Word of the Day-"Fatuous"

Pronunciation:  fa'-chü-əs

Origin:  Latin fatuus foolish

First Known Use: 1633

Definition:  complacently or inanely foolish:  silly

Used in a sentence:  "With her fanny stuck in the air and her head against the convenience store floor, Hula felt extremely fatuous fishing her wallet out from under the big ice cream freezer where it slid when she dropped it." 

Right by the checkout counter, yes indeedy.

Word of the Day-"Humble"

hum·ble

Pronunciation:  huhm-buhl, adjective, hum·bler, hum·blest, verb, hum·bled, hum·bling.

Definition:  adjective

1.  not proud or arrogant; modest: to be humble although successful.

2. having a feeling of insignificance, inferiority, subservience, etc

3. low in rank, importance, status, quality, etc.; lowly: of humble origin; a humble home.

4. courteously respectful: In my humble opinion you are wrong.

5. low in height, level, etc.; small in size: a humble member of the galaxy.

verb (used with object)

6. to lower in condition, importance, or dignity; abase.

7. to destroy the independence, power, or will of.

8. to make meek: to humble one's heart.

 Origin: 1200–50; Middle English ( h ) umble < Old French < Latin humilis lowly, insignificant, on the ground.

 Synonyms:  1. unpretending, unpretentious. 2. submissive, meek. 3. unassuming, plain, common, poor. 4. polite. 6. mortify, shame, abash. 7. subdue, crush, break.

Used in a sentence:  "After running three miles in the business district and then lifting weights amid coworkers in the office gym, Hula was humbled to find that she had been wearing her shorts wrong side out the whole time."

 I'm not namin' any names, but somebody around here might need to get her eyes checked.

Word of the Day-"Impression"

im·pres·sion

Pronunciation:  im-presh-uhn

Form:  noun

Definition:  1.  a strong effect produced on the intellect, feelings, conscience, etc.

2.  the first and immediate effect of an experience or perception upon the mind; sensation.

3.  the effect produced by an agency or influence.

4.  a notion, remembrance, belief, etc., often of a vague or indistinct nature.

5.  a mark, indentation, figure, etc., produced by pressure.

6.  an image in the mind caused by something external to it.

7.  the act of impressing; state of being impressed.

8.  Dentistry . a mold taken, in plastic materials or plaster of Paris, of teeth and the surrounding tissues.

9.  an imitation of the voice, mannerisms, and other traits of a person, especially a famous person, as by an entertainer.

COLLAPSE

Origin:  1325–75; Middle English impressio ( u ) n < Latin impressiōn- (stem of impressiō ), equivalent to impress ( us ) ( see impress¹ ) + -iōn- -ion

Related forms:

im·pres·sion·al, adjective

im·pres·sion·al·ly, adverb

im·pres·sion·less, adjective

pre·im·pres·sion, noun

Synonyms:   impact, imprint

Used in a sentence:  "To Hula's dismay, the very itchy tick bite on her lower right hip gave everyone the impression that instead of scratching the bite, she was scratching her arse."  Frequently and furiously.

Word of the Day-"Nonplus"

non•plus: noun \ˌnän-ˈpləs\


Definition: a state of bafflement or perplexity : QUANDARY

Origin: Latin non plus no more

First Known Use: 1582

Used in a sentence: "Hula was nonplussed that her 73-year-old father contemplated skinny dipping in his underwear in the hotel swimming pool during the family road trip last week."

In fact, had Hula's cousin backed up that swimming proposal with a bet, she figures Zeke would have jumped in quicker than Newt Gingrich changes wives.

Word of the Day-"Humiliation"

hu•mil•i•a•tion


Pronounciation: hyoo-mil-ee-ey-shuh

Form: noun

Definition:

1. an act or instance of humiliating or being humiliated.

2. the state or feeling of being humiliated; mortification.

Origin:

1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin humiliātiōn- (stem of humiliātiō ). See humiliate, -ion

Related forms:

re•hu•mil•i•a•tion, noun

self-hu•mil•i•a•tion, noun

Synonyms:

2. degradation, dishonor. See shame.

Used in a sentence: "The humiliation Hula felt when tripping on a rug in a dark hallway and falling spectacularly while going to pee was nothing compared to the embarrassment she felt when she realized it had been caught on the security cameras at work."

From now on, Hula will turn on the light when dashing through the building at night.

Word of the Day-"Thwart"

THWART


Pronunciation: \ˈthwȯrt\

transitive verb

Definition:

1a : to run counter to so as to effectively oppose or baffle : CONTRAVENE b : to oppose successfully : defeat the hopes or aspirations of

2: to pass through or across

Origin: Middle English thwerten, from thwert, adverb

First Known Use: 13th century

Synonyms: BAFFLE, BALK, BEAT, CHECKMATE, DISCOMFIT, FOIL, FRUSTRATE

Antonyms: ADVANCE, CULTIVATE, ENCOURAGE, FORWARD, FOSTER, FURTHER, NURTURE, PROMOTE

Used in a sentence: "Hula's attempts to do her Christmas shopping early this year were thwarted by the fact she can't remember where she hid the two lone gifts she bought on clearance immediately after the holidays last year and hid from her family." It appears she hid them from herself as well.

Hula's Word of the Day-"Assault"

as·sault

Pronunciation: noun \ə-ˈsȯlt\

Definition:


1.  a : a violent physical or verbal attack b : a military attack usually involving direct combat with enemy forces c : a concerted effort (as to reach a goal or defeat an adversary)


2 : a threat or attempt to inflict offensive physical contact or bodily harm on a person (as by lifting a fist in a threatening manner) that puts the person in immediate danger of or in apprehension of such harm 


Origin:


Middle English assaut, from Anglo-French, from Vulgar Latin *assaltus, from assalire

First Known Use: 14th century


Used in a sentence: "Hula violently assaulted the toilet paper dispenser in the public restroom when it repeatedly refused to give up more than half a square of paper at a time."


Okay, perhaps that's an exaggeration. Or not.

Word of the Day-"Addle"

Pronounciation:  ad•dle ( d l)


v. ad•dled, ad•dling, ad•dles

Definition:  To muddle; confuse:

1. To become confused.

2. To become rotten, as an egg.

Origin : Middle English adel filth, from Old English adela; akin to Middle Low German adele liquid manure

First Known Use: 1682

Synonyms: DIZZY, ADDLED, ADDLEPATED, BEDEVILED, BEFOGGED, BEFUDDLED, BEMUSED, BEWILDERED, BUSHED [chiefly Australian], CONFOUNDED, CONFUSED, DAZED, DISTRACTED, DOPEY (also DOPY), FOGGED, MIXED-UP, MUDDLEHEADED, MUZZY, PIXILATED (also PIXILLATED), PUNCH-DRUNK, PUNCHY, RADDLED, SHELL-SHOCKED, SILLY, SLAPHAPPY, SPACED-OUT (or SPACED), SPACEY (also SPACY), STUNNED, STUPEFIED, ZONKED, ZONKED-OUT

Antonyms: CLEARHEADED, UNCONFUSED

Used in a sentence:  "Hula must have been somewhat addled when she went to bed last night as she found the cordless phone in her purse this morning right next to her Blackberry."

Word of the Day: Giddy

PRONOUNCIATION: gid•di•ly \ˈgi-də-lē\ adverb


— gid•di•ness \ˈgi-dē-nəs\ noun

DEFINITION

1

a : DIZZY b : causing dizziness c : whirling rapidly

2

a : lightheartedly silly : FRIVOLOUS b : joyfully elated : EUPHORIC

ORIGIN: From Old English gydig possessed, mad; akin to Old English god god

First Known Use: 14th century



Synonyms: BIRDBRAINED, DITZY (or DITSY), DIZZY, FEATHERBRAINED, FLIGHTY, FRIVOLOUS, FROTHY, FUTILE, GOOFY, HAREBRAINED, LIGHT-HEADED, LIGHT-MINDED, PUERILE, SCATTERBRAINED, SILLY, YEASTY

Antonyms: EARNEST, SERIOUS, SERIOUS-MINDED, SOBER, UNFRIVOLOUS



USED IN A SENTENCE: “The Hula-gen’s were downright giddy when the little green key for their rental apartment in Paris arrived in the mail today.”

*Y’all, I’m gonna pass out before I get to France.

Word of the Day-"Hack"

hack

Pronunciation: /hak/

Origin: 1150–1200; Middle English hacken; compare Old English tōhaccian to hack to pieces; cognate with Dutch hakken, German hacken

Synonyms:  1. mangle, haggle.

Definition:  1.to cut, notch, slice, chop, or sever (something) with or as with heavy, irregular blows (often followed by up or down ): to hack meat; to hack down trees.

2.  to break up the surface of (the ground).

3.  to clear (a road, path, etc.) by cutting away vines, trees, brush, or the like: They hacked a trail through the jungle.

4.  to damage or injure by crude, harsh, or insensitive treatment; mutilate; mangle: The editor hacked the story to bits.

Used in a sentence: “Hula’s irresistible urge to hack off her bangs with the kitchen scissors every month is fueled by either her failure to schedule regular appointments at the hair dresser or her love of crooked bangs.”

Perhaps, this is why Hula’s hair dresser does not always claim Hula as a customer.

Word of the Day: Whack

Pronunciation: \ˈhwak, ˈwak\

Origin: British
Definition: 1. a : to strike with a smart or resounding blow b : to cut with or as if with a whack : chop
2. to get the better of: defeat
3. slang : Murder, kill

intransitive verb: to strike a smart or resounding blow

Used in a sentence: Hubby pulled Hula out of the way just before the elderly lady tried to whack Hula on the back with a cane because she thought Hula was in her way at the grocery store.

*For the record Hula was NOT blocking the aisle. She had pulled her cart out of the aisle. The lady just wanted to get between Hula and the case of hams without saying “excuse me”.

Word of the Day-"Sloth"

Pronunciation: noun \ˈslȯth, ˈsläth also ˈslōth\
Origin: Middle English slouthe, from slow slow
First Known Use: 12th century

Synonyms: idleness, indolence, inertia, shiftlessness, laziness
Antonyms: drive, industriousness, industry

Definitions: 1. a: disinclination to action or labor: indolence b: spiritual apathy and inactivity “the deadly sin of sloth”

2: any of various slow-moving arboreal edentate mammals (genera Bradypus and Choloepus) that inhabit tropical forests of South and Central America, hang from the branches back downward, and feed on leaves, shoots, and fruits — compare three-toed sloth, two-toed sloth

Used in a sentence: “Hula THOUGHT about running five miles this afternoon and she THOUGHT about taking some nature pictures, but what she DID was nap on the couch like a three toed sloth. And it was good.”

Word of the Day-"Overwhelm"

Pronunciation: \ˌō-vər-ˈhwelm, -ˈwelm\

Origin: Middle English.

First known use: 14th century.

Definition: 1: upset, overthrow
2a : to cover over completely : submerge b : to overcome by superior force or numbers c : to overpower in thought or feeling

Used in a sentence: "As Hula wedged into one of the few good seats at Teen Angel's choir concert, she was immediately overwhelmed by the Frito feet of the young man sitting beside her."

As in overwhelmed for an hour and five minutes. Sister Mercy, next time I'll just sit in the back.

Word of the Day- "Mesmerize"

mes•mer•ize

mez-muh-rahyz, mes-]

verb (used with object), -ized, -iz•ing.

Definition: 1. to hypnotize.
2. to spellbind; fascinate.
3. to compel by fascination.

Origin: 1820–30; mesmer(ism) + -ize

—Related forms
mes•mer•i•za•tion, noun
mes•mer•iz•er, noun
un•mes•mer•ized, adjective

Used in a sentence: "While watching the Russian Ballet perform the Nutcracker, Hula couldn't help but be mesmerized by the tightly toned fannies and thighs of the male dancers."

Talk about making the season bright!

Word of the Day-"Perturb"

PERTURB

Definition: to disturb greatly in mind : DISQUIET
2 : to throw into confusion : DISORDER
3 : to cause to experience a perturbation

— per•turb•able\-ˈtər-bə-bəl\ adjective

Origin: PERTURB
Middle English, from Middle French perturber, from Latin perturbare to throw into confusion, from per- + turbare to disturb — more at TURBID
First Known Use: 14th century

Used in a sentence: "Hula was greatly perturbed to realize that three of the pieces of clothing her daughter wore to school today for "nerd day" came from Hula's closet."

Word of the Day-"Frantic"

Main Entry: fran•tic

Pronunciation: \ˈfran-tik\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Middle English frenetik, frantik — more at FRENETIC

Date: 14th century
1.
a archaic : mentally deranged
b : emotionally out of control

2.
: marked by fast and nervous, disordered, or anxiety-driven activity
— fran•ti•cal•ly\-ti-k(ə-)lē\ adverb
— fran•tic•ness\-tik-nəs\ noun

Used in a sentence: "As Hula undressed at the gynecologist's office, she suddenly realized that the old tennis shoes she had haphazardly thrown on that morning made her feet stink to high heaven, and she frantically began trying to wash her feet with paper towels and antiseptic hand soap in the tiny sink before the nurse came back into the room."

*Here's hoping THAT'S not on some kind of security tape.

Word of the Day-"Hysteria"

Main Entry: hys•te•ria
Pronunciation: \his-ˈter-ē-ə, -ˈtir-\
Function: noun
Etymology: New Latin, from English hysteric, adjective, from Latin hystericus, from Greek hysterikos, from hystera womb; from the Greek notion that hysteria was peculiar to women and caused by disturbances of the uterus
Date: 1801
1 : a psychoneurosis marked by emotional excitability and disturbances of the psychic, sensory, vasomotor, and visceral functions
2 : behavior exhibiting overwhelming or unmanageable fear or emotional excess
— hys•ter•ic \-ˈter-ik\ noun
— hys•ter•i•cal \-ˈter-i-kəl\ also hysteric adjective
— hys•ter•i•cal•ly \-i-k(ə-)lē\ adverb

Used in a sentence: “Hula and Teen Angel had a fit of hysterical giggles yesterday after walking down the hallway of the hospital and seeing the large patient lounging on the edge of his bed with his legs wide open and his junk brazenly hanging out like a monkey dangling from a tree.”

My apologies to the housekeeping crew that may have had to mop up the floor of the elevator where we each wet our pants. And seriously, how can you NOT know you’re hanging out like that? He had to know. Trust me, he HAD to know.

Word of the Day-"Glee"

Main Entry: glee

Pronunciation: \ˈglē\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Old English glēo entertainment, music; akin to Old Norse glȳ joy, and perhaps to Greek chleuē joke

Date: before 12th century

Definition: 1 : exultant high-spirited joy : merriment
2 : a part-song for usually male voices

Used in a sentence: "Nothing brings Hula so much glee as when a bug lands on a blossom she is photographing."

Word of the Day-"Anticipation"

Main Entry: an•tic•i•pa•tion
Pronunciation: \(ˌ)an-ˌti-sə-ˈpā-shən\
Function: noun
Date: 14th century

1 a : a prior action that takes into account or forestalls a later action b : the act of looking forward; especially : pleasurable expectation

Used in a sentence: “It is with great anticipation that Hula awaits the overhaul of the Hula-gen’s bicycle built for two as Hubby plans to ride it with a very blind Papa T..”

(The overhaul is expected to take about two weeks readers, and you can bet I’m gonna blog about this one.)

Word of The Day-"Perturb"

Main Entry: per·turb

Pronunciation: \pər-ˈtərb\

Function: transitive verb

Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French perturber, from Latin perturbare to throw into confusion, from per- + turbare to disturb — more at turbid
Date: 14th century
1 : to disturb greatly in mind : disquiet
2 : to throw into confusion : disorder
3 : to cause to experience a perturbation

synonyms see discompose

Used in a sentence: "Hula was greatly perturbed when just two hours after finding a tick on her hip crawling toward um...the dark side of the moon, another tick crawled off of her scalp and down the side of her face."

Oh, and is it kind of seventh grade for me to say the word perturbation seems a little dirty?