Fill Your Pot Of Gold With 18 Brilliant Words For St. Patrick’s Day Every March, people around the world celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with parades, street parties, festivals, sing-alongs, arts exhibitions, and yes, green rivers (such as the Chicago River, dyed green with what’s essentially food coloring). What began as a feast day for the patron saint of Ireland has evolved into a worldwide celebration of Irish culture and heritage—and it’s hard to resist the temptation to look for a lucky four-leaf clover come St. Patrick’s Day. But there’s more to the day and the culture of Ireland than the color green or traditional celebrations. In honor of this special holiday, here are 18 interesting words to help you learn more about Irish history, culture, and the roots of St. Patrick’s Day. blarney Have you heard the one about the Blarney stone? Blarney means “flattering or wheedling talk; cajolery.” It’s often applied to insincere flattery that’s used to gain favor. The word, which was first recorded in English in the late 1700s, comes from the centuries old legend of the Blarney stone. It’s said that anyone who kisses the stone in Blarney Castle near Cork, Ireland, is given the gift of flattery and eloquence. “Erin go Bragh” Erin go Bragh is a popular expression of loyalty to, or affection for, Ireland, its people, and its culture. The phrase, which means “Ireland forever,” is an Anglicization of Éire go Brách, which translates to “Ireland till the end of time.” The phrase may have first come to use during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 as a rallying cry for Irish independence. In the time since, it’s been used in music, sports, and during celebrations like St. Patrick’s Day to celebrate Irish pride and culture. leprechaun Leprechauns originated in Irish folklore, but they’ve become a famous symbol all over the world. A leprechaun is a dwarf or sprite, often depicted as “a little old man who will reveal the location of a hidden crock of gold to anyone who catches him.” Though leprechauns are usually seen as joyful or mischievous, some representations of leprechauns feature offensive stereotypes that should be avoided. For example, the University of Notre Dame’s “fighting Irish” leprechaun has been voted one of the most offensive mascots in US sports. banshee Leprechauns aren’t the only well-known figures from folklore. In Irish legend, a banshee is “a spirit in the form of a wailing woman who appears to or is heard by members of a family as a sign that one of them is about to die.” The word comes from the Irish Gaelic bean sídh, which translates to “woman of the fairy mound.” In legends, banshees most often appear at night, and some believe they can only be seen by those of Irish descent. Saint Patrick Although the origin of St. Patrick’s Day is a mix of fact and legend, Saint Patrick was a real person. The day commemorates the feast of Saint Patrick, a ​​British-born missionary and bishop who became the patron saint of Ireland. Saint Patrick is believed to have been born Maewyn Succat, and later chose the Latin name Patricius, or Patrick in English and Pádraig in Irish. He is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland and famously believed to have used the shamrock as a metaphor for the Holy Trinity. Emerald Isle Ireland is sometimes called the Emerald Isle. This poetic nickname for Ireland stems from the lush, green land and rolling hills that make up many parts of the country. Emerald green is a “clear, deep green color” most often associated with the gem of the same name. Green is strongly associated with Ireland not only because of the landscape and symbols like the shamrock, but also because of its use among people fighting for Irish independence throughout history. luck If you’ve ever searched for a four leaf clover, then you know a little something about the supposed link between Irish culture and luck. Luck is “the force that seems to operate for good or ill in a person’s life,” and many people believe Irish symbols, particularly those seen on St. Patrick’s Day, have a special ability to attract good luck. Maybe you’ve heard the phrase the luck of the Irish? This phrase is considered a cliché and is mostly only used in the US, but it’s an example of just how common it is to think Irish culture is imbued with potent powers of good luck. (Need a few more serendipitous ways to say lucky?) Gaelic You’ll notice many of the words on this list have Gaelic roots. Gaelic isn’t only one language. The term encompasses Celtic languages that include the speech of ancient Ireland and more modern dialects that have developed from it, especially Irish, Manx, and Scottish Gaelic. Though the term Irish Gaelic is sometimes used outside of Ireland, Irish is made up of distinct dialects that vary in vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar, and the words Gaelic and Irish shouldn’t be used interchangeably. shamrock Shamrocks are among the most famous symbols of St. Patrick’s Day. ​​The word shamrock can describe a number of trifoliate, or three-leafed, plants but especially “a small, yellow-flowered clover: the national emblem of Ireland.” Shamrock comes from the Irish Gaelic seamrōg, or “clover.” Saint Patrick’s close association with Ireland and legendary use of the shamrock as a symbol for Christianity helped make it a symbol of Irish culture. These days, shamrocks are so popular there is even a Shamrock emoji. donnybrook In English, donnybrook means ​​”an inordinately wild fight or contentious dispute; brawl; free-for-all.” It comes from Donnybrook Fair, a traditional fair that was held in Donnybrook, county Dublin, Ireland, until 1855. The fair featured livestock and produce and later evolved into a carnival. It was ultimately shut down due to its reputation for brawls and raucous behavior. The word donnybrook entered English in the mid-1800s. Fun fact: the Donnybrook Fair grounds are now the Donnybrook Rugby Ground. bodhran Music is a big part of many St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, and some of it includes the bodhran. A bodhran is “a handheld, shallow Irish drum with a single goatskin head, played with a stick.” It’s often used in traditional Celtic folk music, and it’s known for its deep, distinct sound. Bodhran is borrowed in English from the Irish bodhrán, which derives from the middle Irish bodar, meaning “deafening, deaf.” Celtic The Celts were once the largest group in ancient Europe, and their influence on the language and culture remains prominent today, especially in Ireland. Celtic is a term for the family of languages that includes Irish, Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, and Breton. More broadly, Celtic refers to anything “of the Celts or their language.” limerick A limerick is “a kind of humorous verse of five lines.” It’s also a county in Ireland, and the two share an interesting link. The first known use of limerick referring to the poem comes from the late 1800s, and the word is thought to have originated as a part of a party game. People playing the game took turns making up nonsense verses, then everyone would sing the refrain: “Will you come up to Limerick?” The refrain referenced Limerick, the place, but later came to represent the poems themselves. clover It’s said that if you find a four-leaf clover, it will bring you good luck. So, is a clover the same thing as a shamrock? It’s complicated. Clover and shamrock are both used to describe plants from similar species. While shamrock derives from an Irish word, clover has roots in Old English. Clovers may have two, three, four, or more leaves, while the traditional shamrock that’s used as a symbol of Ireland has three. In other words, shamrocks are a type of clover, but not every clover is a shamrock. balbriggan There are many things that take their names from places in Ireland. Balbriggan is one. In addition to being a city in Ireland, balbriggan is “a plain-knit cotton fabric, used especially in hosiery and underwear.” The fabric was first made in the town of the same name, and the word has been in use in English since the mid-1800s. shillelagh A shillelagh is a cudgel, or club, traditionally made of blackthorn or oak, and it’s become a recognizable symbol of Irish culture in some St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. The name shillelagh comes from the Irish Síol Éiligh, the name of a town in County Wicklow, Ireland. The adjoining forest once provided the wood for the clubs, which are now sometimes carried in parades or sold as souvenirs. brogue Let’s hear it for the brogue. A brogue is “an Irish accent in the pronunciation of English.” Believe it or not, this term may be related to shoes. The word brogue can also refer to “a coarse, usually untanned leather shoe once worn in Ireland and Scotland.” It’s thought that brogue in reference to accents may be a special use of the word; it was first recorded in English in the early 1700s. rainbow Rainbows are often associated with Ireland and St. Patrick’s Day. Some legends say leprechauns leave gold at the ends of rainbows. There may also be a scientific explanation for Ireland’s close association with rainbows. A rainbow is an “arc of prismatic colors appearing in the heavens opposite the sun and caused by the refraction and reflection of the sun’s rays in drops of rain.” Because of its rainy climate and latitude, Ireland may actually have better conditions for the formation of frequent rainbows than other places. Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

21 Contemplative Quotes From Muslim Americans About The Month Of Ramadan Ramadan is one of the holiest times of the year for Muslims around the world. It’s a time when Muslims fast, reflect, pray, give charity, and come together as a community. Ramadan is observed in different ways around the world, but the bedrock of this holiday is the same; the Qur’an directly states that followers should fast upon the first sight of the new moon in the month of Ramadan to glorify Allah to commemorate when the Qur’an was revealed. During Ramadan, observant Muslims abstain from eating and drinking (yes, that also means water) from sunup to sundown. Ramadan culminates in a celebration known as Eid al-Fitr, or the festival of breaking the fast. To better understand what Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr mean to the Muslim community, here are 21 quotes from prominent Muslim Americans and the key words that highlight the significance of this time. Here you will see reflections on their faith, community, and the meaning of this holy month. 1. The most rewarding part of being a Muslim athlete is my faith in God paired with my faith in myself. I approach every match with positivity and the belief that I can beat anyone on any given day. And in the face of defeat, I am able to learn from my mistakes and work on my weaknesses to prepare for next time. —Ibtihaj Muhammad, interview, Yahoo.com, 2016 faith Ibtihaj Muhammad made history by being the the first Muslim-American woman to wear a hijab while representing the US at the Olympics in 2016, where she won a bronze medal in fencing. Her mother encouraged her to get into fencing because it was a sport she could participate in while respecting their religious beliefs. In this quote, she describes her faith, or “belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion,” and how it helped her meet her athletic goals. 2. And in the process of restraining ourselves from the blessings so readily available to us, we naturally develop empathy for those who aren’t as fortunate. It’s a special type of worship that is incredibly both sacred and fulfilling. It gives a spiritual dimension to being unapologetically Muslim in America. —Omar Suleiman, “Why 80% of American Muslims Fast During Ramadan,” CNN.com, 2018 empathy Omar Suleiman is an American imam and academic who is here describing the purpose of fasting during Ramadan. He notes that it is a way to develop empathy, or “the psychological identification with or vicarious experiencing of the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another.” In this case, fasting helps one develop empathy with those who may not have enough to eat. 3. Ramadan is not just predicated upon eating or not eating or drinking or not drinking. It’s a state of mind. And it’s an attempt to achieve God consciousness that carries on throughout the day. —Wajahat Ali, interview, “Revealing Ramadan,” On Being podcast, 2009 state of mind While many focus on the fasting element of Ramadan, writer Wajahat Ali is describing how it is more than just refraining from eating and drinking. It is a state of mind, a term that means “mood or mental state.” The goal is to take on fasting as a way of thinking and feeling throughout the month. 4. Ramadan, Muharram, the Eids; you associate no religious event with the tang of snow in the air, or spring thaw, or the advent of summer. God permeates these things—as the saying goes, Allah is beautiful, and He loves beauty—but they are transient. Forced to concentrate on the eternal, you begin to see, or think you see, the bones and sinews of the world beneath its seasonal flesh. —G. Willow Wilson, The Butterfly Mosque: A Young American Woman’s Journey to Love and Islam, 2010 eternal Author G. Willow Wilson, best known for her work on the Ms. Marvel comic book series featuring Muslim-American teen Kamala Khan, describes in her memoir The Butterfly Mosque how she understands the meaning of the ritual of holidays such as Ramadan with respect to the lunar calendar. She connects it to the eternal, or something “without beginning or end.” 5. At the end of the day we’re all spirits having a physical experience. … And that really comes from my relationship with Islam because it just makes me really conscious of my action. —Mahershala Ali, interview, NPR, 2017 conscious Actor and rapper Mahershala Ali also picks up on the connection between the spiritual and physical world that G. Willow Wilson is discussing. Conscious is an adjective with a variety of meanings, including “aware of one’s own existence, sensations, thoughts, surroundings, etc.” The word conscious in English comes from the Latin conscius meaning “sharing knowledge with.” 6. It’s about meditation and prayer and thinking about those who are truly less fortunate, feeling that hunger and thirst and observing it day in and day out, sunup to sundown. It’s quite an experience, yeah. —Mo Amer, quoted in the Austin-American Statesman, 2018 meditation Palestinian-American stand-up comedian and writer Mo Amer is best known for his role in the sitcom Ramy. In this quote, Amer describes what Ramadan means to him. He says it is about meditation, meaning “continued or extended thought; reflection; contemplation” or “devout religious contemplation or spiritual introspection.” 7. I think a big part of my faith teachings is to work together towards equality: that we’re all created equal, and under the eyes of God, we all have a right to freedom and to access our rights equally. —Ilhan Omar, quoted in Huffpost.com, 2016 equality Representative Ilhan Omar, one of the first two Muslim women to serve in Congress, represents Minnesota’s 5th congressional district. Here she describes Islam as a religion that promotes equality, “the state or quality of being alike.” Her language here also connects her faith tradition to the preamble to the Declaration of Independence in this quote: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” 8. And you see this humanity and camaraderie and brotherhood that I think is deeply touching, deeply gratifying, and I think in so many ways humbling, and really, kind of helps you reset your emotional and spiritual compass, to know what is important in life, not to take these moments or granted. —Ayman Mohyeldin, quoted in BuzzFeed.News, 2018 camaraderie Egyptian-American television and news anchor Ayman Mohyeldin reflects in this quote on the importance of sharing and experiencing iftar with the less fortunate. Iftar is the meal that breaks the fast at sunset during Ramadan. He notes the feeling of camaraderie among people at that meal, a word that means “a spirit of trust and goodwill among people closely associated in an activity or endeavor.” 9. We use the fast to try to purify and cleanse our souls, and to ask forgiveness for our sins. We also learn self-restraint and we become much more aware of those less fortunate people around us for whom “fasting” is not a choice, for whom hunger is part of daily life. The fast is an act of worship and a spiritual act; it is also an act of social solidarity. —Mehdi Hasan, “What Is Ramadan and Other Questions Answered,” The New Statesman, 2016 social solidarity Mehdi Hasan is a British-American journalist and television host who is here describing what he understands as the purpose of fasting during Ramadan. He says it is a form of social solidarity. Solidarity means “union or fellowship arising from common responsibilities and interests.” Social solidarity specifically describes a kind of fellowship with other people in a community, in this case the Muslim community and greater community at large. 10. The older I get, the more grateful I am for those reminders to stop, be still, reflect, and be grateful. I find those moments can be really restorative like returning to a power station. —Tahereh Mafi, interview, Coveteur.com restorative Young adult author Tahereh Mafi, best known for her Shatter Me series, describes her spiritual practice as a restorative time. Restorative here means “capable of renewing health or strength.” Believe it or not, restorative comes from the same Latin root as the English restaurant. 11. We start the fast in the morning strong. By noon we start to get weaker. By the afternoon, we really begin to feel the fast. By sunset, right before we break it, things get difficult. Our lives mirror this. We start our lives strong as youth until we reach noon time, our 30’s and 40’s, we start to get weak. Once we reach old age … our physical abilities are greatly reduced until we leave this life. Fasting shouts to us our own mortality. —Imam Suhaib Webb, Facebook post, 2013 mortality Imam Suhaib Webb in this quote connects the daily fast of Ramadan with the life cycle. Part of the life cycle is death, which reminds us of our mortality, “the state or condition of being subject to death.” The word mortality itself ultimately comes from the Latin mors meaning “death.” 12. Ramadan is a time to control one’s desires and get closer to God. The self-discipline that we learn carries on to other areas of our lives so we can be better family members, friends and, yes, co-workers. —Linda Sarsour, quoted in HuffPost.com, 2016 self-discipline The word self-discipline means “training of oneself, usually for improvement.” Political activist Linda Sarsour describes Ramadan, particularly the fast, as a time to work on one’s self-discipline. Discipline comes from the Latin for “instruction.” In this way, self-discipline is a kind of autodidacticism. 13. It’s not a chore, but it is a discipline. And what I mean by that is it takes self-control, it takes some willpower, but it’s a great pleasure and a joy. —Ingrid Mattson, interview, “The Meaning of Ramadan,” NPR, 2017 joy Activist and academic Ingrid Mattson also notes that Ramadan is a time of self-discipline. She describes this practice of self-control as a joy, “a source or cause of keen pleasure or delight; something greatly valued or appreciated.” The positive connotation of the word joy makes us think of the Ramadan fast as a beneficial exercise of willpower rather than as something negative. 14. While fasting, understand the whole picture. Remember that fasting is not just about staying away from food. It is about striving to become a better person. And in so striving, we are given a chance to escape the darkness of our own isolation from God. But like the sun that sets at the end of the day, so too will Ramadan come and go, leaving only its mark on our heart’s sky. —Yasmin Mogahed, from YasmineMogahed.com, 2012 striving Yasmin Mogahed is an educator who teaches people about Islam. In this quote, she encourages people to think of the Ramadan fast as an opportunity to strive, a verb with a variety of meanings including “to exert oneself vigorously; try hard” and “to make strenuous efforts toward any goal.” This word captures the difficult nature of a fast; it comes from the Old French estriver, meaning “to quarrel, compete.” 15. As for fasting, it is a spiritual mindset that gives you the stamina required to play. Through Allah’s mercy, I always felt stronger and more energetic during Ramadan. —Hakeem Olajuwon, quoted in Andscape.com, 2017 stamina Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon was a center in the NBA in the 1980s and early 1990s. He describes the Ramadan fast as giving him increased stamina, or “strength of physical constitution; power to endure fatigue, privation, etc.” According to some (including his teammates!), he was thought to play especially well during the month of Ramadan. 16. Ramadan for me is this reset where spirituality becomes the core, and I try to build the world around that. —Hasan Minhaj, “Ramadan Reflections and Reset,” YouTube, 2021 reset Television host and comedian Hasan Minhaj sees Ramadan as an opportunity to reset, a noun meaning “an act or instance of setting, adjusting, or fixing something in a new or different way.” In other words, it is a chance to put things in a new order or to see the world in a new way. 17. As we welcome the final iftar of #Ramadan this evening, which marks the beginning of Eid—I urge us all to still find joy in our holiday. I know it’s hard with everything going on right now, but our joy is also our resistance. They want to break our spirits. We can’t let them. —Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, Twitter (@xoamani), 2021 resistance Ramadan is a time of submission, but for some, like activist and founder of MuslimGirl.com Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, it is also a time of resistance. Resistance means “the act or power of resisting, opposing, or withstanding.” 18. If there’s anything Muslims can do during this global pandemic [during Ramadan], it is to have our compassion shine. —Rashida Tlaib, interview, MLive, 2020 compassion Representative Rashida Tlaib serves Michigan’s 13th congressional district. At the height of the coronavirus pandemic, she gave an interview saying that Ramadan was a time for compassion, meaning “a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.” This is connected to the third pillar of Islam, zakat, meaning “charity.” 19. I’m a person of faith, and the language that I use to define my faith, the symbols and metaphors that I rely upon to express my faith, are those provided by Islam because they make the most sense to me. The Buddha once said, “If you want to draw water, you don’t dig six 1-ft. wells, you dig one 6-ft. well.” Islam is my 6-ft. well. —Reza Aslan, quoted in Time, 2013 language Iranian-American writer and public academic Reza Aslan has written and spoken a great deal about the Islamic faith and religion in general. He notes that his language, or “a body of words and the systems for their use common to a people who are of the same community or cultural tradition,” when expressing his faith comes from Islam. 20. Remember that the main purpose of this month of fasting is to actually increase our remembrance and closeness to Allah. —Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens), “Message from Yusuf Islam,” YouTube, 2020 remembrance The legendary folk musician Yusuf Islam, also known as Cat Stevens, encourages others to see the fast during the month of Ramadan as an opportunity to practice remembrance, or “commemoration.” In other words, one should be mindful of God’s presence during this time. In fact, the word remembrance ultimately comes from the Latin root memor, meaning “mindful.” 21. There is always a big emphasis on what children wear for Eid. Growing up, I remember my mother having my outfit ready and laid out a month in advance. One year, I even recall sleeping in my fancy attire, as I was so excited to try it on the night before and knew I would be waking up early for prayer. I remember so much of that time, from the ages of about eight to ten, when I would go shopping with my mom. —Halima Aden, quoted in CNA Luxury, 2020 attire Somali-American Halima Aden is a high fashion model, so it’s heartwarming that her memories of Eid (al-Fitr) include clothes. She describes the fancy attire, a word meaning “clothes or apparel, especially rich or splendid garments,” that her mother would get for her and her siblings for the celebration. Maybe hearing from all these high-profile people talk about the importance of the month of Ramadan and their faith has got you wanting to learn more about the holiday and its celebration. We have you covered. You can learn more about the important practices, values, and meanings of this time with our article The Major Facts About the Month of Ramadan. Ramadan Mubarak! Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

What Are The 4 Types Of Brackets? When considering punctuation marks, there are four pairs of marks that may be referred to as a type of bracket. They are parentheses, square brackets, curly brackets, and angle brackets. Of these four, parentheses are by far the most commonly used and are the punctuation marks that most writers are likely most familiar with. Although you may not get many chances yourself to bust out a pair of curly brackets or angle brackets, it doesn’t hurt to learn what they are typically used for so they don’t catch you by surprise. Types of brackets Parentheses () Let’s look at each of the four different types of brackets, moving from the pair you are most likely to see to the pair you will almost never see (in writing, at least). Despite being the most commonly used of the four types of brackets, parentheses are still less common than other punctuation marks in formal writing. Most writers will tend to use them sparingly but effectively. Parentheses have a lot of different uses. One particularly common use is to insert additional but unessential information, such as a writer’s commentary, into a sentence. Last year, the first pitch was thrown by Santa Claus (yes, really). Bananas are good for you (and tasty, too). Some other information that might be contained within parentheses includes sources, references, abbreviations, acronyms, telephone area codes, and lifespans. Parentheses examples The owners loved dressing their dogs up in funny outfits. (The dogs were much less enthusiastic about it.) The cat population doubled over the past 10 years. (Purrcy and Kitchins, 2005) The shuttle was built by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Edward I of England (1239–1307) was called “Edward Longshanks.” Square brackets [] Square brackets, often just called brackets in American English, are typically only used with quotations in formal writing. Square brackets are used to indicate to a reader that the writer added their own words to a quote, added additional context, or otherwise made a change to a quote that wasn’t originally there. The term sic is also often used in a pair of square brackets to indicate that a quote originally had a grammatical error in it, and the writer didn’t make a mistake when reprinting it. Square bracket examples The following examples show the different ways that square brackets are typically used with quotations. The president said, “He [the Polish ambassador] is a tough negotiator, but I’m confident we will reach an agreement that is best for both countries.” The legendary pop singer said that “[she] would come back [to Miami] every summer if [she] could.” My textbook says, “The explorers traveled down the Mississipi [sic] River.” Curly brackets {} Curly brackets, also known as braces or curly braces, are rarely used in formal writing and are more common in other fields such as science, math, and computing. Some style guides will allow them to be used for one specific purpose: grouping together a set. The pastries {cakes, pies, croissants, danishes} looked delicious. Informally, curly brackets may also be used to attempt to avoid confusion if a writer is using multiple sets of brackets in the same sentence. Clifford (a {very, very} big dog) stomped his way down the street. Both of these uses, though, are rare and many style guides and grammar resources may not have any formal use for curly brackets in writing. It is entirely possible that you may never read anything that uses curly brackets. Curly bracket examples The following examples show how curly brackets might be used. Keep in mind that these sentences may not be considered appropriate in formal writing. The circus animals {lions, tigers, elephants, monkeys} were very well trained. Madame Mysteria (who I {sadly} never met) was a legendary fortune teller. Angle brackets <> Angle brackets have no formal use in writing, at least in English. In other languages, double sets of angle brackets are sometimes used in place of quotation marks. Like curly brackets, you are much more likely to see angle brackets used in other fields, such as math and computing. Informally, angle brackets might be used in place of parentheses to insert asides or you might see them used to introduce a website in an older piece of writing. Angle bracket examples The following examples show how angle brackets might be used in writing. These examples would typically not be considered appropriate in formal writing. The car was both very fast and very pink. << Much too pink if you ask me >> If you’re curious, you can find the rest of Chef Baker’s recipes at <www.bakeittillyoumakeit.yum> Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Add A Pop Of Color With The Vibrant Purple Synonyms When you hear the word purple, what pops into your head? Chances are it’s one of a huge number of different shades, ranging from pale lavender to deep burgundy. There are so many different colors that fall under the vast umbrella of purple, so when you’re writing or talking about something in the shade, it’s helpful to be a bit more specific. Shades of purple can be found on everything from fruit to plants to wild animals. Here are 15 unique and vibrant words you can use when talking about the color purple. lilac Lilac is a “pale, reddish purple” that might call to mind a stroll through a garden. The color is named for the purplish flowers that grow on the shrub of the same name. This pale violet color is at home in a spring scene or even in the color palette of a sunrise. First recorded in the early 1600s, the word lilac comes from the Persian līlak, meaning “bluish.” plum If you need a darker shade of purple, plum will do. Plum is “a deep purple varying from bluish to reddish.” Like many words on the list, plum gets its name from something in nature. In this case, it’s the fruit that grows on plum trees. It can be traced to the Greek proúmnē, or “plum tree,” and it has been in use in English since at least the 900s. violaceous Is it purple or is it violaceous? This adjective means “of a violet color; bluish-purple.” It’s a perfect descriptor for anything with purplish hues, from fruit to flowers to the looming mountains in the distance. Violaceous is related to violet and was first recorded in English in the mid-1600s. magenta Magenta is a “purplish red.” It’s also the name of a town in Italy where the French and Sardinians defeated Austrian troops in 1859. The color was named for this battle site, as the famous fight took place shortly before magenta dye was discovered. But why was the town called Magenta? The town’s name may trace back to the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maxentius, who is believed to have had a headquarters there. amethyst Some shades of purple really shine. Amethyst is “a purplish tint,” consistent with the purple or violet color of a type of quartz that shares the same name. It has a surprising backstory. Though the word has been in use in English since the mid-1200s, it has roots in the Greek améthystos, meaning “not intoxicating, not intoxicated.” This is because it was once believed the stone amethyst could prevent intoxication. amaranthine If you’re describing a red wine or something else that’s “of purplish-red color,” consider amaranthine. Amaranthine is the color of amaranth, a flowering plant known for its striking foliage or flower clusters. Amaranth comes from the Latin amarantus, an alteration of the Greek amáranton, meaning “unfading flower.” periwinkle Is it blue or is it purple? If it’s periwinkle, it must be somewhere in between. Periwinkle means “a blue-violet color,” and it’s associated with myrtle, a trailing plant with evergreen foliage and blue-violet flowers. Periwinkle is a common color used on furniture or clothing. The word has been in use in English since before the year 1500. grape If you asked someone to name something purple, a grape would probably come to mind. Because of the appearance of the fruit, grape has also come to mean “a dull, dark purplish-red color.” When something is grape, it has the flat, muted shade we associate with grapes, and it may range from a very deep purple to one with shades of pink or red. Grape comes from Middle English and was first recorded in the early 1200s. lavender While the plant lavender is well known for its scent, it has also influenced the name of a well-known shade of purple. Lavender, as a color, is “a pale bluish purple.” It’s a popular choice for weddings. There’s even lavender ice cream! Lavender comes from the Medieval Latin lavendula, meaning “a plant livid in color.” wine Wine isn’t just a drink you have with dinner. It’s also “a dark reddish color, as of red wines.” Wine might describe the particular shade of purple you want to paint your kitchen or the pretty new lipstick that’s on sale at the cosmetics store. While wine certainly indicates a deep purple-red color, you could be even more specific by naming a certain type of wine. For example, burgundy can be used to mean a “grayish red-brown to dark blackish-purple.” violet As a flower, violets are known for their vibrant purple color. That’s why the “reddish-blue” color of the same name is called violet. Violet exists at the opposite end of the visible spectrum from red. You probably recognize it as the “V” in the abbreviation ROYGBIV, the colors of the rainbow. Typically, violet is more red in hue than a standard purple, like the color of the sky at sunset or the feathers of a Violet-backed starling. pomegranate Much like the fruit, pomegranate is a deep reddish or pinkish-purple color. Because of its complexity, it’s a great color for decorating. Pomegranate has been in use in English since at least the late 1200s, and it has a pretty straightforward origin. The name for the many-seeded fruit comes from the Medieval Latin pomum granatum, which literally means “a seedy apple.” heliotrope For a lighter shade of purple, give heliotrope a try. It’s “a light tint of purple; reddish lavender.” Not only is this word fun to say, but it also has a cool backstory. Like other purple shades, the color heliotrope shares its name with a plant. Helios is Greek for “sun,” while the Greek trópos means “a turn, change.” The plant heliotrope was named for the way its flowers and leaves turn towards the sun. orchid The word orchid calls to mind the delicate flowers of an orchid plant, which are sometimes a light “bluish to reddish purple color.” You can use orchid to talk about light shades of purple that fall somewhere between lilac and lavender. Orchid entered English in 1845 in the third edition of School Botany by John Lindley, and you might be surprised by its origins. This plant-name-turned-color can be traced to the Greek órchis, meaning “testicle.” perse Perse means “of a very deep shade of blue or purple.” You might use perse to describe fabric or pigments that are a deep indigo or even purple with hints of black. Though a less common term for purple, the word has been in use in English since the 1300s. It comes from the Middle English pers, perhaps a variant of the Medieval Latin persus, a kind of blue. Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

“Duke” vs. “Prince”: Learn Who Is Closer To The Throne Royalty is complicated. There are so many titles to keep track of—even a single individual may have multiple titles. And there are so many questions: what’s the difference between a prince and a duke? What about earls, barons, counts, viscounts, and marquis? (Or is it marquises?) In this article, we’ll decree the official differences—and, in some cases, overlap—between dukes and princes, as well as many other members of monarchies and the nobility. Quick summary A prince is typically the son or grandson of a monarch. The title duke is typically bestowed to a male member of the monarchy, often identifying him as a ruler of a territory known as a duchy. In some cases, a prince can also hold the title of duke, but prince is usually the higher-ranking position. Duke vs. prince: what’s the higher rank? In the context of royalty, the word duke most commonly refers to the sovereign ruler of a small state in Continental Europe called a duchy. In the British monarchy, duke is the highest hereditary title outside of prince, princess, king, or queen. The female equivalent of duke is duchess. In the British monarchy and other royal families, princes are generally the sons or grandsons (if by direct descent) of the monarch. The title prince is also sometimes used for the husband of the reigning queen. In some cases, however, a prince, like a duke, might rule over a small state (called a principality). For example, Monaco’s ruling monarch is a prince. Whether a small state is considered a duchy or principality has a lot to do with complex historical relationships between countries. In practical terms, there’s not much difference between the two today. Either way, prince is a higher title than duke in most cases. Various factors, such as the size of the territory to which the title belongs, may affect which title is considered to be of higher rank, but for the most part you can expect a prince to rank higher. Can a prince also be a duke? Yes. In some cases, a member of the monarchy can acquire multiple titles, including prince and duke. For example, Prince Harry of the British royal family is also the Duke of Sussex (even after stepping back from his role in the royal family). Why do some figures have multiple titles? In brief, monarchies often “own” certain titles and bestow them on certain people, either at birth or when they enter into the royal family, and sometimes these titles get bestowed on the same person. When this happens, the multi-titled individual is typically referred to first by their highest title, as in Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex. Earl, baron, count, viscount, and marquis There are more royal titles than just prince and duke. Let’s look at some others and define what each one means. - marquis: A nobleman who is the rank right below duke. Pronounced [ mahr-kwis ] or [ mahr-kee ]. The plural can be either marquises [ mahr-kwi-siz ] or marquis [ mahr-keez ]. Sometimes, the alternate spelling marquess is used. The female equivalent is marquise or marchioness. - count and earl: These refer to the same rank—the next step down from marquis. Preference for one term or the other has varied across different historical periods and in different places. The female version of count is countess. - viscount: A nobleman below the rank of earl/count. The female version is viscountess. - baron: The lowest rank of the nobility. The female version is baroness. All of these titles are lower than both duke and prince. Generally, people who hold these as their highest titles are not members of the royal family. Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Synonyms For “Fool” That Are More Than A Fool’s Paradise The first of April, also known as April Fools’ Day, is the time for pranksters to shine. Traditionally, the holiday is celebrated by people tricking one another and then yelling, “April fools!” The origins of the holiday are unknown, but it has been observed dating back at least to the Middle Ages, or possibly even further back, making it as old as many of the terms for fool we will be covering here. The word fool means “a person who lacks judgment or sense,” from the Latin follis meaning “bellows” or “bag.” That’s right, a fool was the original windbag. Read on to learn about a few of the many words that describe someone who is foolish. nincompoop One of the most fun words for a “fool or simpleton” is nincompoop. The origins of this word are unknown, but it may have been invented simply because it sounds silly and ridiculous, like the person it describes. One of its earliest uses was in the play The Plain Dealer by William Wycherley (1676), where an old widow throws every insult she can think of at one of her daughter’s suitors. oaf The word oaf today means “a clumsy, stupid person; lout.” The origins of the word are pretty interesting. It comes from the Old English ælf, meaning “elf.” According to Medieval legend, an oaf was the child of an elf or a goblin. Specifically, an oaf was thought to be a changeling left by elves, and the term was a term used to describe a troublesome child or disavow one not living up to the parents’ expectations. (Harsh!) simpleton We are all simpletons sometimes, or “an ignorant, foolish, or silly person.” The humble American sandpiper was also known colloquially as a simpleton. It isn’t clear what this bird did to deserve this name, but—as we will see—it is not the first bird allusion that pops up when talking about fools. buffoon Buffoon has a variety of meanings, but it is most commonly used these days to mean “a silly or foolish person.” The word comes from the Italian buffone, which translates roughly to “one who puffs up their cheeks.” This origin makes more sense when you consider the original meaning of the word, “a person who amuses others by tricks, jokes, odd gestures and postures, etc.” Who among us hasn’t puffed up their cheeks to make a small child (or even a not-so-small adult) laugh? schlemiel The Yiddish language has many colorful terms for fools, some of which have been adopted into English. One such word is schlemiel [ shluh–meel ], which means “an awkward and unlucky person for whom things never turn out right.” The word comes from the Biblical name Shelumiel, although it is not clear exactly how he became associated with bad fortune (although the Midrash notes that his descendant Zimri caused 24,000 deaths from “plague,” so that might have something to do with it). schlimazel Another Yiddish word for a fool is schlimazel [ shli-mah-zuhl ], “an inept, bungling person who suffers from unremitting bad luck.” Yiddish is a language that combines German and Hebrew, among other languages, which you can see from the etymology of the word. Shlim comes from the German schlimm meaning “bad,” and mazel comes from the Hebrew for “destiny.” A schlimazel is literally someone who has a bad destiny. bonehead A bonehead, or blockhead, is a “a foolish or stupid person.” The term was popularized by Major League Baseball player Fred “Bonehead” Merkle. He earned this unfortunate nickname because of an infamous base-running error when he was a rookie teenager—he ran to the dugout at the end of an inning, but forgot to touch second base, resulting in an out. The 1908 error became known as Merkle’s Boner. lunkhead Another “Americanism” for a fool is lunkhead, “a dull or stupid person.” The origin of lunk is unknown, but it may be a combination of lump and hunk (the original term for a himbo?). One of the earliest examples of this term was in Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn (1884) to describe people at a circus. numbskull A riff on the -head terms for a fool is numbskull, or numskull, “a dull-witted or stupid person.” An earlier spelling for this word was numpscull. The earliest record of the contemporary spelling of this word comes from a letter by the polemicist Jonathan Swift who wrote to a certain Mr. Wood in 1724, “I remember not to have known a greater numbskull than thou art.” Sick burn. birdbrain As we noted earlier, birds come up a lot in terms describing fools. It isn’t clear how birds got such a bad reputation. (In fact, some birds are quite smart by human standards, and corvids in particular are sometimes described as having the same intelligence as a child.) One such insulting term is birdbrain, which means “a stupid, foolish, or scatterbrained person.” pigeon The word pigeon of course refers to those ubiquitous city-dwelling birds, but it is also an antique slang term for “a person who is easily fooled or cheated; dupe.” This meaning of pigeon is found in the 1960s slang term pigeon artist, an alternative term for a conman. gull Although gull looks like a bird reference, it actually has a different origin. As a noun, gull can refer, of course, to a seagull, but it can also mean “a person who is easily deceived or cheated; dupe.” This is where we get the more common gullible. The word gull in this sense comes from the verb gull meaning “to dupe, cheat, befool.” clod Clod literally means “a lump or mass, especially of earth or clay.” However, it is also used figuratively to mean “a stupid person; blockhead; dolt.” The use of the word in this sense dates to the 1500s, where it was sometimes elaborated on with -poll or -pole, an archaic term for “head,” as in clod-poll. As you might have gathered by now, insulting someone’s heads or brains is a common way to call someone a fool. stooge The word stooge literally means “an entertainer who feeds lines to the main comedian and usually serves as the butt of his or her jokes.” It also is used more generally to mean “any underling, assistant, or accomplice.” However, in popular usage, calling someone a stooge implies that they are foolish. It’s possible that this meaning was popularized by the famous comedians The Three Stooges who were known for acting ridiculous. boob A boob is more than just a female breast. It can also mean “a stupid person; fool; dunce.” The word is a backformation from the earlier booby, which was a corruption of the earlier pooby. Pooby in turn comes from a combination of the verb poop meaning “to befool” and baby—literally, poop baby. pilgarlic You may have already noticed that many of the terms for fools have archaic origins. One such term is pilgarlic, “a person regarded with mild or pretended contempt or pity.” The term originally referred to “a baldheaded man.” The word itself comes from the earlier pyllyd garleke, “a metaphor for a bald man, whose head is compared to a peeled garlic bulb.” dolt Sometimes these words get straight to the point, which is the case with dolt, “a dull, stupid person; blockhead.” Dolt is a variant of the obsolete dold, meaning “stupid.” And the verb dolt—also obsolete—used to mean “befool” or, later, “to play the fool.” chump Another word for a dolt is a chump, “a stupid person.” The word chump originally meant “a short, thick piece of wood.” In essence, calling someone a chump is comparing them to a piece of wood. patsy A patsy is “a person who is the object of a joke, ridicule, or the like.” On April Fools’ Day, you’re always at risk of being someone’s patsy, or target for a prank. The origins of this word are unknown, although it may originate from or have been popularized by vaudevillian character Patsy Bolivar, who was often the butt of a joke. dupe Another word for a patsy is a dupe, “a person who is easily deceived or fooled.” It is possible that this word’s origins circle back to birds by way of French and Latin, specifically the hoopoe, a bird thought to be especially stupid. Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

“Karat” vs. “Carat”: The Difference Between How These Measure All That Glitters When you’re buying gold and diamond jewelry, the difference between karats and carats can get confusing—and expensive—really fast. That’s because karat and carat are used in similar contexts in similar ways (as units of measure), and in some cases and places they can even overlap. We’ll break down what each word means, what exactly it measures, and review the different ways they’re used. We’ll even cover the homophones carrot and caret—and why there’s no such thing as 25-karat gold. Quick summary A carat is a unit of measure for the weight of gemstones, as in an eight-carat diamond or The jewel is 1 carat. In the US and other places, the word karat is typically used as a unit of measure for the purity of gold, as in 14-karat gold and 24-karat gold. In the UK and other places, the spelling carat is applied to both gems and gold. Is it karat or carat? Both spellings are used, but they can refer to different things in different places. The spelling carat is typically always used for the unit of measure for the weight of gemstones, as in a three-carat diamond. In the US and some other places, the word karat is used as a unit of measure for the purity of gold, as in 14-karat gold and 24-karat gold. In the UK and other places, the spelling carat is used for both gold and jewels. What does karat mean in gold? Pure gold is a very soft metal—it’s so soft it can be bent without even being heated. This makes it extremely inconvenient to make jewelry out of. It’s also very expensive. For these reasons, gold jewelry is often made from gold alloys, meaning gold mixed with some other metal. The amount of gold in an alloy is measured in karats (or carats, in the UK and some other places). The mix is divided into 24 karats, which are kind of like fractions of the metal. So, 14-karat gold is made of 14 parts gold out of 24 total parts (in other words, it’s about 58% gold). Gold labeled as 24-karat gold is pure gold, which is why it’s so expensive (and malleable). Karat is commonly abbreviated as k. Common karat values are 10k, 14k, 18k, 22k, and 24k (there is nothing above 24k gold, since it is pure gold). What does carat mean in gems? In the context of gemstones, and especially diamonds, carat refers to the weight of the stone. A carat is equivalent to .20 grams. In some systems, the weight of a diamond is divided into 100 points, with 100 points equaling one carat. Diamonds over 1 carat are typically described in terms of their carat value: a 2-carat diamond, a 3.5-carat diamond, and so on. Obviously, the heavier the diamond, the bigger it’s likely to be, so this measurement is often used, on a practical level, as a measure of how large the diamond is. The biggest diamond ever dug up was the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond. But the average size of a diamond in an engagement ring is around 1 carat or less. Carat vs. carrot (vs. caret) Here’s a golden nugget of etymology, a real gem: the word karat is a variant of the word carat, which comes from the Medieval Latin carratus, a term once used by alchemists. It comes from Arabic qīrāṭ, meaning “weight of 4 grains,” from the Greek kerátion, meaning “carob bean,” “weight of 3.333 grains,” or, literally, “little horn.” That little horn might bring to mind the somewhat hornlike appearance of a carrot, and in fact carrot has a distant etymological connection with carat. Carrot is rooted in the Greek kárē, meaning “head.” Interestingly, the mark known as a caret (‸)—the one used to show where something should be inserted—kind of looks like a carrot, but its name is not etymologically related to carrot or carat. It comes from the Latin meaning “(there) is missing,” from the verb carēre, meaning “to be without.” Examples of karat and carat used in a sentence Here are some examples that show how karat and carat are commonly used. - My parents bought me 24-karat gold earrings for my birthday! - At 18 karats, this bracelet is a less expensive option. - They keep a 10-carat diamond in the vault. - The ring will be set with a jewel of three carats. Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

What’s In A Name: The Laws That Apply When Naming Your Baby Can you really name your baby that?! Picking a baby name that everyone (from grandma to the grocery clerk) likes can be a fruitless, futile endeavor. Coming up with one that confounds the whole world is seemingly a lot easier. Take Elon Musk, chief of Tesla and SpaceX, and singer Grimes, who recently announced the birth of their daughter, Exa Dark Sideræl, or “Y” for short. The “Y” makes more sense when you know that their older son is named X Æ A-12. (Yes, we’re talking about their human son, not the name of a new car or spacecraft.) Sometimes, parents decide a name change is in order—like when celebrity couple Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott announced that they were going to change their son’s name from Wolf to one that better suits him. In other cases, though, a name change is not a matter of preference but of legality. Is a baby name with numbers and symbols legal? Call it peculiar, perplexing, or sensationalistic, but one thing you may not be able to call X Æ A-12 is … legal. When it comes to baby names, the fact is parents don’t always have free rein to choose any name they like. There are laws that limit their choices. These laws vary by state, and they’re arbitrary at best, but they are laws that appear in the books. While some states have strict laws that prohibit obscenities, numbers, and names that are too long, other states have no restrictions. Take laid-back California, which isn’t so laid back when it comes to baby names. In fact, the state won’t even allow accent marks and other diacritical marks in names like José. This restriction originated in 1986, when Proposition 63 established English as the California’s official language. Names must only contain “the 26 alphabetical characters of the English language with appropriate punctuation if necessary.” And guess where little X Æ A-12 was born? That’s right: the Golden State. It seems that for now, a California birth certificate can be completed with single dashes in the spaces for first, middle, and last names, and a legal name can be added later, which is exactly what Elon and Grimes have done for their son. Will he ever need a legal name? Not necessarily. He won’t be arrested for not having one, but he will need one if he wants to obtain a Social Security number, passport, or driver’s license. His parents could consider tweaking his name a bit to make the legal cut, perhaps by spelling out some of the characters as David and Victoria Beckham did with their daughter, Harper Seven. Why are there laws about baby names? Not only are baby name laws inconsistent across the country, but if they are meant to protect children from controversial or embarrassing names, they often miss the boat. For example, in a well-publicized New Jersey case, a couple named their son Adolf Hitler Campbell, which is somehow permissible under the state’s law. The law bans names that contain “obscenity, numerals, symbols, or a combination of letters, numerals, or symbols…”, but naming a child after a mass murderer is A-OK. In most cases, the United States is pretty relaxed about what you can name your child when it comes to the stigma or meaning a name may carry. However there are some really bizarre cases where baby names have not been allowed in the good ol’ US. For example, in 2013, a Tennessee judge ordered that a baby’s name be changed to Martin instead of Messiah. Her reasoning: “The word Messiah is a title and it’s a title that has only been earned by one person and that one person is Jesus Christ.” That reasoning was later overturned, however, and the baby’s name was changed back to Messiah. And in Georgia, a couple eventually won a legal battle to give their daughter the surname Allah. The court’s original objection to the name wasn’t any implied meaning, but rather that neither parent had that last name. Plus we don’t have to look far for celebrities who chose rather unusual baby names that have gone unchallenged. Penn Jillette named his child Moxie CrimeFighter, and Nicolas Cage chose Kal-El Coppola, to name a few—all of those passed the legal test. Whether or not naming moderation is the government’s business is up for debate. Usually, states challenge names for reasons of practicality; for example, a record-keeping software may only allow a certain number of characters or not allow numerical digits. In Arkansas, you can’t name your child Test, Unk, Void, Baby Boy, Infant, or a handful of other names, because its system won’t accept them. In Hawaii, parents can include symbols in names, but for each one, there has to be at least one number too. In New Hampshire, the baby’s first, middle, and last names can’t exceed 100 characters in total. According to constitutional law expert Carlton F.W. Larson (writing in the The George Washington Law Review), baby naming “is a legal universe that has scarcely been mapped, full of strange lacunae, spotty statutory provisions, and patchy, inconsistent caselaw.” Are there naming laws in other countries? Naming laws around the world vary even more and are often even more stringent than those in the United States. In France, for example, parents have been banned from giving their children names that would “lead to a childhood of mockery,” such as Prince William and Mini Cooper. In Germany, a court ruled that a couple couldn’t name their child Stone because “a child cannot identify with it, because it is an object.” Möwe (“seagull”) was rejected as well, because the bird is “a nuisance and is seen as a pest and would therefore degrade the child.” In Denmark, parents must select from a list of pre-approved names, and if they want to use one that’s not on the list, they must get special permission. In any case, if you’re planning on having a baby, you may want to check the laws in your locale before you get too attached to a name. Of course, even if your favorite name doesn’t make the grade, nicknames are a whole other, unrestricted territory. Anyone who has ever had a sobriquet like Stinky or Pickle Pop may wish there were some more stringent laws governing them, too. Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Fancy Spring Words To Breathe Life Into Your Budding Vocabulary As Leo Tolstoy wrote in the classic Anna Karenina, “spring is the time of plans and projects.” To put it more bluntly, spring is a time of new growth, new experiences, and, in most of the world, temperamental weather. To encourage your personal growth during this season of change, why not try out some of these sophisticated vocabulary terms related to spring? verdurous Verdurous is an adjective meaning “rich in verdure; freshly green; verdant.” Verdure is a fancy word meaning “greenness, especially of fresh, flourishing vegetation.” The word comes from the Middle French verd, meaning “green.” (The modern French equivalent of this word is vert.) vernal An adjective that directly relates to the season is vernal, meaning “of or relating to spring.” It is also used figuratively to mean “belonging to or characteristic of youth,” which is just one of many examples of spring being related to new birth or adolescence. Vernal comes from Latin vernālis, meaning “of spring.” recrudesce Many of the words in this list end in the suffixes -esce, -escent, or -escence, which are used to denote the beginning of an action. This makes sense if you consider the overall theme of spring, which is the beginning of new life or new experiences. One such word is recrudesce, “to break out afresh, as a sore, a disease, or anything else that has been quiescent.” Quiescent is another fancy word that means “being at rest.” frondescence Another word that describes plants shaking off their winter slumber and waking up to spring is frondescence, “the process or period of putting forth leaves, as a tree, plant, or the like.” The word comes from the Latin frondescēns, “becoming leafy.” If the frond- part of the word looks familiar, that’s probably because the English frond means “an often large, finely divided leaf,” from the Latin frond meaning “branch.” effloresce Yet another -esce verb on this list is effloresce, “to burst into bloom, blossom.” In chemistry, however, the verb has a specific meaning to describe a surface becoming covered in a “mealy or powdery substance upon exposure to air” or “covered with crystals of salt.” You can imagine it looks like crystals “blooming” on the surface of a substance. juvenescence The word is a noun meaning “youth or immaturity” or “the act or process of growing from childhood to youth.” The juven- part of the word comes from the Latin for “young.” This is ultimately the same Latin root we see in the more familiar juvenile, meaning “young” or “youthful.” renascent In the spring, it seems as if everything is renascent after the long, cold winter. Renascent means “being reborn; springing again into being or vigor.” The Latin root of this word can also be seen in the word Renaissance, a term given to the “great revival of art, literature, and learning in Europe beginning in the 14th century and extending to the 17th century,” a time when culture was being reborn after the medieval ages. incalescent One of the most pleasant aspects of spring is that the weather is incalescent, or “increasing in heat or ardor.” While this term can be used literally to describe something becoming warm, it is also used to describe a growing romance or love, when things are “heating up.” provenience The spring is a time when new things begin. In other words, it is the provenience of many creatures. Provenience means “origin; source.” The word provenience is primarily used in archaeology to describe the spot where an object is found or originated, to differentiate from provenance, which describes the chain of ownership of an object. risorgimento A term similar to renascent is risorgimento [ ri-zawr-juh–men-toh ], “any period or instance of rebirth or renewed activity.” When capitalized, it refers to a specific period of Italian history during “the period of or movement for the liberation and unification of Italy, 1750–1870.” As you may have guessed, the word risorgimento comes from Italian for “to rise again.” pullulate Pullulate is a verb with a variety of meanings, including “to send forth sprouts, buds, etc.; germinate; sprout” and “to exist abundantly; swarm; teem.” In the spring, plants and animals pullulate. The verb pullulate comes from the Latin pullulāre, meaning “to sprout, bring forth young.” Specifically, a pullus in Latin means “chicken,” which is ultimately the root of the French word for chicken, poulet. fecundate A verb related to pullulate is fecundate, “to make prolific or fruitful.” The word fecund and its verb form fecundate is ultimately related to root fētus, “bringing forth of young.” If that word looks familiar, that’s because it’s at the root of the English fetus, “the young of an animal in the womb or egg.” It’s all about the birth of new life. erumpent One of the first signs of spring is when the crocuses grow erumpent from the cold, hard earth. Erumpent is an adjective that means “bursting forth.” It is also used particularly to describe fungi or algae “projecting from or bursting through host tissue.” The way that mushrooms pop up on the bark of decomposing trees is a good visualization of the meaning of erumpent. burgeon Another word that describes the proliferation of new growth that occurs in the spring is burgeon, “to grow or develop quickly; flourish.” Burgeon is generally used as a verb, but it can also be used as a noun to mean “a bud; sprout.” The origin of burgeon is pretty interesting; it ultimately comes from the Latin burra meaning “wool, fluff,” likely a reference to the down covering certain buds in spring. redolent With all of the new flowers blossoming, trees leafing, and the rain making the world smell of wet dirt, one good word to describe spring is redolent, “having a pleasant odor; fragrant.” This is an adjective that is also used figuratively to mean “suggestive; reminiscent [of].” For example, Her poems are redolent of Keats’s sonnets, or they make one think of Keats’s sonnets. hyetal Speaking of the general dampness of spring, one good word to describe this weather is hyetal [ hahy-i-tl ], “of or relating to rain or rainfall.” Unlike the majority of the words on this list which have Latin roots, hyetal comes from the Greek hyetós, which means “rain.” This is why the study of rainfall is technically known as hyetography or hyetology. salubrious When the gray clouds of winter lift and a crisp spring breeze blows in, the weather feels especially salubrious, “favorable to or promoting health; healthful.” There’s nothing like a little fresh air to perk you up. Salubrious comes from the Latin salūbris, meaning “promoting health.” The word salutary comes from a similar root, and it means “favorable to or promoting health; healthful.” Chelidonian One way to describe a spring breeze is Chelidonian, which is what the ancient Greeks called it. The name comes from the Greek for swallow, because the appearance of the spring wind augured their appearance. It was believed that the swallows flew from Africa to Europe on the Chelidonian winds. bucolic Another term from Greek we can use to describe the spring is bucolic, which literally means “of or relating to shepherds; pastoral.” However, it is typically used figuratively to describe any pleasant natural or country scene. Historically, a bucolic was a specific kind of “pastoral poem” that describes the peacefulness or beauty of rural life. vivify You may feel particularly vivified in the spring months. Vivify is a verb that means “to give life to; animate; quicken.” The root of vivify is the Late Latin vīvificāre, which roughly translates to “to make live.” Copyright 2024, AAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Prepare For The Lavish World Of Bridgerton With Regency Period Words This spring may be a bit steamier than usual, thanks to the return of the hit Netflix show Bridgerton. This Regency romance with a modern twist took audiences by storm last year with its unpredictable plot, historical setting, and very attractive cast of characters. If you watched the first season last year or you’re catching up now, you may find yourself wondering what some of the historical language in the show actually means. Bridgerton, like a lot of period dramas, is not 100% historically accurate, but the language, costumes, and customs on display do have real roots in the past. Here are 16 words you need to know to get ready for season two and become fluent in the language of Bridgerton. viscount You’ve likely heard of a count, but after catching up on Bridgerton, you may be wondering: what in the world is a viscount? We’ve got your back. A viscount is “a nobleman next below an earl or count and next above a baron.” It’s a hereditary title that was first recorded in English in the mid to late 1300s within a peerage or nobility system. You could think of it as a “vice count,” since it’s believed to have come from the equivalent in Old French, visconte. rake In the world of Regency romance, a rake is not a gardening tool. It’s an insult dating back to the 1600s that means “a dissolute or immoral person, especially a man who indulges in vices or lacks sexual restraint.” It comes from rakehell, an alteration of the Middle English rakel, meaning “rash, rough, coarse, hasty.” Rakes are the “bad boys” of the Bridgerton era. Of course, on TV, that may be a part of their appeal. promenade In 2022, you might make a relationship Instagram official. In the 1800s, you were likely to promenade. Promenade is a verb that means “to conduct or display in or as if in a promenade; parade.” This might mean taking a public walk with the object of your affection to make your courtship known, as Daphne and the Duke of Hastings do in season one. Fun fact: the word prom comes directly from promenade. duke You’ve likely heard the title of duke, but what do they actually do? A duke, in historical British society, is “a nobleman holding the highest hereditary title outside the royal family, ranking immediately below a prince and above a marquis.” Dukes hold the highest social rank in British peerage, with the female equivalent being a duchess. This term, which dates back to the 1100s, comes from the Medieval Latin dux, or “hereditary ruler of a small state.” countenance Countenance sounds like another fancy title, but it actually refers to “appearance, especially the look or expression of the face.” For example: The duke could scarcely hide his intrigue behind his serene countenance. Historically, countenance is related to control and the idea of keeping one’s cool, especially in polite society. Though it refers more generally to one’s facial expression today, countenance comes from the Old French contenance, or “behavior, bearing.” The Old French noun comes from the Latin noun continentia “self-control, restraint.” coming out In the 19th century, coming out meant something different than it does today. It was customary for young women at the time to come out, or have “a debut into society, especially a formal debut by a debutante.” This typically involved a special ball or series or balls and parties. Essentially, this debut was a signal to the community that the woman was ready for courtship and marriage. ton When you hear talk of “the ton” on Bridgerton, they aren’t mispronouncing the word town. Ton means “fashionable society,” particularly high class society during the Regency era. The word comes from le bon ton, a French phrase meaning “good or elegant form or style.” Members of the ton were generally upper class, wealthy, and respected. Regency Bridgerton is an example of a regency romance, a genre of historical romance set during the Regency era. Regency, in this sense, means “characteristic of or relating to the Regency periods in France or the United Kingdom or to the styles of architecture, furniture, art, literature, etc, produced in them.” This time period is generally believed to fall between 1811–1820. season The season is a big deal to the fictional characters in Bridgerton, but they aren’t necessarily referring to winter, spring, summer, or fall. More likely, they are referring to the social season, or “a period of fashionable social events in a particular place.” The season was a time for coming out, social events, and marriages. It’s thought to have taken place from early spring until around Christmas time. sire Today, sire is a respectful, if a little old-fashioned, form of address. But when the word is used in Bridgerton, it’s more likely meant in the archaic sense: “to beget; procreate as the father.” Men at this time were expected to “sire an heir” to secure their lineage and place in high society. modiste Any lady fit for a Bridgerton-style ball must have a modiste on hand. That’s an older term for “a female maker of or dealer in women’s fashionable attire.” As you may have guessed, English speakers borrowed the word modiste from French. In the Regency era, a modiste could not only make clothes, but also advise women on what was fashionable and appropriate for various events. courses Even Regency-era women had to worry about Aunt Flo crashing the party. Courses is an older, fancier way of saying “menses,” or a period. In the Bridgerton time period, the presence or absence of someone’s period was essentially the only way of determining whether or not she could bear children or was pregnant, so much is made of courses by the women on the show. high in the instep If you wanted to drop a sick burn on someone in the 1800s, you might say they were high in the instep. The instep is “the arched upper surface of the human foot between the toes and the ankle,” and accusing someone of being high in the instep was a way of saying they’re conceited, arrogant, or haughty. virtue In modern times, we think of virtue as personal morals or values. Historically, the term was mostly about sex. Virtue meant “chastity; virginity”, especially in reference to women and girls. It was considered of the utmost importance for a woman to “keep her virtue” until marriage. The word entered English in the late 1100s, and it can be traced to the Latin virtūs, or “manliness.” trousseau Bridgerton is part romance and part historical fashion education. A trousseau is “an outfit of clothing, household linen, etc., for a bride.” The word comes from Old French trusse, literally “a little bundle.” In some instances, a trousseau may also have included jewelry and other items and been a part of a woman’s dowry. While dowries aren’t a part of modern wedding traditions, some brides still prepare a trousseau of things they intend to wear throughout their wedding festivities. swoon Now that your vocabulary is ready for the next season of Bridgerton, it’s time to let the swooning commence. To swoon means “to enter a state of hysterical rapture or ecstasy.” Whether you have a favorite duke, duchess, viscount, or modiste, chances are you’ll be acting out this term at least a few times when they appear on screen. Keep in mind that swoon comes from the Middle English swonen, or “to faint.” You may want to binge-watch carefully. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Should You Say “Octopuses” Or “Octopi”? It’s the internet’s favorite eight-armed plural debate: octopuses vs. octopi. (And that relative newcomer, octopodes.) Is there a “correct” plural for octopus? And what’s with the -i in octopi? In this article, we’ll wrap our tentacles around these questions, break down the differences between each term, and tell you which terms are acceptable and most commonly used. Quick summary Both octopuses and octopi are acceptable plurals for octopus. Of the two, octopuses is the simpler and more commonly used. The proposed plural octopodes is based on the plural of the Ancient Greek word from which octopus ultimately derives. But it’s rarely used outside of the octopuses vs. octopi debate. Is it octopuses or octopi? Like the octopus itself, the English language is, in many cases, very flexible: both octopuses and octopi are acceptable and commonly used plural forms of octopus (despite what anyone on the internet may say). But why octopi? Well, in Latin, there’s a class of words that end in -us. These words get pluralized by replacing -us with -i. Many English words with strong roots in Latin have retained this pluralization pattern—think alumnus/alumni and stimulus/stimuli. Along with octopus, there are a few cases in which both endings are used, including: platypuses/platypi; cactuses/cacti; syllabuses/syllabi; and thesauruses/thesauri (though, if you ask us, a plural is unnecessary here since you really only need one thesaurus). Still, in all these cases, it’s more common to pluralize with a plain old -es. If you’re looking for a tie-breaker, consider this: scientists who study these creatures seem to prefer the plural octopuses (though of course the preference is not universal). What about octopodes? Some people object to the plural -i ending in octopi because octopus actually derives from the Latinized form of the Greek word oktṓpous (meaning “eight-foot”). The plural of this word would be oktṓpodes. Based on this, some have proposed the plural octopodes. Reverse-engineering a word’s plural to match its language of origin is a strange way to go about using language (especially when there are two perfectly good plurals right there), so octopodes is not commonly used. Still, some people like to use it (especially to spice up the octopuses vs. octopi debate). P.S. Don’t confuse octopodes with the word octopods, which refers to the eight-armed cephalopod mollusks of the order or suborder Octopoda, including octopuses and paper nautiluses. P.P.S. (Platypus Postscript) Platypus has an origin similar to octopus (from the Greek platýpous, meaning “flat-footed”), so the equivalent hypothetical plural would be platypodes. But we don’t see platypodes happening anytime soon. Do you know the difference between an alligator and a crocodile? Examples of octopuses and octopi used in a sentence You have encountered more than one octopus and you want to know how to describe your situation. Check out these example sentences, in which we show how octopuses and octopi are always interchangeable. - Octopuses/octopi are often solitary. - We saw not one but two octopuses/octopi during our dive today! - Different types of octopuses/octopi can vary greatly in size. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

5 Types Of Character Traits To Help You Create Your Complex Characters Characters are arguably the most important part of any fictional work. Whether in a book, television show, or movie, characters are the ones audiences identify with and the vehicles for telling the entire story. But how do you go about creating characters that people will love, fear, want to know more about, and find utterly unforgettable? It all begins with a character’s traits. Character traits are the essential building blocks of every character in a story, and choosing the right traits can help establish unique identities that will engage your audience from start to finish. Here’s what you need to know about writing great characters, the unique words you need to describe those characters, and how to get started on creating your own complex characters from scratch. What are character traits? When you meet a new person, you often learn about them by observing their traits. A trait is “a distinguishing characteristic or quality, especially of one’s personal nature.” The characters in stories have traits as well. A character trait is a literary term for adjectives and descriptions that writers use to add personality and depth to characters. In fictional stories, character traits serve a number of purposes, including: - Helping readers connect and identify with a character. - Providing insight into a character’s motivations. - Making it easier to differentiate between two characters. - Solidifying a character’s role, such as villain or hero, in the story. - Adding complexity to each character. Character traits may be internal or external. External traits are things another person might notice, like how someone looks, their particular accent when speaking, or how they carry themselves. Internal traits have more to do with what’s going on inside a character’s mind. They are the emotional elements, private thoughts, and actions that make up a character’s personality. The many different kinds of character traits When it comes to deciding on traits for your own characters, there are no rules. Just like no two people on earth are exactly alike, no two characters in a story will ever be exactly alike. Let’s check out some words you might use when describing your own characters’ one-of-a-kind traits. Personality charming stoic approachable reclusive ambitious impulsive demanding poised distrustful even-tempered Physical attributes lanky energetic petite elegant curvaceous rugged stately graceful fumbling brawny Beliefs and morals philosophical judicious greedy pious deceptive spiritual altruistic haughty stingy revolutionary Classic hero traits courageous adventurous honorable sincere visionary persistent humble reliable honest noble Classic villain traits envious demonic unscrupulous furtive mischievous deceitful brutal powerful wounded resourceful Building characters Now that you’re armed with a great character vocabulary, let’s learn a little more about how to build characters. Option one: Start with the character One method of character building is to begin with an idea of your character’s role or defining trait and build from there. For example: a queen. Ask yourself questions about your character’s motivations and the way others see them. - What does the queen look like? - How did the queen ascend to power? - Do people like this character? Why or why not? - What is someone’s first impression of this character? - What is this character afraid of? - What does this character want more than anything? As you answer questions about your character, their physical appearance, beliefs, personality and motivations will begin to emerge. The next step is to write them into a scene and see how these qualities impact their actions and interactions. Option two: Start with traits On the writing podcast Death of 1000 Cuts, author Tim Clare frequently uses timers and lists to flesh out ideas for everything from characters to story locations to plot points. The idea is to let the creative flow and avoid overthinking things. Try setting a timer for 10 minutes and making a list of interesting traits a character might possess. These might include physical attributes, personality quirks, preferences, and strengths and weaknesses, like: smart anxious curly hair wears a lot of purple loves video games hates chocolate lives in outer space holds grudges ambitious Once time has lapsed, look at your list and start to dig into the traits you wrote down. Circle 8–10 character traits and begin to flesh them out. How do these traits work together? How did your character come to possess these traits? As you begin to write your characters into scenes, their traits will solidify and you will get to know them better. Before you know it, they will feel real, and the traits you spent time cultivating will help drive the rest of your story. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Pun, Pangrams, Palindromes, And More: Discover Types Of Word Play Words are powerful, and a masterful use of words can change the world. At the same time, words have a fun side to them too. While the English language often seems to exist purely to confuse us, English also has a silly side that can make us laugh and smile. Are you skeptical? Well, we have dug deep into the English toy box to find a bunch of different ways we can play with words. Fair warning: those that have a low tolerance for dad jokes will want to leave immediately. Puns By definition, a pun is a humorous use of a word with multiple meanings or a funny use of a word as a substitute for a similar sounding word. The related terms punning, play on words, and paronomasia are often used to refer to the act of making puns. The term double entendre refers to a type of wordplay that also uses words with multiple meanings, albeit usually in a more risqué manner than a whimsical pun. Examples of puns Puns that involve words with multiple meanings: The young monkeys went to the jungle gym for some exercise. The investor in the bakery demanded a larger piece of the pie. The art competition ended in a draw. The maestro turned away from the orchestra as they told him the bad news; he couldn’t face the music. Puns that involve similar sounding words: - She claimed the big cat was a tiger, but we knew she was lion. - When he asked me what the flowers should smell like, I told him to use common scents. - As it turned out, the runners themselves had rigged the race. It was an inside jog. - The negotiations over the birds went poorly; neither side would give a finch. Tom Swifty A Tom Swifty is a fun use of words that follows a quote, usually said by a fictional Tom, using a punny adverb. The term Tom Swifty was coined by writer Willard Espy and named after the Tom Swift series of books, which tended to use a lot of adverbs to describe dialogue. Examples of Tom Swifties “I have frostbite,” Tom said coldly. “I’m stocked on all the essentials,” Jess said needlessly. “We feel really bad about what we did,” the children said shamefully. Stinky Pinky Stinky pinky, also known as stinky pinkie and by many other names, is a word game in which players try to guess a rhyming phrase based on a definition. The phrase “stinky pinky” itself is a possible answer when playing the game. It is unknown who invented the game or named it, but word games with the name “stinky pinky” can be traced back to at least the 1940s. Stinky Pinky examples Clue: “Stone timepiece” Answer: Rock clock. Clue: “Road pork” Answer: Street meat. Clue: “A young cat’s gloves” Answer: Kitten’s mittens. Spoonerisms A spoonerism is a, usually accidental, swapping of initial sounds of two words. The term spoonerism is named for Oxford lecturer William Archibald Spooner, a notoriously nervous speaker who often swapped the beginnings of words when he spoke publicly. Spoonerism examples - It is tinner dime. (“dinner time”) - He used to work on a bail soat. (“sail boat”) - Happy dogs love to tag their wails. (“wag their tails”) Kennings A kenning is a metaphorical or poetic phrase that is conventionally used in place of another term. Kenning examples gumshoe = a detective pencil pusher = an office worker tree-hugger = an environmentalist Pig Latin Pig Latin is a form of language, usually used by children, in which the first consonant or consonant sound is placed at the end of a word followed by the sound ā (written as “ay”). Example: Ancay ouyay eakspay igpay atinlay? (“Can you speak pig Latin?”) Palindromes A palindrome is a word, phrase, or sentence that reads the same if read forward or backward. Palindrome examples Single words: madam eve noon Multiple words: dog god ward draw live evil Sentences: A man, a plan, a canal. Panama! Madam, I’m Adam! Was it a cat I saw? Anagrams An anagram is a word, phrase, or sentence formed by rearranging the letters of another. Anagram examples porter is an anagram of report attics is an anagram of static pub toss is an anagram of bus stop Antigrams An antigram is an anagram that means the opposite of the original word or phrase it was formed from. Examples on the sly is an antigram of honestly arise late is an antigram of earliest over fifty is an antigram of forty-five Pangrams A pangram is a phrase or sentence that includes every letter of the alphabet. The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog is a famous example of a pangram. Some other fun examples of things that rely on alphabet-based challenges include lipograms, heterograms, tautograms, autograms, and kangaroo words. Ambigrams An ambigram is a word or visual design that reads the same or creates a new word or image when flipped upside down or reversed. For example, the word dollop is an example of an ambigram because it would still theoretically read as “dollop” even when turned upside down. Acrostics An acrostic is a set of lines or verses where certain letters spell out a hidden message. Example: Curious Agile Territorial Smart Backronyms A backronym is an existing word turned into an acronym by creating an appropriate phrase that it could serve as an acronym for. Examples Ghost is a backronym of “ghoul haunting our spooky town.” Car is a backronym of “carrying all riders.” Alligator is a backronym of “a large lizard is grinning at the other reptiles.” Rhyming, alliteration, assonance, and consonance These four words all have to do with using words that have similar sounds. Most people are familiar with rhyming, which typically refers to using words with similar-sounding endings as in The big pig ate a fig. The word alliteration means to use words with similar-sounding beginnings or words that start with the same letter. Assonance means to use similar-sounding vowels anywhere in words when rhyming, whereas consonance means to use similar-sounding consonant sounds anywhere in words when making a rhyme. Alliteration examples She sells seashells by the sea shore. Big bunnies bounded behind busy birds. Ten tenants took twenty tents to Thailand. Assonance examples We see these bees. Leave the cleaver for the skeevy beaver. Doodle the Cool Poodle wants oodles of noodle strudel. Consonance examples Look! The crook took cook books! Ross, toss the sauce to our boss Joss. We heard the third nerdy bird’s words. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

The Wait Is Over! Learn If You Should Use “‘Til” or “Till” If you feel like until has just too many letters or syllables, good news: you’ve got options. But should you use ’til or till? And what’s the difference, anyway? By the end of this article, you’ll know the differences between until, till, and ’til, including in terms of origin, level of formality, and use. Quick summary Until, till, and ’til all mean the same thing. The informal contraction ’til is a shortening of until that’s typically only used in informal contexts. The word till is a separate word altogether—it’s actually older than until. Till isn’t informal, but it can seem that way due to the informality of ’til, which sounds exactly the same. ’til vs. till The word ’til is a shortening of until that, like many contractions, is typically reserved for informal contexts. It’s sometimes spelled without the apostrophe, especially in casual use. (Technically speaking, ’til is an example of the linguistic process known as aphesis, which involves the disappearance or loss of an unstressed initial vowel or syllable.) Till is sometimes seen as a misspelling of ’til, but that’s not the case. It’s actually a separate word altogether with a variety of meanings, one of which means the same exact thing as ’til. till or until Till and until are completely interchangeable—they mean the same exact thing and can be used in all the same ways, including as a conjunction or preposition. They both have a very long history of use in English, but in fact till is even older than until: the first records of till come from before 900, with the first records of until coming in the 1100s. (Until and till are based on the same root.) Even though they’re interchangeable, till may seem more informal than until to some people because it’s so similar to the shortening ’til. For this reason, some people avoid using till in formal contexts. Still, you can never really go wrong using till. The occasional rendering of ’till with an apostrophe (certainly influenced by ’til) is generally considered a misspelling—and frankly unnecessary, since till is right there to use. Examples of ’til, till, and until used in a sentence Until, till, and ’til are interchangeable in meaning, but people often choose which one they use based on how formal they want to be. This means that ’til is typically being avoided in formal contexts, which sometimes leads to the avoidance of till as well. Still, in any of the examples below, any one of the terms could be used if formality were not a consideration. - I thought it was a great offer until I realized there are no benefits attached. - I stay up till midnight every so often, but rarely any later. - The sign says “Open ’til midnight,” so we’ve still got time. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

“Disc” vs. “Disk”: Get Around The Different Uses For Each One The question of whether to use disc or disk can be a bit circular: in some cases, one is definitely preferred, but in many cases their use overlaps—meaning they’re often interchangeable. This is because both words typically refer to something round and flat (though not always, as we’ll see). The difference, when there is one, usually just depends on what the established preference is. The discrepancies can be disconcerting, but we hope this discussion will help you discard any confusion or discontent. Quick summary Disc and disk can be and are used interchangeably in many contexts, though disk may be slightly more common. The D in CD and DJ (usually) stands for disc, which is the spelling also used in disc golf. The spelling disk is usually used in the context of computer storage in terms like disk drive, floppy disk, and hard disk. It’s also usually used when referring to intervertebral disks—the ones in the spine. Should I use disc or disk? In most cases, disc and disk can be—and are—used interchangeably. In general, the word disk was once much more commonly used, but the two words now have a relatively similar level of use. This all means that there’s really no good rule to remember when to spell it one way or the other. Instead, here’s a handy list showing which spelling is more commonly used in a specific term or a particular context. disc golf The various types of flat, plastic circles that are thrown in various games (including disc golf) can all be called discs. The type of flying disc used for a casual toss—and in the sport known as Ultimate—is popularly known by the brand name Frisbee. compact disc, disc jockey In the context of music, the D in CD and DJ most often stands for disc—though you may see disk used in some cases. And, technically speaking, a musical compact disc can be considered a type of compact disk, the broader name for any 4.75-in (12-cm) optical disk (which, yes, can also be called an optical disc). disk drive, disk space, hard disk, magnetic disk, floppy disk In the context of computer data storage, the spelling is usually disk. Anyone just now discovering what a floppy disk is might be wondering why it’s called a disk when it’s square rather than round, but it’s because the actual disk inside the plastic shell is actually round. You can remember to use the spelling with a k in this context because floppy disks are sometimes called diskettes (not “discettes”). slipped disk, herniated disk The pads between the spinal vertebrae are usually called disks or intervertebral disks. flat, circular objects In general, any thin, flat, circular plate or object—or one that at least appears to be round and flat—can be referred to as a disk or a disc. While the spelling disc is very common in general, the spelling disk is probably even more common, especially in several specific contexts. astronomy Surfaces of heavenly bodies appear flat during regular observation, and for this reason they are often referred to as disks, as in the disk of the moon and the solar disk. biology Roundish, flat structures in a body can be called disks, as in blood disk (also called a platelet) and germinal disk (also called a blastodisk). geometry The domain bounded by a circle can be called the disk. plants and flowers The central portion of the flowerhead is called the disk. Examples of disc and disk used in a sentence That was a lot of info! Let’s see some examples of these senses in use. - The mysterious disc in the video—purported to be an extraterrestrial craft—turned out to be a Frisbee. - Growing up, I always wanted to be a radio disc jockey, but that’s only because podcasters didn’t exist yet. - The telescope is set up to observe the disk of the moon. - I want to copy the contents of the floppy disk to the hard disk—is that possible? - How much disk space is available? - She’s been out of work with a herniated disk. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

“Ingress” vs. “Egress”: Do You Know The Difference? Ingress and egress look and sound like they’re opposites, and they are. They’re primarily used in the context of entrances and exits, especially in architecture and other fields related to planning how people get in and out of places. You can probably guess from the in in ingress that it generally means “the act of going in” or refers to an entryway. But there’s a lot more to know about these words and how exactly they’re used—including in astronomy and in terms like egress window. Join us as we get into the ins and outs of ingress and egress. Quick summary Ingress can refer to both the act of entering or to an entryway (an entrance) itself. Egress refers to both the act of exiting or to an exit itself. In astronomy, they’re used in a more specific way relating to heavenly bodies (like planets) entering into or emerging from an eclipse. What does ingress mean? Ingress means “the act of entering,” “the right of entering,” or “the means of entering.” The last sense is typically the one used in relation to architecture and related fields. A point of ingress in a building is an entryway. It’s a concise way of referring to a place where people can enter that avoids using a more specific term, like door (since points of ingress might not all technically be doors). The word isn’t always used in relation to buildings—it could be applied to parking lots, for example, which often have multiple points of ingress for vehicles to enter. In astronomy, ingress is another word for immersion, the entrance of a heavenly body (such as a planet or a moon) into an eclipse caused by another heavenly body (like when the moon moves into Earth’s shadow) or into another instance of their paths crossing in some way (such as an occultation or a transit). What does egress mean? Egress means “the act of going out,” “the right to go out,” or “the means of going out.” The last sense is the one used in relation to architecture and related fields. For example, a fire safety code often requires a building to have multiple points of egress—places for people to exit, such as doors and fire escapes. A parking lot might have some one-way access points devoted to ingress and others devoted to egress. In astronomy, egress is another word for emersion, the emergence or exit of a heavenly body from an eclipse, occultation, or transit—that is, when it comes back into view. What is an egress window? An egress window is a window or skylight that can serve as an exit in an emergency. They’re not intended to be regular means of access—they’re typically much smaller than doors, just big enough for a person to crawl through in case of something like a fire or a building collapse. You’ll especially see the term used in building codes and plans. Where do ingress and egress come from? The -gress part in both words ultimately comes from the Latin gradī, meaning “to go, step, walk”; this verb is also the origin of the word grade. The prefix in- means, yep, “in,” and the prefix e- is a variant of ex-, which means “out” and is also used to form the word exit. What is the difference between ingress and egress? The difference between ingress and egress might seem obvious: ingress refers to an entrance, and egress refers to an exit. And generally that’s true. Of course, it’s very common for many access points to be used for both ingress and egress—you come in the same door you go out. But in architecture and site planning, it’s often important to differentiate the two for many different reasons, such as accessibility, safety, and proper traffic flow. Even though the words are used in more specific ways in astronomy, the basic idea is the same: ingress involves entering, and egress involves emerging or exiting. Remember: ingress goes in and egress exits. Examples of ingress and egress used in a sentence Take a look at some example sentences to help you remember the difference between ingress and egress. - The room has two points of egress, but only one point of ingress—one door is an emergency door that only opens outward. - The developer plans to add another ingress point for the proposed neighborhood so that residents can enter from the south end. - The investigation revealed that a broken door prevented egress. - You’ll have to add an egress window to get the basement up to code. - The moon began egress, exiting Earth’s shadow. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

“Disaster” Synonyms For When Things Don’t Go As Planned Most of the time, we like to keep things positive around here and provide you with plenty of inspiring, motivational words to brighten up your day. This … this is not that list. Are you done setting intentions? Are you through repeating mantras into the mirror? Do you just need a perfectly wretched word to capture what’s not working right now? Then this is the list for you. We’ve traveled through hell and goat rodeos to bring you the words that will describe the snafus and fiascos of your life or the world around you. If your desperate times call for desperate words, here are 20 provocative synonyms for the word disaster and some example sentences to inspire use. apocalypse We begin our list with a disaster of Biblical proportions. The word apocalypse originally comes from the Greek apokálypsis, meaning “revelation.” Since at least the 1100s, the word apocalypse has been used to refer to the Book of Revelation in the Christian Bible, which tells how the world will be nearly destroyed when good finally defeats evil. Today, the word apocalypse is often used generally (and ominously) to refer to a doomsday-level scenario. Example: You’d think, by the mess in the kitchen, that we were witnessing a true apocalypse. bloodbath The word bloodbath is often used to describe violent slaughters or massacres. The word creates the mental image of a carnage so intense that someone could take a bath in the spilled blood. Figuratively, though, bloodbath is used to describe disastrous events or severe instances of bad fortune. While this word came to English in the 1800s, a similar term, blodbad (literally “bath in blood”), was recorded in the 1500s in Swedish. Example: If our star player can’t play, the opening game is going to be a bloodbath. cataclysm Cataclysm is a word so disastrous that it rocks the entire Earth to its core. The word cataclysm means “a violent upheaval” and is used in geography to refer to violent events that manage to alter the surface of Earth. This is the word you need if you want to literally or figuratively describe something as earth-shaking. Example: Barring an unforeseen cataclysm, this family is finally going on vacation this summer. fiasco The word fiasco means “a complete and ignominious failure” and has a bit of a strange history. Fiasco is an Italian word that literally translates to “bottle,” and it is related to the word flask. The English meaning of “failure” comes from the Italian idiom fare fiasco which means “to fail” (though it literally translates to “make a bottle”). Example: My spouse somehow managed to salvage the dessert fiasco I haphazardly concocted. bouleversement We go from a strange Italian word to an even stranger (or at least longer) French one. The word bouleversement means “an overturning” or “turmoil.” This is the one you want if you really need to bring out the twenty-dollar word. Example: The rebel leader said that the country would emerge from the bouleversement stronger than it had ever been. calamity Get the tissues ready, because our next word is calamity. Calamity is a synonym of disaster, but it indicates that a horrific event specifically caused misery and lots of tears—so, like a dentist appointment? Example: I’ve been beset with calamity after calamity since the pandemic started, and I’m losing it. catastrophe Catastrophe is a synonym that can highlight the destruction and loss brought about by a tremendous event. If nothing is left standing or a disaster will continue to cause pain and suffering for the foreseeable future, we might label it a catastrophe. Example: Did you see the bathroom after the pipe burst? What a catastrophe! pandemonium Things have gone to hell in a hand basket thanks to our next word: pandemonium. Pandemonium refers to a wild state of disorder, noise, and chaos. This disastrous word actually comes from Pandaemonium, the name that John Milton used for the capital of hell in Paradise Lost. Example: The muddy dogs tore through the living room, knocking over two lamps, and pandemonium ensued. debacle The word debacle is one of several that implies a failure was caused by failure or incompetence, especially ones that result from disorganization. Its original meaning in the 1800s, however, referred to a “breaking up of ice in a river” or rush of water “which breaks down opposing barriers, and carries before it blocks of stone and other debris.” That does sound like a mess. Example: With half the students out sick, the class performance devolved into a total debacle. blunder The word blunder is a synonym of the word mistake and is often used to describe an error resulting from severe incompetence or stupidity. Unlike most of the other words on this list, blunder can also be used as a verb (“to make a careless or stupid mistake”). Example: The clumsy waiter spilled wine on the mayor and was later fired for this horrible blunder. epic fail LOL! The slang term epic fail is used to describe particularly humiliating mistakes. Our disastrous list of words has been bad so far, but epic fail might just be the worst of the bunch. Why? Because this is the phrase to use when that embarrassing mistake has been broadcast on social media! (And once that happens, only an especially clever cat meme can save you.) Example: ROFL My brother just fell into the pool! #epicfail meltdown With our next word, our disaster has just gone nuclear. Meltdown is a word used to refer to severe nuclear reactor accidents. It’s figuratively used to describe sudden situations that quickly spiral out of control. Example: The guitarist’s meltdown surprised no one, given tensions have been high between band members. kick in the teeth Ouch! The idiom kick in the teeth refers to a sudden and humiliating setback. Why a kick? In the English language, slang phrases like kick in the head and kick in the pants rely on the image of a kick (instead of punches) to describe particularly humiliating blows. Example: The terrible reviews were a real kick in the teeth for the young Broadway star. goat rodeo Giddyup, cowboys and cowgirls, because it’s time to wrangle some … goats? Goat rodeo is an example of one of several goat-related slang terms for monumental screwups. A relatively new term from the 2000s, it creates a good mental image of a wild rodeo full of screaming goats. You may have heard the term goat-roping (used similarly) and other more obscene versions, but goat rodeo is considered the most extreme of all. We repeat, a goat rodeo is as disastrous as a situation can get. Example: This is no concert. It’s a goat rodeo of drunk performers and technical difficulties! dog’s breakfast This list has really gone to the dogs. The slang term dog’s breakfast, mainly used in Canada and the UK, describes a confused, disorderly mess. The phrase most likely refers to the fact that many dogs will eat pretty much anything you put in front of them. In any case, dog’s breakfast is a fun word to use when everything has gone to “Shih Tzu.” Example: The drive was an absolute dog’s breakfast. We arrived two hours late after being stuck in traffic and getting lost. disarray Disarray describes a situation that is especially chaotic, disorganized, or marred by confusion. Disarray is a word you can use when you’ve got a disorderly mess or a comedy of errors on your hands. Example: Hyped up on cake and sugar, the children left the room in a state of total disarray. turmoil Turmoil is another word to convey that you’re in the midst of great confusion or disorder. Fittingly, we are not actually sure where this verb-turned-noun originates from. Example: Without enough employees to cover the day’s shift, the company was thrown into turmoil. dumpster fire The slang term dumpster fire means something is so disastrously bad it is beyond all hope of saving. Often, the dumpster fire is result of terribly bad decisions or extraordinary levels of incompetence. It’s best to stay the heck away from a dumpster fire because, as its name implies, it is likely to just keep getting worse. Example: The movie was a complete dumpster fire that didn’t get a single positive review. shitshow The not-very-nice word shitshow is used to describe essentially the same situation as a dumpster fire: a mess that is completely unsalvageable. To go the extra mile, shitshow throws in a swear word to capture the magnitude of a truly unbelievable disaster. Example: Last year was a real shitshow but I’m hoping things turn around soon. snafu and fubar It might be time for reinforcements. Snafu and fubar are two abbreviations that can be traced back to military jargon and have some … colorful meanings. Snafu stands for “situation normal: all f–ed up” and fubar stands for “f–ed up beyond all reason.” Now fix the disaster, cadet, and then drop and give us twenty! Example: The trip started with a series of major snafus, like when the luggage arrived in the wrong city. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

“Fruit” vs. “Vegetable”: Thyme To Explain The Actual Difference Trying to classify what’s a fruit and what’s a vegetable isn’t always cut and dry. In fact, the debate about it can get pretty juicy—seedy, even. This all stems from the fact that some things we eat are technically fruits but are almost always called vegetables (and treated like vegetables, too). Some people make a distinction based on the level of sweetness, but the difference—from the perspective of a botanist, at least—is less a matter of taste and more a matter of which part of the plant you’re eating. This article will get to the root of which foods are fruits, which are vegetables, and which are actually fruits despite always getting placed with the vegetables at the grocery store. You’ll come away with answers to these questions and more: What exactly is the difference between fruits and vegetables? Is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable? Is a potato a vegetable? Are berries fruit? What about nuts? We’ll even include a list of the fruits and vegetables whose categorization status most often pits people against each other, along with their technical classification and what they’re usually considered in culinary use. (Spoilage alert: the fruit and veggie puns are already pretty ripe, but they’re going to get even grosser.) Quick summary Technically speaking, a fruit is a plant’s developed ovary that comes from a flower and contains one or multiple seeds. The term vegetable is much broader—it refers to any part of a plant that’s used for food, including the roots, tubers, stems, and leaves. Many of the foods that we casually call vegetables, like tomatoes, are technically fruits. Still, it’s a technical distinction that’s usually ignored in practical contexts, such as menus or the layout of the produce section. What is the difference between a fruit and a vegetable? To a botanist, the word fruit specifically refers to the edible part of a seed plant that develops from a flower into a ripened ovary that contains one or more seeds—fertilized seeds capable of generating a new plant. Fruits come from many different types of plants: apples grow on trees, grapes grow on vines, and blueberries grow on shrubs, for example. The botanical definition of a fruit has nothing to do with whether or not it tastes sweet. The word vegetable tends to make us think of savory (and nonsweet) flavors. But vegetable simply means any part of a plant that is grown primarily for food. This can be the leaves (spinach), the root (carrots), the tuber (potatoes), the flower (broccoli), the stalk (celery), or other parts—including the fruit. Yes, definitionally speaking, fruits are actually just one type of vegetable (because they’re an edible part of a plant). Still, people don’t usually think about their fruits and vegetables in terms of strict, definition-specific distinctions. In everyday, nonscientific contexts, we usually make the distinction between a fruit and a vegetable based on how we eat it and what dishes we put it in, especially according to whether it’s sweet or not. To most of us, fruits are the edible, usually sweet parts of a plant—often ones that are eaten raw, squeezed for juice, or used in desserts. Many things that are technically fruits are commonly treated as vegetables (and even sometimes the other way around). Here are some whose categorizations are among the most ambiguous. Tomato: fruit or vegetable? It’s both. No matter how you slice it, a tomato is technically a fruit (the seed-filled ovary of the plant), but it’s typically treated as (and called) a vegetable. The classification confusion is understandable, given its savory but sweet flavor and the fact that it’s commonly used in savory dishes in the same way that vegetables usually are. Even the Supreme Court has had trouble with putting the fruit in the right category. In 1893, the high court of the US decided a tomato is a vegetable because of the way it’s used in cooking, regardless of the botanical categorization. Just because the scientific definition is clear doesn’t mean the issue is settled. Perhaps the distinction is best summarized by the quote, often attributed to journalist Miles Kington, that “Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.” But even that notion has been contradicted by countless cooks—search some variation of tomato and watermelon salad recipe and you’ll get millions of hits. Is a cucumber a fruit? The cucumber plant is part of the gourd family. The part that people eat (and turn into pickles) is the fruit of the plant. So while you might not think of a cucumber salad as a kind of fruit salad, cucumbers do fit the technical definition of a fruit. It’s a good reminder that taste and how people commonly prepare a food have little to do with its scientific classification. Is a coconut a fruit? A coconut is the fruit of the coconut palm. It falls into the subcategory of fruits called drupes, which are distinguished by an outer skin, a fleshy middle, and a hard woody shell over a single seed. However, unlike other drupes in which the flesh covering the seed is what’s eaten (like peaches or cherries), the edible part of the coconut is the meat just inside that last interior shell. Is a potato a vegetable? The potato is part of the same family of plants (the nightshade family) as the tomato, the eggplant, and some peppers. But unlike those, it’s classified as a vegetable because the part of the plant that’s eaten is the tuber part of the root, as opposed to the reproductive organ. Many people asking “Is a potato a vegetable?” are really asking if they can count it as one nutritionally, like they do green vegetables. Traditionally, potatoes have been considered a starch, but they’re full of nutrients, including vitamins C, B1, B3, and B6, as well as minerals like iron, potassium, and folate. Is a carrot a fruit? This is an easy one—carrots are definitely vegetables, not fruits. Like potatoes, carrots are a type of root vegetable. The greens of the plant are edible, but carrots are grown for the bright orange (or purple, or white, or yellow) taproot growing underneath. Remember, vegetables can come from all parts of the plant, be it the roots, leaves, stalks, or other parts. Keeping that in mind can be useful when sorting out whether something belongs in the vegetable category or the fruit category. But here’s an easier way—we’ll just tell you. Produce this produce list any time there’s a rhubarb concerning edible plant facts. Are berries fruit? What about nuts? You might be thinking that grains are a surprising inclusion in the fruit category. They aren’t the only fruits that often get left out of the fruit conversation, either. Nuts, berries, and pods (such as peas) are also technically fruits. A berry is a small fruit that usually has small seeds embedded, as in grapes and blueberries. Tomatoes, in fact, also fall into this group. From a botanical standpoint, only simple fruits—those that develop from a single ovary in a single flower—are berries. Still, some other fruits commonly called berries, like strawberries and raspberries, are technically aggregate fruits, meaning they develop from multiple ovaries of a single flower. Some fruits commonly classified as berries, such as the mulberry, are multiple fruits, meaning they come from the ovaries of several individual flowers. Nuts are also simple fruits, albeit ones eaten dry. These have an edible inside that’s enclosed in a hard shell, like a chestnut or hazelnut. Some other things that we call nuts, like walnuts and almonds, aren’t nuts from a botanical perspective, but are instead the kind of fruits classified as drupes (like coconuts), since the shells are covered in a fleshy outside. Peanuts are also not nuts—they are legumes, meaning they’re technically a vegetable. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

What To Write In A Holiday Card Just as we look forward to presents and parties this time of year, we can’t get enough of holiday cards! We love them all: from colorful cards sent by snail mail to animated emails to newsletters summing up what everyone in the family has been up to all year. Fun fact: the very first holiday card in 1843 depicted children toasting with wine—oops! But when it comes to sending your own holiday cards this season, it can be confusing to know how to get them just right. The fear of accidentally offending someone or leaving someone off your list can be daunting. That’s why we’ve put together these dos and don’ts to kickstart (or improve) your holiday writing tradition. Do start early You’ll want to leave yourself time to get (or make, if you’re ambitious) cards, write a message, and sign them. If your holiday card includes a picture of your adorable family in matching elf costumes, you’ll need even more time to get the costumes, take the photo, and have it printed. Keep that in mind! If you’re planning on sending your holiday cards via the post, it’s recommended you mail them before December 17. So think about the time you have, and what you can reasonably accomplish, which leads us to … Don’t be overly ambitious Maybe you’re one of these people who, like Martha Stewart, can handcraft a card for each person on your 40-person list and still get them out on time. But most of us mere mortals are not Martha Stewart (sadly). People are happy to get a holiday card because it shows you care about them and are thinking about them. Whether it’s store-bought or handmade, it’s the thought that counts. Now that we’ve set reasonable expectations, let’s get into the details of writing those holiday cards. Do write the recipient’s name Even if it’s a store-bought card with a pre-printed message, you want to be sure to write the recipient’s name(s) at the top of the card. You can be formal or informal, depending on the context. For a less formal card, you can use the formula of “Dear” plus first names: e.g., Dear Jack & Jill. If you’re writing a more formal card, then you’ll want to use honorifics and last names: e.g., Dear Mr. & Dr. Falldownhill or Dear Ms. Dalloway. Don’t guess the spelling When you’re writing the recipient’s name, make sure you get it right. If it’s a name you’re unfamiliar with or one that has multiple spellings, double-check your address book or other references (social media works) to ensure that you haven’t left out a letter or put in one too many. It’s not a good look. Do include a personal message Even if your holiday card comes from a box or is an online widget, you should include a personal message to the recipient. This can be short and sweet, as simple as: - Wishing you and your family a happy holiday season! - The holidays come but once a year: enjoy! - Thinking of you over the holidays. - Hoping you have a joyous and peaceful holiday. - Have a wonderful New Year! - Let the spirit of the season inspire you. - Warm wishes for the holiday and New Year. - Hope this season is filled with joy and cheer! - Sending you good luck into the New Year! Stock phrases are a good starting point, but you can also include some personal details. For instance, you might consider adding: - the important things that happened to you or your family this year, like marriages or births; - a wish for the recipient’s health, especially if you know they’ve been under the weather this year; - or a note about your desire to see them if they live far away. All that said, unless you’re writing a holiday letter, your holiday card note shouldn’t be too long. Aim for no more than 150 words. If you’re writing a holiday letter, keep it to a single page long (about 400 words). Nobody needs to know about every detail of your year, trust us. Don’t assume everyone celebrates the same holidays If you’re sending cards to people you know well, you probably know what holidays they celebrate, so feel free to write “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Hanukkah.” [Is it Tis the Season or ’Tis the Season? Find out!] But if you’re sending cards to coworkers, family, or friends you know less well, don’t assume they celebrate the same holidays you do. That can cause unnecessary offense. If you’re unsure, stick to the more generic happy holidays or season’s greetings. Make it easy on yourself. Or, as the Emily Post Institute suggests, you can also opt to send a more secular greeting for the new year. Do be funny (if you want) You can absolutely send formal holiday cards. In which case, we don’t recommend you include jokes. But if you’re sending cards to friends and family, a little bit of levity can be nice. That said, avoid any jokes that could be offensive. For example, many people include humorous pictures of their family on their holiday cards. It’s a little cheesy, but also kind of wonderful. Don’t be depressing Unless you’re Eeyore, you should try to keep a positive, happy tone in your holiday card message. Don’t write “This year has sucked” or “Everything is garbage.” If you feel that way, we get it—the holidays can be tough. But holiday cards are a place where the maxim If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all rules. If you’re too bummed out to think of any good news to share, just write a generic message like the ones we suggested above. Do have everyone in the family sign the card After you’ve written your short, thoughtful note in your card, be sure to sign it. If it’s just you, that’s simple enough. If you’re sending the card on behalf of your entire immediate family and are going the paper route, pass the card around the family to have them sign. If you’re sending an online card, just include everyone’s name in the signature line. Don’t boast Holiday cards and letters are an opportunity to reach out to the people you love and care about. It’s not an opportunity for you to boast about how wonderful you and your family are (although we are sure they are wonderful). This isn’t a resumé, it’s a highlight reel. Instead of listing every good deed every family member has done all year, pick one or two of the most important things to mention in your message. Moves, weddings, graduations, and births are worth mentioning. Volunteer work at the local soup kitchen, while admirable, is not. We wish you the best of luck with your holiday cards this season. Sometimes the cards are as hectic as the holidays … so grab a cup of eggnog and get writing! Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

If Yuo’re Albe To Raed Tihs, You Might Have Typoglycemia Ever heard of typoglycemia? Even if you haven’t, chances are you’ll recognize one of the viral puzzles that explains this phenomenon. Starting around 2003, an email circulated through what seems like every inbox claiming that scrambled English words are just as easy to read as the original words. However, as cool as the original email was, it didn’t actually tell the whole truth. There’s more to scrambled words than meets the eye. What is typoglycemia? That viral email tested our ability to read scrambled words. Here’s what it looks like: Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Could you read it? Even with a mistake in this viral email (rscheearch cannot spell researcher), the truth is pretty much every fluent English-speaker can read and understand it. The word-scrambling phenomenon has a punny name: typoglycemia, playing mischievously with typo and glycemia, the condition of having low blood sugar. Typoglycemia is the ability to read a paragraph like the one above despite the jumbled words. Is typoglycemia real or a trick? Does it take you nanoseconds to solve the Word Jumble in the newspaper? No? While your brain can breeze through some word-scrambles, it’s more complicated than that click-bait email suggests. Matt Davis, a researcher at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at Cambridge University, will help us sort it out. Here’s what they believe the email got right: unless you have a rare brain disorder, people read words as whole units, not letter-by-letter. That’s one of the factors explaining why we can “magically” read the message. But here’s where Davis reminds us why the daily Word Jumble still manages to scramble our brains for breakfast. That trending email led us to believe all we need is for “the first and last letters to be in the right place” and nothing else matters. Actually a lot else matters. What makes a scrambled word easier to read? Here are some other factors a jumbled passage needs in order for everyone to easily read it: 1. The words need to be relatively short. 2. Function words (be, the, a, and other words that provide grammatical structure) can’t be messed up, otherwise the reader struggles. 3. Switching (or transposing) the letters makes a big difference. Letters beside each other in a word can be switched without much difficulty for the reader to understand. When letters farther apart are switched, it’s harder. Take porbelm vs. pelborm (for “problem”). 4. We understand scrambled words better when their sounds are preserved: toatl vs. talot (for “total”). 5. Here’s a big one: the passage is readable because it’s predictable (especially because we’ve seen it so many times)! Other factors play into it as well, like preserving double letters. For example, in the word according, the scrambled email keeps the cc intact (“aoccdrnig”). Double letters are contextual markers that give good hints. But we could also scramble it up this way: “ancdircog.” Breaking up the cc makes it harder, right? All told, we’re code-making machines (we speak the code of English) and we’re wired to find meaning out of nonsense, in part by looking at contextual cues. However the codes can only be scrambled to a certain degree before we get lost. Try these two (tougher) word puzzles Try your hand at two hard-scrambled passages below which prove your brain needs more than just the first and last letters of a scrambled word to read it quickly. With these, you’ll see why our brains can only handle typoglycemia to a point. The answers at the bottom; try not to cheat! 1. A dootcr has aimttded the magltheuansr of a tageene ceacnr pintaet who deid aetfr a hatospil durg blendur. 2. In the Vcraiiton are, a levloy eamlred geren, pirlaalty frmoueltad form asirnec, was uesd in fcaibrs and ppaluor falrol hresesdeads. The first example is from that blog post by Matt Davis. The second is our re-scrambling of a fascinating Jezebel lead. And they’re not easy! Research shows that typos definitely interfere with reading speed. (There’s a reason we have spell-checkers!) Tricky jumble puzzles that can take hours to complete also prove that, in the end, letter order and spelling absolutely make or break our comprehension of a word. Ready for the answers? 1. A doctor has admitted the manslaughter of a teenage cancer patient who died after a hospital drug blunder. 2. In the Victorian era, a lovely emerald green, partially formulated from arsenic, was used in fabrics and popular floral headdresses. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Appreciate Yourself And Others More With Words Of Affirmation New Year’s goals aren’t just about what you do, they’re also about what you say. This year, why not build up yourself and your relationships with some words of affirmation? Words of affirmation are things we say that express care, commitment, love, and support. They’re so important, they’re actually one of the five love languages that author Gary Chapman says people require to feel and express love in relationships. But words of affirmation aren’t just tools for sharing our feelings with other people. They’re an important part of self-affirmation and offering encouragement to yourself as well. The past two years haven’t been easy on anyone, but starting a new year presents the chance to embrace opportunity, build your self-confidence, and put yourself out into the world in a new way. As you commit to self-improvement or growth in your relationships this year, here are 22 words and phrases of affirmation to help you express love and appreciation for yourself and others. 1. “I’m thankful for…” Gratitude can be something you express to others, or it can be something you experience within yourself. Being intentional about expressing thanks for the things, people, and opportunities in your life is a way of affirming appreciation for the moment and inspiring positivity about the future. 2. “I’m proud because…” You might feel pride for something as big as completing a marathon or as simple as making that tough phone call you’d been putting off for a week. Either way, when you’re proud of yourself or someone else, say it. 3. “I feel supported when…” How do other people show up for you? Point it out to them, and let them know how much you appreciate having them in your corner. 4. “I feel inspired when…” Notice what motivates you. It might be something another person does, or inspiration may strike when you’re taking time for yourself. Acknowledge those moments to bring attention to them and to help you recognize moments of inspiration in the future. 5. “I am brave.” Every day you take chances, tackle goals, share your feelings, and put yourself out there. Those are all brave things to do. When life feels scary, affirm to yourself that you have shown bravery a million times before, and you can do it again. 6. “I am loved.” You matter to the people around you. Remind yourself of this when you’re feeling disconnected or overwhelmed. You could even call up someone you care about and remind them that they are loved, too. 7. “I can.” If you’re experiencing doubt, remind yourself that you can do whatever it is that’s making you feel worried. You may not do everything perfectly, but you can try, show up, and keep working towards the goal. 8. “I value…” What do you love about the people in your life? What makes your relationships meaningful? You can affirm your connections with others by sharing these things and letting them know the special place they hold in your life. 9. “I love you.” Love is something you feel, but it’s also something to share. When you love someone, let them know it. It can’t hurt to also say it to your reflection in the mirror sometimes. We won’t judge. 10. “Thank you.” “Thank you” is a simple phrase that makes a big impact. Thanking others lets them know they’re seen, needed, and appreciated. Thanking yourself is also a way of acknowledging the good you do in the world and the power you have to make a difference. 11. “I’m worth it.” It’s normal to experience doubt or wonder if you’re good enough for the things and people you want in your life, but we’re all worthy of good things. Remind yourself of this when the going gets tough. 12. “I love my life when…” Think about what brings you joy, then celebrate that. Maybe this means telling yourself you love your life when you’re being active or taking chances, or maybe it’s telling someone else you love your life when they’re a part of it. 13. “You are so special to me.” Special means “of a distinct or particular kind or character.” It’s nice to hear that you are uniquely appreciated, so make it a point to share those feelings with the most special people in your life. 14. “I’m here.” Sometimes the best way to affirm your care for someone is just to be there for them. You can do this by taking care of something they need done, bringing them a gift, or just telling them, “I’m here.” 15. “I feel loved when…” In relationships, it can be important to share not just your own love for someone, but also the ways they make you feel loved. Communication like this can strengthen your bond and help you support each other in ways that feel more thoughtful. 16. “It impressed me when…” We don’t always know when we’re being noticed or appreciated by others. Make an intention to share these moments more often. You can start by just letting someone know when something they do catches your attention. 17. “I’m lucky…” Acknowledging the good things in your life can help you notice all of the small privileges and joys you experience on a daily basis. Ways to finish this sentence might include: I’m lucky to be here, I’m lucky to experience this moment, or I’m lucky to have you in my life. 18. “I feel great.” Feeling good? Shout it from the rooftops. It’s easy to acknowledge when we’re feeling off, down, or out of sorts. This year, try to be intentional about also affirming the good days and good vibes you experience. 19. “I’m showing up for myself.” When you practice self-care, accomplish a goal, or even just tackle a basic task of daily living, you’re showing up for yourself, and that’s a big deal. Affirm that you are your own biggest support, and you do a great job of being you. 20. “I am capable.” When self-doubt creeps in, affirm that you are capable. You may not be perfect (no one is!), but you are always capable of learning, trying, practicing, and getting better. 21. “I find you so…” How do you feel about the people in your life? They’d probably like to hear it. You might say you find them attractive, inspiring, helpful, friendly, hilarious, or kind. 22. “I am doing my best.” No one is going to get it right 100% of the time, but making an effort to be a good friend, parent, worker, and person is what counts. No matter what challenges or success are ahead, remind yourself in each moment that you are doing your best. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Do You Remember These Old Dating Slang Words? If you thought dating slang originated with terms like ghosting or breadcrumbing, think again. Popular culture has always included pet names and other unique language to describe all things love and romance. Some of these terms originated in the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s, while others go back even further than that. But all of them helped lay the groundwork for the interesting and sometimes odd dating slang we know and use today. Follow along as we take a look back at some of the most interesting, surprising, and even clever classic dating slang words from decades past. Please note: we’ll be having a frank discussion about sex and other mature dating topics here—but grown-up pants, as always, are optional. necking What people might call making out today used to be known as necking. Necking is a classic term for “kissing, caressing, and other sexual activity between partners that does not involve stimulation of the genitals or sexual intercourse.” This term has been popular at various points throughout the past several decades, but you might be surprised to learn that the one of the earliest recorded uses of necking to mean “kissing” actually occurred as early as 1825. little black book These days, people have matches on dating apps and randos in their DMs. Back in the day, they might have had a little black book. This phrase describes “a personal telephone directory [which historically were often small, pocket-size books bound in black] listing girlfriends, or, less often, boyfriends.” While physical address books were more common before computers and cell phones took over, the phrase doesn’t necessarily mean that someone has a physical little black book. Rather, it implied that someone had a lot of dates or was something of a ladies’ man. going steady If you’re exclusive with a significant other, it used to be said that you were going steady. This phrase, dating back to the early 1900s, means to “date one person exclusively” because you were seeing the same person regularly (“steady”). Steady, as a noun, could also be used in a similar way to boyfriend or girlfriend as a title for the person someone is dating. For example: He asked her to be his steady. friend with benefits This phrase was popularized in the ’90s by the Alanis Morissette song “Head Over Feet,” and later inspired the title of a 2011 movie starring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis. A friend with benefits is “a friend with whom one has sex without a romantic relationship or commitment.” Today, that might also be called a hookup, though friend (or friends) with benefits hasn’t gone extinct. There’s even a text acronym for the term: FWB. booty call Booty call is another dating term that can be traced back to the early ’90s. It’s a “phone call, text message, email, etc., whose purpose is to arrange a meeting to have casual sex.” Booty call incorporates the slang term booty, which has a surprising history. Booty was known as a vulgar slang term for female genitalia in the early 1900s, then evolved as a milder slang term for buttocks by the 1920s. By the time booty call was born, booty (as is common for historical slang terms that objectify women) denoted both a “female body considered as a sex object” and “the act of sex.” wingman In the context of dating, a wingman is “a man who helps a friend with romantic relationships, especially one who helps the friend attract a woman.” This dating word was popular in the ’80s and ’90s especially, though it’s still in use today. The term wingman was taken from a 1940s Air Force term for the “pilot in a plane that flies just outside and behind the right wing of the leading aircraft, in order to provide protective support.” Apparently looking for love requires protective support, too. Dear John If you find yourself the recipient of a Dear John letter, it’s not good news. The phrase is a name for “a letter from a woman informing her boyfriend, husband, or fiancé that she is ending their relationship.” It’s commonly believed to have been coined during World War II when people were separated for long periods of time and communicated via letter. Historically, Biblical names like John and Jack were such common male names they became generic stand-ins used to refer to any man. Though the phrase Dear John (or its female counterpart, Dear Jane) is not as common now, it is used in the title of a popular Taylor Swift song. keen Are you keen to learn about the next word on the list? Keen means “eager; interested; enthusiastic.” In the 1950s, it was also commonly used to indicate a crush. For example, someone might say I think she’s keen on him. Attractive or especially likable people were also sometimes described as being peachy keen. The word keen has been used as a slang term meaning “wonderful” since at least the 1910s. bunny Some dating words fell out of favor because they were used in a sexist way. Bunny is one of those words. Bunny is an outdated slang term used to describe “a pretty, appealing, or alluring young woman, often one ostensibly engaged in a sport or similar activity.” For example, an attractive woman at the beach might have been referred to as a “beach bunny.” This phrase was popular in the ’70s but quickly fell out of favor. Now, its use is often considered offensive. boo Boo might be the original bae (more on this term soon). This ’90s word is an affectionate name for a significant other. The term is thought to have originated in hip hop culture and spread into pop culture from there. Boo may be connected to the French beau or the pet name baby. beau Speaking of beau, this term of endearment means “a male lover or sweetheart.” You might think of it as a fancier, more old-fashioned way of saying boyfriend. Beau was first recorded in English in the late 1200s, but its use as a dating term can be traced back to the 1720s. The word is related to the French beau, which means “the beautiful.” bae And that leads us to a much newer term: when you think of Millennial dating slang, it’s hard not to think of bae. This word originated in the early 2000s and enjoyed viral fame throughout the 2010s, thanks to the internet. Bae is “an affectionate term that one uses to address their partner or spouse.” It’s thought to be a shortening of other popular pet names, like babe or baby, and likely originated in Black English. It’s been said bae is an acronym for “before anyone else,” but as fun as this theory is, it’s just a misconception. rationed This 1940s slang term has a surprising history. During World War II, rationing goods was common. A ration is “a fixed allowance of provisions or food, especially for soldiers or sailors or for civilians during a shortage.” What does this have to do with dating? Well, rationed also became a sort of shorthand for asking women if they were in a relationship or available. As in, Are you rationed? Comparing women to rationed goods like stamps isn’t exactly romantic, so it’s probably no surprise that this one slowly faded into obscurity. round the bases Bases aren’t just for baseball. They also have a history as popular dating terminology. In the ’80s and ’90s especially, people referred to different levels of physical intimacy as bases. For example, first base means to “engage in petting that goes no further than kissing.” Each subsequent base adds more physically intimate acts. Rounding the bases, then, would mean progressing through these acts towards whatever act—possibly sex—was deemed a home run. parking If the word parking makes you think of cars, you’re on the right track. Similar to necking, parking is a slang term for “the act of kissing and caressing in a parked car.” This usage was most popular in the ’40s and ’50s, likely due to the rise of car culture and drive-in movie theaters changing the landscape of dating. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

What Is The Origin And Meaning Of XOXO? We’ll Kiss And Tell! From Valentine’s Day cards to messages from your mom, a typical sign-off to show love and affection is XOXO. The X stands for kiss and the O stands for a hug—but why? Well, the origins of these symbols is uncertain, but we can make some educated guesses about where they come from. Why is X the symbol for a kiss? The use of X as a symbol is believed to date back to the Middle Ages, when most people were not literate. They would use the letter X—or a cross—to sign documents as a display of faith and indication of their sincerity. They’d also kiss the cross as another symbol of trustworthiness: a literal “seal with a kiss.” In these instances, the X represented the sign of the cross and Christ because of its connection to the Chi-Rho, a Christian symbol. The first two letters of Christ in Greek (ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ) are chi and rho, and chi looks like X. It’s possible that the X also became connected with kissing because it looks like two puckered lips. No matter its history, the letter X was used in letters to symbolize a kiss back in the 1700s. Why is O the symbol for a hug? The origins of how O came to represent a hug are even more uncertain, though some connect its use to illiterate Jewish immigrants who came to the US who may have signed documents with an O. They did this in contrast to the Christian X. Eventually the letter came to represent a hug. Another possibility is that the O is used to represent hugs because it simply looks like someone encircling their arms in a hugging gesture. It’s also possible that the O came to mean “hug” because of its prior association with X from the game tic-tac-toe. The practice of pairing O with X as a sign-off in a letter as XOXO is a fairly modern one and didn’t see widespread use until the 1960s. The TV series Gossip Girl also popularized its use, as each episode ended with a signature voiceover, “XOXO, Gossip Girl.” Despite the complicated origins of these symbols, these days it is widely accepted that XOXO means “hugs and kisses.” In the United Kingdom, use of XX (meaning “kisses”) as a sign-off is particularly popular, though the practice remains less common in North America, where XOXO is the more common formulation. Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.

Words To Use Instead Of “Congratulations” Congratulations! Joyful times go hand in hand with congratulations. When addressing graduates, newlyweds, or anyone with good news, a hearty “Congratulations!” or a swift “Congrats!” is in order. Congratulants, “people who congratulate,” have been using the pluralized expression congratulations, which stems from the Latin gratus meaning “pleasing,” since the 1600s. The singular noun meaning “the act of congratulating” has been around since the late 1500s. Props! When congratulations are in order, the term props might come up. This slang shortening of proper arose in the 1990s and refers to respect and esteem. In addition to giving and receiving props as recognition, you can do someone a prop to help them out. In the 1995 film Clueless, Cher notices that Josh is dancing with Tai, despite the fact that he never dances, to make her feel included. Cher explains: “He’s doing her a prop so she won’t feel left out.” Way to go! If you admire someone’s grit and hustle, you can use this sporty method of congratulations. This active phrase has been traced back to the 1940s, when it was used in sports to congratulate a person or team on a great performance. In the 1960s, it began to be used more generally to refer to any kind of achievement. If “Way to go!” doesn’t do it for you, some peppy alternatives include “Great job,” “Nice going,” “You rock,” and “You rule!” Nailed it! This handy phrase really hits the nail on the head when you want to give someone their due. Nailed it has been traced back to at least the 1970s and metaphorically refers to the act of successfully hitting a nail with a hammer. In slang, we use a variety of other congratulatory phrases that also refer to forceful impacts or metaphorical violence such as “Killed it,” “Crushed it,” “Destroyed it,” and “Slayed it!” social media cheers Like, follow, and subscribe! Social media platforms all have different ways of congratulating somebody and letting them now how awesome their content is. These include: Twitter: the heart or a retweet Facebook: the thumbs-up on Facebook Instagram: the like YouTube: like, share, subscribe to a channel; hitting the bell icon TikTok: like and follow Snapchat: take a screenshot for later Reddit: upvote; give Reddit Gold/Platinum; or a badge Tumblr: reblog Twitch: subscribe to a channel and/or give a donation GG (Good Game) Shorthand for “good game” in the world of esports, GG is used to congratulate a victorious opponent. Additionally, it’s used to politely concede a match or admit defeat, most commonly in the realm of professional StarCraft. It’s all about the humble loss. Not everybody is a good sport, though, and the phrase GG EZ (“easy,” as in an easy win) is often used in a mean-spirited way to put down a defeated opponent. Three cheers! Three cheers is generally followed by “for” and the name of the person or thing being celebrated. A person being cheers-ed might also respond to a toast of three cheers with the word … cheers, which, especially in the UK, can mean “thanks.” That’s a lot of cheers. The term cheer entered English in the late 12th or early 13th century, and ultimately comes from the Greek word kárā meaning “head.” Hip, hip, hooray! For some Victorian flair, opt for the ever-cheery hip, hip, hooray (or hurrah). This expression of uncertain origin surfaced in the early 1800s, though the exclamation hip had been used since the mid-1700s. Hip repeated three times was used as a noun in the 1800s to refer to a collective cheer. But, let’s not forget about hooray, a variant of hurrah. This exclamation dates from the late 1600s and is very similar to shouts in German, Danish, Swedish, and even Russian. Someone’s last hurrah is their “final moment or occasion of glory or achievement.” Kudos! Though it sounds colloquial, kudos finds its roots in the hallowed halls of academic institutions. At the turn of the 1800s, academics transliterated the Greek kydos, meaning “praise or renown.” By the 1920s, kudos had spread beyond the walls of universities and into the columns of newspapers. Don’t be fooled by the S at the end of kudos; the word is, in fact, a singular noun. However, enough English speakers have erroneously interpreted it as plural for so long that already by the 1930s, the back formation singular kudo arose. Grammar sticklers avoid using kudo as a singular and kudos as a plural, though both forms can be found in popular usage. Hats off! The phrase hats off, while often said to graduates wearing the illustrious cap and gown, has nothing to do with the tradition of tossing hats in the air in celebration. This phrase, dating back to the 1600s, harks back to the custom of uncovering the head as a sign of respect. Etiquette expert Emily Post advised gentlemen on the many situations in which they must remove hats to maintain politeness. In 1922 she wrote: “A gentleman takes off his hat and holds it in his hand when a lady enters the elevator.” He also lifts his hat whenever he asks a question or says “Excuse me.” You know, maybe we could all stand a little formality these days … a round of applause The act of clapping one’s hands together to show acclaim is actually much older than you might think. Scholars are unsure of the exact origin, but we have evidence that even the ancient Romans would show their appreciation by clapping their hands. In fact, the word plaudits (which means an expression of approval) comes from the Latin verb plaudere, meaning to clap one’s hands. The verb applause is also based on this Latin verb. Today, the highest form of applause is the standing ovation, where every member of the audience rises to their feet and applauds. Any performer who manages to please an audience enough to cause them to stretch their legs a bit certainly deserves a big hand. congratulatory emoji Sometimes, it is better to use pictures rather than words to congratulate someone. In texting and on social media, many different emoji are used to give somebody a pat on the back after a job well done. The Clapping Hands emoji 👏 is used to refer to a round of applause and the Trophy emoji 🏆 references the shiny knickknacks we give to people who have accomplished something. The Party Popper emoji 🎉, Confetti Ball emoji 🎊, Partying Face emoji 🥳, and Bottle with Popping Cork emoji 🍾 are also commonly used to congratulate someone. These party animals refer to the act of throwing a party in celebration of an achievement and the stuff you are likely to find at such a shindig. Mazel tov! This expression of congratulations and best wishes comes from the Hebrew term literally meaning “good luck.” Though many reserve the English good luck for before a big event, you can cheer mazel tov to wish someone good fortune or to say congratulations. Mazel tov appeared in the 1600s spelled as missal tob but was rendered in English as mazel tov by the 1900s. Whatever transliteration you prefer, the term has been lovingly said ever since. Felicitations! If you want to stand out from the crowd of people offering their congratulations, try roaring felicitations. This less common expression of congratulations ultimately comes from the Latin felix, “happy.” English speakers have been using the singular form of this term (meaning “an act of congratulation”) since the early 1700s. So, if you want to be original (or sound old-fashioned) in wishing your congratulations, reach for a felicitous felicitations! congratulatory adjectives You don’t have to think too hard when it comes to saying congratulations. Sometimes, a single adjective will do. All you need to do is shout “Fantastic!”, “Stupendous!”, “Amazing!”, “Incredible!”, or “Spectacular!” This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to celebratory adjectives, though. You can use our handy thesaurus to find many more impressive synonyms of these words that you can shout out when you want to signal how much someone has impressed you. Keep going! What’s more powerful than simply saying congratulations? Encouraging someone to keep pushing ahead and to accomplish more. You’re not only celebrating the accomplishment at hand, but also showing enthusiasm for their future. Keep going! Copyright 2024, XAKKHRA, All Rights Reserved.