Cavil

cavil
verb, intransitive. To make petty or unnecessary objections. Also a noun, meaning an objection of this kind.

Josh tore his eyes away from the sunlit view out the conference-room window. Looking at it would do nothing but distract him more than he already was. The weather had been ideal when he arrived at the office forty minutes ago. He could almost feel the breeze now, here, as his supervisor droned his way through his report. Josh would rather have been outside, his legs pumping as his bike began to mount a hill, anticipating the elated feeling he would have when he reached the summit, slicked with sweat, air searing his windpipe as he made that final effort.

But for now, no. Better not to think of that, if he could manage it. He turned not only his head, but his upper body away from the window and tried to focus on the people around the table. Carol had raised a question about a statement Drew--Josh's supervisor--had made in his report. As Josh listened, he realized that, even though Drew's description of the facts had been accurate, Carol was complaining about his wording. What a waste of time! What difference did it make, when everyone knew what Drew had meant? Again, Josh wondered why he had been called to this meeting. He knew he had better things to do than listen to two lower-management types cavil about adjectives.

He kept his eyes away from the view and listened, however. It wouldn't do to be caught daydreaming about cycling when they finally got around to telling him why he was here. He needed this job, no matter how much he disliked it.

Definitions adapted from The New Oxford American Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 (eBook Edition, copyright 2008), and from Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Company, Publishers, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, 1965, depending on which is more convenient to hand.

Bloviate

bloviate
verb. To talk at length, especially in an inflated or empty way.

John and Donna settled into their recliners for the national evening news. They had arrived home from work half an hour ago. Donna had turned off the crock pot and put rolls into the oven. Supper would be ready in ten minutes. Both were looking forward to enjoying it while catching up on the day's events.

After a brief introduction, the host announced that the President would be making a special announcement. Donna sighed inwardly and began to cast about for something she could use as a distraction. She was so tired of that man and his empty, self-aggrandizing speeches. How he had gotten re-elected was beyond her. Simply beyond.

John expressed what she was feeling, out loud and in terms no one could mistake: "Not again! He never says anything worth hearing. Why do they give him time on the news when so much is happening in the world that's important--worth learning about?" He settled into his chair, fuming, the bliss of being home after the workday spoiled.

Donna looked at her knitting, but decided to leave it in the basket for now. She would have to get the rolls out in a few minutes anyway.

"Try the other channels," she suggested.

John picked up the remote and clicked through the major networks. All were airing national news now and all were showing the leader making his speech. John set down the remote resignedly.

"Do you want me to turn it off?"

"I guess not. Maybe, for once, he'll say something we need to know."

She might have saved her breath. The man on the screen bloviated, as usual, on a topic she and John had discussed at length over the past two weeks. Despite new information they had taken into account, the speech might as well have been made a month ago. Once this leader fixed on a position, he rarely changed it. To John and Donna's chagrin, his decisions almost never agreed with what they thought would be the best course for the country.

Definitions adapted from The New Oxford American Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 (eBook Edition, copyright 2008), and from Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Company, Publishers, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, 1965, depending on which is more convenient to hand.

Abet

abet
verb, transitive. To encourage or assist someone to do something wrong, in particular, to commit a crime or other offense.

Jill motioned Jason to the window. "Have you ever seen them do this?"

She was referring to the actions of their two dogs, who were trotting across the lawn in what could almost be described as a grid pattern, their noses low to the ground.

Jason nodded. "It's called 'casting.' It's hunting behavior. They found a faint scent and they're trying to find its strongest traces. As a team, they're abetting each other. It's much more efficient than what a dog can do working alone."

"I wonder what they're after," Jill mused, her face leaning close to the glass.

"Probably a rabbit."

"I never had a dog when I was a kid," she told him. "I'm glad we got these two. The more I live with them, the more awesome they become."

Jason smiled and hugged her from behind. "I'm glad you feel that way. I can't imagine living without a dog or two."

"Didn't you have ... like ... six?"

"Oh, sure!" The memory brought out his northern Florida accent. "It wasn't necessarily a good idea. There were times when Mom and Dad couldn't afford dog food. We would feed them okra then."

"Okra!" Jill drew away from the window and half-turned so she could address him face to face. "I've never heard of such a thing. And they ate it?"

Jason was nodding and smiling fondly as he remembered. "They not only ate it, they seemed to like it better than the commercial food, and," he moved forward and pecked her on the lips, "they thrived on it."

Definitions adapted from The New Oxford American Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 (eBook Edition, copyright 2008), and from Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Company, Publishers, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, 1965, depending on which is more convenient to hand.

Zigzag

zigzag
verb, intransitive. To have or move along in a zigzag course, alternating direction. Also a noun, adjective or adverb.

The women paused after emerging from the trees that had blocked the prospect before them until then. The trail zigzagged up the slope--a tracing on the mountain--until it disappeared into a patch of boulders. Trees were few on the mountainside, casting little shade on the trail, that they could see.

"There it is," Leah stated, shrugging to adjust her pack's load. "It looks even worse than I heard."

"Are you sure we shouldn't just camp here?" Carly's voice held a faint whining note. "We could get a fresh start in the morning."

Leah gave her a stony look. "The others are waiting, remember? They'll probably have dinner ready by the time we climb that and join them. The only food you and I are carrying right now are a few snacks and our water. I don't know about you, but I want a real meal this evening."

She turned her eyes to the daunting view ahead. They were going to be exhausted by the time they reached the alpine meadow that they had been told lay at the end of the trail and on the far side of the eminence it traversed. There was no other way to join the rest of the party except to get started. The buddy system was inviolate. Leah would not leave Carly; nor would she submit to her companion's lazy impulse. Besides condemning them to a punishing climb in the morning after an inadequate meal, doing so would worry the rest of the group needlessly.

"I guess you're right. I know you're right," Carly sighed. She, too, hunched her shoulders and fiddled with her pack's waist strap. Then, to Leah's surprise, she took a deep breath and started toward the foot of the trail.

Definitions adapted from The New Oxford American Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 (eBook Edition, copyright 2008), and from Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Company, Publishers, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, 1965, depending on which is more convenient to hand.

Yaw

yaw
verb, intransitive. To twist or oscillate about a vertical axis. Also a noun.

The red-tailed hawk hunted low, skimming across a fence that bordered a pasture, then a gravel lane, then another fence before it swooped up and took rest on the branch of an oak. Its perch was well-chosen: it was cloaked in masses of leaves and could not be seen from the ground. Throughout its passage, it had not uttered a sound.


With a shrill cry, it left its blind on the tree and flew in a different direction toward an open glade carpeted with tall grass. Finding no prey, it flexed its tail and yawed. It slowly ascended a thermal column, spiraling upward until it was no more noticeable to an earthbound viewer than a sparrow might have been.

Definitions adapted from The New Oxford American Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 (eBook Edition, copyright 2008), and from Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Company, Publishers, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, 1965, depending on which is more convenient to hand.

Xerox

xerox
verb, transitive. To copy a document by the xerographic copying process. Also a proper noun.

"Have you xeroxed that report yet?" Gloria, Anne's boss, sounded annoyed even though Anne had not yet answered the question.

"No, ma'am." Anne hunched closer to the machine's keypad, hoping that Gloria would take the statement at face value and continue down the hall to her office. She should have known better than to indulge in such a hope. The days when Gloria wasn't a bitch numbered only about one or two per month.

"Why not?" The intonation of the question was so flat it didn't even sound like a question.

Anne took a deep breath. "Something's wrong."

Gloria stepped closer. "With the machine, or with you?"

Anne felt her temper stir. "Both, I guess. I must have pushed the wrong key. It seems to be stalled ... thinking ... I don't know what's wrong. If I did, maybe I could have fixed it by now."

Her boss was silent for so long that Anne risked looking at her. Gloria was frowning at the machine's keypad herself. "This happened to me on Monday morning. It may be time to call the repairman." She sighed, no doubt thinking of the expense. They had decided not to sign a service contract. "But first," she went on, the hectoring tone returning to her voice, "try turning it off, waiting twenty seconds, then turning it back on." She gave Anne one of her rare, thin-lipped smiles. "Sometimes, when you do that, it heals itself."

Definitions adapted from The New Oxford American Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Inc., 2005 (eBook Edition, copyright 2008), and from Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam Company, Publishers, Springfield, Massachusetts, USA, 1965, depending on which is more convenient to hand.