I had never been a big fan of the letter "u." I tolerated it for years when I had a "q" in Scrabble and would hope and hope I would get a u to make a word. The rabid Scrabble player in me eventually learned that so many "q words" are just fine without a u. It went back into disfavor.
Suddenly, I am rethinking my bias against the letter. It's not interesting when the word starts with "un" or "under." Uncomfortable simply means not comfortable. Unskilled means not skilled. Underfunded means having too little money. Underwater means under the water. Yawn.
But some great "u words" are out there, and each has a u or two.
◼️ Ululate.
For one, this word just sounds cool. It's a long, extended, energetic vocal sound one releases to show sadness or happiness. I find it interesting that the sound can represent both good and bad feelings. But I guess we have tears of joy and tears of sorrow. The dictionary also calls it a "howl." Though I nearly always like the shorter word, I would say "ululate" has far more character.
I might not have heard anyone ululate in person. I guess I have heard some do so on TV. It's memorable. This video recorded for an African tourism contest in 2015 has inspiring examples.
◼️ Undulate.
"Undulate" is sort of the physical version of ululate. It's when an object sways back and forth, or waves. It comes from the Latin word for "wave."
The Washington Post described Super Bowl halftime singer Shakira's "undulating pelvic gyrations" during her performance.
Also in football, at the AFC championship game, when the Chiefs defeated the Titans, "Arrowhead Stadium was a huge undulating dash of color in the otherwise dun-colored tundra, a field frozen hard by a 5-degree wind chill."
Pretty poetic for sports, no?
And one more from The Washington Post:
"Xishuangbanna is a lush, fertile region of undulating green hills and tea plantations, banana fields, rice paddies and rainforest."
That's one versatile word.
◼️ Ukulele.
The ukulele is that mini-guitar that gained popularity in Hawaii in the 19th century, although it originated in Portugal. Depending on your age, you've seen the ukulele played by either American falsetto singer Tiny Tim ("Tiptoe Through the Tulips") or Hawaiian singer Israel Kamakawiwo'ole ("Somewhere Over the Rainbow").
You know how you type questions into Google and usually get suggestions for your questions? When I looked into the ukulele's history, this question popped up: "Why was the ukulele invented?" Not "when" is it invented, but "why." Ouch, that's cold.
In Portugal, the instrument had been called a "braguinha." More than one story tells how it received the name we know it by now in Hawaiian. A British official named Edward Purvis served in the court of Hawaiian King Kalakaua. Purvis was a "sprightly, lively fellow" who was also small. These traits earned him the nickname "ukulele," which is Hawaiian for "jumping flea." He somehow became associated with the tiny guitar, so people started called the instrument "jumping flea," also.
Another guess is that the player's fingers jump over the ukulele strings like a flea.
◼️ Uvula.
The uvula is that little thing you can see at the top of the back of your throat when you say "aaaahhhh" in the mirror. It's a funny name, to be sure. It comes from a Latin root for a bunch of grapes. That's a pretty sparse bunch of grapes.
◼️ Ubiquitous.
This is one of my favorite words. Its root word, "ubiquity," came along about two centuries before "ubiquitous." It's from Latin for "everywhere." In searching The Washington Post website, I found a ubiquity of "ubiquitous." Everything from cellphones to Danish butter cookies' blue tins were called ubiquitous.
◼️ Usurp.
This means to seize a thing, and that thing you seize is something you don't have a right to. It's not like when you take a bite of your dining partner's chocolate mousse pie when he's not looking. It's more like taking over a throne or some authority.
Usurping has been in the news in the past year or so. For example:
"One year ago, [Juan Guaidó] declared President Nicolás Maduro a usurper for claiming victory in tainted elections and declared himself Venezuela's rightful leader — an assertion based on Guaidó's status as head of the assembly."
◼️ Usury.
This means to loan money at high interest rates. I think I learned this word from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. The usurer in the play was Shylock, and that name has also come to mean loan shark. Usury still exists, but it's used more as a legal term. Lots of states have passed laws to limit the interest rate on loans from payday loan companies and other predatory lenders.
OK, enough about "u."
CHEESE IT
I guess this is an old-fashioned phrase. Suppose two people are trying to burglarize a store. One is the lookout while the second is trying to break into the back entrance. The police show up, and the lookout might say, "Cheese it." That's a short version of, "Stop what you're doing. The police are coming."
It's also used to tell someone to be quiet.
A couple of sources, including World Wide Words, found of examples in literature when the phrase it used.
But I could find no source that could say why the phrase came to be.
HIC
One reader sent in a fun euphemism for "drunk": overserved.
"The man was overserved."
I guess that could also be a euphemism for "absolutely stuffed."
Sources include Merriam-Webster, The Washington Post, Mainland Ukuleles, World Wide Words. Reach Bernadette at
bkwordmonger@gmail.com
Style on 02/17/2020