mikhail epstein's definitions
dislove verb transitive (prefix dis + love; cf. dislike, disapprove) Ð to have a deep negative feeling, attraction-through-aversion to smbd.
"Dislove" is a deeper feeling than "dislike," it is not just a matter of taste, but of personal relationship. It is addressed to individuals rather than to inanimate entities. Dislove implies a strong negative emotional connection to its object.
"Dislove" is a deeper feeling than "dislike," it is not just a matter of taste, but of personal relationship. It is addressed to individuals rather than to inanimate entities. Dislove implies a strong negative emotional connection to its object.
by Mikhail Epstein November 7, 2003
Get the dislove mug.dunch n (blend of "lunch" and "dinner"; cf. brunch) - a small meal between lunch and dinner in the late afternoon or early evening (about 3- 5 pm.).
This is a more appropriate word for an intermediate meal that once suggested "linner," because it is more similar to lunch than to dinner and is more brief (one syllable). It also follows the model of the neologism for another intermediate (or combined) meal - "brunch."
This is a more appropriate word for an intermediate meal that once suggested "linner," because it is more similar to lunch than to dinner and is more brief (one syllable). It also follows the model of the neologism for another intermediate (or combined) meal - "brunch."
Dunch usually includes tea or coffee with cookies, sometimes a sandwich.
For tomorrow, I have already scheduled lunch and dinner with my colleagues. Let's have a dunch together.
For tomorrow, I have already scheduled lunch and dinner with my colleagues. Let's have a dunch together.
by Mikhail Epstein November 8, 2003
Get the dunch mug.happicle n (happy + diminutive suffix Ðicle, like in "particle," "icicle") Ð a particle of happiness, the smallest unit of happiness; a single happy occurrence or a momentary feeling of happiness.
There is no happiness in this world, but there are happicles. Sometimes we can catch them, fleeting and unpredictable as they are.
Like photons, happicles have zero mass at rest--the inertial mass that we identify with happiness. Happicles just flash and go out in passing. They may be as transitory as a fragrance in the air, or a yellow falling leaf, or a glance of a passerby on the street.
Happicles make life worth of living, even in the absence of stable happiness.
Like photons, happicles have zero mass at rest--the inertial mass that we identify with happiness. Happicles just flash and go out in passing. They may be as transitory as a fragrance in the air, or a yellow falling leaf, or a glance of a passerby on the street.
Happicles make life worth of living, even in the absence of stable happiness.
by Mikhail Epstein November 8, 2003
Get the happicle mug.traf v (back-formation from traffic) - to drive in heavy traffic, to be held in traffic, to trail in slow traffic.
Back-formation is the creation of a simpler or shorter form from a pre-existing more complex form: "edit" from "editor," "intuit from intuition."
Now, "traf" from "traffic."
I traffed for an hour before I could get home.
I've been traffing for two hours before I could even stop by a gas station to have a cup of coffee.
Now, "traf" from "traffic."
I traffed for an hour before I could get home.
I've been traffing for two hours before I could even stop by a gas station to have a cup of coffee.
by Mikhail Epstein November 8, 2003
Get the traf (verb, from "traffic") mug.scientify verb transitive (science + suffix ify, from Latin -ficare and -facere, to make or do) - to make smth more scientific, to subject to scientific views, rules and concepts.
He has tried hard to scientify his paper, but it still remains a provocative essay rather than a consistent argument.
She has scientified her diet and as a result got a distaste for food.
She has scientified her diet and as a result got a distaste for food.
by Mikhail Epstein November 9, 2003
Get the scientify mug.chronocide n (Greek khronos, time + Latin cidum, from caedere, to slay; cf. genocide, homicide, parricide) - the murder of time, the violent interruption of historical succession and continuity.
Any revolution is a form of chronocide: the past and present are sacrificed to the future. Any counterrevolution is also a chronocide: the present and the future are sacrificed to the past.
Communism is a chronocide: it destroys the tradition in its leap to the ungrounded future.
Fascism is a chronocide: it brings the society under the spell of the archaic past.
Communism is a chronocide: it destroys the tradition in its leap to the ungrounded future.
Fascism is a chronocide: it brings the society under the spell of the archaic past.
by Mikhail Epstein November 9, 2003
Get the chronocide mug.chronomania n (Greek khronos, time + Greek mania, obsession, madness; cf. megalomania, balletomania) - obsession with time and speed; inclination to utilize every moment and to submit one's life to a total time control.
America suffers from chronomania. Faster, faster, faster! Why not to stop and to look in tranquility where we stand and into which future we have been rushing headlong.
Chronomania may become dangerous for your mental health. Try to find a different focus of life, apart from schedules and deadlines.
Chronomania may become dangerous for your mental health. Try to find a different focus of life, apart from schedules and deadlines.
by Mikhail Epstein November 9, 2003
Get the chronomania mug.