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troglodyte: msg#00001

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Subject: troglodyte

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The Word of the Day for May 2 is:

troglodyte \TRAHG-luh-dyte\ noun
1 : a member of any of various peoples (as in antiquity) who lived or were
reputed to live chiefly in caves
*2 : a person characterized by reclusive habits or outmoded or reactionary
attitudes

Example sentence:
Eva regarded her parents as troglodytes because of their dislike for
modern music.

Did you know?
Peer into the etymological cave of "troglodyte" and you'll find a
"trogle." But don't be afraid. "Trogle" may sound like a scary cave-dwelling
ogre, but it's actually just a perfectly unintimidating Greek root that means
"hole" or "cave." Is "troglodyte" the only English word to have descended from
"trogle"? Not exactly. "Troglodyte" and its related adjective "troglodytic"
(meaning "of, related to, or being a troglodyte") are the only "trogle"
offspring that are widely used in general English contexts, but another
"trogle" progeny, the prefix "troglo-," meaning "cave-dwelling," is used in
scientific contexts to form words like "troglobiont" ("an animal living in or
restricted to caves").

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.







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