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Looking for a new kind of feeding frenzy? Feast on colorful references in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Allusions. http://www.m-w.com/book/writref/allusion.htm *************************************************************** The Word of the Day for January 15 is: clochard \kloh-SHAR\ (noun) : tramp, vagrant Example sentence: "He lives on the Pont Neuf, the oldest and most beautiful bridge in Paris, which has become a secret home to clochards . . . while closed for extensive repairs." (Vincent Canby, _The New York Times_, October 6, 1992) Did you know? Why such a fancy French word for a bum? The truth of the matter is, nine times out of ten, you will find "clochard" used for not just any bum, but a French bum -- even more particularly, a Parisian bum. And, sometimes, it's even a certain type of Parisian bum -- a type that has been romanticized in literature and is part of the local color. Nevertheless, as "francais" as this word (which comes from the French verb "clocher," meaning "to limp") may seem, its regular appearance in English sources since 1937 makes it an English word, too. ---------------- Brought to you by Merriam-Webster, Inc. http://www.Merriam-Webster.com ---------------- Subscribe or unsubscribe to Word of the Day via the Web at: http://www.Merriam-Webster.com/service/subinst.htm To join the list via e-mail, send a blank e-mail to: mw-wod-subscribe-request@listserv.webster.m-w.com To leave the list via e-mail, send a blank e-mail to: mw-wod-signoff-request@listserv.webster.m-w.com Questions about your subscription? Write to: mw-wod-request@listserv.webster.m-w.com Questions or comments about the Word of the Day? Write to: word@Merriam-Webster.com © 2002 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated
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