemated as he was, the instrument cut sheer even to the bone, on which it struck with such amazing violence, that sparks of real fire were produced by the collision."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word demean
"Jolter, therefore, knowing his importance, informed his pupil of the directions he had received, and very candidly asked how he should demean himself in the execution..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word dismission
"...his dismission, in all probability, would have produced some dangerous convulsion in the community..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word St. Giles
Citation on cudgel-playing.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word blood
Citation on cudgel-playing.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word comedy of Prince Arthur
Citation on cudgel-playing.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word storming the castle
Citation on cudgel-playing.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word all-fours
Citation on cudgel-playing.
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word cudgel-playing
"He regulated their motions by his whistle, instructed the young boys in the games of hustle-cap, leap-frog, and chuck-farthing; imparted to those of a more advanced age the sciences of cribbage and all-fours, together with the method of storming the castle, acting the comedy of Prince Arthur, and other pantomimes, as they commonly exhibited at sea; and instructed the seniors, who were distinguished by the appellation of bloods, in cudgel-playing, dancing the St. Giles's hornpipe, drinking flip, and smoking tobacco."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word malversation
"Mr. Jolter was desired to write in the masters name to the commodore, requesting him to remove Tom Pipes from the person of his nephew, the said Pipes being a principal actor and abettor in all his malversations..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word pons asinorum
"Peregrine entered upon this branch of learning with all that warmth of application which boys commonly yield on the first change of study; but he had scarce advanced beyond the Pons Asinorum, when his ardour abated..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 17, 2022
yarb commented on the word gauger
Citation on cut.
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word cut
"Tom, returning with the instrument of correction, undressed the delinquent in a trice, and whispering in his ear, that he was very sorry for being employed in such an office, but durst not for his soul disobey the orders of his commander, flourished the scourge about his head, and with admirable dexterity made such a smarting application to the offender's back and shoulders, that the distracted gauger performed sundry new cuts with his feet, and bellowed hideously with pain, to the infinite satisfaction of the spectators."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word bowse
"The commodore, who was not at all in the humour of relishing such an impertinent preamble, interrupted him in this place, saying, with a peevish accent, “Pshaw! pshaw! brother, there's no occasion to bowse out so much unnecessary gun; if you can't bring your discourse to bear on the right subject, you had much better clap a stopper on your tongue, and bring yourself up, d'ye see; I was told you had something to deliver.”
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word Nantz
"We derive our name of Brandy from the Dutch brand-wijn, or the German brannt-wein, that is, burnt or distilled wine; and in the 17th and 18th centuries it was generally spelt, and spoken of as brandy wine. But, also, in those centuries was it known by the name of "Nantz," from the town (Nantes, the capital of the Loire Inferieure) whence it came. But this name was changed early last century, when the trade left Nantes, and got into the Charente district, of which Cognac was the centre; so what used to be "right good Nantz' of the old smuggling days, turned into the delicate, many-starred "Cognac" of our times."
— James Mew, Drinks of the World, quoted here.
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word Nantz
"Hatchway raised him up, and having comforted him with a cup of Nantz, began to inquire into the cause of his disorder..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word nonsuit
"In short, the attorney was nonsuited..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word vellicate
"After having examined the symptoms, he declared that the patient had been poisoned with arsenic, and prescribed only draughts and lubricating injections, to defend the coats of the stomach and intestines from the vellicating particles of that pernicious mineral..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word jalap
Citation on case-bottle.
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word case-bottle
"They found an opportunity to infuse jalap in one of her case-bottles; and she took so largely of this medicine, that her constitution had well nigh sunk under the violence of its effect."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 15, 2022
yarb commented on the word son of a bitch
"Her husband undertook his godson's defence, representing with great warmth that he knew Keypstick to be a good-for-nothing pimping old rascal, and that Perry showed a great deal of spirit and good sense in desiring to be taken from under his command; he therefore declared that the boy should not live a week longer with such a shambling son of a b--, and sanctioned this declaration with abundance of oaths."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 14, 2022
yarb commented on the word pimp
Citation on son of a bitch.
January 14, 2022
yarb commented on the word demureness
"Mrs. Trunnion, composing her countenance into a look of religious demureness, rebuked him for his profane way of talking..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle, 1751
January 14, 2022
yarb commented on the word Jack in the low cellar
Thanks erinmckean!
The phrase seems to be Dutch originally, as implied by Smollett's inline translation.
January 14, 2022
yarb commented on the word Jack in the low cellar
I had a couple of interesting links to add, but they were flagged as spam :(
It means an unborn child.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word Jack in the low cellar
"When his companions drank to the Hans en kelder, or Jack in the low cellar, he could not help displaying an extraordinary complacence of countenance, and signified his intention of sending the young dog to sea as soon as he should be able to carry a cartridge, in hopes of seeing him an officer before his own death."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle (1751)
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word hircine
Reminiscent of the 72 names of God in the Kabbalah.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word hard fish
"A term indiscriminately applied to cod, ling, haddock, torsk, &c., salted and dried."
— Dictionary of Nautical Terms, 1867.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word Barbados water
Recipe.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word Barbados water
Citation on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word burnt brandy
Citation on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word salmagundi
Citation (as salmagundi) on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word salmagundy
See salmagundi. Citation on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word lobscouse
Citation (as lub's-course) on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word lub's-course
See lobscouse. Citation on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word pilau
Citation (as pillaw) on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word pillaw
See pilau. Citation on hard fish.
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word hard fish
"This genial banquet was entirely composed of sea-dishes; a huge pillaw, consisting of a large piece of beef sliced, a couple of fowls, and half a peck of rice, smoked in the middle of the board: a dish of hard fish, swimming in oil, appeared at each end; the sides being furnished with a mess of that savoury composition known by the name of lub's-course, and a plate of salmagundy. The second course displayed a goose of a monstrous magnitude, flanked with two Guinea-hens, a pig barbacued, a hock of salt pork, in the midst of a pease-pudding, a leg of mutton roasted, with potatoes, and another boiled, with yams. The third service was made up of a loin of fresh pork, with apple-sauce, a kid smothered with onions, and a terrapin baked in the shell; and last of all, a prodigious sea-pie was presented, with an infinite volume of pancakes and fritters. That everything might be answerable to the magnificence of this delicate feast, he had provided vast quantifies of strong beer, flip, rumbo, and burnt brandy, with plenty of Barbadoes water for the ladies..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word testatrix
"Her brother, though he did not much relish this testimony of her love, nevertheless that same evening gave an account of this particular to Mr. Hatchway, who was also, as Mr. Pickle assured him, generously remembered by the testatrix."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 13, 2022
yarb commented on the word throwing the stocking
"'Toss the stocking' was held within the chamber by invading groomsmen who would steal the bride’s stocking and take it in turns to throw the stocking over the heads of the newlyweds from a sitting position at the end of the matrimonial bed. The notion was that if the stocking landing on the groom’s head the thrower would be next to marry."
— weddingchaos.co.uk
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word throwing the stocking
"Thus rescued, as it were, from a state of annihilation, the first use the two lads of the castle made of their existence, was to ply the bridegroom so hard with bumpers, that in less than an hour he made divers efforts to sing, and soon after was carried to bed, deprived of all manner of sensation, to the utter disappointment of the bridemen and maids, who, by this accident, were prevented from throwing the stocking, and performing certain other ceremonies practised on such occasions."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word rumbo
Citation on can.
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word can
"...when he is well, he and my good master Hatchway come hither every evening, and drink a couple of cans of rumbo a piece; but he has been confined to his house this fortnight by a plaguy fit of the gout..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word anker
"...if your honour should want a small parcel of fine tea, or a few ankers of right Nantes, I'll be bound you shall be furnished to your heart's content."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word chuck-farthing
Citation on hustle-cap.
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word hustle-cap
"Tom is a man of few words, but an excellent hand at a song concerning the boatswain's whistle, hustle-cap, and chuck-farthing--there is not such another pipe in the county..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word paterero
"His habitation is defended by a ditch, over which he has laid a draw-bridge, and planted his court-yard with patereroes continually loaded with shot..."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word carter
Citation on woundily.
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word crow
Citation on woundily.
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word partridge
Citation on woundily.
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word stink-pot
Citation on woundily.
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the word woundily
"...he is a little humorsome, as the saying is, and swears woundily; though I'll be sworn he means no more harm than a sucking babe. Lord help us! it will do your honour's heart good to hear him tell a story, as how he lay alongside of the French, yard-arm and yard-arm, board and board, and of heaving grapplings, and stink-pots, and grapes, and round and double-headed partridges, crows and carters."
— Smollett, Peregrine Pickle
January 12, 2022
yarb commented on the list rectal-foreign-bodies
For twelve and a half years I successfully avoided this list.
December 17, 2021
yarb commented on the word coccodrillo
This is wonderful. But why? Is it alluding to the croc lurking just beneath the surface, ready to kill?
December 2, 2021
yarb commented on the word flesh and blood
When we talk about "coining a phrase", isn't that different from having the earliest citation? Surely no one is suggesting that Shakey or any of the other authors cited in the OED actually "came up with" the expression?
December 2, 2021
yarb commented on the word flesh and blood
If it was in common use it's highly unlikely that Shakespeare coined the phrase.
November 27, 2021
yarb commented on the word atmospheric river
Yeah I was just kidding about the cultural appropriation. Still, I think pineapple express is more... atmospheric.
November 27, 2021
yarb commented on the word raining stair rods
A term used in the North of England to describe very heavy rain. I once worked with a Yorkshireman called Jim who'd look out 't window and say "ee, it's vertical stairrodding out there".
November 25, 2021
yarb commented on the word atmospheric river
In the old days they called this a pineapple express but that was an appropriation of Hawaiian culture.
November 25, 2021
yarb commented on the word atmospheric river
This river's got real atmosphere!
November 25, 2021
yarb commented on the word welly whanging
As for "the point", what's the point of throwing anything? I'm disappointed in you, vendingmachine.
November 5, 2021
yarb commented on the word welly whanging
Once when I was a nipper, famous strongman and ornithologist Geoff Capes showed up to our school fête and took part in the welly whanging. Needless to say, Geoff whanged that welly into the next parish. I think no one who was there can have forgot it.
November 5, 2021
yarb commented on the word dimples
No, people have dimples for control and for longer distance due to interaction with the air.
October 19, 2021
yarb commented on the word defendresses
Do defendresses dress in dresses?
October 14, 2021
yarb commented on the list youve-got-this-all-wrong-TjaXkcvUHyGZ
A hilarious misunderstanding if ever there was one.
October 13, 2021
yarb commented on the word Dublin
Me too Pleth, let's start a trend
February 14, 2021
yarb commented on the word Dublin
Today I learned my 15 year-old daughter has been pronouncing it as though it were French.
December 14, 2020
yarb commented on the word hork
hork
October 2, 2019
yarb commented on the word outrun the constable
"To go too fast; to get into debt" according to Chambers.
September 23, 2019
yarb commented on the list chambers-missing-words-syBbU4NnraS1
I rather liked this list. Some of the old predictables are there, like the flossy-nossy word, absquatulate, the lung disease, and of course sesquipdiddlion, and they perhaps went overboard on the comical Scots stuff, BUT I like the profusion of phrases and compound words and the general puckishness of many of the choices. I especially love outrun the constable and pyjama cricket.
September 23, 2019
yarb commented on the list interrogative-animals-G78xbJ5pP_Nz
And minerals
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the list interrogative-animals-G78xbJ5pP_Nz
Yes
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the list interrogative-animals-G78xbJ5pP_Nz
Perhaps you could substitute a wendigo for your bush of furze.
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the list interrogative-animals-G78xbJ5pP_Nz
But - whincow isn't an animal?
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word bubal
Citation on guib.
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word waterbuck
Citation on guib.
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word kob
Citation on guib.
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word guib
Kankpé showed him the spoor of various antelopes - gazelles, kobs, waterbuck, guibs and bubals.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word anal gangrene
As a young man, frenzied at the thought of horizons unpopulated by his own cattle, he had extended his ranches into the green void of Maranhão, where horses sank to their withers and his ranch-hands died of anal gangrene.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word rue
The women of the village came with advice, with bunches of rue to keep off witches, and a crucifix to place under the mattress. But the prospect of witnessing the birth disgusted him.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word hammockeer
That evening he came to Simbodji with a request for hammockeers: he was going to Abomey with a message to deliver to the king.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word krumen
But the surf was running high. No passengers could land and the krumen went back to their huts.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
See Wikipedia entry for "Krumen people".
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word compaste
Stuffing his face with compaste, Hermenegildo da Silva made no secret of the fact that he had sacrificed a goat to Gu, the God of War.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
Could this be an error for cornpaste? Not many hits for that either, though.
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word knop
One hand clutched at his lapel, the other fingered the diamond knop of his cane.
- Bruce Chatwin, The Viceroy of Ouidah
September 20, 2019
yarb commented on the word werewolf
Oughtn't it to be pronounced "weir-wolf"? Otherwise how are you going to talk about werebears without cracking up?
September 19, 2019
yarb commented on the word whydah bird
Whydah hell not?
September 19, 2019
yarb commented on the user yarb
(but only at the appropriate moments)
September 18, 2019
yarb commented on the word whincow
Congratulations you've won a cow
September 18, 2019
yarb commented on the word aleatoriality
Sounds like a Tarzan yell.
September 18, 2019
yarb commented on the word ferngrovia
It sounds like an upscale neighbourhood or a tropical city, obviously after Fitzrovia and Monrovia
September 16, 2019
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