Results tagged “oxfordenglishdictionary”

In what we think might be one of the worst rulings ever, a judge ruled that a pat on the butt is not "forcible touching" and therefore, it's pretty much LEGAL. Fabric store employee Mohammed Nuruzzaman was charged with forcible touching, third degree sex abuse, and second degree harassment after allegedly touching a female customer's butt - without her consent - last November. However, Criminal Court Judge Richard M. Weinberg broke out The New Oxford English Dictionary to say that patting was okay.

The word "forcible" connotes something "done by force, vigorous and strong and powerful." To pat is to "touch quickly and gently with the flat of the hand."

Continue reading "Judge Says You Can Touch This!"

Ah crap, we meant to post this yesterday but better late than never. So tonight is a blue moon, that once in a great while occurrence when there are two full moons within a calendar month. Full moons are separated by 29 1/2 days, so on average, every two and half years or so, two will occur during the same month. The second one is the blue one. Of course, the moon isn't actually blue. The phrase goes back at least 150 years and has evolved through 5 or 6 different meanings. However, the Oxford English Dictionary sites that the first reference to a blue moon comes from a proverb recorded in 1528:

More fun with words can be had at Word Spy.