{"id":266,"date":"2021-05-21T08:45:56","date_gmt":"2021-05-21T13:45:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordofweek.com\/?p=266"},"modified":"2021-05-22T07:15:48","modified_gmt":"2021-05-22T12:15:48","slug":"word-of-the-week-57-ennui","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/?p=266","title":{"rendered":"W<\/strong>ORD OF THE <\/strong>W<\/strong>EEK <\/strong>#57 \u2013 ennui<\/a><\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cThe characters \u2013 in a drama about ennui,<\/strong> malaise and the conflicts they create \u2013 aren\u2019t at the center of the world, which would confirm their suspicions. \u00a0\u00a0In a sense, they\u2019re not even close\u201d.\u00a0 <\/em>From a WSJ review of the excellent live stage production of Chekhov\u2019s play \u201cUncle Vanya\u201d recently broadcast on Masterpiece Theatre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From French\u2026ennui is a noun meaning a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occupation or excitement. Boredom. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you suffer from a bit of ennui while in isolation during the pandemic?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pronunciation is important: ahn WE.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other Examples:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy contrast, a strong current of idyllic female solidarity runs beneath Chemtrails\u2019 ennui<\/strong>.\u201d<\/em> Rolling Stone<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut just because everyone has to do it doesn\u2019t remove the stress, frustration, the everyday\u00a0ennui<\/strong>\u00a0of hockey, hockey, hockey \u2026 and hotel.\u00a0\u00a0 <\/em>Boston Glob about the Bruins<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a perfect word for Word of the Week. Use it in your communication, and it will make you appear intelligent without sounding pretentious.\u00a0 It is very simple and your audience may even think you speak French.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To learn more about this word, and to hear the correct pronunciation go to the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/ennui<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unusual Phrases: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I will occasionally run into an interesting phrase that I will be introducing in my fabulous \u201cWord of the Week\u201d. This week’s…..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHoisted by One\u2019s Own Petard\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The above phrase originated in the play \u201cHamlet\u201d.  A petard is a small bomb.  The phrase means that whoever meant to blow up a bomb to injure others ended up injuring himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In today\u2019s usage it has come to mean to fall foul of your own deceit or to fall into your own trap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words…you were injured in some way and it was nobody\u2019s fault but your own. \u00a0Poetic Justice<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A previous \u201cWord of the Week\u201d revisited:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

myopic \u2013 adjective –<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pronounced –  my OP ick<\/p>\n\n\n\n

narrow in perspective and without concern for broader implications.  \u201cYour myopic view of this project is disturbing\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.merriam-webster.com\/dictionary\/myopic<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quote of the Week:

<\/strong>\u201cI\u2019m headed into the sunset Emma Lou.\u00a0 Which way is west\u201d?<\/em>
Pepper and Salt, WSJ<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Until next Saturday,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gramps<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fifty-seven weeks of great words:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1 –   exacerbate – to make worse “Your input just exacerbates an already difficult situation.”
2-   assuage – to make a situation or feeling less intense. “I pray our Heavenly Father may assuage you of the anguish of your grief.”.
<\/a>3 –   force majeure’ –  unforeseeable circumstance that prevents someone from fulfilling a contract. “The tenant will not be required to pay rent due to the force majeure’ clause.
4 –   sanguine – <\/a>optimistic or positive, especially in an apparently bad or difficult situation. “I’m trying to be sanguine about this, but I see a major roadblock”
5 –   segue – (seg way) proceed to what follows without pause.  “She has the skill to easily segue from political conversations into subjects less controversial.”
6 –   bifurcate – to cause to divide into two branches or parts. “We have decided to bifurcate this large project.”
7 –   indolent –  <\/strong>habitually lazy – “His failure in life may stem from his indolent ways as a youth”.
8 –   ameliorate – to make better or more tolerable –  “this drug should ameliorate your pain”
9 – <\/a> truncate -to shorten by or as if by cutting off – “A truncated version of this report is on the web.”
10 – nascent – <\/a>coming or having recently come into existence  “His nascent idea for a business turned into a goldmine”
11 – b\u00e9chamel – a rich white sauce – “He made a lump-free b\u00e9chamel for her, and, in return, she gave him her love.”
12 – anarchy –  absence of government – “The revolution began when anarchy took root in just one city”.
13 – rhetorical question – a question not intended to require an answer. “Is this a beautiful day or what?”
14 – milieu – the physical or social setting in which something occurs or develops.- “His discipline is a result of growing up as part of the military milieu”
15 – nadir – the lowest point – “The stock market reached its current nadir in March”
16 – black swan event – comes as a surprise and has a major effect. “This pandemic is considered by many to be a black swan event.”
17 – myopic – narrow in perspective and without concern for broader implications.  “Your myopic view of this project is disturbing”.
18 – quixotic –  <\/strong>foolishly impractical especially in the pursuit of ideals – “His quixotic pursuit for her affection was quite simply foolish.”
19 – prescience – human anticipation of the course of events – foresight.  “His intuitive prescience helped to make him a success”
20 – laconic and laconic riposte – use of a minimum of words, and a short clever response to an insult or challenge.  In response to a demand to immediately surrender he sent back the following: “Nuts”.
21 – protean – ability to change, versatile.  “The coronavirus is protean in its ability to either make you sick or not.”
22 – ephemeral – lasting a very short time or perhaps only one day. “Custer was chasing an ephemeral Indian city.”
23 – catch-22 – a dilemma or difficult circumstance from which there is no escape because of mutually conflicting or dependent conditions.  From the novel “Catch-22”.
24 – arrogate – to take or claim something without justification. “In order to accomplish his dream he arrogated to himself controversial powers”.
25 – obtuse – difficult to understand, lacking intellect.  “The responses to his remarks this week were even more obtuse.” 
26 – purloin – to appropriate wrongfully (steal), often pertaining to a theft that is a breach of trust.  “When she opened her new office she purloined one of my listings”.
27 – salience – the quality of being particularly noticeable or important.  “It is not clear that raising the electoral salience of the Supreme Court will work to the president\u2019s advantage.
28 – confabulate – to talk normally or to hold a discussion.  “He likes to confabulate.”
29 – animus – a usually prejudiced and often spiteful or malevolent ill will. \u201cI have no animus or agenda for the Affordable Care Act.\u201d
30 \u2013 puerile – to act or communicate in a juvenile, silly or childish manner. \u201cHis puerile ways are giving a poor impression at his job interviews\u201d.
31 \u2013 regnant – having the greatest influence – \u201cThe regnant belief\u201d.
32 \u2013 roil \u2013 to be agitated or chaotic \u2013 \u201cthe politics of slavery was roiling the United States\u201d.
33 \u2013 sonder – The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own.
34 \u2013 inculcate – To instill or teach someone an attitude, idea, or habit by persistent instruction. \u201cThey will try to inculcate you with a respect for culture.\u201d
35 \u2013 mendacity \u2013 untruthfulness, lying. \u201cHe blew the whistle on the mendacity of the politician.\u201d
36 \u2013 pejorative \u2013 Expressing contempt or disapproval.  Having negative connotations.   \u201cPermissiveness is often used a pejorative term\u201d.
37 \u2013 dystopian \u2013 A world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized fearful lives, often associated with a totalitarian government or an environmentally degraded world. \u201cThe dystopian future of a society bereft of reason\u201d.
38 \u2013 Occam\u2019s razor \u2013 The simplest answer may be the preferred answer.
39 \u2013 execrate or execrable \u2013 very bad \u2013 \u201cThe execrable hotel food.\u201d
40 \u2013 immutable \u2013 unchangeable \u2013 Do not make the mistake of assuming that public opinion is immutable.   
41 \u2013 prurient – having or encouraging an excessive or unwholesome interest in matters of sex. 
 \u201cShe\u2019d been the subject of much prurient <\/em><\/strong>curiosity\u201d.
42 \u2013 obsequious – exhibiting fawning attentiveness. Exaggerated deference of manner.  \u201cWaiters who are obsequious in the presence of celebrities.\u201d
43 \u2013 iconoclast –  a person who attacks settled beliefs or institutions \u201cHe was a prolific writer with a reputation for iconoclastic insight and irreverent prose.\u201d
44 \u2013 oblique – something not parallel nor at a right angle to a specified or implied line \u2013 slanting.
\u201cWe sat on the settee oblique to the fireplace. Or something not done in a direct way such as \u201cHe issued an oblique attack on the president\u201d.
45 \u2013 profligate \u2013 wasteful \u2013 wildly extravagant.  \u201cHe has always been a profligate spender, which is why he is broke.\u201d
46 – raconteur \u2013 a good teller of stories.  \u201cWe always invite her to dinner because she is a fine raconteur\u201d.
47 \u2013 taciturn – a person who is reserved or uncommunicative in speech\u2026saying little.  It usually connotes unsociability. \u201cNothing bothered the taciturn <\/strong>Hogan more that excessive praise.\u201d<\/em>
48 \u2013 fungible – capable of mutual substitution: interchangeable\/  \u201cThe court’s postulate is that male and female jurors must be regarded as fungible<\/strong>.\u201d
<\/em>49 \u2013 filibuster – The use of tactics in an attempt to delay or prevent action especially in a legislative assembly. This currently requires a 60 vote Senate majority. \u201cThey stopped the bill from coming to a vote by the use of a filibuster\u201d.
<\/em>50 \u2013 hegemony – preponderant influence or authority over others: Domination. \u201cThey battled for hegemony in Asia.\u201d<\/em>
51 \u2013 de facto – being such in effect though not formally recognized or contrary to established law \u201ca de facto state of war\u201d <\/em>for a war that has not been officially declared.
52 \u2013 blockchain \u2013 an open, distributed leger that can record transactions between two parties efficiently and in a verifiable and permanent way.
53 \u2013 b\u00eate noire \u2013 A person or thing one particularly dislikes or is strongly detested. \u201cThe abuse of women was a b\u00eate noire for Lincoln.\u201d
54 \u2013 evince -\u201cto constitute outward evidence of\u2026.to display clearly: reveal. \u201cHe evinced a depraved mind.\u201d
55 \u2013 virago – a loud overbearing woman.  Domineering, violent, or bad tempered. \u201cDemocrats, on the other hand, saw Jessie as a Republican virago.\u201d
56 \u2013 metonym –  a name, or expression used as a substitute for something else with which it is closely associated. \u201cWashington is a metonym for the federal government of the US.\u201d<\/em>
57 – Ennui is – a noun meaning a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occupation or excitement. Boredom. ” The drama is about ennui,<\/strong> malaise and the conflicts they create”.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe characters \u2013 in a drama about ennui, malaise and the conflicts they create \u2013 aren\u2019t at the center of the world, which would confirm their suspicions. \u00a0\u00a0In a sense, they\u2019re not even close\u201d.\u00a0 From a WSJ review of the excellent live stage production of Chekhov\u2019s play \u201cUncle Vanya\u201d recently broadcast on Masterpiece Theatre. From … Continue reading W<\/strong>ORD OF THE <\/strong>W<\/strong>EEK <\/strong>#57 \u2013 ennui<\/a><\/strong><\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=266"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":277,"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266\/revisions\/277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=266"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=266"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordofweek.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=266"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}