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Examples
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With the 2010 midterm election just days away, Sarah Palin signaled that she sees another man in the Republican party as "mavericky" -- a label that the former Alaska Governor and Arizona Senator became notorious for embracing together when they were running mates during the 2008 presidential campaign.
Sarah Palin Names New 'Mavericky' Man Of The GOP (VIDEO) The Huffington Post News Team 2010
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But it adds to the perception that Sarah Palin has not been forthcoming about her so-called mavericky status and her cost cutting measure, and all that sort of thing.
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He was being all "mavericky" and it came back to bite him in the butt!
I'm 'saddened' by 'vicious attacks' on Palin, McCain says 2009
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Looks as if his "mavericky" days are finally over.
McCain: I'm not in favor of a public health insurance option 2009
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The same greedy, self involed women who threw John McCain under the bus when she went "mavericky" and said "What have I got to lose" will be riding high on the political talk show hog.
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When a physical resemblance between her and Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was noticed, Fey returned to the show to portray the "mavericky" Alaskan who could "see Russia from my house," as Fey famously zinged in a performance that earned its own Emmy, for Fey's "special guest appearance by an actress in a comedy series."
Stars set to honor Tina Fey in Mark Twain Prize ceremony at Kennedy Center Jacqueline Trescott 2010
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McCain has been reduced to a punch line at the end of all of his ads -- even the supposedly serious 'mavericky' ones look idiotic now.
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He's an opportunist and uses 'mavericky' to cover it up.
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It might seem like a "mavericky" pick, but how can it be "mavericky" if it's a base favorite?
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It's hilarious to watch his "mavericky" stunt blow up in his face!
Poll: Palin Is Now The Top Concern Voters Have About McCain 2009
mollusque commented on the word mavericky
She didn't know if you could object to a statement by co-counsel, but she was loving being unorthodox. And unorthodox was a better adjective than mavericky.
--Lisa Scottoline, 2004, Dead Ringer, p. 161
October 13, 2008
rolig commented on the word mavericky
Today (9 Dec. 2008) I came across this word in an essay by Nate Silver on his 538 blog about what went wrong with the McCain campaign. But he spells it, interestingly, with a hyphen:
"But at the end of the day, the McCain campaign was too cynical to believe that the older, more maverick-y version of their candidate could have closed the sale."
He is using the word partly in jest, I think, and the hyphen tells us that he does not really believe in this word, or rather, that he does not really believe this is a "real" word. Both Silver and, in the citation mollusque posted, Scottoline are semi-quoting Tina Fey (portraying Sarah Palin – I don't know if Palin herself ever used this word), who popularized this word. But that led me to wonder what does this -y suffix tell us? It is widespread and very productive in popular culture, notably, in commercials where it's used to indicate fragrances and flavors (lemony, chocolatey) that are produced artificially (not from lemons or chocolate). But more importantly, saying "maverick-y" instead of "maverick-like" (to name one more suitable choice) indicates a certain ineptness or gracelessness in producing words. And this makes me wonder (again) if Americans today are less skilled in the art of using words, in understanding the nature of words, in rhetoric (in its broadest sense).
December 9, 2008
bilby commented on the word mavericky
Maverick-y is inelegant, perhaps even excusable, but more maverick-y is dreadful. Why not re-write the sentence to avoid having to conjure a sub for maverickier? Don't they teach people how to do this these days? I was going to say 'journalist' but I look back at your reference and see it's from a blog.
December 9, 2008
rolig commented on the word mavericky
In defense of Nate Silver, he is actually a very articulate political analyst. I am sure his use of "more maverick-y" here was facetious.
December 9, 2008
sionnach commented on the word mavericky
Give me a manly man, or a womanly woman. But for God's sake, spare me from a boyly boy.
In English, the adjectival forms ending in 'ish', mannish and womanish, are always (?) used to refer to the opposite sex. true or false?
December 9, 2008
kewpid commented on the word mavericky
Indeed the occasional facetious comments are part of Nate's charm. If he wrote like a journalist, fivethirtyeight would be kind of boring.
December 9, 2008
rolig commented on the word mavericky
I suppose one could also use them to refer to a non-adult of the same sex: "a mannish little boy", a "womanish little girl", perhaps especially in regard to their gestures, expressions, appearance, etc.: "The child was only eight, but his mannish stride surprised me." "Manly" would not have the same effect here, since it would indicate approval where the speaker wishes to convey dismay.
December 9, 2008
mollusque commented on the word mavericky
The Scottoline quote antedates Tina Fey's use of mavericky. The earliest use I can find is in 1972, with an interesting parallel to McCain's piloting days.
"Zimmy was an excellent pilot, who had flown charter and combat aircraft since 1937, and the word among the personnel around Westfield was that he was a little mavericky, likely to fly an aircraft the way he saw fit."
--Burton Hersh, 1972, The Education of Edward Kennedy, p. 423
December 9, 2008
rolig commented on the word mavericky
Sorry, mollusque. I didn't notice the date on the Scottoline citation. It's interesting that the word existed pre-Palin. At least, that comes as a surprise to me. Thanks for the research.
December 9, 2008
fbharjo commented on the word mavericky
a 'key' to 'maverick' is an oxymoron - more larky
December 12, 2008