Question of the Day #1472

Mark Meadows' alleged crimes are far worse than Nixon hatchet man HR Haldeman's, says expert on White House chiefs of staff

From the headline of this article at Business Insider.

  上記の文で、hatchet manの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "hatchet man" mean?

  答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によると、

1. 批評家
2. 殺し屋、刺客
3. 〔上役の代わりに〕嫌な仕事をする人
4. 憎まれ役、企業の整理屋

   

Answer

According to :

1. one hired for murder, coercion, or attack
2.              
                
   1. a writer specializing in invective
                
   2. a person hired to perform underhanded or unscrupulous tasks (as to ruin someone's reputation)
                

 

Examples

1. They reckoned he was a hatchet man, out to shred the workforce and crush the union.
2. While he was sent by the White House to be a hatchet man, Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon, should use a scalpel with care, conducting a real, legitimate probe that seeks ways to save money for taxpayers and improve outcomes for patients. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 13 Mar. 2026
3. Back home, more pink slips for federal employees go out and the scrutiny of Elon Musk's role as the hatchet man for those agencies intensifies. — CBS News, 16 Feb. 2025
4. Wang delivered spectacularly, becoming the leader’s indispensable hatchet man. - From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026
5. The fence said Dad had run him out, but I think the real reason was he had done his job for the steel company as the designated hatchet man. - From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

   

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Question of the Day #1471

Why you can’t tread water when inflation is persistently high

From the headline of this article at McKinsey & Company.

  上記の文で、tread waterの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "tread water" mean?

  答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によると、

1. 立ち泳ぎをする
2. 無益にすごす

このイディオムは、「立ち泳ぎをする」ことを他の状況に当てはめているので、下記英語の定義（「現状維持にはなるが、目標への前進はほとんどない努力を費やす」）の方が「無益にすごす」より的確です。

また、下記例文にあるように「現状維持する」の意味で使用されることはかなりあります。


 

Answer

According to Dictionary.com:

Expend effort that maintains one's status but does not make much progress toward a goal

 

Examples

1. Stock prices continued to tread water this week.
2. I could either tread water until I was promoted, or I could change what I was doing.
3. This means that working people are effectively treading water between income bumps and rising prices. — Sheldon H. Jacobson, Washington Post, 30 Sep. 2026
4. Until further policy pronouncements on Iran are made, expect oil prices to tread water. - From Barron's ● Jan. 13, 2026
5. Fennell’s eye for image-making is her greatest directorial strength; it’s what keeps her films afloat even when their screenplays struggle to tread water. - From Salon ● Feb. 14, 2026

   

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Question of the Day #1470

The upgraded case features Adaptive Snore Masking technology, allowing the Sleep A30 to help to block out a partner, "sawing wood or chopping logs" on the other side of the bed.

From the 2nd paragraph of this article at Audio Xpress.

  上記の文で、saw woodの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "saw wood" mean?

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Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によると、

〈米話〉いびきをかく

Saw logsともいいます。  

Answer

According to Vocabulary.com:

(verb) breathe noisily during one's sleep

 

Examples

1. Like they’re not just here because it’s fun to saw wood. -
Wayward Creatures by Dayna Lorentz
2. Vice President Dawes clenched his pipe in a grin and said he would "saw wood."
- Time Magazine Archive
3. He also popularized such icons as speed lines, seeing stars for pain, and sawing wood for snoring. - Retrieved from Wikipedia CC BY-SA 3.0 
4. Once I found out my boyfriend sawed wood at night, I knew I had to break up with him.
5. Jake, roll over on your side, you're sawing wood again!

   

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Question of the Day #1469

'Mogging' is Collins' word of the year... but do you know what it means?

From the headline of this article at the BBC.

  上記の文で、moggingの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "mogging" mean?

  答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によると、

【形】
〈俗〉〔外見・体格・能力などの点で〕他人より優れている［優位に立つ］、他人を上回る［圧倒する］◆【動】mog

下記のCollins Dictionaryの説明を訳すと、

Moggingとは、誰か(何か)を圧倒する、あるいは凌駕するという意味で、Collins Dictionaryの2026年のWorld of the Yearに選ばれました。この急速に広まっているスラングは、Z世代やα世代の間で誰かが主役の座を奪われたときに、遊び心や皮肉を込めて使われることが増えています。Moggingは今年、一般的に定着し、ネット上で広く使われ、若い世代の日常会話の一部となっています。

 

Answer

According to the Collins Dictionary:

‘Mogging’, meaning to outshine or outperform someone or something, has been named Collins’ Word of the Year for 2026. This fast-growing slang word is increasingly used by both Gen Z and Gen Alpha in a playful and ironic way when someone is upstaged. ‘Mogging’ has firmly entered mainstream language this year, becoming widely used online and a part of everyday conversation among younger generations.

 

Examples

1. Mogging Noel Deyzel, the IFBB Pro Heavyweight bodybuilder standing 6’2 and weighing 287 pounds, will definitely require a person with a better and more massive physique. But no one would have expected that the fitness influencer’s mother would be the one ‘mogging’ him.
— Karan Yadav, Essentially Sports, 5 Apr. 2024
2. With the rise of social media, where everyone is constantly sizing up everyone else, the desire to mog (or not be mogged) has seeped into daily life. — Tara Price, Neon Music, 15 Apr. 2024
3. … this was a historical event the way he [Korean musical artist Choi Seung-hyun] showed up and mogged everyone so effortlessly
— @choiseunghuyns, X (formerly Twitter), 19 Jan. 2025
4. Despite its longtime usage on social media, “mog” began making headlines this week thanks to an incident involving an influencer named Braden Peters, ala “Clavicular,” who was allegedly “frame-mogged” by a frat member at Arizona State University.
5. The term "mogging" recently entered the mainstream by way of a viral meme to explain when someone is outperformed. Experts say the phrase is born out of far-right internet forums and warrants examination.

   

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Question of the Day #1468

Don’t waste your time with snooty wine. Drink “glou glou” instead

From the headline of this article at Quartz.

  上記の文で、snootyの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "snooty" mean?

  答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によると、

【形】

1. 〈話〉高慢な、横柄な
2. 〈話〉〔気位が高くて〕排他的な、閉鎖的な

変化《形》snootier ｜ snootiest

   

Answer

According to Merriam-Webster:

1. looking down the nose : showing disdain
2. characterized by snobbery

 

Examples

1. Some snooty girl in a poncho takes a seat next to her in the lobby. — Christian Allaire, Vogue, 25 Sep. 2023
2. Compared to Cannes, Venice is more relaxed—its screening schedule not so densely packed, its staff not quite as snooty, its dress codes more lax. — Richard Lawson, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Sep. 2026
3. In the box office sensation Animal House (1978), directed by John Landis, Weller sparkled as the snooty Mandy, who’s dating the arrogant Omega House chapter president Gregory Marmalard (James Daughton). — Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2026
4. Recent trends pairing caviar with chicken nuggets and hot dogs had already created something of an identity crisis for the snooty food. - From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
5. The Oscars will never be the place for snooty cinephiles like myself to exercise our theories and pet squabbles. - From New York Times ● Jan. 24, 2024
 

   

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Question of the Day #1467

Trauma bonding: "I was lovebombed by a friend"

From the headline of this article at Cosmopolitan.

  上記の文で、lovebombの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "lovebomb" mean?

  答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
英辞郎には、Love bombとして掲載されていますが、同じです。

〈米俗〉大げさに愛情を表現すること◆【直訳】愛の爆弾

Lovebombやlove bombの他に、love-bombと書くこともあります。
なお、下記英語の定義にあるように、lovebombの目的はしばしば人を操るためです。

 

Answer

According to Dictionary.com:

Verb (used with object) Informal. Also, love-bomb. to shower with gushy displays of affection, often for the purpose of manipulation.

 

Examples

1. Romantic partners, family, and friends can love bomb you as a form of manipulation and psychological abuse.
2. They are going to have to love-bomb her if they want her to take the job.
3. Your new partner showers you with gifts and compliments: is it love or are you being love bombed?
4. If someone were to "love bomb" me, I will be running a mile. - From BBC ● Feb. 13, 2023
5. I’d love bomb them or bombard them with messages. - From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2021

   

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Question of the Day #1466

Are you ‘maxxing’ life to the fullest? Dictionary.com’s 2026 Word of the Year 

From the headline of this article at The Baptist Paper.

  上記の文で、maxxingの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "maxxing" mean?

  答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

 

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解答

意味：
Yahoo!ニュースによると、

Dictionary.comはmaxxingを、「ある活動をとことん追求したり、生活のある側面を最適化したりすること」と定義している。

リンクの記事にもっと詳しい説明があります。

 

Answer

According to Dictionary.com:

Maxxing (sometimes -maxxing) is short for “maximizing.” This trendy term can be used on its own or added to the end of any word to convey you’re doing something to the fullest or optimizing it as much as possible. 

 

Examples

1. Maxxing derives from gamer jargon min-maxing, which means optimizing a character in role play or video game for the best chance at success.
2. The term is popular with Gen Z and Gen Alpha, but you’ll also hear older generations use maxxing online and in real life, whether they’re referencing a popular trend or throwing the suffix on the end of literally any word to be a little cheeky.
3. Similar to the slang “in my __ era,” maxxing has proliferated in language to the point that it may have lost its meaning.
4. -Maxxing (sometimes spelled -maxing) describes the practice of optimizing a specific aspect of one's life, often to an extreme degree.
5. While -maxxing originated in niche online communities (such as the manosphere), it has since spread across mainstream social media; it is now used humorously or ironically in a variety of settings.

   

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