For example, "sprechgesang" stems directly from a German word - "sprech" means "to speak" and "Gesang" means "song".
Word of the Day
for Tuesday,
July 2, 2013
sprechgesang \SHPREKH-guh-zahng\, noun:
a vocal style intermediate between speech and singing but
without exact pitch intonation.
Despite the sometimes
sarcastic and sometimes tempestuous hostility of audiences clearly unfamiliar
with the technique of Sprechgesang,
and supported only by a small band of aficionados, she managed to insert into
her programmes, mostly composed of operatic arias, lieder by Schumann and Hugo
Wolf, and songs by Mussorgsky, some of the vocal pieces of the Vienna School,
which she thus introduced to Parisians.
-- Georges Perec, translated from the French by David Bellos, Life: A User's Manual, 2009
-- Georges Perec, translated from the French by David Bellos, Life: A User's Manual, 2009
I would never get to
know the full truth, but I do know that when she leans into that microphone for
her whispered Sprechgesang
rendition of Porter's “I've Got You Under My Skin,” the hair on the back of my
neck stands right up...
-- Paul Verhaeghen, Omega Minor, 2007
-- Paul Verhaeghen, Omega Minor, 2007
Another example that I came across recently is a Latin word "lese majesty" comes from the Latin laesa majestos, which means "violated majesty".
Word of the Day
for Thursday,
June 27, 2013
lese majesty \LEZ MAJ-uh-stee, LEEZ-\, noun:
1. Law.
a. a crime, especially high treason, committed against the sovereign power. b.
an offense that violates the dignity of a ruler.
2. an attack on any custom, institution, belief, etc., held sacred or revered by numbers of people: Her speech against Mother's Day was criticized as lese majesty.
2. an attack on any custom, institution, belief, etc., held sacred or revered by numbers of people: Her speech against Mother's Day was criticized as lese majesty.
“Little brother, if
you're going to commit lese
majesty, never do it by messenger. I'd have to execute him too,
and it's wasteful.”
-- Harry Turtledove, The Misplaced Legion, 1987
-- Harry Turtledove, The Misplaced Legion, 1987
His father was what
you call an agitator, and his father was in jail for lese majesty—what
you call speaking the truth about the Emperor.
-- Jack London, The Iron Heel, 1908
-- Jack London, The Iron Heel, 1908
This knowledge comes in handy when I play "Scramble" with my friends on the iPhone. It's the only game I play. Each round is 2 minutes long, and each game consists of 3 rounds. I play about 3 games a day on most days. I absolutely love it.
I'll end the post with one more word - I came across this in a FB group I was recently invited too...some days I really feel this way :) :)!
4 comments:
This sounds like serious preparation for Spelling Bee !! A tad old for that my friend !
By the way, there's no chance you can make sprechgesang in Scramble !!
@Ramesh - no spelling bee...ever heard of anyone of won those contents and became famous :)?
Yes I would not get that word in scramble but I sure love knowing about its existence and what it means :P
Now this was really informative post!
Next thing I'm gonna do is sign up for the same. Need to improve vocab .. hehehe..
yes, a couple of years ago, my neighbor, Jim, taught me this word.
Since then, I use it in all my classes ... there is always that one meeting when students, including the curious ones, become unresponsive and then this is my go-to word to bring them back :)
It was exciting last term when a student, who had been in my class a year earlier, replied to my routine question of "how you doin'" with "exhaustipated" ;)
sadly, no more groaners from Jim--he moved after his wife died ... you have read that post before, and commented on it too ...
http://sriramkhe.blogspot.com/2012/08/on-food-friendships-and-facebook.html
"exhaustipated" is not a mere word anymore ... lots of memories associated with it ...
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