Tag: language

My Momma Always said, Life is Like A Box…. (part 7)

Words.….a Box of Words.  this popular series is for all of you out there that love the English language as much as I do.  Especially stumbling over a word I have never heard or used.  I am fascinated with the origin of words such as:

 

Forest Gump, WordsCracker,  I’ve only heard it used as a derogatory term for Caucasian people. To imply an ignorant hillbilly or worse depending upon who was using it. (Well, yes, the obvious generic term for those tasty, crunchy squares that we can’t resist.)     When in fact it is an endearing term used for the COWBOYS of Florida (past and present)  who are adept at the use of a whip.  The cattle in Florida are trained to obey the ‘crack’ of the cowboy’s’ whip and hence the term ‘cracker’.  Did you know that Florida has the largest number of cattle in the USA?  You’d of thought, Texas.  But you’d be wrong.

Beeline, “I made a beeline for the car, Continue reading “My Momma Always said, Life is Like A Box…. (part 7)”

‘My momma always said, “Life was like a box of chocolates….’ (part 3)

words, writing, blogging, love of language,    I can’t believe all this time has whizzed by without my revisiting my love of new and old words. (Blog Oct. 18th)  In this series I was telling you that my ‘box of chocolates’ contains words.  I love the sound of these, the way they feel in my mouth, the images they evoke…….oooh, that’s a good one:

‘evoke‘:   to call up, to summon, call to mind, conjure up.

‘milquetoast‘:  now this is a word you don’t see every day.  It might even be obsolete.  When it was used (18th-19th century)  it was referring to somebody regarded as timid or submissive, especially a man.

‘trenchant‘: forceful, direct, caustic or scathing way of speaking.

‘mews‘: a residential street; This is a British word for a small street lined with former stables that have been converted into housing.  While still used in England, the closest word we have in the US is an ‘alley-way’ or down south we call them ‘lanes’.

‘sagacity‘: reasonableness, wisdom, prudence, shrewdness.

I own a carriage house in what could legitimately be called the ‘mews’.  The carriage house was used at the turn of the 20th century to house the town carriage and horses.  It is now a two bedroom apartment.  Somehow mews is a much more romantic, prettier word than the ‘alley‘.  Don’t you think?

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I’ll be ‘positing’ more to this series of favorite words.  Feel free to send me some of yours!!
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