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Seldom-used words - M to A

Handley_Page said:
uncouth ?
Perhaps "Uncultured" might be a good definition.
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As the equivalent word in Russian (некультурный, nyekul'turniy) is used, maybe—it's nearly equivalent to what we mean by uncouth, carrying along the notion of dirty, rough, etc. In English, uncultured is closer to simply unmannered, impolite, unsophisticated.

The mother (who is of Russian extraction) of a character in one of my stories, has occasion to call her daughter 'некультурняя' upon learning what daughter and son have gotten themselves up to. (Just before throwing said daughter out the front door forever!) It is not a word that Russians use lightly.

(And, by the way, the son got similar treatment, though it isn't recounted in the story. Wouldn't want anyone to think that Mama is sexist!)
 
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beachbum, very nice use of my last entry.

Carlus, thank you for adding interesting words in my absence. I can always use help from my friends. Are friends the same as acquaintances? Could kith refer to friends?

Og, good point. When relatives act uncouthly, it does make kin uncomfortable.

Handley, and now jeans worn with a fashionable jacket is the norm.

Does anyone know the history of this word?

lambaste or lambast - vt (1620) 1. to assault violently: BEAT, WHIP 2. to attack verbally: CENSURE <critics lambasted his performance>
 
AllardChardon said:
Does anyone know the history of this word?

lambaste or lambast - vt (1620) 1. to assault violently: BEAT, WHIP 2. to attack verbally: CENSURE <critics lambasted his performance>
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My dictionary splits it into two : Lam
Baste

from a root featuring 'beat'.
 
Handley, that's interesting.

Lamarckism - noun [J.B. de Monet de Lamarck] 1884 a theory of organic evolution asserting that environmental changes cause structural changes in animals and plants that are transmitted to offspring
 
AllardChardon said:
Handley, that's interesting.

Lamarckism - noun [J.B. de Monet de Lamarck] 1884 a theory of organic evolution asserting that environmental changes cause structural changes in animals and plants that are transmitted to offspring
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See <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamarckism>. Lamarck's ideas are now largely discredited, though they were much admired as Lysenkoism under Stalin and his immediate successors in the Soviet Union.

It is now thought by many that Lamarck wasn't altogether wrong, and that there are epigenetic traits that can be passed on to descendants. See <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epigenetics>.
 
Thanks, Carlus. I know I have been gone longer than usual. A trip to Los Angeles to see family and friends is my excuse this time, a good one, I believe. Since turning 65, I seem to want to keep familial connections more current, if possible.

laicism - noun (ca. 1909) a political system characterized by the exclusion of ecclesiastical control and influence
 
AllardChardon said:
Thanks, Carlus. I know I have been gone longer than usual. A trip to Los Angeles to see family and friends is my excuse this time, a good one, I believe. Since turning 65, I seem to want to keep familial connections more current, if possible.

laicism - noun (ca. 1909) a political system characterized by the exclusion of ecclesiastical control and influence
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Sounds like a good policy.
Quite the reverse of 'Islamism', perhaps ?
 
Philoprogenitiveness

1 : tending to produce offspring : prolific. 2 : of, relating to, or characterized by love of offspring.
 
Handley_Page said:
another word for "fecund" ?
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I think fecund has more to do with capacity for reproduction than philoprogenitive. The latter is more concerned with getting it done, so to speak.

The word philoprogenitive is something of a monstrosity, being a combination of the Greek form philo-, love or loving, with the Latin progenitor, ancestor.
 
CarlusMagnus said:
I think fecund has more to do with capacity for reproduction than philoprogenitive. The latter is more concerned with getting it done, so to speak.

The word philoprogenitive is something of a monstrosity, being a combination of the Greek form philo-, love or loving, with the Latin progenitor, ancestor.
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This is the exact point the nail was hit on the head. Fecund is about fertility but does not speak to the Love of producing and raising children.
 
My I said:
This is the exact point the nail was hit on the head. Fecund is about fertility but does not speak to the Love of producing and raising children.
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Perhaps my sources are in error then; fecund has been used to indicate having [too many] children.
 
Handley_Page said:
Perhaps my sources are in error then; fecund has been used to indicate having [too many] children.
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It is possible to have lots of offspring without loving it.

fecund, producing or capable of producing an abundance of offspring or new growth; fertile

We should probably be thinking about points within a spectrum—not different ends of the spectrum.
 
CarlusMagnus said:
It is possible to have lots of offspring without loving it.

fecund, producing or capable of producing an abundance of offspring or new growth; fertile

We should probably be thinking about points within a spectrum—not different ends of the spectrum.
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Point taken, thanks
 
Welcome, My I. I must admit I used to have a tendency towards philoprogenitiveness. I had four children and loved being a mother. My early hippie indoctrination inclined me to have four natural home births with midwives and I breastfed those children for a total of eleven years. Add in homemade baby food and cloth diapers with plastic pants and you have the general idea. I think that should qualify. lol

Thanks for your input Handley and Carlus. You are most appreciated.

When I was in New Orleans, I heard this word quite often;

lagniappe - noun (1844) a small gift given to the customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase; broadly: something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure
 
AllardChardon said:
.
.
.

When I was in New Orleans, I heard this word quite often;

lagniappe - noun (1844) a small gift given to the customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase; broadly: something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure
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" . . . and you'll get this [thing] free with every purchase of [this] "
Now at least I know what it's properly called.
 
AllardChardon said:
...

When I was in New Orleans, I heard this word quite often;

lagniappe - noun (1844) a small gift given to the customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase; broadly: something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure
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I was not aware of this word. I looked it up in my Concise Oxford:

North American Origin: Louisiana French from Spanish la ñapa

From Spanish/English dictionary: meanings of la ñapa are Extra, Bonus and derivative - a tip

An English version is the Baker's Dozen which is 13 loaves of bread.

Scroll down in this for explanation of a Baker's Dozen (and cross-reference to lagniappe).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dozen

Edited to add:

It is similar to a frequent marketing practice in supermarkets:

12 for the price of 10
Three items for the price of two
and the most well known one:

BOGOF - Buy One Get One Free

All these ploys have to be examined carefully by the customer. They often occur when the product item has been made smaller or there has been a price rise made, or a competing product is actually cheaper.

lagniappe could mean that you were really overcharged for what you wanted.
 
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Og, I never thought I would enter a word on this thread that you did not know. Of course, it would have to be an American word. I first ran into lagniappe in my studies of New Orleans of the 1850s. Since it has been around for awhile, I was quite surprised to find it still widely used, when I was there a few years ago. Usually, the lagniappe was an inexpensive trinket, like the prize in a Cracker Jack Box. It is the act of thanking the customers for their patronage that is the really important part of the transaction. It literally makes both parties feel appreciated, no matter how trivial. The current sales tactics can't really compare in my thinking.

Thanks, Handley, for always taking an interest.

lagan also lagend - noun (1641) goods thrown into the sea with a buoy attached so that they may be found again
 
AllardChardon said:
...

lagan also lagend - noun (1641) goods thrown into the sea with a buoy attached so that they may be found again
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lagan is one of four words with specific and precise meanings in maritime law:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flotsam,_jetsam,_lagan,_and_derelict

The attached buoy shows that the lagan belongs to the owners and cannot be legally taken by anyone else (but lagan was often used by English smugglers when in danger of being intercepted by the Customs).

Flotsam and Jetsam can be taken by anyone UNLESS the original owner has lodged a legal claim to it.

Derelict is on the sea bottom and anyone's because there is no real prospect of recovering it - but again there are exceptions. A sunk warship and its contents can be classed as a war grave and should not be touched. However many Allied ships sunk during the Pacific campaign of WW2 have been illegally stripped of any valuables, including the metal of the ships themselves, despite being recorded as war graves. Historic ships can be claimed by the country of origin or permission can be given for them to be explored despite being technically derelict. In modern times now that salvage techniques have improved so much, derelict is now rarer because there is a real chance that the sunken ship and its contents can be raised.

If you find something valuable washed up on a beach you MIGHT be able to claim it but you should ask the Coastguard before keeping it or you could face legal penalties. If there is a buoy attached to it, it is lagan, and you can't claim it.
 
laches - noun - (Law) unreasonable delay in making an assertion or claim, which may result in refusal. Origin Middle English in the sense of negligence.

labile - adjective - 1. (technical) liable to change, easily altered. 2. (chemistry) easily broken down or displaced. Origin Middle English (in the sense liable to err or sin) from late Latin labilis from labi 'to fall'.

I have known some labile people. :rolleyes:
 
oggbashan said:
labile - adjective - 1. (technical) liable to change, easily altered. 2. (chemistry) easily broken down or displaced. Origin Middle English (in the sense liable to err or sin) from late Latin labilis from labi 'to fall'.

I have known some labile people. :rolleyes:
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opposite of 'obdurate' ?
 
Hello, hi, and how are you all doing? I have been sooo side-tracked by the constantly-occurring BREAKING NEWS, I can hardly breathe. Slowly, I am disentangling myself from the drama, but I must admit, it can be difficult. The wonders of outdoors is helping immensely.

Og, labile is a great word. At first sight, I thought it might have something to do with labia, but I was wrong. lol

There are several interesting lag entries, so I will start with these two;

lag vt lagged;lagging(6) [origin unknown] (ca. 1812) - 1. slang chiefly British: to transport or jail for crime 2. slang chiefly British: ARREST

lag(7) - noun (ca. 1811) 1. slang chiefly British a. a person transported for crime b. CONVICT c. an ex-convict 2. slang chiefly British: a jail sentence: STRETCH
 
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