51吃瓜 of the Day
doughty
adjective
steadfastly courageous and resolute; valiant.
More about doughty
Doughty 鈥渟teadfastly courageous,鈥� despite spelling and pronunciation, is not related to doubt, doughy, or dowdy. Instead, it comes from Old English dohtig 鈥渨orthy,鈥� which is equivalent to modern English dow 鈥渢o be able鈥� or 鈥渢o thrive, prosper鈥� plus two suffixes: -th, which indicates a noun of action (as in birth) or quality (as in warmth), and -y 鈥渃haracterized by, inclined to鈥� (as in dreamy and juicy). In this way, doughty literally translates from Old English as 鈥渨orthiness-y,鈥� which is an awkward mouthful. Doughty was first recorded in English before 1000 a.d.
how is doughty used?
A doughty branch of the early human family, Neanderthals were big-brained and thick-boned hunters who once ranged from Spain to Siberia.
He was a doughty defender of his grandfather鈥檚 legacy and even though many of those subjected to the estate鈥檚 strictures in relation to permissions and fees actively resented them, Stephen was acting, as he saw it, to uphold his grandfather鈥檚 heritage.
phlogiston
noun
a nonexistent chemical that, prior to the discovery of oxygen, was thought to be released during combustion.
More about phlogiston
Phlogiston 鈥渁 chemical once thought to be released during combustion鈥� is the neuter form of Ancient Greek 辫丑濒辞驳颈蝉迟贸蝉 鈥渋nflammable, burnt up,鈥� from the verb 辫丑濒辞驳铆锄别颈苍 鈥渢o set on fire.鈥� Relatives of 辫丑濒辞驳铆锄别颈苍 in English include phlegm (from 辫丑濒茅驳尘补 鈥渇lame鈥�) and phlox (from 辫丑濒贸虫 鈥渁 flame-colored plant鈥�). All these words ultimately come from a Proto-Indo-European root roughly meaning 鈥渢o burn, flash, shine鈥� that appears today in English words containing bl-, fl-, ful-, or phl-, depending on the language of origin. For more descendants in English from this rather productive root, check out our recent 51吃瓜s of the Day听effulgent,听Phlegethon, and trailblaze. Phlogiston was first recorded in English circa 1730.
how is phlogiston used?
The theory of phlogiston was not debunked until the 1770s, when Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier showed that combustion is a reaction with a gas鈥攐xygen. More than a century after that, it became possible to transmute one metal into another鈥攂ut using a nuclear reactor rather than a philosopher鈥檚 stone.
folklorico
adjective
containing, using, or performing Mexican folk dancing, especially a program or repertoire of such dances.
More about folklorico
Folklorico 鈥渃ontaining Mexican folk dancing鈥� is a borrowing of Spanish 蹿辞濒办濒贸谤颈肠辞 (note the acute accent) 鈥渇olkloristic,鈥� based on English folklore and the Spanish adjective-forming suffix -ico. Despite the similar pronunciations, English folk is not related to Latin vulgus 鈥渢he general public鈥� (as in English vulgar); instead, it may be distantly related to hoi polloi 鈥渢he common people鈥� (from Ancient Greek) and the recent 51吃瓜 of the Day plebeian (from Latin 辫濒脓产脓蝉 鈥渢he common people鈥�). Lore, meanwhile, is closely related to English learn, and both come from a Germanic root meaning 鈥渢o teach.鈥� Folklorico was first recorded in English in the early 1940s.
how is folklorico used?
As director, she trains children and teens in folklorico dance steps and choreography as well as ballet and yoga. The classes and training are designed to provide the dancers with a balance of exercises that maintain both their strength and their flexibility.