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Craic. Cri-de-coeur. Imprimatur. Prodigal. Profligate. Bravura. Get the Word of the Day - Jotunheim. Febrile. Deus ex machina. Contrived device to resolve the plot of a dramatic work Deus ex machina ( DAY-əs ex-MA(H)K-in-ə,[1] Latin: [ˈdɛ.ʊs ɛks ˈmaːkʰɪnaː]; plural: dei ex machina; English "god out of the machine")[2][3] is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence.[4][5] Its function is generally to resolve an otherwise irresolvable plot situation, to surprise the audience, to bring the tale to a happy ending, or act as a comedic device.[6] Origin of the expression[edit] Deus ex machina is a Latin calque from Greek ἀπὸ μηχανῆς θεός (apò mēkhanês theós) 'god from the machine'.[7] The term was coined from the conventions of ancient Greek theater, where actors who were playing gods were brought onto stage using a machine.

Deus ex machina

The machine could be either a crane (mechane) used to lower actors from above or a riser which brought them up through a trapdoor. Ancient examples[edit] Anodyne. Invidious. Metier. Opprobrium. Atavism. Atavist. Oeuvre. Word of the Day. Emollient. Retinue. Parsimonious. Perspicacious. Plurality. Leviathan.

Obfuscate. Dolus. Dolus eventualis. Fealty. Puissant. Antediluvian. The Creation, beginning of the antediluvian (i.e., pre-Flood) world.

Antediluvian

(Artist's rendition by James Tissot) The antediluvian (or pre-diluvian) period—meaning "before the deluge"—is the period referred to in the Bible between the Fall of man and the Deluge (flood) in the biblical cosmology. The narrative takes up chapters 1-6 (excluding the flood narrative) of Genesis. The term found its way into early geology and lingered in science until the late Victorian era. Colloquially, the term is used to refer to any ancient and murky period. Imp. Mendacious. Armoire. Word of the Day. Abstemious. Picayune. Vituperation. Word of the Day. Atavists. Word of the Day. Mélange. Corpulent. Traduce. Dissolute. Assignation. List of English words of Yiddish origin. This is a list of words that have entered the English language from the Yiddish language, many of them by way of American English.

List of English words of Yiddish origin

There are differing approaches to the romanisation of Yiddish orthography (which uses the Hebrew alphabet) and the spelling of some of these words may therefore be variable (for example, schlep is also seen as shlep, schnoz as shnozz). Many of these words are more common in the US entertainment industry, via vaudeville, the Catskills/Borscht Belt, and Hollywood. Others are more regionally oriented, e.g., in the New York City metropolitan area. A number of Yiddish words also entered English via large Jewish communities in Britain, particularly London, where Yiddish has influenced the Cockney dialect.

A number of Yiddish words are related to Hebrew, Germanic or Slavic forms, and some words of those origins have entered English via Yiddish. Background[edit] Many of these words have slightly different meanings and usages in English, from their Yiddish originals. Aphorism. Vituperation. Longueur. Zephyr. Punctilious. Parsimony. Inchoate. Imbroglio. Word of the Day. Roman à clef. Profligate. Annus mirabilis. Axiom. Reticent. Assuage. Brusque. Rapacious. Febrile. Soporific. Define Opprobrium at Dictionary. Define Ingénue at Dictionary. Define Lithe at Dictionary. Define Aphorism at Dictionary. Define Veracity at Dictionary. Define Hagiography at Dictionary.

Define Shibboleth at Dictionary. Bible Dictionary Shibboleth definition river, or an ear of corn.

Define Shibboleth at Dictionary

The tribes living on the east of Jordan, separated from their brethren on the west by the deep ravines and the rapid river, gradually came to adopt peculiar customs, and from mixing largely with the Moabites, Ishmaelites, and Ammonites to pronounce certain letters in such a manner as to distinguish them from the other tribes. Define Elliptical at Dictionary. Define Importunate at Dictionary. Define Disporting at Dictionary. Define Corpulent at Dictionary. Define Longueur at Dictionary. Define Apoplexy at Dictionary. Define Sonorous at Dictionary. Define Mien at Dictionary. Define Piquant at Dictionary. Define Louche at Dictionary. Define Polemics at Dictionary.

Define Succour at Dictionary. Dictionary.reference. Define Abrogate at Dictionary. Define Vociferous at Dictionary. Define Saturnine at Dictionary. Define Wistful at Dictionary. Define Asinine at Dictionary. Define Languid at Dictionary. Define Caprice at Dictionary. Define Apocryphal at Dictionary. Ingenue. Define Opprobrium at Dictionary. Amicus curiae. History[edit] Presentation[edit] I had always understood that the role of an amicus curiae was to help the court by expounding the law impartially, or if one of the parties were unrepresented, by advancing the legal arguments on his behalf.

Amicus curiae

The situation most often noted in the press is when an advocacy group files a brief in a case before an appellate court to which it is not a litigant. Appellate cases are normally limited to the factual record and arguments coming from the lower court case under appeal; attorneys focus on the facts and arguments most favorable to their clients. Where a case may have broader implications, amicus curiae briefs are a way to introduce those concerns, so that the possibly broad legal effects of court decisions will not depend solely on the parties directly involved in the case. In prominent cases, amici curiae are generally organizations with sizable legal budgets.

Amici curiae who do not file briefs often present an academic perspective on the case. Define Uxorious at Dictionary. Define Perspicacious at Dictionary. Define Coquettish at Dictionary.com. Sinecure. A sinecure (from Latin sine = "without" and cura = "care") means an office that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service.

Sinecure

The term originated in the medieval church, where it signified a post without any responsibility for the "care of souls", the regular liturgical and pastoral functions of a cleric, but came to be applied to any post, secular or ecclesiastical, that involved little or no actual work. Sinecures have historically provided a potent tool for governments or monarchs to distribute patronage, while recipients are able to store up titles and easy salaries.

History[edit] Other ecclesiastical sinecures were certain cathedral dignities to which no spiritual functions attached or incumbencies where by reason of depopulation and the like, the parishioners disappeared or the parish church was allowed to decay. Such cases eventually ceased to exist.[1] Below is a list of extant sinecures by Country.[2] Current usage[edit] United Kingdom[edit] Church: Vizier. Not to be confused with visor.

Vizier

A vizier (/vɪˈzɪər/, rarely /ˈvɪzjər/;[1] وزير‎ in Arabic script (Arabic, Persian and Urdu); Hindi: वज़ीर; sometimes spelled vazir, vizir, vasir, wazir, vesir, or vezir)[2] is a high-ranking political advisor or minister.[3][4] The Abbasid Caliphs give the name title wazir to a minister formerly called Katib (secretary) who was at first merely a helper, afterwards became the representative and successor of the Dapir (official scribe or secretary) of the Sassanian kings.[5]