Tag: French
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jar
Last post, I pointed you to my Strong Language piece on swear jars. Now, what might be pickling in this short, simple word jar? Quite the etymological surprise, if you ask me. Jar According to the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), jar joins English in the 16th century. The OED records jar in 1598 in a reference to the Italian giara, glossed as iarre…
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beagle
A beagle named Miss P took home this year’s Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club Show. Beagles, of course, are known for their noses–and their barks, which may well have given them their very name. Beagle The Oxford English Dictionary first attests beagle around 1475 as begle. While they can’t quite track down its ultimate origin, etymologists do have…
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Dense, shiny meat removal: It’s “Mardi Gras”
Before observing the fasts and penances of Lent, today many Catholics (and other revelers) will celebrate with the feasts and parties of Mardi Gras. As you probably well know, Mardi Gras is French for “Fat Tuesday,” but why do the French call Mardi Gras Mardi Gras? Mardi The French name for “Tuesday” and with an…
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crude
The stock market may not like recent declines in crude oil prices, but the grocery market just might. For the everyday consumer, these declines are spelling savings at the pump, which, for many people, like me, means a little extra cash for checkout lane. We just need to be sure that the food we buy is properly…
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cartoon
Last week’s deadly attacks in Paris gruesomely reminded us of the true power of cartoons. Charlie Hedbo‘s cartoonists were tragic targets of terrorism, yet their work will endure as irrepressible, if complicated, expressions of freedom. Raised in rallies and inked on media covers, the pencil has come to symbolize that freedom but when we look to the…
Mashed Radish 