Friday words: Spanghew and Lipogram

[med_cat]

Two words, to make up for my missing last Friday...
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#2: Spanghew

Definition: to throw violently into the air; especially, to throw (a frog) into the air from the end of a stick About the Word: Although it originally involved an unsavory pastime in which sticks were used to hurl frogs into the air, this word has had other meanings as well. For example, one 19th century report refers to a particular horse's insistence on "spang–hewing" its riders. (Spang, by the way, is a verb in its own right. It's mostly used in Scotland and means "throw" or "jump.") ~~ #6: Lipogram Definition: a writing composed of words not having a certain letter About the Word: Lipo– means "lacking; without," and gram comes from gramma, meaning "letter." The most challenging lipogram – a decidedly constrained form of writing – excludes E, the most common letter in English. In 1939, Ernest Vincent Wright published Gadsby: A Story of Over 50,000 words without using the letter "E." Below is a lipogram version of "Mary Had A Little Lamb" lacking the letter O (from Peter Blinn, curiousnotions.com): Mary had a little lamb The bleached and chalky kind. And everywhere she went, the lamb Was rarely left behind. Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/top-ten-lists/top-10-words-with-bizarre-meanings/