Glossary of Colloquialisms
(Starting with "R")
By
Natalya Belinsky,
"Fluent English Educational Project"
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R
(chat) are
R.I.P.
- Rest
in Peace
- requiescat
in pace
- Rest
- Peace
This abbreviation for "Rest in Peace"
is commonly used on gravestones, headstones ("lay
in rest after death").
Example:
As she walked through the colonial cemetery, Nora
saw many stones ornately carved with the letters
R.I.P.
Etymology:
From Latin "requiescat in pace".
RGDS
(chat) regards
RINO
- rino
- DINO
- dino
- Republican
in name only
- Republican
- in
name
- only
- name
- Democrat
in name only
- Democrat
A member of the Republican party who is viewed as
being too liberal. Also: rino. Examples:
1) After all, Moore said, "I
think if you're a Republican in 2004 you've got
to stand for a few things. You've got to be for
school choice, and you've got to be for cutting
taxes, and you've got to be for smaller government.
Otherwise, what are Republicans good for? That's
why we keep saying [Arlen] Specter's a rino - a
Republican in name only - and let's replace him
with a real Republican." (Philip Gourevitch,
"Fight on the Right", The New Yorker,
April 12, 2004)
2) Because it is a Republican primary,
these RINOs cannot come out and proclaim their political
colors. They must disguise their views the way a
real rhino might hide in the tall grass from a hunter
Hence, every liberal/moderate Republican running
March 2 champions his and her "conservative''
views, especially on the safe tax, fiscal and regulatory
issues. (Steven Greenhut, "RINOplasty",
The Orange County Register (California), February
22, 2004)
3) Bill Clinton would have been proud
of what was happening on the third-floor Senate
corner at the State House this week. The Republicans
were moving out and the Democrats and "RINOs"
(Republicans In Name Only) were moving in. (John
DiStaso, "Merrill Taps Scamman, Strome and
a Thomson", The Union Leader (Manchester, NH),
December 31, 1992)
Etymology:
This term is an acronym based on the phrase "Republican
in name only", and it's an epithet
likely to be hurled quite often in the coming U.S.
election season. And, yes, the opposite creature
also exists: the DINO (1994) is a
"Democrat in name only",
meaning a member of the Democratic party who is
viewed as being too conservative.
ROF
(chat) rolling on the floor
ROTFL
(chat) rolling on the floor laughing
RSN
(chat) really soon now
RSVP
- Repondez
S'il Vous Plait
- Repondez
- S'il
- Vous
- Plait
When RSVP is written on an invitation that you have
received, it means that the people who are
inviting you would like to tell them whether or
not you will be able to come to their party,
wedding, etc.
Example:
Helen was excited about receiving an invitation
to Laura's birthday party. When she saw "RSVP"
written at the bottom of the invitation, she rushed
to the phone. "Hello, Laura?"
It's Helen. I just called to RSVP - you bet I'm
coming to your birthday party!"
Etymology: RSVP is short for the French
term "Repondez S'il Vous Plait", which
means "please reply" in English.
RU
(chat) Are you?
RUOK
(chat) Are you OK?
Ratneresque
- poppycock
- bosh
- hogwash
- flapdoodle
- cock-and-bull
Nonsence; absurdity
Synonyms:
poppycock, rubbish, bosh, baloney; (slang)
hogwash, flapdoodle; cock-and-bull
History:
The fuss over Coca-Cola's admission that the bottled
water it sells in Britain under the Dasani brand
is really purified tap water from Sidcup in Kent
("eau de Thames Embankment" is how Rumpole
of the Bailey might have described it) has produced
fresh sightings of this term for extreme shooting-self-in-foot
marketing statements. You may recall that Gerald
Ratner stunned the British public in 1991 by
announcing at a jovial but all-too-public dinner
that the products of his eponymous jewellers were
"crap". One of the last outing of "Ratneresque"
was when the chief executive of Barclays Bank, Matthew
Barrett, admitted that he wouldn't use his own company's
credit card because it was too expensive.
Roger
- Aye,
aye
- Aye
- Roger
that
- the
Jolly Roger
- Jolly
Roger
- wilco
- Romeo
- Robert
1. (interjection; radio communication,
signaling) I understand, or I agree.
Example:
All these handle-bar moustached aviators in films
like "The Dam Busters" are shouting "Roger,
Wilco!" into their handsets before peeling off to
do some deed of daring.
2. (informal) OK; used to
indicate the speaker's agreement to something.
3. formerly used in communications to represent
the letter R.
Synonyms:
Roger that; Romeo; Robert; (Navy) Aye, aye;
Aye.
Etymology:
From the name "Roger", used in
radio communications for the letter r and
meaning "received". The word is
definitely the proper name, but it's not been chosen
randomly. Nor was there a famous early radio operator
named Roger. It all goes back to phonetic radio
alphabets, designed to transmit words by spelling
them out letter by letter over poor-quality circuits.
The phonetic expressions are chosen to be as distinctive
as possible to limit the risk of confusing them.
We're used to the internationally accepted Alpha,
Bravo, Charlie ... X-Ray, Yankee, Zulu alphabet,
dating from about 1955, but there were others that
preceded it. In particular, the phonetic alphabets
used by the US Navy and the Royal Air Force from
about 1941 both used Roger as the
standard abbreviation for the letter R. Some
at different times used the very similar Robert,
but we are most familiar with Roger
because it was standard for a large part of the
Second World War. The letter R, expanded to Roger,
was used to mean message received, and had
been in use in that sense ever since the early days
of Morse code. Since the operator was often acknowledging
receipt of a message on which he would have to act
in some way, the response came not only to mean
that he had received it, but that he had understood
it, a subtle but crucial extension. (If he wanted
to say explicitly that he would carry out an instruction,
he would add wilco, short for "I will
comply".) This meaning for Roger became
so stereotyped that it survived the shift to the
international phonetic alphabet that almost everybody
now uses, which instead has Romeo
for R. 4. (verb; chiefly British
vulgar slang) To have sexual intercourse with
(a woman). Used of a man.
Etymology:
Mid 1600s, British slang, from "roger"
("p*nis"), from the name Roger,
from Germanic words meaning "fame" and "spear."
5. (n.) A black flag with white skull
and crossbones, formerly used by pirates.
Synonym:
(the) Jolly Roger.
Rome
wasn't built in a day
- Rome
was not built in a day
- Rome
- wasn't
- built
- in
a day
- was
- build
- day
People use this expression to mean that it takes
a long time to achieve great things. They often
use it to counsel patience.
Example:
Anna looked up from the rows of seeds she was planting.
"Oh, the garden will never be
finished!"
"Cheer up," her uncle said. "After
all, Rome wasn't built in a day. By August you'll
have
the best beans, tomatoes, and squash you've ever
tasted!"
Etymology:
Do you remember the story of ancient Rome? It took
many people many decades to build that imperial
city.
Rubbish
in, rubbish out
- Rubbish
in
- rubbish
out
- Rubbish
- A
bad beginning makes a bad ending
- Drink
as you have brewed
- As
one cooked the porridge, so must he eat it
- As
one make his bed, so he must lie on it
- As
one make his bed, so he will sleep
- As
you cooked the porridge, so must you eat it
- As
you make your bed, so you must lie on it
- As
you make your bed, so you will sleep
- One'll
reap what he'll sow
- One
will reap what he will sow
- You'll
reap what you will sow
- You
will reap what you will sow
- bad
beginning
- bad
ending
- bad
- beginning
- Drink
- brew
- ending
- cook
the porridge
- cook
- porridge
- eat
- make
one's bed
- lie
- bed
- sleep
- reap
- sow
- You
can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear
- One
can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear
- You
cannot make a silk purse out of a sows ear
- One
cannot make a silk purse out of a sows ear
- make
out of
- silk
purse
- sows
ear
- silk
- purse
- sows
- ear
The meaning of the saying is, if you start with
something bad don't expect to get something good
from it.
Example:
The old adage "Rubbish in, rubbish out"
still applies for computerisation in all fields.
Synonyms:
A bad beginning makes a bad ending.
Drink as you have brewed.
As one cooked the porridge, so must he eat it.
As one make his bed, so he must lie on it.
As one make his bed, so he will sleep.
As you cooked the porridge, so must you eat it.
As you make your bed, so you must lie on it.
As you make your bed, so you will sleep.
One'll reap what he'll sow.
One will reap what he will sow.
You'll reap what you will sow.
You will reap what you will sow.
You can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear.
Rube
Goldberg
[ROOB-GOALD-berg], adjective
Accomplishing by complex means what seemingly could
be done simply, or characterized by such
complex means.
Example:
We had to devise equipment constantly and have it
jerry-built with Rube Goldberg contraptions. (Ralph
Morse, "Air & Space Smithsonian",
June/July 1989)
History:
Reuben Lucius Goldberg was a Pulitzer
Prize-winning cartoonist who satirized the technology
of modern times. He was best known for his cartoons
of complicated, ramshackle contraptions that performed
simple tasks in ludicrously complex ways. His cartoon
character Professor Lucifer Gorgonzola Butts,
for example, invented an automatic stamp
licker. The contraption involved a robot that would
dump a can of ants onto upturned stamps and a starving
anteater that would then lick up the ants, moistening
the stamps. Long before Goldberg died
in 1970, his name had become associated with unnecessarily
complicated contraptions and procedures.
Ruritanian
[rur-ih-TAY-nee-un]
1. Utopian.
2. Of, relating to, or having the
characteristics of an imaginary place of high romance.
Example:
Tolkien fans were elated when the Ruritanian world
of Middle Earth was finally depicted on the big
screen.
History, more examples:
In 1894, British author Anthony Hope published
"The Prisoner of Zenda" (1894),
a novel set in the mythical kingdom of Ruritania.
The author coined it from Lat. "rus"
("country"; gen. "ruris")
+ Latinate ending "-itania" (cf.
Mauritania). The book relates the adventures of
Rudolf Rassendyll, a British gentleman who impersonates
the king of Ruritania to save him from a
treasonous plot. An improbable but high-spirited
tale filled with heroes, villains, courtly intrigue,
romance, and sword play, Hope's narrative
(and its fictional locale) quickly captured the
imagination of the public. Within two years of the
novel's publication, George Bernard Shaw
had seen fit to use "Ruritanian"
as a generic adjective: "Our common sense
... must immediately put a summary stop to the somewhat
silly Ruritanian gambols of our imagination."
Romantic or fanciful places or things have been
"Ruritanian" ever since.
r%m
(SMS) room
radius
- Remote authentication dial-in user service
- Remote
- authentication
- dial-in
- user
- service
- dial
1. The length of a line segment between
the center and circumference of a circle or
sphere. 2.
A straight line from the center to the perimeter
of a circle (or from the center to the
surface of a sphere). 3. A circular region whose area is indicated
by the length of its radius. 4. The outer
and slightly shorter of the two bones of the human
forearm. 5. Support consisting of a radial
member of a wheel joining the hub to the rim.
6. RADIUS (Remote authentication
dial-in user service) - a server for remote
user authentication and accounting.
Examples:
1) They located it within a radius
of 2 miles.
2) The relationship between the
radius and the circumference is r = \frac{c}{2\pi}.
3) RADIUS is currently the de-facto
standard for remote authentication.
Etymology:
"Radius" means "beam
of light" in Latin.
raffish
[RAF-ish]
1. Characterized by or suggestive of flashy
vulgarity, crudeness, or rowdiness; tawdry.
2. Marked by a carefree unconventionality
or disreputableness; rakish.
Examples:
1) The speaker was in his forties,
an attractive-looking man with a black eye patch
that gave him the raffish look of an amiable pirate.
(Sidney Sheldon, "The Best Laid Plans")
2) Sometimes we would go to the Gargoyle
Club,... but it was too full of raffish upper-class
drunks for my taste. (John Richardson, "The
Sorcerer's Apprentice")
3) We are told about Bacon's taste
for raffish, lower-class lovers, his penchant
for gambling and his almost complete disregard
for money. (Michiko Kakutani, "Portrait
of a Portraitist Of a Century's Horrors",
New York Times, December 14, 1993)
4) Tristan was a raffish young rebel,
a free spirit who sought every opportunity to
flout convention and challenge authority.
Etymology:
"Raffish" derives from
the noun "raff" (chiefly
used in the compound or duplicate, "riffraff"),
meaning "people of a low reputation".
"Raffish" sounds like
it should mean "resembling the raff".
But what is "raff"? Originally,
"raff" was "rubbish".
That term derives from the Middle English "raf",
and it was being used for trash and refuse back
in the 1400s. At around the same time, English
speakers were also using the word "riffraff"
to mean "disreputable characters" or
"rabble". The origins of "riffraff"
are distinct from the "rubbish" sense
of "raff"; "riffraff"
derives from an Anglo-French phrase meaning "one
and all". By the mid-1600s, the similarities
between "raff" and "riffraff"
had prompted people to start using the two words
as synonyms, and "raff"
gained a "rabble" sense. It was that
ragtag "raff" that gave
rise to the adjective "raffish"
in the late 1700s.
rail
- fulminate
- inveigh
- rail
in
- rail
off
- railing
- rails
- revile
- track
- train
- vilify
- vituperate
1. any of numerous widely distributed small
wading birds of the family Rallidae having short
wings and very long toes for running on soft mud
2. horizontal bar (usually of wood)
3. short for railway
Example: He traveled by rail.
4. barrier consisting of a horizontal bar
and supports
5. bar or bars of rolled steel making
a track along, which vehicles can roll
6. criticize severely; revile or
scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language
Example: He railed against the Republicans'
plan to cut Medicare.
7. spread negative information about
Example:
The Nazi propaganda railed the Jews.
Etymology:
Probably comes from Old French "reillier"
("to growl" or "to mutter")
and ultimately from Late Latin "ragere"
("to neigh").
8. complain bitterly
9. fish with a hand-line aver the rails
of a boat
Example: They are railing for fresh fish.
10. lay with rails
Example: Hundreds of miles were railed
out here.
11. travel by rail or train
Example: They railed from Rome to Venice.
12. convey (goods etc.) by rails
Example: Fresh fruit are railed from Italy
to Belgium.
13. separate with a railing
Example: Rail off the crowds from the Presidential
palace.
14. provide or enclose with rails
Example: The yard was railed.
15. enclose with rails
Example: They rail in the old graves.
General Synonyms:
fulminate, inveigh, rail in, rail off, railing,
rails, revile, track, train, vilify, vituperate
raillery
1. Good-humored banter or teasing;
good-natured ridicule.
Synonym: banter.
2. An instance of good-humored teasing;
a jest.
Examples:
1) Anticipating the raillery he'd
be subjected to at his 50th birthday party, Dan
got the jump on everyone by signing his invitations
"The Old Geezer."
2) I moved from one knot of people
to another, surrounded by a kind of envious respect
because of Sophie's interest in me, although subjected
to a certain mordant raillery from some of this
witty company. (Peter Brooks, "World Elsewhere")
3) Her raillery and mockery are
fun - but ultimately rather tiring, and tiresome.
(Barbara Grizzuti Harrison, "Eastward
Ho!" review of Shards of Memory, by Ruth
Prawer Jhabvala, New York Times, September 17,
1995)
Etymology:
"Raillery" is the anglicized
form of the French word "raillerie,"
which stems from the Middle French verb "railler,"
meaning "to mock." "Railler",
which probably comes from Old French "reillier"
("to growl" or "to mutter")
and ultimately from Late Latin "ragere"
("to neigh"), also gave us our verb
"rail". But "rail"
and "raillery" are quite
different in tone. "Rail"
means "to revile or scold in harsh, insolent,
or abusive language," whereas "raillery"
usually suggests cutting wit that pokes fun good-naturedly.
raiment
[RAY-ment]
Clothing in general; garments (usually singular
in form, with a collective sense).
Examples:
1) People want "habitations
for shelter and safety, and raiment for warmth
and decency." (Richard A. Epstein, "Principles
for a Free Society")
2) Agog with expectation, Stella
opened her package and found not the golden raiment
of a queen or a princess, but the drab uniform
of a cook. She wept for the rest of the day.
(William Weaver, "Almost Irresistible Stella"
New York Times, March 4, 1984)
3) A man in his Sunday raiment,
lemon-yellow gloves even, was visible inside the
window. (H.G. Wells, "The War of the Worlds")
Etymology:
"Raiment" is from Middle
English "rayment" (short for
"arrayment"), from "arrayen"
("to array").
rain on one's parade
- rain on your parade
- rain
- parade
To change the mood of an occasion from happy to
unhappy; to create a negative atmosphere.
Examples:
1) Who rained on your parade? You
were so happy ten minutes ago. 2)
I don't want to rain on your parade, but I have
to tell you that I just saw someone steal your
car.
Etymology:
A "parade" is a festive,
outdoor occasion, with marching bands and floats
and cotton candy. If it rains, though,
the parade is usually ruined.
rain or shine
- rain
- shine
- by
all means
- all
means
- means
In all weather; no matter what the weather is
like (describing something scheduled).
Synonym: by all means
Example:
I know that John will be at home at 8 p.m. rain
or shine.
raise the roof
To have fun and make a lot of noise.
Examples:
1) We're going to raise the roof at Stephanie's
party tonight! 2) The band raised the roof with
one great song after another.
Etymology: A 'roof' covers a house. Sometimes,
usually at parties, you can make so much noise
that it seems like the roof is going to blow right
off.
raise the wind
To borrow some money.
Example: Can you raise the wind to help
me (to) buy a car?
ram smth. down one's throat
- ram smth. down
- throat
- ram down
- ram
To force someone to do something that they really
don't want to do; to coerce.
Example: I complained about having to work
on the project, so the boss just rammed the whole
thing down my throat.
ramify
[RAM-uh-fye]
intransitive verb
1. To split up into branches or
constituent parts.
2. To send forth branches or extensions.
Example:
The bus system ramified so widely that it became
possible to travel to Athens in a single day from
a very large proportion of the villages of Greece...
(William H. McNeill, "The Metamorphosis of
Greece Since World War II")
transitive verb
3. To cause to branch.
4. To separate into divisions.
Etymology, related words, more examples:
"Ramify" has been part
of English since the 15th century and is an offshoot
of the Latin word for "branch," which
is "ramus." English acquired
several scientific words from "ramus,"
including "biramous" ("having
two branches"). Another English word derived
from "ramus" is the now obsolete
"ramage," meaning "untamed"
or "wild." "Ramage"
originated in falconry - it was originally used
of young hawks that had begun to fly from branch
to branch in trees. "Ramify"
started out as a scientific word, at first referring
to branching parts of plants and trees and later
to veins and nerves. But it soon branched out
into non-scientific and even figurative uses,
as in "ideas that ramify
throughout society."
ramping cat
A cat that is rearing up or standing on its hind
legs, with its front paws raised, as though it
were about to climb something; the expression
refers to a cat doing something that is entirely
in its nature.
Example:
At the twilight hour, if you become a Cat, you
can find out a lot, so much more that they are
loved and respected here. You can find their standard
image, a ramping cat of all sizes and colors with
it's left paw raised in salute and a coin, guit,
in it's right paw, in every shop, cafe, dressmaker's
and dry cleaner's. ("Notes Of Not A Stranger",
http://wushu.org.ua/Articles/Article5_eng.html)
History:
It's a quotation from Shakespeare, from
a speech by Hotspur in "King Henry
IV", who is explaining that Glendower
angers him through telling him
Of the dreamer Merlin, and his prophecies;
And of a dragon and a finless fish,
A clipt-wing'd griffin and a moulten raven,
A couching lion, and a ramping cat.
This last line is especially confusing to modern
readers. We would replace "couching"
by "crouching" (more specifically and
accurately the technical term "couchant")
and replace "ramping"
by "rampant". Shakespeare's
terms were from the heraldry of his time, describing
the stereotyped ways in which animals were portrayed
on shields.
A couching or couchant animal is crouching, but
specifically lying with its body on its legs but
its head erect. Shakespeare's "ramping"
is thought to derive from the Old French verb
"ramper" ("to creep, crawl
or climb") that has also given
us "rampant". In its original
English usage, "rampant"
was a heraldic term for an animal, usually a lion,
that was shown in profile facing right, standing
on one hind foot with its forefeet in the air.
This was taken to be a threatening or aggressive
posture, which is why "rampant"
now often has the sense of something wild or unrestrained.
All the examples from that of the fish onwards
are of animals that are in some way acting against
their true natures. The fish is without fins,
the griffin has had his wings clipped, the raven
has moulted, the lion is lying down submissively
and the cat is adopting a threatening posture
quite alien to our usual image of a timid puss.
If there is any fear of animal abuse at your local
hostelry, it's likely to be the cat that's doing
it.
ranchburger
A traditional, one-story ranch-style house, particularly
one in a suburban development where the surrounding
houses have a similar design. Also: ranch-burger,
ranch burger.
Examples:
1) You'll see examples of Ranch
homes whose only charm may have been their location
transformed into a wide variety of architectural
expressions. In an odd twist, the very fact that
many of these homes began as plain and ordinary
"Ranchburgers" is exactly the reason
they are great makeover candidates. (M. Caren
Connolly, "Ranches: Design Ideas for Renovating,
Remodeling, and Building New", Taunton Press,
August, 2003)
2) Such Ox-Bow incidentals are to be
expected in this "back porch country"
of the Texas and Oklahoma panhandle region, now
mostly hardscrabble and pocked with more characterless
"prefab ranchburgers" than in its renowned
oil-rich or cattle country days. (Gordon Hauptfleisch,
"Hogman, Pass By", The San Diego Union-Tribune,
December 15, 2002)
3) What has the ''modern'' stolen
from the average house? And is it comfort that
is missing? I cannot think so. What, instead,
has been scorned for some time is any serious
consideration of bourgeois taste. The architectural
historian and critic Colin Rowe called one favorite
design ''the ranchburger,'' and now such buildings
get from the critics little better than bites.
(William H. Gass, "Making ourselves comfortable",
The New York Times, August 3, 1986)
Etymology:
The name comes from those ubiquitous ranch houses
(also called "ranchers" or "ramblers")
that, in neighborhoods around the country, have
been replicated with the zeal of McDonald's hamburgers.
rapier
[RAY-pee-er]
1. A type of narrow-bladed sword used in
the 18th century; a type of double-edged sword
used in the 16th and 17th centuries.
2. A swordfish.
3. Extremely sharp or keen.
Example:
In the June 1992 issue of "Field & Stream"
magazine, Dave Hughes offered the following fly-fishing
advice: "In one fluid motion, lift the rod
up and back, and drive it forward with a rapier
thrust."
Etymology, more examples:
A rapier is a straight, two-edged
sword with a narrow pointed blade, designed especially
for thrusting. According to "Encyclopaedia
Britannica", "the long rapier
was beautifully balanced, excellent in attack,
and superb for keeping an opponent at a distance."
The word itself, which we borrowed in the 16th
century, is from Middle French "rapiere."
(It has no connection to the word
"rape.") The first time that
"rapier" was used as an
adjective in its figurative "cutting"
sense, it described a smile: "Who can
bear a rapier smile? A kiss that dooms the soul
to death?" ("The Lover's Lament"
by Sumner Lincoln Fairfield, 1824). Wit was
first described as "rapier-like"
by an author in 1853, and, these days, the most
common use of the adjective "rapier"
is to describe wit.
rapine
[RAP-in] The act of plundering; the seizing
and carrying away of another's property by force.
Examples:
1) He who has once begun to live
by rapine always finds reasons for taking what
is not his. (Niccolo Machiavelli, "The
Prince", translated by N.H. Thomson)
2) Extortion and rapine are poor
providers. (Olaudah Equiano, "Unchained
Voices: an anthology of Black authors in the English-Speaking
World of the 18th Century")
3) The war, proclaimed William Lloyd
Garrison, was one "of aggression, of invasion,
of conquest, and rapine - marked by ruffianism,
perfidy, and every other feature of national depravity."
(Robert W. Johannsen, "America's Forgotten
War (Mexican War, 1846-1848)", The Wilson
Quarterly, Spring 1996)
Etymology, related words:
"Rapine" derives from
Latin "rapina", from "rapere"
("to seize and carry off, to snatch or hurry
away"), which also gives us "rapid".
rapprochement
[rap-rosh-MAWN]
The establishment or state of cordial relations.
Examples:
1) Mikhail Gorbachev and his team
of self-described reformers were publicly heralding
a new era of rapprochement with the West. (Ken
Alibek with Stephen Handelman, "Biohazard")
2) The documentary record of initial
White House-level efforts to initiate rapprochement
with China... remains slim. (William Burr,
"The Kissinger Transcripts")
3) But I have no desire for some kissy
rapprochement. (Zo? Heller, "Everything
You Know")
Etymology:
"Rapprochement" comes
from the French, from "rapprocher"
("to bring nearer"), from Middle French,
from "re-" + "approcher"
("to approach"), from Old French "aprochier",
from Late Latin "appropire",
from Latin "ad-" + "propius"
("nearer"), comparative of "prope"
("near").
rapscallion
- Rascallion
- blackguard
- scoundrel
- miscreant
rascal, ne'er-do-well
Example:
"The film ["Pirates of the Caribbean:
The Curse of the Black Pearl"] stars Johnny
Depp as the sauntering, dark-eyed rapscallion
Capt. Jack Sparrow...." (Anthony Breznican,
"The Associated Press", July 9, 2003)
Etymology:
The word "rascal" has been part
of English since the 15th century, but on its
own it apparently didn't quite capture the roguish
nature of the wily knaves of yore. By the 17th
century, English speakers had modified "rascal"
to create "rascallion". But it
seems that even that term didn't sound quite mischievous
enough. By the century's end, "rascallion"
had been further altered to create "rapscallion".
"Rascallion" is still
around as well, but it's very rare.
Synonyms:
blackguard, scoundrel, miscreant
rara avis
- rara
- avis
- rara
avises
- avises
- rarae
aves
- rarae
- aves
[RAIR-uh-AY-vis]
plural: rara avises [RAIR-uh-AY-vuh-suhz]
or rarae aves [RAIR-ee-AY-veez]
A rare or unique person or thing.
Examples:
1) He was, after all, that rara
avis, a Jewish Catholic priest with a wife and
children. (Jeremy Sams, "Lorenzo the magnificent,"
Independent, May 16, 2000)
2) "First of all," Arthur
said, "Jack is that rara avis among Ivy League
radicals, a birthright member of the proletariat."
(Charles McCarry, "Lucky Bastard")
3) Rara avis. You'd have to go far
and wide to find someone like that, especially
in these times. (Andrew Holleran, "In
September, the Light Changes")
Etymology:
"Rara avis" is Latin for
"rare bird."
rat pack
Etymology and meaning: Originally, this
referred to a group of same-age, same-interests
young Hollywood dudes that included Frank Sinatra,
Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. (as the token Negro),
and a few others. In the 1950s and the early 1960s,
they acted in films together, hung out together,
drank and womanized together, and in general raised
hell together, but didn't get in trouble because
they were famous. In the early 1980s, this term
was applied to another crop of talented but spoiled
young actors who were all about the same age who
also acted and hung around and raised hell together.
rathskeller
[RAHT-skell-er]
A usually basement tavern or restaurant.
Example:
Many workers from the town's mills and factories
liked to gather after hours at the rathskeller
located underneath the banquet hall.
Etymology:
"Rathskeller" is a product
of Germany, deriving from two German nouns: "Rat"
(also spelled "Rath" in early
Modern German), which means "council,"
and "Keller," which means "cellar."
The etymology reflects the fact that many early
rathskellers were located in the basements
of "council houses," which were equivalent
to town halls. (The oldest rathskeller
found in Germany today is said to date from the
first half of the 13th century.) The earliest
known use of "rathskeller"
in English dates from 1766, but the word wasn't
commonly used until the 1900s. Although the German
word is now spelled "Ratskeller,"
English writers have always preferred the spelling
with the "h" - most likely to
avoid any association with the word "rat."
rationale
[rash-uh-NAL]
1. An explanation of controlling principles
of opinion, belief, practice, or phenomena.
2. An underlying reason.
Synonym: basis
Example:
One rationale for year-round school is that it
reduces the need to review old material forgotten
over summer vacation.
Etymology; related words; more meanings, examples:
The word "rationale" appeared
in the second half of the 17th century, just in
time for the Age of Reason. It is based on the
Latin "ratio," which means "reason,"
and "rationalis," which means
"endowed with reason." At first, "rationale"
meant "an explanation of controlling principles"
("a rationale of religious practices,"
for example), but soon it began to refer
to the underlying reason for something (as in
"the rationale for her behavior").
The latter meaning is now the most common use
of the term. The English word "ratio"
can also mean "underlying reason" (in
fact, it had this meaning before "rationale"
did), but in current use, it more often refers
to the relationship (in number, quantity, or degree)
between things.
razzmatazz
- razzle-dazzle
- razzle
- dazzle
- double-talk
- double
- talk
- razzamatazz
[raz-muh-TAZ]
1. A confusing or colorful often
gaudy action or display.
Synonym: razzle-dazzle
2. Inflated, involved, and often deliberately
ambiguous language.
Synonym: double-talk
3. Vim, zing.
Example:
It was a rally like any other, perhaps, but amidst
all the flag-waving and razzmatazz, we detected
a stronger than usual strain of genuine patriotic
feeling.
History, alternative spelling:
Before early forms of "razzmatazz"
entered English, "razzle-dazzle"
appeared on the scene, and long before "razzle-dazzle"
there was simply "dazzle"
(from "daze"). English speakers
are fond of forming new words through reduplication
of a base word, usually with just a slight change
of sound. Think of "okey-dokey,"
"fuddy-duddy," "super-duper,"
"roly-poly," "fiddle-faddle,"
and "dilly-dally." A hundred
or so years ago, the spirit that prompted "razzle-dazzle"
seems to have also inspired "razzmatazz"
shortly afterward. The coiners of "razzmatazz"
may have had "jazz" in mind.
Some of the earliest turn-of-the century uses
of "razzmatazz" refer
to rag-time or early jazz styles. By the 40s,
we'd come round to the "razzle-dazzle"
sense, though we still haven't completely settled
on the spelling. You might, for example, see "razzamatazz."
read between the lines
- read
- between
the lines
- between
- lines
- line
When you "read between the lines", you
go beyond the surface of what someone says or
does so you can find out what they really mean.
Example:
"Clare keeps telling me she's too busy to
go to school dances," Tanya said. "But
when you read between the lines, you can tell
she's afraid she won't have fun if she goes."
real estate
(Amer.) Tangible items of property, such
as land and buildings, as well as intangible rights
in land, such as easements or the right to graze
animals on someone else's land etc.
In the UK, one would use the term "real
property" (see) as distinct
from "personal property" which refers to
all other kinds of property.
real property
(Brit.) Tangible items of property, such
as land and buildings, as well as intangible rights
in land, such as easements or the right to graze
animals on someone else's land etc.
The term "real property" is used as
distinct from "personal property" which
refers to all other kinds of property, to describe
what Americans would call "real estate"
(see).
realia
- memorabilia
- juvenilia
- marginalia
[ree-AL-ee-uh, reh-yal'yuh]
Noun plural; there is no singular form
for this word, because "realia"
refers to a group of or classification of things.
1. (educ.) Objects, as coins, tools,
etc., used by a teacher to illustrate everyday
living;
objects or activities used to relate classroom
teaching to the real life especially of peoples
studied.
Example:
The teacher asked the exchange student from Brazil
to bring in photos, food items, and other realia
to share with the class.
2. (philos.) Things that are real.
History:
"Realia," a word invented
in the 1930s, is still mostly used in the classroom
by teachers, especially foreign language teachers,
and in the library by cataloguers (realia in libraries
can consist of things as bizarre as an author's
hair and teeth donated posthumously), but it's
seeping out. You might, for example, hear of someone
putting "realia" - objects
that represent present-day life - in a time capsule.
"Realia" is also sometimes
used philosophically to distinguish real things
from the theories about them. "Realia"
is one of those plural formations without a corresponding
singular form. Like "memorabilia"
("memorable things" or "mementos"),
"juvenilia" ("works
produced in an artist's or author's youth"),
and "marginalia" ("marginal
notes or embellishments"), it incorporates
the Latin plural ending "-ia."
Etymology: Late Latin, neuter plural of
"realis" - "real".
recalcitrant
[rih-KAL-suh-trunt]
1. obstinately defiant of authority or
restraint
Example:
Anna's doctor ordered a week of complete bed rest,
but, ever recalcitrant when it comes to doctors'
orders, she was up and baking a cake after two
days.
2. a) difficult to manage or operate;
b) not responsive to treatment; c)
resistant
Etymology:
Long before any human was dubbed "recalcitrant"
in English (that first occurred, as best we know,
in one of William Thackeray's works in 1843),
there were stubborn mules (and horses) kicking
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