Film critic Paul Arendt described Kill Bill Vol. 1 as "a barely watchable mess, a tangled montage of fashion gloss streaked in gore, a cocktail party in an abattoir."
Like many great words, brought to my attention through the fine writing of Mr. Whedon. "I'll not be anyone's doxy," insists Saffron, in the Firefly episode "Our Mrs. Reynolds".
I love in Legally Blonde when Reese bounces into the library with that big picnic basket, and announces to Viv and Warner's study group that she "brought sustenance."
Generally this refers to chess matches, but I remember in Scorched Earth, there was a "No Kibitzing!" dialog that would appear when you pressed K. Great for when a whole mass of people are hovering about and offering unsolicited advice.
This is one of those great ones that really evokes its meaning... almost borders on an onomatopoeia. Doesn't it just sound like the flattest word ever?
Having a single-syllable word for affair is great, especially for colouring otherwise bland narratives: "The design firm spent a year courting various manufacturers, but only one was interested, and alas, managerial differences doomed their relationship to being nothing more than an unfruitful tryst."
I had a math teacher in high school who used this one to discuss how we might one day encounter the topics outside of academia. ("When you encounter arctan in the wild, just be careful to ...")
I just love the comedic value of this one what you tack it onto some other adjective. The meal wasn't just inedible, it was *basically* inedible: inedible at its most basic level.
My favourite thing about this word is applying it in wildly inappropriate metaphors. It's great for how it can evoke that image of a table where there's more variety than quality and you have to weed through for whatever is salvageable.
Comments by mikepurvis
mikepurvis commented on the word abattoir
Film critic Paul Arendt described Kill Bill Vol. 1 as "a barely watchable mess, a tangled montage of fashion gloss streaked in gore, a cocktail party in an abattoir."
What an image.
June 9, 2008
mikepurvis commented on the word doxy
Like many great words, brought to my attention through the fine writing of Mr. Whedon. "I'll not be anyone's doxy," insists Saffron, in the Firefly episode "Our Mrs. Reynolds".
January 23, 2007
mikepurvis commented on the word catharsis
Michael appointed his son manager of the Banana Stand, but they later burned it down in an act of catharsis.
January 18, 2007
mikepurvis commented on the word sustenance
I love in Legally Blonde when Reese bounces into the library with that big picnic basket, and announces to Viv and Warner's study group that she "brought sustenance."
December 21, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word kibitzing
Generally this refers to chess matches, but I remember in Scorched Earth, there was a "No Kibitzing!" dialog that would appear when you pressed K. Great for when a whole mass of people are hovering about and offering unsolicited advice.
December 21, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word brevity
... is the soul of wit.
December 17, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word anemic
This is one of those great ones that really evokes its meaning... almost borders on an onomatopoeia. Doesn't it just sound like the flattest word ever?
December 15, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word tryst
Having a single-syllable word for affair is great, especially for colouring otherwise bland narratives: "The design firm spent a year courting various manufacturers, but only one was interested, and alas, managerial differences doomed their relationship to being nothing more than an unfruitful tryst."
December 15, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word in the wild
I had a math teacher in high school who used this one to discuss how we might one day encounter the topics outside of academia. ("When you encounter arctan in the wild, just be careful to ...")
December 13, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word basically
I just love the comedic value of this one what you tack it onto some other adjective. The meal wasn't just inedible, it was *basically* inedible: inedible at its most basic level.
December 13, 2006
mikepurvis commented on the word buffet
My favourite thing about this word is applying it in wildly inappropriate metaphors. It's great for how it can evoke that image of a table where there's more variety than quality and you have to weed through for whatever is salvageable.
December 11, 2006