We humans collect things. I’m not sure all of us do, but many of us. Nearly everyone I know has (or had) a collection of something or other.
I do it to a little degree. I have this thing about icons from religions of the past. So I collect those.
Another thing I do is collect words.
Every day, my inbox fills up with all sorts of baubles. But one of those items is the Merriam-Webster Word of the Day. I know most of the words, but every so often, I’m surprised with something new. Either way, known or new, I enjoy reading the definitions and exploring the etymology of the word.
And then, if I think I might like to write about them in a future blog, I hang on to them in my research file. A Day in the Life of Polly.
Anyway, scrolling through, I found that I gathered a bunch of “G” words. So here’s what you’ve long been waiting for. A blog about “G” words.
gauntlet.
gauntlet 1 | ˈɡôn(t)lət, ˈɡän(t)lət |
noun
a stout glove with a long, loose wrist.
• historical an armored glove, as worn by a medieval knight.
• the part of a glove covering the wrist.
gauntlet 2 | ˈɡôn(t)lət, ˈɡän(t)lət | (also gantlet | ˈɡantlət |)
noun
PHRASES
run the gauntlet
1 go through an intimidating or dangerous crowd or experience in order to reach a goal: they had to run the gauntlet of television cameras.
2 historical undergo the military punishment of receiving blows while running between two rows of men with sticks.
gist.
gist | jist |
noun [in singular]
1 the substance or essence of a speech or text: she noted the gist of each message.
2 Law the real point of an action: damage is the gist of the action and without it the plaintiff must fail.
3 Nigerian English chat or gossip: I decided to spend the night at his place catching up on all the gist from the wedding.
verb [no object] Nigerian English
engage in chat or gossip: I need a good friend I can always gist with.
glom.
glom | ɡläm |
verb (gloms, glomming | ɡlämiNG |, glommed | ɡlämd |) [with object] North American English informal
steal: I thought he was about to glom my wallet.
• (glom onto) [no object] become stuck or attached to.
grok.
grok | ɡräk |
verb (groks, grokking, grokked) [with object] US English informal
understand (something) intuitively or by empathy: because of all the commercials, children grok things immediately.
• [no object] empathize or communicate sympathetically; establish a rapport: nestling earth couple would like to find water brothers to grok with in peace.
My thoughts?
Gauntlet. Well, first of all, once upon a time, I thought a gauntlet was some kind of chalice. But I suppose goblet, another “g” word, may have influenced my thinking. On the other hand, no pun intended, some of my warmest winter gloves could be gauntlets, judging solely from the definition. And finally, I don’t enjoy running the gauntlet in any situation.
Gist. I’ve always liked gist. I like “getting the gist of things.” I’ve never used it in any other way. Only in speaking of “understanding” this or that. You get the gist, don’t you?
Glom. This was new to me. It rhymes with Tom. I’ve never used it in a sentence. And it has been a long, long time since I glommed something. But here is the thing about glom. It has the wrong definition, I think. It should mean “dark, eeriness; creepiness.” Like “gloamings” evil cousin. It should be in sentences, such as “Glom was in the air.” Or. “The halls of the castle were filled with glom.”
Yeah. Like that. I’ll send a note to Webster.
Grok. This was new to me, too. Again. Wrong definition. Grok means to understand intuitively? No way. That should be a word like “enlightenment” or “sacred insight” or something. But not Grok. Grok reminds me of the caveman in the old B.C. comic strip. The big, hairy, round guy with skinny legs, skinny arms, and big feet. Or. Grok is the nasty, warmish ale drink that comes in old, heavy, pewter steins. That’s what Grok should be. Again, a pointed letter to Webster.
So there it is. A little collection of words I’ve picked up from here and there. Like all collections, they needed to be dusted. So here I am, airing them out.
People have collections for many different reasons. If you have a collection, I hope you will share a photo or a thought about what it means to you. Ultimately, the reasons why people collect things are as varied as the collections themselves. But one thing is for sure: collecting can be a deeply rewarding and enriching experience.
And so I say. I’m off to grab the dictionary.
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“Collecting is like a treasure hunt that never ends.” – Lady Gaga
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“Collect things you love, that are authentic to you, and your house becomes your story.” – Erin Flett
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“Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” – Albert Einstein
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Pick them up here or there and keep them all together.
