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Word of the Day: Draconian
Draconian describes something (often a law, policy, restriction, etc.) that is very severe or cruel.
Draconian comes from Drakōn, the name (later Latinized as Draco) of a 7th-century B.C. Athenian legislator who created a written code of law. Drakōn’s code was intended to clarify existing laws, but its severity is what made it really memorable. According to the code, even minor offenses were punishable by death, and failure to pay one's debts could result in slavery. Draconian, as a result, is used especially for authoritative actions that are viewed as cruel or harsh.
Word of the Day: Transpire
Transpire is a formal verb that means “to happen,” or in other words “to take place or occur.” It can also mean “to come to light” or “to become known,” as in “It transpired that they had met previously.” In botany, to transpire is to give off or exude watery vapor especially from the surfaces of leaves.
Transpire comes from the Latin verb spirare (“to breathe”), which also breathed life into perspire, aspire, and inspire, among other words. Wafting
Transpire comes from the Latin verb spirare (“to breathe”), which also breathed life into perspire, aspire, and inspire, among other words. Wafting up into English in the late 16th century, transpire was originally used (as it still is) for the action of vapor passing out of the pores of a living membrane such as the skin. From this use followed the related senses of “to become known” and “to be revealed; to come to light” (think of information “leaking” or “slipping out”).
none other than Abigail Adams used it to mean “to happen” in a 1775 letter to her husband (“there is nothing new transpired since I wrote you last”) and Noah Webster recognized the new sense in his dictionary of 1828.
White Frost
Lumbering Oxen Unite!
Lumbering Oxen Unite!
Lumbering Oxen Unite! https://ift.tt/fNA3qFo
February 24, 2025 at 07:54PM
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How to Launch Your Own Fediverse Community Server - We Distribute
How to Launch Your Own Fediverse Community Server - We Distribute
According to public statistics from FediDB, there are over 19,000 different servers in the Fediverse. This includes a medley of over 61 different platforms in…
February 21, 2025 at 10:40PM
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10 Best Blog Sites For Writers
10 Best Blog Sites For Writers
10 Best Blog Sites For Writers https://ift.tt/I07uElG
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