Words & Stuff

"Arb" is apparently a short form of "arbitrage trader." The Wall Street Journal had a blog entry recently that, a couple paragraphs after referring to arbitrage traders, included the phrase...

Dante Gabriel Rossetti's translation of Villon's "The Ballad of Dead Ladies" (the poem whence comes the phrase "But where are the snows of yesteryear") includes this line: (From Love he...

According to Wikipedia, "presidential glass" is another term for a particular kind of mostly-transparent teleprompter commonly used by US Presidents....

"Fossicking" is an Australian and Cornish (Cornwallish? Cornwallian?) term for prospecting. In Australia, it can apparently also mean "rummaging." Encountered it in a cover letter for a story submitted to...

Wikipedia says that "palilalia" is "the repetition or echoing of one's own spoken words." It can sometimes be a symptom of Tourette Syndrome. I already knew that coprolalia (involuntary swearing)...

According to Urban Dictionary and other sources, one's "wheelhouse" is an "area of expertise." I gather it's used similarly to "forte" or "strong point" or "metier."...

"Griesel" is apparently another term for biodiesel, more specifically for vegetable oil used as diesel fuel. I first encountered the term in a story submitted to SH; did a web...

Hurling is Ireland's second-most-popular sport (after Gaelic football). It involves hitting a ball with a stick to score goals; I get the impression it's vaguely related to field hockey. According...

"Hypsography" is the measurement and mapping of topographical elevation. (I wrote this note in late 2006, but neglected to post it. So the word is no longer exactly new to...

To "schvitz" is to sweat; more commonly, a schvitz is a steam bath, as one might take in a sauna....