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auto-da-fé aw-to-duh-FAY noun execution of a heretic; burning at the stake; death sentence levied by the Spanish Inquisition 1932John SteinbeckThe Pastures of HeavenFor a moment I thought this auto-da-fé was serious.1989Gore VidalHollywood...I shall ask the governor, most respectfully, to refrain from his auto-da-fé until there is a new trial…1991James P. HoganEntoverse They're rounding up all the heretics for the great auto-da-fé.Labels: Gore Vidal, James P. Hogan, John Steinbeck
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Entry By: CJ Cooney
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faute de mieux FOT duh MYOOR adverb for lack of something better 1938C. S. LewisOut of the Silent PlanetNo hross, however, ate the weed (honodraskrud) for choice, though it might be used faute de mieux on a journey.1973Gore VidalBurr'Then Leggett is for Van Buren?' | 'Faute de mieux.'1988Umberto EcoFoucault's PendulumBut Belbo by now was an adept, and, like other adepts, not through enlightenment, but faute de mieux.Labels: C. S. Lewis, Gore Vidal, Umberto Eco
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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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éminence grise ay-mee-nawns greez noun a behind the scenes decision-maker or power-broker; a puppet-master; literally: gray eminence 1988Robertson DaviesThe Lyre of OrpheusThere was no secret about the compelling portrait of Judas, holding firmly to his moneybag; there were enough sketches in the books Francis had filled at Düsterstein to mark him clearly as Tancred Saraceni, father in art to Francis, and an ambiguous éminence grise in the art world of forty years ago…1989Gore VidalHollywoodThe subject of the assistant president, the éminence grise, the Texas Machiavelli, was too enormous for either to embark on.1990Robert LudlumThe Bourne UltimatumHis bald head, fringed by perfectly groomed gray hair above his temples, was like the skull of an anointed éminence grise of some royal court where kings, princes and pretenders deferred to his wisdom…1994Caleb CarrThe Alienist...Ward McAllister had been Mrs. Astor's social éminence grise…Labels: Caleb Carr, Gore Vidal, Robert Ludlum, Robertson Davies
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orotund OR-uh-tuhnd adjective pompous; sonorous 1927Sinclair LewisElmer GantryBut he had learned his role of dignity now, and though he observed, 'Dandy day, Shorty!' he was quick to follow it up unhesitatingly with an orotund, 'I trust that you have been able to enjoy the beauty of the vernal foliage in the country this week.'1989Gore VidalHollywood'Will we hear your magnificent voice this evening, Senator?' Hitchcock was orotund.1996Laurence JamesKeeper of the Sun'I think that Master Cawdor is probably correct in this,' Doc said in his best orotund voice.Labels: Gore Vidal, Laurence James, Sinclair Lewis
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sui generis soo-ee JE-nuh-ruhs adjective unique; in a class of its own 1976Gore Vidal1876Oh, maybe your first Romans were like us, but I doubt it. No, sir. We are sui generis—of our own kind.1979Tom WolfeThe Right StuffThe seven pilots and their wives thought they had seen every sort of parade there was, but this one was sui generis.1987Robert A. HeinleinTo Sail Beyond the SunsetRandom Numbers may have been the silliest cat I've ever lived with—although all cats are sui generis… Labels: Gore Vidal, Robert A. Heinlein, Tom Wolfe
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