Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Fun Stuff Shamelessly Pilfered from Twitter

Bryan Garner, author of "Garner's Modern American Usage," tweeted this morning:

Two of my favorite words: "ultracrepidarian" and "mumpsimus." They're closely related.

ultracrepidarian = one who pretends to greater knowledge than he or she actually possesses; esp., a know-nothing know-it-all.

mumpsimus = one who persists in error despite irrefutable correction. President. G.W. Bush was a mumpsimus when it came to saying "nuclear."


Neither Webster's New World College Dictionary nor Merriam-Webster contained either word. But Dictionary.com had 'em: ultracrepidarian

mumpsimus

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