Word of the day.

[AsleepInYorkshire]

For the last week or so the weather has been great (where I am) beautiful clear skies and the warmth of the sun on your face. All slightly tempered by the chilly easterly wind.

Did you know there is a word to describe that feeling of the sun's warmth on your skin on a cold day?

Apricity

From: https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-a ... n%20winter

Definition
: the warmth of the sun in winter

About the Word
This word provides us with evidence that even if you come up with a really great word, and tell all of your friends that they should start using it, there is a very small chance that it will catch on. Apricity appears to have entered our language in 1623, when Henry Cockeram recorded (or possibly invented) it for his dictionary The English Dictionary; or, An Interpreter of Hard English Words. Despite the fact that it is a delightful word for a delightful thing it never quite caught on, and will not be found in any modern dictionary aside from the Oxford English Dictionary.

John

I've earned some serious brownie points explaining this to everyone at work today.

But where's today's word

AiY

[GrahamPlatt]

It was originally " Gardez l'eau " ; "Watch { beware } the water ".

I imagine that it’s a truncation of Regardez l’eau - so ‘gardez l’eau. Otherwise it’d mean “keep the water”. Generous! But I suspect a “recipient” would not be grateful of the gift.

[swill453]

It was originally " Gardez l'eau " ; "Watch { beware } the water ".

I imagine that it’s a truncation of Regardez l’eau - so ‘gardez l’eau. Otherwise it’d mean “keep the water”. Generous! But I suspect a “recipient” would not be grateful of the gift.

Other possible variations here https://english.stackexchange.com/quest ... f-gardyloo

Scott.

[redsturgeon]

For the last week or so the weather has been great (where I am) beautiful clear skies and the warmth of the sun on your face. All slightly tempered by the chilly easterly wind.

Did you know there is a word to describe that feeling of the sun's warmth on your skin on a cold day?

Apricity

From: https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-a ... n%20winter

Definition
: the warmth of the sun in winter

About the Word
This word provides us with evidence that even if you come up with a really great word, and tell all of your friends that they should start using it, there is a very small chance that it will catch on. Apricity appears to have entered our language in 1623, when Henry Cockeram recorded (or possibly invented) it for his dictionary The English Dictionary; or, An Interpreter of Hard English Words. Despite the fact that it is a delightful word for a delightful thing it never quite caught on, and will not be found in any modern dictionary aside from the Oxford English Dictionary.

John

I've earned some serious brownie points explaining this to everyone at work today.

But where's today's word

AiY

You know the smell that you get when it is about to rain after a long dry spell...

petrichor

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petrichor ... 0mythology.

John

[AndyPandy]

I've earned some serious brownie points explaining this to everyone at work today.

But where's today's word

AiY

You know the smell that you get when it is about to rain after a long dry spell...

petrichor

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petrichor ... 0mythology.

John

If you are on the Twittersphere, follow Ms Dent

https://twitter.com/susie_dent

She also runs a weekly Podcast with Giles Brandreth which ends with three WOTD. Good for long drives I find.

https://somethinelse.com/projects/somet ... th-purple/

[tjh290633]

It was originally " Gardez l'eau " ; "Watch { beware } the water ".

I imagine that it’s a truncation of Regardez l’eau - so ‘gardez l’eau. Otherwise it’d mean “keep the water”. Generous! But I suspect a “recipient” would not be grateful of the gift.

Reminds me of the story about British and French troops riding in an open wagon, as they approached a low bridge. An English voice said "Look out!" And all the British ducked. The French all stood up and were killed.

TJH

[Rhyd6]

In last night's quiz I asked what a "gongoozler" does

Someone who enjoys watching the activity on a canal or is interested in canals without actually taking part.

One out of twelve teams answered correctly.

R6

[UncleEbenezer]

In last night's quiz I asked what a "gongoozler" does

Someone who enjoys watching the activity on a canal or is interested in canals without actually taking part.
R6

So like trainspotting before the days of the railways?

[Itsallaguess]

In last night's quiz I asked what a "gongoozler" does

Someone who enjoys watching the activity on a canal or is interested in canals without actually taking part.

One out of twelve teams answered correctly.

What a great word...

There's a similar, and equally fascinating word used in Italy to describe a very particular set of people too -

Umarell - a term in the Italo-Romance variety of Bologna referring specifically to men of retirement age who pass the time watching construction sites, especially roadworks — stereotypically with hands clasped behind their back and offering unwanted advice.

It gets better -

In 2015, the city of Riccione, approximately 80 miles southeast of Bologna, allocated an €11,000 budget to pay a wage to umarells to oversee worksites in the city – counting the number of trucks in and out to ensure materials were delivered/removed according to the receipts, and guarding against theft when the site was otherwise unattended. The town of San Lazzaro di Savena, 3 1⁄2 mi to the South-East of Bologna, awarded the "Umarell of the year" prize to a local resident, Franco Bonini.

In 2016, the local cultural association Succede solo a Bologna ("It only happens in Bologna") released the "Umarèl card" as a fundraiser for continued restoration of the San Petronio church. Separately, a smartphone app called Umarells was released that tracked the location of ongoing roadworks and construction sites. The fast food restaurant chain Burger King also "hired" several umarells as part of a social media marketing campaign promoting its increased presence in the country.

In July 2017, the Bologna city council's "consultative commission for the naming of street" approved the naming of a public square to the East of the city centre in the Cirenaica district Piazzetta degli Umarells in recognition of the local fame of the concept and the name – noting with conscious irony that the square was under construction at the time.

In April 2018 the public square was inaugurated by city councillor Matteo Lepore, the district president Simone Borsari, the "lord of the umarells" Franco Bonini, the stand-up comedian Maurizio Pagliari, and the writer Danilo Masotti. A year later the street-sign for the square was stolen. In April 2020, the comic magazine Topolino dedicated an episode to the umarell Gerindo Persichetti.

In December 2020 in Pescara, the real estate developer Sarra installed windows to allow Umarells to observe three construction sites



Source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umarell

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

[Laughton]

From a letter in today's FT:

"I would hope that more politicians and others in public roles had such integrity rather than so often being snollygosters"

Probably my poor education but I'd never come across it before.

[Watis]

From a letter in today's FT:

"I would hope that more politicians and others in public roles had such integrity rather than so often being snollygosters"

Probably my poor education but I'd never come across it before.

Me neither - perhaps I was off school that day.

Watis

[bungeejumper]

"I would hope that more politicians and others in public roles had such integrity rather than so often being snollygosters"

Probably my poor education but I'd never come across it before.

It's commoner than you think. I was trying to track down my recent post that included the self-same wonderful word,but the search facility came up with:

The following words in your search query were ignored because they are too common words: snollygoster.

Common? Well, it is now: http://www.lemonfool.co.uk/viewtopic.ph ... 75#p391775

BJ

[servodude]

"I would hope that more politicians and others in public roles had such integrity rather than so often being snollygosters"

Probably my poor education but I'd never come across it before.

It's commoner than you think. I was trying to track down my recent post that included the self-same wonderful word,but the search facility came up with:

The following words in your search query were ignored because they are too common words: snollygoster.

Common? Well, it is now: http://www.lemonfool.co.uk/viewtopic.ph ... 75#p391775

BJ

I would like to offer you my most enthusiastic contrafibularities

[Itsallaguess]

Pingdemic....

Cheers,

Itsallaguess

[servodude]

"I would hope that more politicians and others in public roles had such integrity rather than so often being snollygosters"

Probably my poor education but I'd never come across it before.

It's commoner than you think. I was trying to track down my recent post that included the self-same wonderful word,but the search facility came up with:

The following words in your search query were ignored because they are too common words: snollygoster.

Common? Well, it is now: http://www.lemonfool.co.uk/viewtopic.ph ... 75#p391775

BJ

Was that back in the day of the throttlebottoms?

[swill453]

I guess we should retire the expression “avoid it like the plague”, given how little effort people seem to be willing to go to to avoid plagues.

(Thx Twitter).

Scott.

[dealtn]

I guess we should retire the expression “avoid it like the plague”, given how little effort people seem to be willing to go to to avoid plagues.

(Thx Twitter).

Scott.

is there a plague now as well. It's bad enough dealing with a viral epidemic as well as now having a bacterial one!

[servodude]

I guess we should retire the expression “avoid it like the plague”, given how little effort people seem to be willing to go to to avoid plagues.

(Thx Twitter).

Scott.

is there a plague now as well. It's bad enough dealing with a viral epidemic as well as now having a bacterial one!

One of my kids referred to it as the Bonobo Plague for a school thing when she was quite young
I had to correct her; but it was an interesting idea

-sd

[panamagold]

I'm fortunate that I frequently encounter a succubus whilst having a nap.

[stewamax]

Prelapsarian - morally unspoilt, like the Garden of Eden before Mr Serpent.