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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 TwentyIt 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. (When was the last time you encountered "everywhere" used as a noun?). Interested in seeing all the examples of a particular writer? 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. inter-tel telephones tryon springtime in france 1883all brands telephones corded free stuff give-awaycomparison of cordless telephones louisville ky sheldon bermanmid 19th century telephones sleeveless mountain biking jerseytelephones in 1957 toshiba telephones cix 40 small home telephones argosy casino kansas citytmobile telephones verison telephones illinois consumer telephones wireless cellular telephones restoring antique telephones taxation baseballbt telephones telephones tap bussiness telephones inc blocking cortisolebay sprint smart cell telephones telephones hearing impaired easy to hold walmart telephones unfaithful menlong range cordless telephones largest university by 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telephones were in 1700 072 telephones yuba river mining campatt cingular telephones lg wireless telephones emerson telephones large muscle coordination definitionmagnets used in telephones fungalnellore telephones sterling olaf stagebergphillips dcct telephones complimentarydigital cordless telephones prices daz boggloud bells for telephones whispering hills indianapolishistory telephones telephones from the 1800 s relative dispersionsatelite telephones kitchen housewarming gift basketsold fashion telephones crab and okra gumboprison telephones panasonic kx-t7730 telephones titleist golf hat fittedtelephones with large numbers css table cell paddingtelephones pensacola newborns organic foodpanasonic cordless telephones mizuno tjcorded cordless telephones expandible telephones with message waiting bpl cordless telephones udn 24650 puget power telephones cordless headset telephones how do you make string telephones telephones corded big button programable voice activated telephones how do cellular telephones work p f sound collection telephones resident involvement impact assessment toolkit uk2.4 ghz cordless telephones hasbro r2d2 robothistory of the telephones in death we are with christhandset telephones telephones for the hearing impaired pagemakertelephones hand crank gemma atkinson fake picsspecial needs telephones bel-tronics telephones bike podnewfoundland crank telephones cup telephones antique telephones arizona measuring bacterial grwothavanti network telephones insulative brick australia styrofoamretro telephones for sale standard telephones and cables antique wall telephones telephones bluetooth flush mount telephones period telephones celexa for alcoholic depressionlogos telephones portables ibex telephones history business telephones systems south carolina gern many telephones webspheretelephones for dock-n-talk bpca leasing nautiquesony telephones unidine telephones jacketoperation of 3g telephones tutorial cell telephones lg replica old telephones The 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. telephones corded siemens rolm telephones panasonic replacement telephones headsets for telephones social implications of aid in jamaicaavaya office telephones cordless telephones consumer reports notebookhub handset phone telephones calls select dangers cordless telephones crystalwood drive ns house for salebell rf telephones oddnombres de telephones en afrique telephones for troops large short wetsuit gulpictures of old telephones days inn lookout mtn westgeneral electric cordless telephones answering telephones motorolla telephones oshkoshcandlestick telephones 6.0 ghz telephones my chemical romance heaven help usservice manuals for telephones telephones house dect 6.0 telephones wireless headsets for telephones telephones with bluetooth capability touching it pretty willie3 handset cordless telephones accurate diecastbeetel telephones corded telephones canada old-fashioned telephones flood damage northern irelandcordless telephones ratings evaluations health hazards regarding cellular telephones carbineip telephones durham computer telephones for dell who invented telephones foot cubes ukhearing impaired telephones walleye fishing ontariobuy used telephones vonage wireless telephones south africa telephones unisonic telephones billing regulations for wireless telephones the tsar of all the russianshow to wire telephones the lead content in puddingvideo telephones ghduplicates of antique telephones rolm telephones telephones for office bluetooth compatiable how telephones work les telephones anciens aaliyah phototelephones componies low cost telephones coca cola telephones bmw 1.9 air intakecordless telephones reviews all new inmate telephones provided video red telephones aortic bruitnynex telephones polycom telephones chinese electronic telephones rincon hillchennai telephones online directory telephones in the 1990s wetland filters in agriculturetelephone accessories meridian telephones ftd flower couponfunky classic cordless telephones property lookup custer county mtold candlestick telephones cellular telephones with prefix 911 mcdonalds green mountain coffee blendachat telephones portables tiger clawnumber of telephones telephones and accessories high tech telephones qkw telephones compare mobile telephones giana real orgasmsbig number telephones masked magician val valentino picturedevis telephones 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!" emerson electronic telephones christopher lowell show discover4-line telephones military field telephones the functions of the telephonesbell telephones old landline telephones stromberg telephones c coe endeavorsavalex telephones the first telephones january 2009 flesh eating bacteriacorded headsets for telephones walmart dragonfly backpackwiretapping the telephones of competitors vntage telephones cheap telephones tansamsung telephones belly fat loss over fortyheavy duty telephones driveshaft 101slimline telephones 29267ge3 teenagers and telephones outletcorded telephones big numbers hotel promotions in new york citycordless telephones for sell old pay telephones panasonic telephones technical help batteries telephones panasonic p-p511 keisha cole shoulda let you gotelephones compatable with hearing aids lcd telephones carole ferguson tennesseewhat is dect telephones rttelephones for the elderly and ill at t plexar telephones expandable cordless telephones how secure are 2.4ghz wireless telephones making ap puttyeuropean mobile telephones exponline review of dect telephones partner telephones spray apparatus for salewall mount telephones antique singer ten star sewing machinehearing impared telephones la mer the concentratetelephones volume enhanced remember cert checkbox default settingqwest telephones uk telephones telephones in chatham island troubleshooting radioshack telephones preimer telephones ge ds dect 6.0 telephones fulton county escaped inmateswindows vista internet telephones telephones portable meilleur prix songs about telephones contamination fort humboldt missouriupcoming touch screen cellular telephones hunting themed novelty telephones grey cup favoritestelephones for children ficavtech telephones huautomatic electric telephones how to make telephones patient telephones alaska concealed carry permitfujitsu telephones telephones for the blind budd desk accesoriescellular telephones witout contracts telephones with caller id answering machine nationalismtelephone stores for old style telephones crosley telephones compare telephones telephones portable at t cordless telephones luxury home telephones incident icebergtwo lines telephones comparaison telephones portables 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 |