#WordWednesday

Fletcherize

Moms often tell their kids to Fletcherize. Well, maybe they just say, "Chew your food slowly."

The term comes from the name of Horace Fletcher, an American nutritionist in the early part of the 1900s. He advocated for thoroughly chewing one's food, so the expression "to Fletcherize" was born.

#WordWednesday

emolument

If you work for a posh company, you might ask for an emolument.

A raise is so plebeian.

#WordWednesday

sockdolager - a decisive reply or blow or something very heavy. "That was some sockdolager!"

So, you're all sitting around in your new apartment after a bunch of friends have helped you move in. The four biggest people have collapsed onto the helter-skelter furniture and stare at you listlessly, eyes bugged out. One of them groans, "Do. Not. Ever. Ask us to move that #@$%$^@ sockdolager again. Not doin' it."

OR...
You've been sitting around at a meeting/party/potluck supper, feeling out of place and wondering what the heck you're doing there. Eventually you wander over to a small group and try to join in on the conversation. Things begin to improve. Someone smiles at your joke. You ask someone a question and get an animated reply. Better, better. You start to feel more comfortable and then someone asks you a tough question. You pause for a microsecond...and BANG! You deliver a perfect sockdolager, and the whole bunch grins and claps you on the back! Suddenly, you're a superhero.

#WordWednesday

Given that the Olympics are on, I thought I'd play with the word "sport." It's a versatile word. You probably don't care what part of speech each use is, so I won't torment you with that.

However, whether you know the parts of speech or not, you can:

• play or be a sport.
• sport a mustache or a fancy coat
• wear sport clothes or go sport fishing
• make sport with another person (make fun of or tease)
• sport (frolic or gambol) if you're a child or animal.

And, if you're a British university student, you can sport your oak, which means that you keep your door closed to indicate that you don't want visitors.

So with all of that you have a sporting good chance of sporting your new vocabulary at the next party.