ebullient

ɪ‘bʌljənt, -‘bʊl-■  adjective 
    cheerful and full of energy. 
    archaic (of liquid) boiling or turbulent. 
 

ebullience noun 
ebulliently adverb 

twang

■  noun 
    a strong ringing sound such as that made by the plucked string of a musical instrument. 
    a distinctive nasal pronunciation characteristic of the speech of an individual or region. 
■  verb 
    make or cause to make a twang. 
    utter with a twang. 
 

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary
bluster
■ verb
talk in a loud, aggressive, or indignant way with little effect.
(of wind or rain) blow or beat fiercely and noisily.
■ noun blustering talk.

blusterer noun
blustery adjective

ME: ult. imitative.
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Concise Oxford Thesaurus
blustery
▶ adjective STORMY, gusty, blowy, windy, squally, wild, tempestuous, turbulent; howling, roaring.

calm.
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Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary
2bluster
Function: noun
Date: 1583

1 : a violent boisterous blowing
2 : violent commotion
3 : loudly boastful or threatening speech
–blus·ter·ous \-t(ə-)rəs\ adjective
–blus·tery \-t(ə-)rē\ adjective

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary
squint
■ verb
look at someone or something with partly closed eyes. ▶partly close (one’s eyes).
have a squint affecting one eye.
■ noun
a permanent deviation in the direction of the gaze of one eye.
informal a quick or casual look.
an oblique opening through a wall in a church permitting a view of the altar.
■ adjective chiefly Scottish not straight or level.

squinter noun
squinty adjective

C16: shortening of asquint.
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Concise Oxford Thesaurus
squint
▶ verb
the sun made them squint: SCREW UP ONE’S EYES, narrow one’s eyes, peer, blink.
he has squinted from birth: BE CROSS-EYED, have a squint, suffer from strabismus; Scottish be skelly; Brit. informal be boss-eyed.
▶ noun
(informal) we must have another squint at his record card: LOOK, glance, peep, peek, glimpse; view, examination, study, inspection, scan, sight; informal eyeful, dekko, butcher’s, gander, look-see, once-over, shufti.
does he have a squint?: CROSS-EYES, strabismus; Brit. informal boss-eye.
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Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary
1squint
Pronunciation: ‘skwint
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English asquint
Date: 1579

1 of an eye : looking or tending to look obliquely or askance (as with envy or disdain)
2 of the eyes : not having the visual axes parallel : CROSSED
2squint
Function: intransitive verb
Date: 1599

1 a : to have an indirect bearing, reference, or aim b : to deviate from a true line
2 a : to look in a squint-eyed manner b : to be cross-eyed c : to look or peer with eyes partly closed
transitive verb : to cause (an eye) to squint
–squint·er noun
–squint·ing·ly \’skwin-tiŋ-lē\ adverb
3squint
Function: noun
Date: circa 1652

1 : STRABISMUS
2 : an instance of squinting
3 : HAGIOSCOPE
–squinty \’skwin-tē\ adjective
stra·bis·mus
Pronunciation: strə-‘biz-məs
Function: noun
Etymology: New Latin, from Greek strabismos condition of squinting, from strabizein to squint, from strabos squint-eyed; akin to Greek strephein to twist
Date: circa 1684

: inability of one eye to attain binocular vision with the other because of imbalance of the muscles of the eyeball ― called also squint ― compare CROSS-EYE
–stra·bis·mic \-mik\ adjective

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary
snafu
sna’fu:, ‘snafu:
informal

■ noun a confused or chaotic state; a mess.
■ verb N. Amer. throw into chaos.

1940s: acronym from situation normal: all fouled (or fucked) up.
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EngMac
snafu
adj. amer. inf. хаотичен, збркан
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Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary
1sna·fu
Pronunciation: sna-‘fü, ‘sna-ˌfü
Function: noun
Etymology: situation nounormal all fucked up (fouled up)
Date: circa 1941

: a situation marked by errors or confusion : MUDDLE also : an error causing such a situation
2snafu
Function: adjective
Date: 1942

: snarled or stalled in confusion : AWRY
3snafu
Function: transitive verb
Date: 1943

: to bring into a state of confusion

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary
sprawl
■ verb
sit, lie, or fall with one’s limbs spread out in an ungainly way.
spread out irregularly over a large area.
■ noun
a sprawling position or movement.
a sprawling group or mass. ▶the disorganized expansion of an urban or industrial area into the adjoining countryside.

sprawling noun & adjective
sprawlingly adverb

OE spreawlian ‘move the limbs convulsively’.
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Concise Oxford Thesaurus
sprawl
▶ verb
he sprawled on a sofa: STRETCH OUT, lounge, loll, lie, recline, drape oneself, slump, flop, slouch.
the town sprawled ahead of them: SPREAD, stretch, extend, be strung out, be scattered, straggle, spill.
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Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary
1sprawl
Pronunciation: ‘sprȯl
Function: verb
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English sprēawlian
Date: before 12th century

intransitive verb
1 a archaic : to lie thrashing or tossing about b : to creep or clamber awkwardly
2 : to lie or sit with arms and legs spread out
3 : to spread or develop irregularly or without restraint
transitive verb : to cause to spread out carelessly or awkwardly
2sprawl
Function: noun
Date: 1598

1 : the act, posture, or condition of sprawling
2 : an irregularly spread or scattered group or mass
3 : URBAN SPRAWL
urban sprawl
Function: noun
Date: 1956

: the spreading of urban developments (as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary
cringe
krɪn(d)ʒ
■ verb (cringes, cringing, cringed)
bend one’s head and body in fear or apprehension or in a servile manner.
experience an inward shiver of embarrassment or disgust.
■ noun an act of cringing.

cringer noun

ME crenge, crenche, related to OE cringan, crincan ‘bend, yield, fall in battle’, of Gmc origin and related to crank1.
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Concise Oxford Thesaurus
cringe
▶ verb
she cringed as he bellowed in her ear: COWER, shrink, recoil, shy away, flinch, blench, draw back; shake, tremble, quiver, quail, quake.
it makes me cringe when I think of it: WINCE, shudder, squirm, feel embarrassed/mortified.
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Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary
1cringe
Pronunciation: ‘krinj
Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form: cringed ; cring·ing
Etymology: Middle English crengen; akin to Old English cringan to yield, Middle High German krank weak
Date: 13th century

1 : to draw in or contract one’s muscles involuntarily (as from cold or pain)
2 : to shrink in fear or servility
3 : to behave in an excessively humble or servile way
4 : to recoil in distaste
synonyms see FAWN
–cring·er noun
2cringe
Function: noun
Date: 1597

: a cringing act specifically : a servile bow

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Concise Oxford English Dictionary
bridle
■ noun
the headgear used to control a horse, consisting of buckled straps to which a bit and reins are attached.
Nautical a mooring cable.
■ verb
put a bridle on.
bring under control.
show resentment or anger.

OE brīdel (n.), brīdlian (v.), of Gmc origin.
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Concise Oxford Thesaurus
bridle
▶ noun a horse’s bridle: HARNESS, headgear.
▶ verb
she bridled at his tone: BRISTLE, take offence, take umbrage, be affronted, be offended, get angry.
he bridled his indignation: CURB, restrain, hold back, control, check, rein in/back; suppress, stifle; informal keep a/the lid on.
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Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary
bridle path
Function: noun
Date: 1811

: a trail suitable for horseback riding
1bri·dle
Pronunciation: ‘brī-dəl
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English bridel, from Old English brīdel; akin to Old English bregdan to move quickly ― more at BRAID
Date: before 12th century

1 : the headgear with which a horse is governed and which carries a bit and reins
2 : a length of line or cable attached to two parts of something to spread the force of a pull especially : rigging on a kite for attaching line
3 : CURB, RESTRAINT
2bridle
Function: verb
Inflected Form: bri·dled ; bri·dling \’brīd-liŋ, ‘brī-dəl-iŋ\
Date: before 12th century

transitive verb
1 : to put a bridle on
2 : to restrain, check, or control with or as if with a bridle
intransitive verb : to show hostility or resentment (as to an affront to one’s pride or dignity) especially by drawing back the head and chin
synonyms see RESTRAIN

meritocracy ˌmɛrɪ’tɒkrəsi ■ noun (plural meritocracies) government by people selected according to merit. ▶a society governed by meritocracy. ▶a ruling or influential class of educated people. meritocrat noun meritocratic -tə’kratɪk adjective … EngMac meritocracy меритократија … Merriam-Webster Collegiate® Dictionary mer·i·toc·ra·cy Pronunciation: ˌmer-ə-‘tä-krə-sē Function: noun Inflected Form: plural -cies Etymology: 1merit + -o- + -cracy Date: 1958 1 : a system in which the talented are chosen and moved ahead on the basis of their achievement 2 : leadership selected on the basis of intellectual criteria –mer·it·o·crat·ic \ˌmer-ə-tə-‘kra-tik\ adjective