The Death of Fissiparous and Other Words: A Dictionary of Words & Phrases on the Verge of Extinction

hoi polloi

hoi puh-LOI

noun

average people; the middle class; the great unwashed masses

1973Gore VidalBurrI am told that Mrs. Monroe was so stuck-up that she had a platform built in the East Room where she used to sit on a throne and receive the hoi polloi like she was a queen.1989Tom SchulmanDead Poets SocietyKEATING This is battle, boys. War! You are souls at a critical juncture. Either you will succumb to the will of hoi polloi and the fruit will die on the vine—or you will triumph as individuals.1998Diana GabaldonHellfireFor the assailant to vanish so quickly, he must have looked like hoi-polloi; a prosperous merchant or a noble would have stood out by his bearing and the manner of his dress.2002Ann CoulterSlanderIn early 2002, David Geffen, Barbra Streisand, Steven Spielberg, and about one hundred other Malibu Marie Antoinettes erected chain-link fences to keep hoi polloi off the public beaches adjacent to their beachfront estates.

Labels: Ann Coulter, Diana Gabaldon, Gore Vidal, Tom Schulman

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Entry By: CJ Cooney
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fulsome

FOOHL-suhm

adjective

cloying; excessive or insincere flattering speech intending to ingratiate the speaker; abundant

1889Horatio Alger Jr.Driven From HomeHis manner was exceedingly deferential, and he was praising England and everything English in a fulsome manner.1919Constance SkinnerPioneers of the Old SouthwestJames Hunter, whose signature leads on all Regulation manifestoes just prior to the Battle of Alamance, was a sycophant of Husband, to whom he addressed fulsome letters; and in the real battle for democracy—the War of Independence—he was a Tory.2003Ann CoulterTreasonPeriodically, congressional hearings would have to be convened to allow progressives to denounce Reagan's rhetoric more fulsomely.

Labels: Ann Coulter, Constance Skinner, Horatio Alger Jr.

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Entry By: CJ Cooney
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canard

kuh-NAWRD

noun

an untrue story; a false declaration; a cock-and-bull story

1912Roald AmundsenThe South PoleIt may be mentioned as a curiosity that the newspapers of Funchal did not hesitate to connect our expedition with the South Pole. The native journalists had no idea of the value of the startling piece of news they were circulating. It was a canard invented on the supposition that when a Polar ship steers to the south, she must, of course, be making for the South Pole. In this case the canard happened to be true. Fortunately for us, it did not fly beyond the shores of Madeira.1953Jim ThompsonBad BoyIt was Pell who spread the rumor that Hebert wore no pants behind the high marble counter, a canard which—according to the sex and temperament of the guest—resulted in looks of disgust, scowls, and howls of laughter for the baffled and blushing room clerk.2003Ann CoulterTreasonAmerica disproved the canard from the French Revolution holding that religion and freedom were incompatible.

Labels: Ann Coulter, Jim Thompson, Roald Amundsen

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Entry By: CJ Cooney
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