perish per-ish / pĕr-ĭsh   verb 1. to die or be destroyed, often in an untimely or violent way We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.  Martin Luther King, Jr., 1929 – 1968   2. to disappear gradually; to cease to exist Religion will perish because of excessive comforts. Sicilian Proverb   3. (primarily British) to spoil; to rot; to decay Fruit... Read More

buffoon buf-foon / bə-fo͞on   noun 1. one who entertains with jokes and tricks; a clown Laughter is a most healthful exercise; it is one of the greatest helps to digestion with which I am acquainted; and the custom prevalent among our forefathers, of exciting it at table by jesters and buffoons, was in accordance with true medical principles. Christoph Wilhelm Hufeland, 1762 – 1836  ... Read More

caprice ca-price / kə-prēs   noun 1. a sudden, impulsive change in thought or action; a whim If you live according to nature, you never will be poor; if according to the world’s caprice, you will never be rich. Seneca the Younger, 4 B.C. – 65 A.D.   2. a tendency to change one’s mind impulsively, with no apparent reason Caprice in woman is the antidote to... Read More

belie be-lie / bĭ-lī   verb 1. to contradict; to show to be untrue Do not let your deeds belie your words, lest when you speak in church someone may say to himself, “Why do you not practice what you preach? St. Jerome, 347 – 420   2. to misrepresent; to give a false impression It is the fault of our rhetoric that we cannot strongly state... Read More

ton ton / tŭn   noun 1. a measurement of weight equal to 2,000 pounds (907.18 kilograms) in the US (short ton) and 2,240 pounds (1,016.05 kilograms) (long ton) in Britain Data isn’t information, any more than fifty tons of cement is a skyscraper. Clifford Stoll, 1950 –   2. a metric ton which is a measure of weight equal to 1,000 kilograms (2,205 pounds) In countries... Read More

epitome e-pit-o-me / ĭ-pĭt-ə-mē   noun 1. a person or thing that is a perfect example of a particular quality or type A man so various that he seem’d to be Not one, but all mankind’s epitome: Stiff in opinions, always in the wrong; Was everything by starts, and nothing long: But, in the course of one revolving moon, Was chemist, fiddler, statesman, and buffoon. John Dryden... Read More

kowtow kow-tow / kou-tou, kou–tou   noun 1. an act of fawning; an act showing compliance or submission The WHO’s [World Health Organization’s] continued exclusion of Taiwan is a kowtow to the Chinese Communist Party, who refuse to acknowledge Taiwan as the independent nation that it is. “Carter pens letter calling for Taiwan to join the WHO”, buddycarter.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=9209, May 20, 2022   2. the former Chinese custom of... Read More

sledge sledge / slĕj   noun 1. a conveyance or vehicle, mounted on runners, drawn by draft animals, used to transport people or goods across snow, ice or rough ground During the winter, when the trains are blocked up by the snow, these sledges make extremely rapid journeys across the frozen plains from one station to another. From “Around the World in Eighty Days” by Jules Verne,... Read More

resolute res-o-lute / rĕz-ə-lo͞ot   adjective 1. determined, purposeful, unwavering Achievers are resolute in their goals and driven by determination. George S. Patton, 1885 – 1945   2. characterized by determination and steadfastness It is wonderful what great strides can be made when there is a resolute purpose behind them. Winston Churchill, 1874 – 1965

timber tim-ber /  tĭm-bər   noun 1. wood that can be used as a building material; lumber; hardwood There is a frightful interval between the seed and the timber. Samuel Johnson, 1709 – 1784   2. trees or an area of growing trees An acorn costs nothing, but it may spread into a prodigious timber. William Makepeace Thackeray, 1811 – 1863   3. a prepared piece of... Read More