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Showing posts from October, 2018

shunt: Word of the day for October 29, 2018

shunt , v : (transitive) To cause to move (suddenly), as by pushing or shoving; to give a (sudden) start to. (transitive) To divert to a less important place, position, or state. (transitive) To provide with a shunt. (transitive, computing) To move data in memory to a physical disk. (transitive, electricity) To divert electric current by providing an alternative path. (transitive, rail transport) To move a train from one track to another, or to move carriages, etc. from one train to another. (transitive, chiefly road transport, informal, Britain) To have a minor collision, especially in a motor car. (transitive, surgery) To divert the flow of a body fluid. (transitive, obsolete, Britain, dialectal) To turn aside or away; to divert.

tattle: Word of the day for October 21, 2018

tattle , v : (intransitive) To chatter; to gossip. (intransitive, Canada, US, derogatory) Often said of children: to report incriminating information about another person, or a person's wrongdoing; to tell on somebody. (intransitive, obsolete) To speak like a baby or young child; to babble, to prattle; to speak haltingly, to stutter.

list: Word of the day for October 19, 2018

list , v : (transitive) To create or recite a list. (transitive) To place in listings. (transitive) To sew together, as strips of cloth, so as to make a show of colours, or to form a border. (transitive) To cover with list, or with strips of cloth; to put list on; to stripe as if with list. (transitive, agriculture) To plough and plant with a lister. (transitive, agriculture, chiefly Southern US) To prepare (land) for a cotton crop by making alternating beds and alleys with a hoe. (transitive, carpentry) To cut away a narrow strip, as of sapwood, from the edge of. (transitive, military) To enclose (a field, etc.) for combat. (transitive, obsolete) To engage a soldier, etc.; to enlist. (intransitive, obsolete) To engage in public service by enrolling one's name; to enlist.

aquaponics: Word of the day for October 16, 2018

aquaponics , n : (agriculture) A sustainable food production system that combines traditional aquaculture with hydroponics, with effluent from the water in which fish are reared being used as nutrition for plants. Today is recognized by the United Nations as World Food Day to highlight the importance of food security and good nutrition, and the need for action against hunger.

scour: Word of the day for October 13, 2018

scour , v : (transitive) To clean, polish, or wash something by rubbing and scrubbing it vigorously, frequently with an abrasive or cleaning agent. (transitive) To remove debris and dirt by purging; to sweep along or off (by a current of water). (transitive, veterinary medicine) To clear the digestive tract by administering medication that induces defecation or vomiting; to purge. (transitive, intransitive, veterinary medicine) To (cause livestock to) suffer from diarrhoea or dysentery. (transitive, obsolete) To cleanse (without rubbing).

main: Word of the day for October 11, 2018

main , adj : Of chief or leading importance; prime, principal. Chief, most important, or principal in extent, size, or strength; consisting of the largest part. Of force, strength, etc.: full, sheer, undivided. (dialectal) Big; angry. (nautical) Belonging to or connected with the principal mast in a vessel. (obsolete) Great in size or degree; important, powerful, strong, vast.

ferrule: Word of the day for October 10, 2018

ferrule , n : A band or cap (usually metal) placed around a shaft to reinforce it or to prevent splitting. (specifically, climbing) The metal spike at the end of the shaft of an ice axe. A band holding parts of an object together. A bushing for securing a pipe joint. A metal sleeve placed inside a gutter at the top. (billiards) The plastic band attaching the tip to the cue. (painting) The pinched metal band which holds the bristles of a paintbrush to the shaft.

acute: Word of the day for October 9, 2018

acute , adj : Brief, quick, short. High or shrill. Intense, sensitive, sharp. Urgent. (botany) With the sides meeting directly to form an acute angle (at an apex or base). (geometry) Of an angle: less than 90 degrees. (geometry) Of a triangle: having all three interior angles measuring less than 90 degrees. (linguistics, chiefly historical) Of an accent or tone: generally higher than others. (medicine) Of an abnormal condition of recent or sudden onset, in contrast to delayed onset; this sense does not imply severity, unlike the common usage. (medicine) Of a short-lived condition, in contrast to a chronic condition; this sense also does not imply severity. (orthography) After a letter of the alphabet: having an acute accent.