# What's with this word? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 11, 2006, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963 "2006-03-11T19:38:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lionne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Lionne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lionne)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/21 "2006-03-12T03:01:56Z")
> [@Civil Guy](#): > > If you’ll all hold fast for a second, I’ll try to come up with another curious word, fast! It’s been 10 minutes! Where are our words? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/22 "2006-03-12T04:07:44Z")
Some days I’m fast, other days just half-fast. ---
**Author:** ![Civil\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d78d45/32.png) [@Civil\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Civil_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/23 "2006-03-12T04:12:27Z")
…and I hope you won’t sanction me. Or maybe I am hoping for a sanction. I get so confused. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/24 "2006-03-12T05:08:38Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > Ravel and Cleave can be their own antonyms. So can “fast” and “moot” “Facetiously” contains all English vowels (I’m not counting “w”) in alphabetical order. “Roorback” (an obscure term for a false report for political purposes), “hoodlum,” and “bird” (there are some parallel forms, but none appear to be the origin) are some of the few words in the English language that are not derived from another, earlier word or phrase. ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/25 "2006-03-12T06:19:50Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > “Facetiously” contains all English vowels (I’m not counting “w”) in alphabetical order. Meanwhile, _sequoia_ contains all five vowels exactly once, including a string of four, among its seven letters. **Civil Guy** : You deserve a citation for your efforts! Take that as you wish… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/26 "2006-03-12T06:22:58Z")
Of course, I know _y_ is a vowel in such words as “facetiously” – in the post above, I meant all five “full-time” vowels, also known as the ones you can buy on _Wheel of Fortune_. ---
**Author:** ![Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ins_Outs_What-have-yous)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/27 "2006-03-12T09:49:32Z")
**Palaver** and **ilk** are two of my favorite obscure words. Not only are they rarely used but also sound funny when spoken IMO. **Palaver** is noun meaning idle chat or can be used as a verb to engage in idle chat. **Ilk** is a noun meaning a group or class (of people usually?); it has a somewhat negative connotation. used in a sentence: _I ain’t palavered people of your ilk._ ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/28 "2006-03-12T10:06:19Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > My favorite is disgruntled. Gruntled just sounds like someone’s as happy as a pig in slop. Speaking of gruntled, enjoy this little story. [http://paul.merton.ox.ac.uk/language/gruntled.html](http://paul.merton.ox.ac.uk/language/gruntled.html) ---
**Author:** ![manx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@manx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/manx)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/29 "2006-03-12T10:13:59Z")
> [@ArchitectChore](#): > > **Palaver** and **ilk** are two of my favorite obscure words. Not only are they rarely used but also sound funny when spoken IMO. > > **Palaver** is noun meaning idle chat or can be used as a verb to engage in idle chat. > > **Ilk** is a noun meaning a group or class (of people usually?); it has a somewhat negative connotation. > > used in a sentence: > _I ain’t palavered people of your ilk._ Huh, whaddaya know? I’ve been using palaver to mean ‘engaged in a conversation where one or both parties got a little stroppy’. Not an argie-bargie, but not idle chatter. Like discussing the election with relatives who encompass many different points of the socio-economic spectrum. Consider my ignorance fought and conquered! Now what word do I use? ---
**Author:** ![Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ins_Outs_What-have-yous)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/30 "2006-03-12T12:10:30Z")
> [@ArchitectChore](#): > > used in a sentence: > _I ain’t palavered people of your ilk._ I meant to say…“I ain’t palavered **with** people of your ilk” ---
**Author:** ![Cheez\_Whia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d26b3c/32.png) [@Cheez\_Whia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheez_Whia)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/31 "2006-03-12T15:37:07Z")
I used “detritus” in describing the junk on my grandson’s bedroom floor to my husband the other day. He didn’t believe it was a word! ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/32 "2006-03-12T15:50:12Z")
The Word Detective says that Smithereens > [@](#): > > first appeared in English in 1829 in the form “smiddereens,” and most likely was borrowed from the Irish “smidirin,” meaning “small bit or fragment.” And so I suppose the singular is smiderin. ---
**Author:** ![Dahnlor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dahnlor/32/533_2.png) [@Dahnlor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dahnlor)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/33 "2006-03-12T16:35:54Z")
> [@Sternvogel](#): > > Besides “smithereens”, another word with limited use is “shebang”. It seems I only ever hear about “the whole shebang”, never “half a shebang” or “just one part of the shebang”. Similar to “lot”. Except that it’s “ **a** lot” and not “ **the** lot”, or even “the whole lot” but “a whole lot”. And, you don’t have several “shebangs”, whereas you can certainly have “lots” as well as “a lot”. I have a feeling that there is only one shebang. However, you can apparently have both “lots” of something and “a lot” of something, but “lots” isn’t necessarily more than “a lot”. Of course, then you get to “lots **and** lots” of something. But are they **whole** lots? ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/34 "2006-03-12T17:34:23Z")
Here’s one that had me stumped just yesterday. Is there any good one-word adjective that succinctly conveys the meaning of **integrity**? Something you could put in the blank to say, “Marjorie is \_\_\_\_\_\_,” rather than having to say something kludgy like, “Marjorie is a woman of integrity?” ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/35 "2006-03-12T18:30:59Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > Here’s one that had me stumped just yesterday. > > Is there any good one-word adjective that succinctly conveys the meaning of **integrity**? > > Something you could put in the blank to say, “Marjorie is \_\_\_\_\_\_,” rather than having to say something kludgy like, “Marjorie is a woman of integrity?” Honorable? **Yllaria** I love gruntled too and use it occasionally. So what if people stare? ---
**Author:** ![Fish\_Cheer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fish_cheer/32/17179_2.png) [@Fish\_Cheer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish_Cheer)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/36 "2006-03-12T18:39:21Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > Is there any good one-word adjective that succinctly conveys the meaning of **integrity**? Upright, maybe? ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/37 "2006-03-12T23:30:35Z")
No, that could just as easily mean “not bedridden” or “lacking spinal curvature.” ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2006, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/38 "2006-03-12T23:32:12Z")
> [@Cub Mistress](#): > > Honorable? That’s closer than anything I came up with… ---
**Author:** ![urban1a](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e47c2d/32.png) [@urban1a](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/urban1a)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2006, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/39 "2006-03-13T04:56:23Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > Speaking of gruntled, enjoy this little story. > > [http://paul.merton.ox.ac.uk/language/gruntled.html](http://paul.merton.ox.ac.uk/language/gruntled.html) OG!!! I couldn’t even read it all. I was rolling on the floor. Bob ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2006, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963/40 "2006-03-13T15:17:56Z")
> [@Cheez\_Whia](#): > > I used “detritus” in describing the junk on my grandson’s bedroom floor to my husband the other day. He didn’t believe it was a word! I used this word to describe the junk in my son’s bedroom, to my boss. She looked it up. We are both editors–but she had never heard the word before. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-this-word/347963.md?page=3)