Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Wordy Wednesday

Welcome to another Wordy Wednesday where we delve deep into the wonderful world of the English language to learn new and/or fascinating words. Today's edition features a relatively new word, only added to the online edition of the Oxford English dictionary in August 2013, and is dedicated to the quintessential British beauty Anne. If not for her abundant love for this enjoyable word I might not ever have known of it.

The word: Omnishambles

Compounded by the Latin word 'omni', meaning 'all', and shambles, referring to a state of utter anarchy. A shambolic (another delectable word) situation that has been mismanaged and made into an epic disaster thanks to miscalculations, blunders and (coarsely put) fuck ups.

First used in the British television program called The Thick Of It in 2009, Omnishambles quickly gained popularity, which isn't surprising considering how it rolls of the tongue with such ease. You may even remember the term Romneyshambles being coined for Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential election. Interestingly enough, this was the same year omnishambles voted Word Of The Year by the Oxford English Dictionary. Coincidence? I think not.

Despite how fun it is to say, I think we can all agree on the relevance of this word, specifically when we consider the state of the world and the catastrophe we call politics. Of course, there is another word one could use that would trump omnishambles. Clusterfuck. Pardon the language, but that one's perfection. 

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