Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Wednesday Wordage Odd Man Out Edition

Busy as heck today. 

Which one is the odd one out?
a) shampoo
b) khaki
c) juggernaut
d) panjandrum
e) pundit

Highlight for the answer:  It's d, Panjandrum.  The others entered the English language through the Raj--"shampoo" is from a Hindi word meaning "to press," which became part of a massage and bath; "khaki" is an Urdu word for "dust colored"; "Juggernaut" is from a word for a float in Hindu religious parades, under the wheels of which devotees were (allegedly) ready to throw themselves, and "pundit" is derived from "pandit," an honorific for teachers or masters of a craft.  "Panjandrum" was apparently made up from whole cloth by a guy named Samuel Foote in the middle of the 18th century.  
 Back to work. 

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