o/c

• o.c.
• o
• c

(web, chat) of course

obdurate
[AHB-duh-rut]
1. Stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing.
2. Hardened in feelings.
3. Resistant to persuasion or softening influences.
Example:
Although Helen tried hard to persuade Joe to attend the neighbors' party, he remained obdurate in his refusal to go.
Etymology, related words:
When you are confronted with someone obdurate, you may end up feeling dour. During the encounter, you may find that you need to be durable to keep your sanity intact. Maybe you will find such situations less stressful in the future if you can face them knowing that the words "obdurate," "dour," "during," and "durable" are etymological kissing cousins. All of those words trace back to the Latin adjective "durus," which means "hard."


obeisance

• obeisant

[oh-BEE-suhn(t)s; oh-BAY-suhn(t)s]
1. An expression of deference or respect, such as a bow or curtsy.
2. Deference, homage.
Examples:
1) They made obeisance right to the floor, coiling like bright snakes from the arms of their astonished handlers. (Ann Wroe, "Pontius Pilate")
2) His presence was betrayed to Miloš, who ordered his execution and then sent his rival's head to the Sultan to demonstrate his obeisance. (Misha Glenny, "The Balkans")
3) In all, it had served to create a highly restrictive society where the arrogance of superiors was as ingrained as their subordinates' fawning obeisance. (Robert Whiting, "Tokyo Underworld")
Etymology, related words:
"Obeisance" comes from Old French "obeissance", from "obeissant", present participle of "obeir" ("to obey"), from Latin "oboedire" ("to listen to"), from "ob-" ("to") + "audire" ("to hear"). The adjective form is "obeisant".


objurgation
[ahb-jer-GAY-shun]
a harsh rebuke
Example:
The young man . . . began to fan himself vigorously with his hat, and broke out into a lively objurgation upon the hot weather. (Henry James, "Roderick Hudson")
Etymology:
"Objurgation" traces to the Latin "objurgare" ("to scold or blame"), which was formed from "ob-" ("against") and "jurgare" ("to quarrel" or, literally, "to take to law" - in other words, "to bring a lawsuit"). "Jur-" in Latin means "law", and there are several English words related to "objurgation" that have legal implications, including "perjury", "abjure", "jurisprudence", and even "injury". But despite its etymological connection to the law, the word "objurgation" carries no legal weight. It refers to nothing more than an unusually harsh or severe scolding.


oblation
[uh-BLAY-shuhn; oh-]
1. The act of offering something, such as worship or thanks, especially to a deity.
2. (Usually capitalized) The act of offering the bread and wine of the Eucharist.
3. Something offered in a religious rite or as a charitable gift.
Examples:
1) There is another kind of spiritual courage as well, quieter and less celebrated, but just as remarkable: that of making each day, in its most conventional aspects - cooking, eating, breathing - an oblation to the absolute. (Philip Zaleski, "A Buddhist From Dublin," New York Times, July 24, 1994)
2) These aren't flowers randomly snatched from the garden; these are florist's flowers, purchased as an offering, an oblation. (Carol Shields, "Dressing Up for the Carnival")
3) And that day we also celebrate the memory of his goodness in sending a star to guide the three wise men from the east to Bethlehem, that they might there worship, and present him with their oblation of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (Izaak Walton, "The lives of John Donne and George Herbert")
Etymology:
"Oblation" derives from Latin "oblatio", from "oblatus", past participle of "offerre", "to carry to, to bring to, to offer," from "ob-" ("to") + "ferre" ("to bring").


obliterate
[uh-BLIT-uh-rayt]
1. To remove utterly from recognition or memory.
2. To remove from existence; destroy utterly all trace, indication, or significance of; to cause to disappear (as a bodily part or a scar) or collapse (as a duct conveying body fluid).
3. To make undecipherable or imperceptible by obscuring or wearing away.
4. To deface (a postage or revenue stamp), especially with a set of ink lines so as to invalidate for reuse; to cancel.
Example:
To obliterate all thoughts of the blizzard outside, Terry lit a scented candle, put on some Vivaldi, and sat in front of the fire with her spring catalogs.
History:
Far from being removed from existence, "obliterate" is thriving in our language today with various senses that it has acquired over the years. True to its Latin source, "oblitteratus," it began in the mid-16th century as a word for removing something from memory. Soon after, English speakers began to use it for the specific act of blotting out or obscuring anything written. Eventually (by the late 18th century), its meaning was generalized to removing anything from existence. In the meantime, another sense had developed. In the late 17th century, physicians began using "obliterate" for the surgical act of filling or closing up a vessel, cavity, or passage with tissue. Its final stamp on the English lexicon was delivered in the mid-19th century: "to cancel a postage or revenue stamp."

oblivion
[uh-BLIV-ee-un]
1. The state of forgetting or having forgotten or of being unaware or unconscious.
2. The condition or state of being forgotten or unknown.
Example:
When the last of his favorite author's books went out of print, Victor feared that she would fall into literary oblivion.
Etymology, more examples:
"Oblivion" derived via Middle English and Anglo-French from the Latin "oblivisci," which means "to forget." This form may have stemmed from combining "ob-" ("in the way") and "levis" ("smooth"). In the past, "oblivion" has been used in reference to the River Lethe, which according to Greek myth flowed through the Underworld and induced a state of forgetfulness in anyone who drank its water. Among those who have used the word this way is the poet John Milton, who wrote in "Paradise Lost", "Farr off from these a slow and silent stream, Lethe the River of Oblivion roules Her watrie Labyrinth."


obloquy

• Abuse
• Vituperation
• Invective

[OB-luh-kwee]
1. Strongly condemnatory or abusive language or utterance; abusive language.
2. The condition of disgrace suffered as a result of public blame, abuse, or condemnation; ill repute, bad repute.
Examples:
1) There he remained, weeping indignantly at her stream of obloquy, bitterly ashamed of his tears, until it was time for supper. (Jonathan Keates, "Stendhal")
2) Once installed in office he earned near-universal obloquy by pushing through the biggest tax increase in the state's history. (Dan Seligman, "The Taxophiliacs," Forbes, February 5, 2001)
3) For Britain to have made a last imperial stand on the shores of the South China Sea would have risked local calamity and international obloquy. (Christopher Patten, "East and West")
4) The manager walked quickly back to the dugout as insults and obloquy rained down from the stands.
Etymology, synonyms, more examples:
"Obloquy" derives from Latin "obloqui" ("to speak against"), from "ob-" ("against") + "loqui" ("to speak"). So, "obloquy" suggests defamation and consequent shame and disgrace; a typical example of its use would be "subjected to obloquy and derision."
English speakers can choose from several synonyms to name a tongue-lashing. "Abuse" is a good general term that usually stresses the anger of the speaker and the harshness of the language, as in "scathing verbal abuse." "Vituperation" often specifies fluent, sustained abuse; "a torrent of vituperation" is a typical use of this term. "Invective" implies vehemence comparable to "vituperation," but may suggest greater verbal and rhetorical skill; it may also apply especially to a public denunciation, as in "blistering political invective."

obsequious

• compliant
• fawning
• obedient
• servile
• slavish
• subservient
• consequence
• sequel
• non sequitur
• non
• sequitur

[ob-SEE-kwee-us]
Servilely attentive; compliant to excess; marked by or exhibiting a fawning attentiveness.
Synonyms:
compliant, fawning, obedient, servile, slavish, subservient.
Examples:
1) His wealth nevertheless turns the townspeople into groveling, obsequious sycophants. (Stephen Holden, "'The Best Man': When She Says 'I Do,' She Means 'Not You'," New York Times, August 14, 1998)
2) Politicians these days have to pretend to like football, and I am tired of their obsequious, crowd-pleasing football jokes. (Margaret Drabble, "Will the BBC pay up?", Times (London), July 6, 2000)
3) This is a brazenly stylish restaurant where the staff are razor-sharp and not remotely obsequious. (Orna Mulcahy, "Brash, edgy - and so good," Irish Times, August 1, 2000)
4) The movie star traveled with an entourage of obsequious attendants who indulged her every whim and waited on her hand and foot.
Etymology, related words:
"Obsequious" comes from Latin "obsequiosus", from "obsequium" ("compliance"), from "obsequi" ("to comply with"), from "ob-" ("toward") + "sequi" ("to follow"). "Sequi" is a linguistic great-grandparent here and the source of a number of other English words, too, including "consequence" (a result that follows from an action), "sequel" (a novel, film, or TV show that follows an original version), and "non sequitur" (a conclusion that doesn't follow from what was said before).
An obsequious person is more likely to be a follower than a leader. Use that fact to help you remember the meaning of "obsequious." All you need to do is bear in mind that the word comes from the Latin root "sequi," meaning "to follow."

obstreperous
[ub-STREP-uh-russ]
1. uncontrollably noisy
2. stubbornly resistant to control
Synonym: unruly
Example:
Keith admitted that he had been an obstreperous teenager until he got his first summer job and learned some self-discipline.
Etymology:
The handy Latin preposition "ob," meaning "in the way," "against," or "toward," occurs as a prefix in many Latin and English words. "Obstreperous" comes from "ob-" plus "strepere," a verb meaning "to make a noise," so someone who is obstreperous is literally making noise to rebel against something, much like a protesting crowd or an unruly child. The word has been used in English since around the 17th century. "Strepere" has not played a role in the formation of any other notable English words, but "ob-" words abound; these include "obese," "obnoxious," "occasion," "offend," "omit," "oppress," and "oust."


obviate

• prevent
• preclude
• avert

[AHB-vee-ayt]
To anticipate and prevent (as a situation) or make unnecessary (as an action).
Example:
Rob checks every ledger entry twice to obviate any problems when it comes time for an audit.
Etymology, synonyms:
"Obviate" derives from the Late Latin "obviare" (meaning "to meet or withstand") and the Latin "obviam," which means "in the way" and is also an ancestor of our adjective "obvious." "Obviate" has a number of synonyms in English, including "prevent," "preclude," and "avert"; all of these words can mean to hinder or stop something. When you prevent or preclude something, you put up an insurmountable obstacle. In addition, "preclude" often implies that a degree of chance was involved in stopping an event. "Obviate" generally suggests the use of intelligence or forethought to ward off trouble. "Avert" always implies that a bad situation has been anticipated and prevented or deflected by the application of immediate and effective means.


occlusion

• malocclusion

[uh-KLOO-zhun]
1. The complete obstruction of the breath passage in the articulation of a speech sound.
2. The bringing of the opposing surfaces of the teeth of the two jaws into contact; the relation between the surfaces when in contact.
3. The inclusion or sorption of gas trapped during solidification of a material.
4. The front formed by a cold front overtaking a warm front and lifting the warm air above the earth's surface.
Example:
"Expect plenty of rain," warned the Midland Gliding Club Web site, "[from] a weakening occlusion ... close to northern Scotland."
History, related words:
"Occlusion" is a descendant of the Latin verb "occludere," meaning "to close up." "Occludere" in turn comes from the prefix "ob-," here meaning "in the way," and the verb "claudere," meaning "to close, shut". "Occlusion" is one of many English terms derived from "claudere." Some others are "recluse," "seclusion," and "exclude." An occlusion occurs when something has been closed up or blocked off. Almost all heart attacks are the result of the occlusion of a coronary (heart) artery by a blood clot. When a person's upper and lower teeth form a "malocclusion," they close incorrectly or badly. An occlusion, or "occluded" front, happens when a fast-moving cold front overtakes a slow-moving warm front and slides underneath it, lifting the warm air and blocking its movement.


oche

• double top
• double
• top
• bag o' nuts
• bag of nuts
• bag
• nuts
• nut
• Shanghai
• mugs away
• mug away
• mugs
• mug
• away
• mad house
• mad
• house
• hockey-dockies
• hockey-dockie
• hockey-docky
• hockey
• dockies
• hock
• dockie
• hock-dock
• dock
• docky
• Shanghai
• mugs away
• mad house

("Oche" is pronounced like "hockey" without the initial "h", as a rule: ['Oki], ['(h)akey]) - the line behind which darts players stand when throwing.
Examples:
1) Eric settles himself on the oche.
2) She was pipped by reluctant newcomer Jane Lester of Basildon Savacentre who was so doubtful of her abilities that she virtually had to be carried up to the oche.
Usage and similar terminology:
The classic pub game, darts is the ultimate non-sportsman's sport - you don't need any special clothing and little equipment (a set of darts is a good idea, but pubs lend those out), and you don't need to be fit (the aptitude of players often appears to be in direct proportion to the size of their beer guts). All you have to remember is to count back from 501, end on a double, and avoid putting your toes over the oche. "Oche" is the classic bit of darts jargon, even more obscure and basic than "double top" for a double twenty, "bag o' nuts" for a score of 45, "Shanghai" for a score made up of a single, double and triple of the same number (ditto), "mugs away" as an invitation to the losing player to start the next round, or "mad house" for a double one (because getting it can drive you crazy).
Etymology:
The origin of the word is uncertain. Attempts are sometimes made to derive it from an obsolete word meaning to chop off, from Old French "ochen" - "to cut a deep notch in something" or even a groove, though the link with darts is obscure. Eric Partridge preferred an origin in "hoggins line", for no good reason that one may discern. However, the earliest written examples - from the 1930s - are all spelled "hockey" and the "oche" form didn't become standard until the late 1970s. But why "hockey"? One story holds that it's from the name of a West Country brewery, S. Hockey and Sons, whose crates were just the right size with which to mark out the throwing distance. On the other hand, Peter Brooke suggested that this word for the line behind which one must stand in playing darts might well come from the Victorian "hockey-dockies" for shoes, an elaboration of "hock-dock", itself a nonsense reduplication of "hock", a slang term for the foot.



octothorpe

• #

the pound sign (#)
Example:
This program reads a set of time-series data (while ignoring all characters that follow an octothorpe - '#').
Etymology:
1) According to dictionary.com : the word "octothorpe" was probably coined as a "humorous blend" of "octal" and the name Oglethorpe (James Edward). 2) According to Ralph Carlsen (a retired employee at Bell Labs), the history of the pound sign and the word "octothorpe" is as follows: "First, where did the symbol # come from? In about 1961 when DTMF dials were still in development, two Bell Labs guys in data communications engineering (Link Rice and Jack Soderberg) toured the USA talking to people who were thinking about telephone access to computers. They asked about possible applications, and what symbols should be used on two keys that would be used exclusively for data applications. The primary result was that the symbols should be something available on all standard typewriter keyboards. The * and # were selected as a result of this study, and people did not expect to use those keys for voice services. The Bell System in those days did not look internationally to see if this was a good choice for foreign countries. Then in the early 1960s Bell Labs developed the 101 ESS (Electronic Switching System, a pioneer electronic exchange) which was the first stored program controlled switching system (it was a PBX). One of the first installations was at the Mayo Clinic. This PBX had lots of modern features (Call Forwarding, Speed Calling, Directed Call Pickup, etc.), some of which were activated by using the # sign. A Bell Labs supervisor Don MacPherson went to the Mayo Clinic just before cut-over to train the doctors and staff on how to use the new features on this state of the art switching system. During one of his lectures he felt the need to come up with a word to describe the # symbol. Don also liked to add humour to his work. His thought process - which took place while at the Mayo Clinic doing lectures - was as follows: There are eight points on the symbol so "octo" should be part of the name. We need a few more letters or another syllable to make a noun, so what should that be? (Don MacPherson, at this point in his life, was active in a group that was trying to get Jim Thorpe's Olympic medals returned from Sweden.) The term "thorpe" would be unique, and people would not suspect he was making the word up if he called it an octothorpe. So Don Macpherson began using the term "octothorpe" to describe the # symbol in his lectures. When he returned to Bell Labs in Holmdel NJ, he told us what he had done, and began using the term "octothorpe" in memos and letters. The term was picked up by other Bell Labs people and used mostly for the fun of it. Some of the documents which used the term "octothorpe" found their way to Bell Operating Companies and other public places. Over the years, Don and I have enjoyed seeing the term "octothorpe" appear in documents from many different sources."


od
(SMS) oh dear


odious

• hateful
• odium

[OH-dee-us]
Arousing or deserving hatred or repugnance.
Synonym: hateful
Example:
Martin was an odious person: cruel, violent, and deceitful, willing to do anything to anyone to gain the wealth and power he craved.
Etymology, related words, examples:
"Odious" has been with us since the days of Middle English. It is borrowed from Anglo-French, which in turn had taken it from Latin "odiosus." The Latin adjective came from the noun "odium," meaning "hatred." "Odium" is also an ancestor of the English verb "annoy" (another word that came to Middle English via Anglo-French). And, at the beginning of the 17th century, "odium" entered English in its unaltered form, giving us a noun meaning "hatred" or "disgrace" (as in "ideas that have incurred much odium").


odium
[OH-dee-uhm]
1. Intense hatred or dislike; loathing; abhorrence.
2. The state or fact of being intensely hated as the result of some despicable action.
3. Disgrace or discredit attaching to something hated or repugnant.
Examples:
1) At the back of the Tyn Church, we were told about the young Jesuit whose harshness earned him the odium of his congregation. (Will Cohu, "High spirits and gloomy spectres," Sunday Telegraph, May 16, 1999)
2) The point here is that, for all its efforts at avoiding offence, new Labour has still managed to attract the odium of the paper that regards itself as the voice of Middle England. ("Will Mr Brown hang for a sheep or a lamb?", New Statesman, December 2, 2002)
3) But this brought forth nothing but odium on his head, so much so that he had to backtrack soon afterwards. (Andrew Stephen, "A nation left unprotected," New Statesman, November 5, 2001)
4) Moralists warn against the spurious sorrow that afflicts the first-person plural of so many collective apologies: We erred, says the penitent, though he clearly intends to shift blame and odium to his fellows. ("The Week," National Review, April 19, 2004)
Etymology:
"Odium" comes from the Latin "odium" ("hatred"), from "odisse" ("to hate").


off hand

• off
• hand

Without much thought or preparation.
Example:
Could you tell me his new address? - Not off hand, but here's my notebook.

off one's high horse

• be off one's high horse
• get off one's high horse
• come down off one's high horse
• come down off
• come down
• come
• be on one's high horse
• get on one's high horse
• on one's high horse
• high horse
• high
• horse

1. Not acting proud and scornful; humble and agreeable.
Example:
The girls were so kind to Nancy after her mother died that she came down off her high horse and made friends with them.
2. Acting friendly again; not angry and unpleasant any more; agreeable.
Example:
Sally wouldn't speak to anyone all afternoon because she couldn't go to the movies, but she's off her high horse now.
3. To become less arrogant; to assume a more modest disposition.
Synonyms:
To be off one's high horse, to get off one's high horse; to come down off one's high horse.
Antonyms:
To be on one's high horse, to get on one's high horse, on one's high horse.


off one's rocker

• off
• ricker
• around the bend
• off one's dot
• off one's trolley
• out of one's head
• around the bend
• around
• bend
• dot
• trolley
• out of
• head
• off one's nut
• nut

Not thinking correctly; not rational; in a state of extreme confusion or insanity; crazy; silly; foolish.
Synonyms: around the bend, off one's dot, off one's trolley, out of one's head, off one's nut.
Examples:
1) You gave away your piano? You're off your rocker!
2) He had been off his rocker for two or three days.
3) You're off your rocker if you think I believe that.
4) Tom is off his rocker if he thinks he can run faster than Bob can.
5) If you think you can learn to figure skate in one lesson, you're off your rocker.
6) He must be off his rocker if he thinks that he can spend all that money and not have a problem.
7) My boss is off his rocker. He wants me to be at work early the morning after the dance.
8) She went off her rocker, and had to be put away. (Mervyn Wall)
History:
People have been using this phrase since the mid-1800s. "Rocker" in this idiom refers to a rocking chair, and there are at least two theories about how being "off your rocker" came to mean "crazy". If you fell off your rocking chair, it was a sign of being mentally unstable. "Rockers" are also the two curved pieces upon which the chair rocks. A rocking chair with a missing rocker moves strangely, like a person whose thinking is mixed-up.


off the beaten track

• off
• the beaten track
• beaten track
• beaten
• track
• off the beaten path
• the beaten path
• beaten path
• path

1. Not on the main road, remote from populous or much-traveled regions; an unfamiliar location.
2. Not well-known or used; unusual; different.
Synonyms: out of the way, off the beaten path
Examples:
1) He found a quiet off-the-beaten-track resort"
2) I like to explore places that are off the beaten track - wild places.
3) This restaurant's really off the beaten track but worth the trip.
History:
In the 1600s, when this idiom was first used, there were many dirt roads. As people walked or rode over them, the paths were beaten down by feet, horses' hooves, and
wagon wheels. They looked well used. But if something was "off the beaten track" (or
"path"), then few people traveled that way. We now use this expression to describe
anything unusual, not often used, or not seen by many people.

off the top of one's head
Without thinking hard; quickly; from memory, spontaneously; in an impromptu manner; stating something quickly and without thinking hard about it.
Examples:
1) He sat down and wrote the& story off the top of his head. (Jerome Beatty, Jr.)
2) He knew all of the team's members off the top of his head.
3) Vin answered the teacher's question off the top of his head.
4) When Lorraine was asked to recite, she talked off the top of her head.
5) Right off the top of his head he listed all the state capitals in alphabetical order.
History:
In the middle of the 20th century, Americans started using this expression. Thoughts come from your brain, which is in the top of your head. So if you blurt out facts quickly without having to think about them, then you're talking "off the top of your head," as if right out of your brain.

off-the-wall

• be off the wall
• off
• wall
• have a screw loose
• screw loose
• screw
• loose
• having a screw loose
• bizarre
• eccentric
• freakish
• freaky
• flaky
• outlandish
• outre

(Slang) Strange, peculiar; (very) unusual, unrelated, off topic; conspicuously or grossly unconventional; shocking.
Synonyms:
having a screw loose; bizarre, eccentric, freakish, freaky, flaky, outlandish, outre.
Examples:
1) His idea of selling time is really off the wall - quite strange.
2) These are restaurants of off-the-wall design - one like a hat, another like a rabbit.
3) He was famed for his off-the-wall spelling.
4) An off-the-wall combination of styles and clothes of teenagers can surprise everyone.
5) His off-the-wall antics are unbearable.
6) That new talk-show host is definitely off-the-wall.
History:
In handball, racquetball, and squash, a player hits the ball against the wall. When it comes off the wall, you don't always know where it's headed or what it's going to do. Some word experts think that's how this new expression, which describes unpredictable
people or odd behavior, may have been thought up.


officinal
[uh-FISS-uh-nul]
Tending or used to cure disease or relieve pain.
Synonym: medicinal.
Example:
The officinal properties of the ginkgo tree, long accepted by traditional herbalists, have been the subject of modern scientific study.
History:
"Officinal" is a word applied in medicine to plants and herbs that are used in medicinal preparations. In the 19th century, it was the standard word used by the United States Pharmacopeia to refer to the drugs, chemicals, and medicinal preparations that they recognized, but in 1893 it was replaced by "official" in this context. Despite this supersession, you still can find a healthy dose of "officinal" in the pharmaceutical field, where it is used today as a word describing preparations that are regularly kept in stock at pharmacies. "Officinal" was derived from the Medieval Latin noun "officina," a word for the storeroom of a monastery in which provisions and medicines were kept. In Latin, "officina" means "workshop," as in "laboratory."

officious

• meddlesome

[uh-FISH-uhs]
Marked by excessive eagerness in offering services or advice where they are neither requested nor needed.
Synonym: meddlesome.
Examples:
1) Ian Holm plays a well-meaning but officious lawyer who tries to make the grieving families sue for damages. (John Simon, "Minus Four," National Review, February 9, 1998)
2) The guy was an officious twerp, but Luke and Pete were vagrants, and a railroad employee had the right to throw them out. (Ken Follett, "Code to Zero")
3) "Why don't you mind your own business, ma'am?" roared Bounderby. "How dare you go and poke your officious nose into my family affairs?" (Charles Dickens, "Hard Times")
Etymology:
"Officious" comes from Latin "officiosus" ("obliging, dutiful"), from "officium" ("dutiful action, sense of duty, official employment"), from "opus" ("a work, labor") + "-ficere", combining form of "facere" ("to do, to make"). It is related to official, "of or pertaining to an office or public trust."


offshorable
1. capable of being moved to another country, especially to reduce costs;
2. capable of being performed by a person in another country, especially at a lower wage or salary.
Example:
All our tech support jobs are offshorable. We can have people in India keep our customers on hold much cheaper.


oftentimes

• oftentime
• often
• repeatedly
• ofttimes
• ofttime
• oft-
• oft

often, repeatedly
Example:
Oftentimes the villagers must travel great distances on muleback in order to work their fields . . . each family isolated from the rest during the hours of labor. (John Crow, "Spain: The Root And The Flower")
Etymology:
Despite its archaic, literary ring, "oftentimes" is quite alive today. In fact, it seems to be more popular even now than it was thirty years or so ago. Nor is "oftentimes" confined to writing - it appears frequently in quoted speech. "Oftentimes" was first used in the 14th century (the same century that gave us "often"), and its meaning hasn't changed - as meanings oftentimes will - in all that time. It was formed as an extension of its older synonym "ofttimes". Today "ofttimes" is less common, but "oft" (which comes from Old English and also means "often" or "frequently") is popular in combination with past participles, as in "oft-praised".


ohnosecond
1. Like the millisecond, the microsecond and the nanosecond, the ohnosecond is a measure of time.
2. That minuscule fraction of time in which you realize that you've just made a BIG, uncorrectable, mistake.
Example:
Avoiding the Ohnosecond is the good sense of making backups.
Etymology:
The ohnosecond is the length of time between clicking the mouse button, realising that you've done something disastrous, and exclaiming "OH NO!".


old hat

• old
• hat

Out of fashion; antique, ancient, very old; an old idea or fashion, passé; out-of-date; not new; too familiar; uninteresting; repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse.
Examples:
1) Sunday picnics are old hat. They're not popular now.
2) Let's try a new place for our next vacation. Dooley's Dude Ranch is so old hat.
3) His remarks were old hat.
History:
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when this phrase became popular, men and women wore hats much more than they do today. Most people wanted to keep up with the latest styles, and an old hat was no longer fashionable.


old wives' tales

• old
• old wives' tale
• tales
• wife
• wives
• tale

1. Superstitious stories, superstitious beliefs; a superstition; a belief or practice not based on fact; a bit of lore passed on by word of mouth; a myth, an old story that contains little truth.
2. A wisdom much like an urban legend, supposedly passed down by old wives to a younger generation. Today old wives' tales are also common among children's peer sex education in school playgrounds. Old wives' tales often concern pregnancy, puberty and nutrition. Some old wives' tales are true, and those that aren't often have roots in truth or are used to trick people into doing something.
Examples:
1) One old wives' tale says that goose fat will cure a cold.
2) Wearing garlic around your neck won't scare off evil. That's just an old wives' tale.
History:
This idiom has a long history. Plato, a famous Greek philosopher who lived around 300 B.C., first used this phrase. In the 1300s it appeared in English. Then Erasmus, a Dutch Scholar, put it in his writings in the 1500s. The "old wives" in this idiom refer to people during the olden days who gave advice based on superstition. Some examples of these "tales" are "feed a cold and starve a fever," "don't touch a frog or you'll get warts," and "it's bad luck to walk under a ladder".


olfactory

• olfactory nerves
• olfactory nerve
• nerves
• nerve
• olfaction

[ahl-FAK-tuh-ree]
Of, relating to, or connected with the sense of smell.
Example:
The aroma of cinnamon rolls coming from the kitchen served as an enticing olfactory clue that breakfast was almost ready.
History, related words and expressions:
"Olfactory" derives from the past participle of the Latin "olfacere," which means "to smell" and which was formed from the verbs "olere" (also "to smell") and "facere" ("to do"). "Olfactory" is a word that often appears in scientific contexts (as in "olfactory nerves," the nerves that pass from the nose to the brain and contain the receptors that make smelling possible), but it has occasionally branched out into less specialized contexts. The pleasant smell of spring flowers, for example, might be considered an "olfactory delight." A related word, "olfaction," is a noun referring to the sense of smell or the act or process of smelling.


olla podrida

• olla
• podrida
• olla podridas
• podridas
• ollas podridas
• ollas

[ol-uh-puh-DREE-duh; oy-uh-]
Plural: olla podridas [-DREE-duhz] or ollas podridas
1. A stew of highly seasoned meat and vegetables.
2. A mixture; a hodgepodge.
Examples:
1) This complex, Byzantine, at times long-winded work, which spent more than 60 weeks on Spain's best sellers list, throws together mystery, romance, and crime into one big mix like an olla podrida. (Lawrence Olszewski, review of "The Shadow of the Wind", by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Library Journal, February 1, 2004)
2) The whole piece is an olla podrida of light music, in which the jig is the most conspicuous. (Juanita Karpf and Tom Scott, "Populism with Religious Restraint", review of "Esther, the Beautiful Queen", by William B. Bradbury: Popular Music and Society, Spring 1999)
3) Continuously testing the resilience of the melting pot differentiates America from other places; and the olla podrida of colors and cultures creates a reservoir of talents unduplicated on the planet. (Rotan E. Lee, "Black gay men suffer double racism", Philadelphia Tribune, August 22, 2003)
Etymology:
"Olla podrida" comes from the Spanish, literally "rotten pot", from "olla" = "pot" (from Latin "olla") + "podrida", feminine of "podrido" = "rotten", from Latin "putridus".


ombre

• umbra
• Beast
• omber
• Umbrina
• umbrine
• umbrae

1. Also: omber
['Qmb@r, 'Qmbr@, 'QmbreI]
A once-fashionable card game, borrowed from the Spaniards; a card game for three people using a pack of forty cards, with one player competing against the other two, popular in Europe especially in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Example:
"When ombre calls, his hand and heart are free,
And, joined to two, he fails not to make three." (Young)
History:
Every period has had its fashionable card games. From the middle of the 17th century, everyone in English society wanted to play "ombre". Its heyday began immediately after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, since Charles II and his courtiers brought it back with them from France. The game was popular for generations in Europe and is still played in some countries, so it has had many other names as well. However, ombre was originally Spanish, and the name is a corruption of "hombre" - "man" (from Latin "hom, homin-" - man"), because the person leading the game was "the man" who had to be beaten. The Spanish game was firstly called "the royal game of ombre". Prior has an epigram on the subject. He says he was playing ombre with two ladies, and though he wished to lose, won everything, for Fortune gave him success in every suit but hearts. Alexander Pope has immortalised the game in his "Rape of the Lock" of 1714, in which a game of ombre is described in detail. The rules were not too far from those of whist, though more complicated and with some oddities. The person who lost a hand was said to be beasted and so an early English alternative name was Beast. One of its advantages was that it was a game that women could with propriety play.
2. Shade, shadow.
3. (ombré) Shadowy; shaded; dusky
4. (ombrés) Said of fabric, etc: with colours gradually shading into each other.
5. A fabric, etc. that has such shading.
Etymology: 19th c., French, from "ombrer" - "to shade".
6. (Zool.) Any one of several species of sci[ae]noid food fishes of the genus Umbrina, especially the Mediterranean species (Umbrina cirrhosa), which is highly esteemed as a market fish; also: umbra, umbrine.
Etymology:
French, of uncertain origin.
Umbra [Um"bra] (pl. Umbrae) 7. (Astron.)
a) The conical shadow projected from a planet or satellite, on the side opposite to the sun, within which a spectator could see no portion of the sun's disk; used in contradistinction from "penumbra";
b) The central dark portion, or nucleus, of a sun spot;
c) The fainter part of a sun spot; - now more commonly called penumbra. 8. (Bot.) Umbra (tree) - a tree (Phytolacca diocia) of the same genus as pokeweed. It is native of South America, but is now grown in southern Europe. It has large dark leaves, and a somber aspect. The juice of its berries is used for coloring wine. (J. Smith, "Dict. Econ. Plants")
Etymology:
From Latin, "a shadow".


ombudsman
[AHM-boodz-mun] ([oo] as in "wood")
1. A government official (as in Sweden or New Zealand) who investigates complaints made against public officials.
2. One that investigates reported complaints (as from students or consumers), reports findings, and helps to achieve equitable settlements.
Example:
The newspaper's ombudsman responded to the many angry letters the article had generated.
Etymology, history:
"Ombudsman" was borrowed from Swedish, where it means "representative," and ultimately derives from the Old Norse words "umboth" ("commission") and "mathr" ("man"). In the early 1800s, Sweden became the first country to appoint an independent official known as an ombudsman to investigate complaints against government officials and agencies. Since then, other countries (such as Finland, Denmark, and New Zealand), as well as some U.S. states, have appointed similar officials. The word "ombudsman" was first used in English in the late 1950s; by the 1960s, it was also being used to refer to a person who reviews complaints against an organization (such as a school or hospital) or to someone who enforces standards of journalistic ethics at a newspaper.


omnipotent

• omniscient

[ahm-NIP-uh-tunt]
Having virtually unlimited authority or influence.
Example:
Small children often believe their parents to be omnipotent, capable of commanding any situation or resolving any problem they find before them.
History, related words, more meanings & examples:
The word "omnipotent" made its way into English through Anglo-French, but it ultimately derives from the Latin prefix "omni-," meaning "all," and the word "potens," meaning "potent." The "omni" prefix has also given us similar words such as "omniscient" (meaning "all-knowing") and "omnivorous" (describing an animal that eats both plants and other animals). Although "omnipotent" is used in general contexts to mean "all-powerful" (as in "an omnipotent warlord"), its original applications in English referred specifically to the power held by an almighty God. The word has been used as an English adjective since the 14th century; since 1600 it has also been used as a noun referring to one who is omnipotent.


omnipresent

• ubiquitous

[om-nuh-PREZ-uhnt]
Present in all places at the same time.
Synonym: ubiquitous
Examples:
1) It was rather that myth was omnipresent; the whole people thought in this way and were long confirmed in their belief. (Jacob Burckhardt, "The Greeks and Greek Civilization")
2) But the music of Bortnyansky was exultant, and the canticles were borne aloft to God the omnipotent, the omniscient, the omnipresent. (Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin, "How it All Began", translated by George Shriver)
3) The novella moves at a pace as sluggish as that of the omnipresent moon making its way across the limpid summer sky. (Tobin Harshaw, "Pay the Piper," New York Times, November 14, 1999)
4) Civilization is the preserve of the rich, with their polished cars, their locked houses and their omnipresent police force. (Peter Conrad, "Modern Times, Modern Places")
Etymology:
"Omnipresent" is from Medieval Latin "omnipresens", from Latin "omni-" ("all") + "praesens", present participle of "praeesse" ("to be before, to be present"), from "prae-" ("before") + "esse" ("to be").


on a shoestring

• shoestring

With meager resources, with very little means; on a very low, strict budget; with or using very little money.
Examples:
1) They tried to start a school band on a shoestring.
2) We went to China and Japan on a shoestring and enjoyed it very much.
History:
No one today is quite sure about the origin of this idiom, although we know it started in America in the late 1800s. A "shoestring" is what we call a shoelace today. Perhaps the writer who first used this expression was comparing a tiny amount of money with a piece of string like a shoelace.


on a wing and a prayer

• be on a wing and a prayer
• on a whim and a prayer
• be on a whim and a prayer
• whim
• wing
• prayer

Being in a desperate situation and relying on hope to see you through.
Example:
It does nothing to change the impression of a club stumbling along on a whim and a prayer. (The "Daily Mail" of 25 May 2004)
Synonym: on a whim and a prayer.
Etymology:
It comes from a famous American World War Two patriotic song, with words by Harold Adamson and music by Jimmy McHugh. It tells the tale of a plane struggling home after a bombing raid:
Comin' in on a wing and a prayer
What a show, what a fight
Boys, we really hit our target for tonight
How we sing as we limp through the air
Look below, there's our field over there
Though there's one motor gone
We can still carry on
Comin' in on a wing and a prayer.
The song came out at the end of 1942 and instantly became a huge hit on both sides of the Atlantic, so much so that the phrase almost immediately entered the language.


on cloud nine

• cloud nine
• cloud
• nine
• in seventh heaven
• seventh heaven
• seventh
• heaven
• on cloud seven
• seven
• in the seventh heaven
• on top of the world
• top of the world
• top
• world
• walking on air
• walk on air
• walking
• walk
• air

To be extremely happy, elated; totally happy, on top of the world, riding high; joyous.
Synonym: in the seventh heaven
Examples:
1) I was on cloud nine after I got the promotion.
2) When Bev received her diploma, she was on cloud nine.
3) Frances is on cloud nine since being named Junior Scientist of the Year.
History, more synonyms:
Derived from the idea that clouds are part of heavenly paradise, and that the higher you go, the closer you are to ultimate bliss.
Though this saying comes from the late 19th century, nine has been a mystical
number for thousands of years, back to the time of the ancient Greeks. The saying
originally was "on cloud seven", probably coming from "seventh heaven", the highest of the heavens in Jewish religious literature. Nine was then substituted, perhaps because it is a sacred Christian number. This is because three is a trinity and represents perfect unity, and nine is a trinity of trinities (3 x 3). Other idioms that express great joy and also
suggest being up high: "on top of the world", "walking on air", and so on.


on its last legs

• on one's last legs
• last legs
• last
• legs
• leg

People use this phrase to say that something is about to die or is too worn out to be repaired.
Example:
"This has been a good old truck," Mr. Johnson said to his grandson, Vincent. They drove down the bumpy dirt road, and the truck sputtered and groaned. "I've had it for nearly twenty years." Vincent was amazed to hear that the truck was older than he was. "But you hear those noises it's making, Vincent?" The old man shook his head. "I'm afraid this truck is on its last legs."

on one's case

• case

To nag, find fault with, badger or scold someone constantly about his or her business, situation, circumstances.
Example:
His girlfriend was on his case because he started smoking again.
History:
In this popular African-American idiom, "case" means your business or current situation in life. You often hear or read this expression either as a complaint that someone is on your case about something, or as a demand that someone get off your case about something.

on one's ear

• on its ear
• ear

In a state of amazement, excitement, or uproar
Example:
It's a controversial movie that set the film industry on its ear.


on one's high horse

• be on one's high horse
• get on one's high horse
• off one's high horse
• come down off one's high horse
• come down
• be off one's high horse
• on a high horse
• high horse
• high
• horse

1. Acting as if you are better than others; being very proud and scornful.
Example:
Martha was chairman of the picnic committee, and at the picnic she was on her high horse, telling everyone what to do. Mrs. Jones asked to see a less expensive hat. the salesgirl got up on her high horse and said the shop did not sell cheap merchandise.
2. Refusing to be friendly because you are angry; in a bad temper.
Example:
Joe was on his high horse because he felt Mary wasn't giving him enough attention.
3. To show off.
Example:
He's on his high horse again bossing people around.
Synonyms:
To be on one's high horse, to get on one's high horse.
Antonyms: to be off one's high horse, to get off one's high horse; off one's high horse; to come down off one's high horse.


on one's plate

• have too much on one's plate
• have enough on one's plate
• have enough
• enough
• too much
• much
• plate

Work one must do.
Example:
I can't take on a new project. I already have too much on my plate.
Etymology:
This phrase compares work that must be done to food that must be eaten.


on one's tod

• be on one's tod
• on tod
• tod
• on one's Pat Malone
• be on one's Pat Malone
• Pat Malone
• Pat
• Malone
• on one's Tod Malone
• be on one's Tod Malone
• Tod Malone
• Tod

To be on one's own, alone.
Example:
She's been left all on her tod.
Etymology:
Rhyming slang from Tod Sloan, the name of an American jockey.
The "Tod" here is an American. He was born in 1874; his real name was James Forman Sloan, but later let it be known that his middle name was Todhunter and so is remembered as Tod Sloan. He was an inventive and highly successful jockey who pioneered what was called the "monkey ride" or "perching on the animal's ears": riding with short stirrups, lying low with his head almost on the horse's neck. He was a colourful and difficult man, who made and squandered vast sums of money. In 1896 he crossed the Atlantic to Britain to become a rider for the then Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. He fell disastrously from fame in 1901 when the Jockey Club, which controls British racing, denied him a licence because of some unspecified "conduct prejudicial to the best interests of the sport" (a newspaper report in 1903 said it was because its upper-class members found his arrogance and impertinence too offensive to put up with) and he then lost his American and French licences. A writer in the "Washington Post" in 1903 described his state: "All of the flashy togs of his marvelous days as a race rider are gone. He doesn't wear any jewelry any more. I can remember when he had almost a whole floor of one of the finest hotels in New York. Not now. He hasn't got any 'man' any more to lay his clothes out, because he is minus the clothes. ... His Panhard and Mercedes touring autos are all gone - everything of Tod's is gone." He died alone in poverty in Los Angeles of cirrhosis of the liver in 1933 - though he was well enough remembered for his death to be widely reported - and it was about this time that the rhyming slang "to be on your Tod Sloan" first appeared. Like many such phrases it became shortened and so, though the short form "on your tod" is still common British English, hardly anybody remembers the American jockey who inspired it.
Synonyms: (Austr.) on one's Pat Malone; on one's Tod Malone.
It's first recorded in 1907; where it comes from is not altogether clear, but a popular ballad, "Paddy Malone in Australia", was noted in the 1870s and appeared in a collection by Banjo Patterson in 1906. It tells the story of an illiterate Irishman, Pat Malone from Tipperary, who was tempted out to Australia, suffered various calamities as a sheep and cattle herder in the outback, and returned home sadder but wiser. The song was widely enough known that it seems likely his name was seized on to make the rhyming slang expression. Sometimes it goes as "Tod Malone", so it looks very much as though the British and Australian versions have blended.


on pins and needles

• pins
• needles
• pin
• needle

(Extremely) nervous, pressured, tense, in a hurry; excited; waiting anxiously for something; in great surprise.
Synonyms:
on tenterhooks; butterflies in the stomach.
Examples:
1) Her daughter has been on pins and needles all day waiting for the contest to begin.
2) I was on pins and needles until I got the phone call that the plane had landed safely.
History:
This saying was first used in the late 1800s. When you're waiting nervously for something to happen, you sometimes feel as if you can't sit still - like needles and pins are sticking you. A writer once said it was like being "on pins and needles", and the phrase stuck.



on red

• red

When the light is red.
Example:
No turn on red!


on tenterhooks

• butterflies in the stomach
• on pins and needles
• tenterhooks
• tenterhook
• butterfly in the stomach
• butterflies
• stomach
• butterfly
• pins
• needles
• pins and needles
• pin
• needle

Uncertain, anxious, very tense; in painful suspense about how something will
turn out; nervously waiting for something to happen.
Examples:
1) Elizabeth waited for the cast list to be posted. As the minutes passed, she grew more and more anxious. At last Mrs. Marks came out of the office and taped it to the door.
"Thank goodness, I got a part!" cried Elizabeth. "I was on tenterhooks all morning."
2) Steven waited on tenterhooks to see if he would win the award.
Etymology:
In the mid-1700s, a tenter was a frame for stretching newly woven cloth. The "tenterhook" was a hook or bent nail that held the cloth to the tenter. At that time a person who was worried sick not knowing the outcome of a situation was said to be "on tenters", meaning that their emotions were stretched out tensely. Later the phrase became "on tenterhooks", which expressed even sharper and intense feeling.
Synonyms:
1) butterflies in the stomach;
2) on pins and needles

on the ball

• ball
• on top of things
• on top of
• thing
• things
• top
• on top

Alert; effective; skillful; knowledgeable, smart, intelligent, bright, sharp.
Examples:
1) Max has a lot on the ball. He can solve our problem.
2) Mr. Hsu hired me because he thinks I'm really on the ball.
History:
This saying originated with British football - what we call soccer. It could also be said that a person is "on top of things". Also, in the all-American sport of baseball, a pitcher who was able to get something "on the ball" (like great speed) would be more likely to win the game. As ball games, including basketball, became more popular, so did this expression.

on the cuff

• cuff
• off the cuff

1. Agreeing to pay later; to be paid for later; on credit.
2. Without (legal) grounds.
Examples:
1) Peter lost the money that Mother gave him to buy meat, and the store would not let him have meat on the cuff.
2) Many people buy cars and television sets on the cuff.
3) He gave him the use of a beautiful suit and arranged for him to eat on the cuff in the cafe.
4) He always can get some drinks on the cuff.
5) Strictly on the cuff I'd say he's not up to much.
6) I confess I started speaking on the cuff.
7) Cosmo couldn't pay his bill, so he asked the owner to put it on the cuff.
History, related expression:
This expression probably came from the days when bartenders in old saloons wore
stiff cuffs that detached from the end of their shirt sleeves. When customers wanted to
pay for their drinks at a later date, the bartender often wrote the charges down on his
cuffs. There is another, similar idiom, "off the cuff," that has a totally different
meaning: to speak about or do something freely without thinking about it first.

on the double

• double

Immediately; (right) now, at once; move it; (very) quickly; at a fast pace.
Examples:
1) The coach told the players to get onto the field on the double.
2) Coach Keyser said, "Sutton, get over here - on the double!"
Etymology:
This is an old army command. When the person in charge wanted the soldiers to march twice as fast as normal, he'd holler, "On the double!" ("Double time, march!") which meant to double the speed. Today, anyone can use this expression when he or she wants someone to hurry up.



on the fence

• fence
• sit the fence

Neutral; undecided; not choosing one way or the other; not choose either side, try to be in the middle.
Synonym: sit the fence
Examples:
1) Are you for or against the new honor code, or are you still on the fence?
2) People don't like politicians who try to sit the fence.
History:
This popular expression from the early 1800s makes you think or a person actually sitting on a fence, body right in the middle, not completely on one side or the other, with one leg dangling over each side. In the same way, if a person straddles an issue without committing himself or herself, that's a person "on the fence".


on the fritz

• fritz

Broken; out of order; not working.
Example:
We can't watch the game at my house because my TV is on the fritz.
History:
Though this expression is a recent one (the early 1900s), nobody today is quite sure how it got started. One word expert gave the following possible explanation. During World War I, a degrading term for a German soldier was "Fritz", a common German name (short for Friedrich). Something not working or ruined could be compared to the defeated Germans.


on the horns of a dilemma

• on the horns
• dilemma
• on the horn
• horns
• horn

Having to choose between two undesirable courses of action or unpleasant things.
Example:
Jose liked both girls who asked him to the dance, and he didn't want to hurt either. He was on the horns of a dilemma.
History:
A bull can be a fierce animal, and nobody wants to be stuck on the sharp points of a bull's horns. But you feel that you're in that position if you are forced to decide between two possibly dangerous choices. A similar saying was used by people in the Middle Ages and by the Dutch scholar Erasmus around the year 1500. In medieval times a "dilemma" was a way or arguing in which one of two statements must be proved to be true.



on the hot seat

• hot seat
• hot
• seat

In a difficult or uncomfortable situation and subject to a lot of unpleasant questions and personal attacks.
Example:
Mike was caught eating a candy bar at the weight loser's class - now he's really on the hot seat.
History:
The "hot seat" in this expression refers to the electric chair. But you can be on - or in - the hot seat in a freezing cold room if you've been accused of doing something bad, or you've been caught in an embarrassing situation and people are questioning and criticizing you.



on the right side

• the right side
• right side
• right
• side

1. On the right hand side.
Example:
He worked his way down the right side of the road. (Seymour, Gerald. "Condition black". - London: Fontana Press, 1991)
2. On the correct side.
Example:
My father took one side, perhaps it was the right side and perhaps it was the wrong side. (Seymour, Gerald. "Condition black". - London: Fontana Press, 1991)

on the rocks

• on the rock
• rock
• rocks

1. Financially ruined or wrecked; near disaster; finished.
2. With ice cubes.
Examples:
1) I need a loan because my dog-walking business is on the rocks.
2) Waiter, would you bring me a cocktail on the rocks? I ordered the drink an hour ago!
History:
An unfortunate ship that has run aground and is on the rocks will eventually sink. In the 1800s the phrase "on the rocks" (meaning headed for disaster) was expanded to describe many areas of life, not just ships at sea.