The Words of the Week - 8/6/21

’Harassment’

Harassment and harass both spiked in lookups last week, courtesy of a report on the past actions of the governor of New York State.

5 Things to Know About the Cuomo Sexual Harassment Findings
— (headline) The New York Times, 4 Aug. 2021

Harass may have meanings such as “to exhaust or fatigue,” “to annoy persistently,” and “to create an unpleasant or hostile situation for especially by uninvited and unwelcome verbal or physical conduct.” Harassment is either “the act or an instance of harassing” or “the condition of being harassed.” The words may be traced to the Middle French word harer, meaning “to set a dog on.” Harass and harassment have not spike this much in lookups since March of this year, when reports of Cuomo harassing women were previously in the news.

’Resignation’

Resignation also both drew attention in use relating to Andrew Cuomo.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is fighting for his political life amid calls for his resignation, local law enforcement inquiries and the threat of impeachment by the state legislature following findings by the state’s attorney general that Cuomo sexually harassed 11 young women in his office and official residence.
— Al Jazeera, 4 Aug. 2021

Resignation can mean “a formal notification of resigning,” and also “the quality or state of being resigned; especially, quiet and patient submissiveness (as to the rule or will of another).”

’Blip’

Blip had a … more-than-a-blip moment a few days ago, after the governor of Florida pointedly informed the President of the United States that even a blip of a comment was more than he wished to hear.

DeSantis to Biden: ‘I don’t want to hear a blip about COVID from you’
— (headline) Tampa Bay Times, 4 Aug. 2021

There are numerous possible meanings of blip, including “a trace on a display screen (such as an oscilloscope),” “a transient sharp movement up or down (as of a quantity commonly shown on a graph),” and “something relatively small or inconsequential within a larger context.” Another possible meaning, and the one perhaps intended by DeSantis, is “a short crisp sound.” The word is imitative in origin, and has been in use since the middle of the 20th century.

’Mandate’

Mandates are something that is being talked about more and more recently, and so the word is increasingly being looked up in our dictionary.

Months after he signed the bill banning state and local mask mandates, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson says he wants the law reversed to give schools the option to require face coverings when children return to the classroom.
— Josie Fischels, NPR, 4 Aug. 2021

The relevant sense of mandate is “an authoritative command: especially, a formal order from a superior court or official to an inferior one” (it also carries such meanings as “an authorization to act given to a representative”). The word functions additionally as a verb, with such meanings as “to officially require (something),” “to make (something) mandatory.”

‘That's because,’ continued the assistant spreading out his hands in a wide expansive gesture which seemed to swallow not only the whole office but Nigeria and the entire continent of Africa, ‘that's because it's your turn as a symbol of the political will and mandate of the people to do something. Something of great historical significance.’
— Karen King-Aribisala, Kicking Tongues, 1998

’Carrot and stick’

Carrot-and-stick has been featured in numerous news stories in the past week, in most cases as a descriptor of the approach that various cities, states, and countries have been adopting to persuade the unvaccinated to become vaccinated.

Europe adopts carrot-and-stick approach towards vaccine refuseniks
— (headline) Financial Times, 2 Aug. 2021

Carrot-and-stick, an adjective, is defined as “characterized by the use of both reward and punishment to induce cooperation.” Our etymology notes that this comes “from the traditional alternatives of driving a donkey on by either holding out a carrot or whipping it with a stick.” Our sense of empathy notes that traditions aren’t always good, and there are other ways of enticing a donkey to move — should you have to ask such a creature to move we suggest that you might try sugar cubes, alfalfa, or any one of a number of things that a donkey might like to eat.

Our Antedating of the Week

Our antedating of the week is ID card, defined as “a card bearing identifying data (such as age or organizational membership) about the individual whose name appears thereon.” Our earliest recorded use of this word had previously come in 1945, but recent findings show that we have had ID cards since at least 1941. The earlier identification card has been in use since the late 19th century.

LOST—Brown “Valley Bank” billfold containing money & Elks I.D. card. Rew. 259 I St., Mrs. J. W. Richards.
— The San Bernadino County Sun (San Bernadino, CA), 16 Jan. 1941

Monday is veterans’ day, and all old soldiers who go from this county should first call on the county auditor for identification cards to secure free admission to the grounds.
— Sioux City Journal 9Sioux City, IA), 5 Sept. 1885