Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Lilliputian

Lilliputian \lil-i-PYOO-shuhn\ , adjective;
1. Extremely small; tiny; diminutive
2. Trivial

No need to consult the dictionaries for the etymology of this one! Jonathan Swift wrote about the people of Lilliput who were only 6" tall in Gulliver's Travels (1726). A story this iconic becomes part of our collective knowledge, so words and phrases are easily translated into our day-to-day speech without specifically mentioning its source. See frabjous for a similar type of word from C.S. Lewis.

Speaking of C.S. Lewis, this made me laugh.

*Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Tuesday, November 30

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