harry
[email protected] 12 Dec 2007 10:56:41 -0000
| Newsgroups | gmane.culture.language.word-of-the-day |
|---|---|
| Message-ID | <[email protected]> |
****************************************************************
Attention word gurus: try WORD SWEEP!, the first board game to feature =
Merriam-Webster definitions! Available at Borders Bookstores.
http://www.wordsweep.com
****************************************************************
The Word of the Day for December 12 is:=20
harry \HAIR-ee\ verb
1 : to make a pillaging or destructive raid on : assault
2 : to force to move along by harassing
*3 : to torment by or as if by constant attack
Example sentence:
Seven-year-old Kaitlyn harried her little sister with pokes, h=
air pulling, and teasing, badgering her until she burst into tears.
=20
Did you know?
Was there once a warlike man named Harry who is the source for toda=
y's word? One particularly belligerent Harry does come to mind: Shakespe=
are once described how "famine, sword, and fire" accompanied "the warlik=
e Harry," England's King Henry the Fifth. But neither this king nor any =
of his namesakes are the source for the verb "harry." Rather, "harry" (o=
r a word resembling it) has been a part of English for as long as there =
has been anything that could be called English. It took the form "hergia=
n" in Old English and "harien" in Middle English, passing through numero=
us variations before finally settling into its modern spelling. The word=
's Old English ancestors are related to Old High German words "herion" (=
"to lay waste") and "heri" ("army").
You Are Subscribed As: [email protected]
To unsubscribe, please click here:
http://www.drhinternet.net/mw/u/966408/568f14b4ab4f050b/N327L6
To change your e-mail address or to subscribe to the html
version of Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day, featuring audio
pronunciations, please visit:
http://mw.drhinternet.net/sm/wod/changeofaddress.iphtml
(c) 2007 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated
Merriam-Webster, Inc.
47 Federal Street
P.O. Box 281
Springfield, MA 01102