AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com regalia • plural noun [treated as sing. or pl.] the emblems or insignia of royalty, especially the crown, sceptre, and other ornaments used at a coronation. • the distinctive clothing worn and ornaments carried at formal occasions as an indication of status: the Bishop of Florence in full regalia. — origin mid 16th cent. (in the sense ‘royal powers’): from medieval Latin, literally ‘royal privileges’, from Latin, neuter plural of regalis ‘regal’. — usage The word regalia comes from Latin ! and is, technically speaking, the plural of regalis. However, in the way the word is used in English today it behaves as a collective noun, similar to words like staff or government. This means that it can be used with either a singular or plural verb (the regalia of Russian tsardom is now displayed in the Kremlin or the regalia of Russian tsardom are now displayed in the Kremlin), but it has no other singular form. Pronunciation available online: www.askoxford.com Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008

AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com takht • noun (in Eastern countries) a sofa or long bench, or a bed. — origin from Persian takt. Pronunciation available online: www.askoxford.com Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008

AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com meltemi • noun a dry north-westerly wind which blows during the summer in the eastern Mediterranean. — origin from modern Greek meltémi, Turkish meltem. Pronunciation available online: www.askoxford.com Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008

AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com Mudville • noun [mass noun] N. Amer. (in sport, especially baseball) used with reference to the emotions felt by fans or a team according to the outcome of a game: there was joy in Mudville following the Vancouver Bar Association league ‘A’ division championship. — origin the name of a fictional town in E. L. Thayer's poem ‘Casey at the Bat’ (1888), which features the defeat of its baseball team. Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008

AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com Conté • noun [mass noun] a kind of hard, grease-free crayon used as a medium for artwork: [as modifier] Conté pastels. — origin mid 19th cent.: named after Nicolas J. Conté (1755–1805), the French inventor who developed it. Pronunciation available online: www.askoxford.com Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008

AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com mystagogue • noun a teacher or propounder of mystical doctrines. — derivatives mystagogy noun. — origin mid 16th cent.: from French, or via Latin from Greek mustagogos, from mustes ‘initiated person’ + agogos ‘leading’. Pronunciation available online: www.askoxford.com Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008

AskOxford: Word of the Day

Word of the Day from AskOxford: www.askoxford.com Lebensraum • noun [mass noun] the territory which a state or nation believes is needed for its natural development. — origin German, literally ‘living space’ (originally with reference to Germany). Pronunciation available online: www.askoxford.com Source: Oxford Dictionary of English www.oup.com/uk/catalogue/?ci=9780198610571 Useful links from around OUP Celebrating the new edition of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Find out about OUP's Online Products: www.oup.com/online Launching September 2007 Oxford Language Dictionaries Online: www.oxfordlanguagedictionaries.com Special offer disgo and busbi USB keys - preloaded with a 30 day trial of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary: www.clever-stuff.ie We hope you have enjoyed your word of the day. However, if you wish to be removed from the mailing list please visit: www.askoxford.com/contactus/email Copyright © Oxford University Press 2008