Where did these words come from? 2

[CajunCenturion]

Hopefully, the answer won't be too easy to find.

caucus
lengthily
belittle
muckraker
lunatic fringe
bloviation
normalcy
misunderestimate
embetterment

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[sleipnir214]

[white]
caucus:  From the Caucus Club in Boston in the 1760s.  They got the word from a medieval Latin word for a drinking vessel.  This may be appropriate, as Samuel Adams was a member.

muckraker:  from John Bunyan's [u]Pilgrim's Progress[/u]

lunatic fringe:  coined by Teddy Roosevelt.

normalcy:   coined by Warren G. Harding

misunderestimate:  coined by Bush the Younger.
[/white]

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[sleipnir214]

[white]
bloviate:  coined by Warren G. Harding.

embetterment:  coined by Bush the Younger.
[/white]

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[Dimandja]

[white]Caucus - possibly from Native American's CAWCAWWASSOUGH: one who urges or pushes on, a promoter: [URL unfurl="true"]http://www.hyperdictionary.com/dictionary/caucus[/URL][/white]

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[SF0751]

[white]Caucus: According to some sources, it comes from the Algonquin word for "counsel," cau´-cau-as´u. 

lengthily: still looking, but I bet it was coined by a U.S. President!

belittle: First recorded in writings of U.S. President Thomas Jefferson

Muckraker: Coined by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt during a speech in 1906 when he criticized the writings of some journalists as being excessive and irresponsible. In his speech, Roosevelt likened the muckrakers to the Man with the Muckrake character in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.

lunatic fringe: Coined by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt.

bloviation: Coined by U.S. President Warren G. Harding.

normalcy: Coined by U.S. President Warren G. Harding.

misunderestimate: Coined by U.S. President George W. Bush.

embetterment: Coined by U.S. President George W. Bush.[/white]

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

 

[CajunCenturion]

[white]According to the OED, the first documented reference to the Caucus Club was in US President John Adams' diary.

All of these words were either coined or popularized by US Presidents.  President Bush is probably not finished with his contributions.

Do you know which President has been credited with the most words coined?  It is not President Bush, at least not yet.[/white]

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[SF0751]

[white]I believe that the "most coined words" award goes to U.S. President Warren G. Harding.

"He writes the worst English that I have ever encountered. It reminds me of a string of wet sponges; it reminds me of tattered washing on the line; it reminds me of stale bean soup, of college yells, of dogs barking idiotically through endless nights. It is so bad that a sort of grandeur creeps into it. It drags itself out of the dark abysm of pish, and crawls insanely up the topmost pinnacle of posh. It is rumble and bumble. It is flap and doodle. It is balder and dash."  (H.L. Mencken, referring to President Harding).[/white]

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

 

[CajunCenturion]

Good guess, SF0751, but he's not the one.

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[SQLSister]

CAjun were you planning to remind me of Babylon 5 or was that an accident?

Nit the one.
Not the one what?
Not the one.

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[CajunCenturion]

I don't follow you SQLSister.

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[Zathras]

I do.

 

[noodnik]

Bloviation: To discourse at length in a pompous or boastful manner: “the rural Babbitt who bloviates about ‘progress’ and ‘growth’” (George Rebeck).

I am thankful that you brought this word to my attention. I know several people who bloviate and now I have a word to describe them. thanks!

 

[SF0751]

Cajun, I still can't figure out who coined "lengthily". Can you help out?

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

 

[CajunCenturion]

[white]Lengthily was coined by none other than Thomas Jefferson.  It was found in his diary where he wrote "I have written lengthily to Mr. Madison ..."  President Jefferson is credited as being the most prolific neologist of the US Presidents with over 100 attributions in the OED2.[/white]

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[SF0751]

Thank you!

Susan
"Few things are harder to put up with than the annoyance of a good example." - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894)

 

[ThatRickGuy]

Kinda makes ya wonder though. When a presidential figure uses words like misunderestimate, embetterment, and strategery at an international gathering, what do the interpreters for non-english speaking dignitaries say?

-Rick

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[CajunCenturion]

That probably depends on whether or not they like the President.


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[Dimandja]

Lowered expectations".

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