Tuesday, June 7, 2011

surfeit



surfeit [ˈsɜrfɪt] n.

1.) Excess, superfluity; excessive amount or supply of something.
2.) Excessive taking of food or drink; gluttonous indulgence in eating or drinking. Also in fig. context.

surfeit v. t.

1.) To fill or supply to excess; to oppress or disgust with over-abundance of something.
2.) To feed to excess or satiety; to sicken or disorder by overfeeding or by unwholesome food (Oxford English Dictionary 2nd Ed.).

Etymology: Middle English surfeten, from surfait, excess, from Old French, from past participle of surfaire, to overdo : sur-, sur- + faire, to do (from Latin facere).

"— Portia: How all the other passions fleet to air,
As doubtful thoughts, and rash-embraced despair,
And shuddering fear, and green-eyed jealousy! O love,
Be moderate; allay thy ecstasy,
In measure rein thy joy; scant this excess.
I feel too much thy blessing: make it less,
For fear I surfeit" (The Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare, ~1597).
(Portia and Shylock, Thomas Sully, 1835)
____________________________________________________

Hi readers, I'm finally back. The trip took longer than I expected, but it was pretty good (about as good as a trip with just you and your parents could be). We went to: Bath, Stonehenge, Old Sarum, Salisbury, Glastonbury, Shrewsbury, the Royal Air Force Museum, Conwy, Anglesey, Bolton Abbey, York, Edinburgh, Loch Lomond, Fort William, Dove Cottage, and Stratford-Upon-Avon. Saw Jean-Luc Picard as Shylock at the Royal Shakespeare Company Theatre last night (hence the quote).

30 comments:

Dave said...

I must admit I like to be surfeit now and then. Good to see you back.

Intraman said...

Glad to have you back! sounds like you had a pretty good trip.. I would love to make a pilgrimage to stratford upon avon someday :)

Melanie said...

so that is what i did at dinner saturday! sounds like a great trip!

Fang said...

"I got a surfeit amount of blood in my alcohol system."
Right?

jaykaydee said...

Welcome back! Sounds like you had a lot of fun visiting all those places. No Canterbury?

Bart said...

uh oh. just read that to confirm. that sucks for him.

Xenototh said...

Welcome back! Great word to start back on. :P

shari said...

I love Bath and Stonehenge, and that whole countryside... it's beautiful there. I know what you mean about traveling with just you and your parents. Yikes. Ha ha.

Glad you're back!!

Drake Sigar said...

I thought you were dead!

Once Upon A Time... said...

there you are back again...i think "bubbly" is more girly word...but I think you have a really great point. I'll see how I'll fix it.

PS: like the way you critise the simplest of things...

jos xx

Kicking Rocks said...

awesome that you got to see Patrick Stewart!

Anonymous said...

Sounds like you had a great trip! Welcome back :D!

Unknown said...

Sounds like you had a great time. The Merchant of Venice has never been my favourite of Shakespeare's plays but the quote truly suits the word. Thanks.

Dejch said...

i was wondering where u are! welcome back

Nom de Plume said...

You saw the RSC and you didn't drop in to see me :O haha

A Beer for the Shower said...

Welcome back! Sounds like you had a great trip, and what a fitting word. I like to live my life in a continuous state of surfeit.

Meri said...

Wow that is a helluva trip! What was your favorite part?

Jennifer Fabulous said...

Aaaand this word is the reason I've gained 10 pounds in the past year. Haha!

BigMike said...

I feel like I should be able to apply this word to myself after the lunch I had today....

123 said...

you're alive! :D I hope you at least took a lot of pictures

Biff Tanner said...

Man I love this site, thanks.

//Cheer§

DEZMOND said...

Love the example from THE MERCHANT OF VENICE.
And nice to see you back!

Astronomy Pirate said...

Sometimes I like to go to the beach and surfeit. (because it sounds like surf it.)

Welcome back!

Zombie said...

gonna start using that like a boss!!

Jay said...

i fear i surfeit blogging a tad.

Lydia Kang said...

I always thought this word sounded like its meaning.

Trisha said...

Welcome back, sounds like some fun travels!!

Debra She Who Seeks said...

Have you had a surfeit of sight-seeing?

Malkavian said...

Good to have you back my friend, ARGH another word that eluded me. Great to have you back so my vocabulary rises once more.

Jesse Crows said...

cool word!

Post a Comment