Monday Word: Snick
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1word1daysnick [snik]
noun
1. a small cut
2. a slight often metallic sound
3. a glancing contact with the ball off the edge of the cricket bat
examples
1. Then it grew louder, and suddenly there came from the window a sharp metallic snick. "The Adventure of the Naval Treaty" by Arthur Conan Doyle
2. "...ye may hear the breech-bolt snick where never a man was seen..." "The Ballad of East and West" by Rudyard Kipling
3. Silence held for a few minutes, unbroken except for the snick of Didi’s scissors and the rattle of Adele’s beads. —Hannah Natanson, Washington Post, 19 Oct. 2020
origin
In the Annotated Sherlock Holmes there is a footnote that states: The Oxford English Dictionary credits "The Naval Treaty" (which was published in Oct-Nov 1893) as the first usage of this word to mean a sound, but my friend pointed out its use in the Kipling poem which was published in 1889. And Merriam-Webster says that for definiton 2, the origin is 1886. Definition 1 is said to have first appeared in 1775.
noun
1. a small cut
2. a slight often metallic sound
3. a glancing contact with the ball off the edge of the cricket bat
examples
1. Then it grew louder, and suddenly there came from the window a sharp metallic snick. "The Adventure of the Naval Treaty" by Arthur Conan Doyle
2. "...ye may hear the breech-bolt snick where never a man was seen..." "The Ballad of East and West" by Rudyard Kipling
3. Silence held for a few minutes, unbroken except for the snick of Didi’s scissors and the rattle of Adele’s beads. —Hannah Natanson, Washington Post, 19 Oct. 2020
origin
In the Annotated Sherlock Holmes there is a footnote that states: The Oxford English Dictionary credits "The Naval Treaty" (which was published in Oct-Nov 1893) as the first usage of this word to mean a sound, but my friend pointed out its use in the Kipling poem which was published in 1889. And Merriam-Webster says that for definiton 2, the origin is 1886. Definition 1 is said to have first appeared in 1775.
(no subject)
Date: 2025-05-19 02:38 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2025-05-20 10:41 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2025-05-20 12:20 pm (UTC)Yup — a long knife / short sword deal, and presumed influence of Carroll for the sword effect.
(no subject)
Date: 2025-05-25 10:26 am (UTC)