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Merriam-Webster on TwitterFollow Merriam-Webster on Twitter for daily observations about language and words in the news, including insights into the most looked up words on Merriam-Webster.com and discourse on new words and language trends. Receive tweets about fresh editorial content on the newly redesigned Merriam-Webster.com, with features like Trend Watch and Word Well Used, which highlights interesting vocabulary effectively used by the world's leading news and entertainment publications. September 2010Summer Top Twentyharley iron sportster piston compression height vespa piston clearance rotor piston engine video solidworks piston design hydraulic piston radial piston pump hydrolic piston lmt mrp piston rifle for sale januaryares gsr 35 gas piston kit oil chamber piston engine transwiesco racing piston axial piston pump ak-47 piston replacement kta 700 piston buy toyota celica piston and rings pentaho deplyment in websphere application serverpiston damage plainview new york drivers edampro disc brake piston remober cp piston ds650 forty acre clubpiston powered airlines axis allies patch hasbro 1.3.3piston plungers cb750 piston ring installation gerry mosley canadataiwan piston piston rotary engine design smile chaplin parsons turnerhusquevarna bt125 piston discount atv piston alpha tifhydraulic piston pump piston rings ffor john deere a cosmetic dentist roswell alpharetta georgiapiston motor poclain repair s s piston sizes big block piston installation piston domestic water pump excercisetwo stroke piston and rings 67 mustang caliper piston piston farm maine cp piston for ds650 fastest piston aircraft help with fire piston agitated screams of maggots unplugged downloadsteam engine piston link linear 350 chevy piston ring set piston design first ring groove tigerkz1000 piston kit how to piston rod 2007 american tour arctic monkeyspiston pn offset kx80 wiseco piston install guide ar gas piston jakarta humourpiston ring material nissan diesel engine piston compression analysing film stylerich fuel piston ring failure perpetual piston purchase fire piston steels used in piston rings radial piston ring tension odd recordsautomatic transmission piston seal honda 600 piston clearance specs ohio piston pin the wizard of oz at woodbridgepiston valve clearance problems sbc discount piston point broadheads piston rod manufacturing method tan leather seat coverpiston decals dc property taxationpiazza espresso piston pot suitevitara piston piston rotary engine liquid piston stirling engine concealedtitanium nitride piston ring 4 piston calipers piston playoff schedule passive eq switched preamp schematic400ex stroker piston oem piston for 2001 ktm250 piston vacuum pump monorail keyboardoilless piston compressors orion wasp .21 piston and sleeve wolverhampton wanderers jokes2 two stroke piston seized grand prix caliper piston rinconcentrifugal pump dummy piston camelotblaster piston rings piston and rods drawings ttr 125 piston beloved250 piston It was a long, hot summer – and one very rich in vocabulary! The most looked-up word all summer was a word that is not in the dictionary: refudiate, the malaprop used by former Gov. Sarah Palin on television and Twitter. The word caused much comment and provoked much research – putting the word repudiate in the Summer Top Twenty as well. Unsurprisingly, the Gulf oil spill and blockbuster films also provided some of the summer's biggest lookups.Word History of the Month: conundrumThe word conundrum is a perennial on the Top 20 list – including this summer's list. Many words that are among the most looked-up on a daily basis are abstract terms with classical roots (think integrity or ubiquitous). Conundrum would seem to fit right in with them. But does it? Something about the word is unsettling – enough for people to be constantly looking it up – and perhaps a bit mysterious. Notable and Quotable: D.H. LawrenceD.H. Lawrence was born September 11, 1885. Long troubled by ill health, the poet, critic, and novelist (Lady Chatterley’s Lover, Sons and Lovers) died at 44. Samples of his writing appear at some five dozen entries in the Unbridged, the more colorful of them included here. 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Select the Collegiate or the Unabridged as your reference, click on Advanced Search, type in the surname of the writer in the Author Quoted box, and click on Search.From the Mail ServerThis month, editors heard from someone zealous about the need to add a new word to the lexicon, from another person looking for the rich story behind the word cheapskate, and from a set of correspondents eager to understand the rule that distinguishes vowels from consonants. contanintal 226 piston rings crf250 replace piston rigging a wind surferball piston engine kolben piston piston sleeve puller mtv laguna beach hairdetroit piston theme song honda 300 piston head piston ring winnipeg when to replace carpet paddingp557 badger piston piston and alcohol corrosion nokia n95 networkshow to change worn piston rings roller wave piston instantaneous piston speed stupid boss picturesvariable axial piston pump kohler piston too lean hole piston damage jeremy jutkowitzburnt hole in polaris piston efi piston cup racers gift pack fire piston gmc denali piston slap sattley piston rod how to hardened body putty1977 johnson evinrude piston piston coffe cup antique deisel engine piston rings antique piston water well pump detroit piston song kx 80 piston install 327 piston floating pin city wide amusement parkpiston packing sleeve parts how to teach a dylexia child88mm step ring ebay piston cylinder piston ar 10 ktm replacement piston hpi savage 25 piston kawasaki piston board of trustees sistercare incvw piston beauty and the geek 2 episodesdiesel piston stroke 2jzgte racing piston mendocino college ukiahsix bore piston rings land rover discovery 4.0 piston deluxeenlarging a piston pin hole lootk series forged piston lovejoyduplex piston assembly three strike crime policypiston air pumps lwc gas piston asyncronous magnetic piston engine medical representative sellingcr 500 piston 080 over sized piston mgb motor piston circlip remov punjabi caller tune codecheap 302 ford claimer piston biologically how does a piston work ar piston conversion review piston to valve clearance bbc piston 3502 how to seat piston rings borrow883 piston wrist pin bushing cnc rotor piston napier piston ring colfax placerpiston point broadhead reviews how to remove piston head generic piston kits xr200 hobby shops near hinton albertaspecific fuel consumption of piston engines holly mcwhortergas piston conversion suzuki rmx 250 piston size 8 1 2 fitted hatskyb 40mm piston band accredite surety casualty winter parkpontiac trw piston specifications chrysler 3.5l 1 piston firing order tea coffee vending machine coffee dayalcohol piston ring and piston corrosion nitro composite piston touching it pretty willierifle gas piston design hydrolic piston spanner wrench rm250 2002 piston overnight shipping piston ring types nick piston 350 lb mens wetsuitwiseco marine piston Happy Birthday 1666The Great Fire of London began raging on September 2, 1666. By the time the fire ended three days later, St. Paul's Cathedral, more than 13,000 houses, and dozens of churches had been destroyed. A new London (with less wood) arose from the ashes. The year of the Great Fire also witnessed the first print appearance of 65 words in English that appear in the Collegiate Dictionary. We can see the expanding worlds of science and discovery reflected in these words from fields such as astronomy, mathematics, and medicine. Interested in seeing all 65 words that first appeared in print in 1666? Choose the Collegiate as your reference source and select Date from the pull-down menu. Type in the date and click on Search. Words in the NewsSarah Palin sent this message out on Twitter on July 18: "Ground Zero mosque supporters: doesn't it stab you in the heart, as it does ours throughout the heartland? Peaceful Muslims, pls refudiate." This sent refudiate to the top of the Top Twenty for the summer. Why the buzz? For starters, refudiate is not (yet) in the dictionary. Then there was the controversy over subsequent tweets from Gov. Palin, first changing refudiate to repudiate, and then defending her coinage, invoking Shakespeare: "English is a living language. Shakespeare liked to coin new words too. Got to celebrate it!" Language watchers debated whether refudiate was a portmanteau or a malapropism. The blend is easy to figure out (refute or refuse + repudiate). But what's the story on malapropism? Just Foolin' AroundChristopher Nolan's hit movie Inception propelled the word inception to #2 on the Summer Top Twenty. The word inception – which stresses the notion of commencing or beginning without any implication about cause – has an ancestor in capere, Latin for to take. Taking a minute to fool around with the Latin verb capere turns up more than three dozen other English words with capere in their background. Language LinksInterest in refudiate reminds us of the eggcorn. An eggcorn is a sort of "nonce folk etymology" coinage – a word coined through a logical reshaping of an unfamiliar word. For example, someone who has never seen the word acorn in print might well guess the word is eggcorn from its pronunciation. Eggcorns, unlike malapropisms, make sense. But unlike words coined through folk etymology, eggcorns are not recognized as "real" words. (For more on malapropisms and Folk Etymology, just click on those highlighted words in the previous sentence.) For a list of common eggcorns, check out the Eggcorn Database. The "About" section includes an explanation distinguishing eggcorns from folk etymology and mondegreens (some time ago Language Links featured links to collections of the related mondegreen). Back to Top |