John Doe is a name used in American English to denote a hypothetical, average man. John Doe is often used for an anonymous party in a legal action. The name for a hypothetical, average woman is Jane Doe. Other names for average hypothetical American men are Joe Blow, Joe Schmoe, …
3 Comments
Hinky is an American word which means questionable, unreliable, suspect. Hinky, an adjective, refers to something which is not quite right, something causing concern. Related words are hinkier and hinkiest. The origin of hinky is obscure, some believe that hinky evolved from the Black English slang word hincty which was …
2 Comments
A contraption is a device which is seen as weird or unnecessarily complicated, makeshift. The word contraption often has a negative connotation. The word contraption rises in use in the English language around the beginning of the 1900s, which is just about the time that Rube Goldberg began his cartoon …
2 Comments
Duct tape is a silver-colored strong adhesive tape, usually a few inches wide, that is used to repair a multitude of things. It is specifically manufactured to join heating and air conditioning duct work, though the uses for duct tape are uncountable. Duct tape is a noun that has also …
1 Comment
Lackadaisical is an adjective which means listless, dull, without enthusiasm, lazily careless. The adverb form is lackadaisically. Lackadaisical comes from an old expression of regret, lack-a-day! Lack-a-day! is a short form of alack-the-day! The medieval alack means failure, fault, reproach or shame, alack-the-day meant shame-to-the-day! This woeful cry lost its …