Tuesday, September 6, 2011

vim



vim [vɪm] n.

1.) Ebullient vitality and energy. Also as adv. (American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language).

Etymology: Commonly regarded as an adoption of Latin vim, accusative singular of vis strength, energy; but the early adverbial use (see quote) suggests a purely imitative or interjectional origin.

"So I whipt up the mule I rid, the passun chirrupt and chuct to make his crittur gallop, but the animal didn't mind him a pic. I 'gan to snicker, an' the passun 'gan to git vext; sudden he thought of his spurs, so he ris up, an' drove them vim in his hoss's flanx, till they went through his saddle-blanket, and like to bored his nag to the holler." (Odd Leaves from the Life of a Louisiana "Swamp Doctor", Henry Clay Lewis and Felix Octavius Carr Darley, 1850).

(Pierwsze wyścigi konne na Polu Mokotowskim w Warszawie, January Suchodolski, 1849)
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Another good scrabble word for you guys. Please keep the Linux jokes to a minimum!

21 comments:

Mai Yang said...

short one..haha! but nah. can't use this. too hard. haha

re your comment: just copy+paste that word "liebster" hahaha..so it's not Greek. hahaha! thanks :)

Mai Yang said...

yeah, it is German. hahaha!

Bibi said...

Had to think of vis too when I saw this popping up in my dashboard. Ah well, it can't all be related to Latin :)

DEZMOND said...

sounds short and cute!

shari said...

As in "vim and vigor"... one of my favorite Scrabble words when I have a "V" but no "E"s.

I'm not a mountain climber, but I want to do Half Dome from the OTHER side... not the side with the Nose. It's scary enough just using the ropes! I wish my knees were better... the hike to Little Yosemite Valley is tough on me. I've gotten to the base of Half Dome, then couldn't go on. :-(

Bibi said...

Also: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyOtt7DAOZ8&feature=channel_page&fmt=18

Debra She Who Seeks said...

When I hear this word, it's usually paired with "and vigor." Plus it's a cleaner -- from Britain, I believe. In John Mortimer's Rumpole stories, Rumpole is always complaining that he has to work so hard in order to keep his wife in Vim which she uses in vast quantities.

Electric Addict said...

vim is also a unix text editor haha

escapist said...

This blog is brilliant; I really need to improve my English and now I will know some fancy words too - sounds like a good deal to me!

Movies on my Mind said...

I thought Vim was a kitchen cleaning product from the 1980s. I'm sure it is.

Unknown said...

Aside from hearing it much the same as many of the others (i.e. Vim and Vigor) I am quite sure that I have heard it elsewhere before and I'm trying to wrack my brains to recall where.

It will come to me, eventually.

D4 said...

Short and memorable. Sweet.

Jennifer Fabulous said...

When I play Words with Friends, I often ask myself, "What would E do?".

This word is easy to say. I give it two thumbs up.

Unknown said...

Ebullient! Now there's a word haha.

ivy said...

It really is a word..after all..but as my gram would say who lives down south..full of vim and vinegar..or did I just not listen correctly. Well, vinegar has a lot cures. Even keeps the mosquitoes away if you drink it ..according to my larping friend Kat.

Jodie-Ann Muckler said...

Vim. Must find a place to put this word in one of my stories XD

Mai Yang said...

whoa! you got 3 "Liebster" award alredy! Kudos!! ^_^

GMSoccerPicks said...

It sounds like a cheap liquour. Wanna take a shot of vim? Nah thanks i don't want to get blind.

Meri said...

I NEVER hear this one without the accompanying "vigor"

mamtc said...

ebullient? And vim? Word for the day or words for the day? :)

Unknown said...

This is such a awesome blog, I always walk out a bit smarter :D Big ups!

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