Sunday, April 5, 2009

grandiloquent \gran-DIL-uh-kwuhnt\, adjective:

• Lofty in style; pompous; bombastic.

Grandiloquent comes from Latin grandiloquus, from grandis, "grand" + loqui, "to speak." The noun form is grandiloquence.

average

1. adj. to describe anything that while it functions to its minimal specification, it still sucks
2. adj. bad
3. n. one who is not good

1. Man, my new computer is average.

2. That was a pretty average performance by my local sports team.

3. You are an average.

Trivia

Which biblical brothers did Jesus nickname Boanerges—Aramaic for “sons of thunder”—because of their passion and zeal?

• James and John (Mark 3:17).

Today in History:

• Pocahontas: Algonquian princess married English colonist John Rolfe, a tobacco planter (1614)
• veto: was used by a US president for 1st time — by George Washington; it was another half century before Congress first overrode a presidential veto (1792)
• Akashi Kaikyō Bridge: Japanese "Pearl Bridge" opened; it links Kobe to Awaji Island and is the world's longest suspension bridge (1998)

Today's Birthdays:

• Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679): political philosopher, Leviathan; also, philosopher/politician Vincenzo Gioberti (1801-1852)
• Joseph Lister (1827-1912): physician who pioneered the use of antiseptics during surgery
• Spencer Tracy (1900-1967): multiple Oscar-winning star of Adam's Rib and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner; other actors born on this date include Gregory Peck (1916-2003), Gale Storm (87) and Michael Moriarty (68)
• Agnetha Fältskog (59): one of the ABBA four; musicians Tommy Cash (69), Mike McCready (43), Troy Gentry (42), Paula Cole (41) and Pharrell Williams (36) were also born on this date