The Facts on File Dictionary of Foreign Words and Phrases (Writers Reference) (55 page)

opus Dei (opas tee) LATIN [work
of God] noun phrase God's work
(usuall), referring specifically to the
obligation of the human race to pay
worship to God); also the name of a
Roman Catholic organization founded
in Spain in 1928.

orangery (oranjree, orin(jree), orangerie FRENCH [from oranger orange
tree] noun a greenhouse, conservatory, or other structure suitable
for the cultivation of orange trees:
...the servant ... led him by way
of the orangery to my uncle's private
apartments" (Joseph Conrad, Some
Reminiscences) .

oratorio (or3toreeo) ITALIAN [after
the Oratory of St. Philip Neri in
Rome, from Latin oratorium oratory]
noun a variety of musical composition featuring full choir and orchestra, usually based on a religious or
biblical story and staged without
costumers or scenery: "The choir performs an oratorio in the local church at
Christmas every year."

ordre du jour (ordra doo zhoor)
FRENCH [order of the day] noun
phrase an agenda for a meeting or
day's proceedings.

oregano (hregano,orag_ahno) SPANISH
[wild marjoram] noun a perennial
mint (Origanum vulgare) used as seasoning or in the form of an aromatic
oil; can also refer to plants of the genera Lippia and Coleus.

organum (org2n5m) LATIN [from
Greek organon instrument or organ]
noun (plural organa, organa) (in
medieval music) a form of vocal harmonization in which a plainsong melody is combined with one, two, or
three other parts.

origami (orhgahmee) JAPANESE [paper
folding, from on fold and kami paper]
noun the Japanese art of folding
paper into the shape of birds or animals: "The art of origami is taught to
children throughout Japan starting at
primary school age."

osso bucco (oso booko) ITALIAN
[pierced bone] noun phrase (in Italian cuisine) a dish comprising a shin
of veal with marrowbone cooked in
wine.

O.S.P. See OBIIT SINE PROLE.

ossia (oseeh) ITALIAN [from o sia or
let it be] conjunction (in music) or
else, used to introduce an alternate
version of a section or passage.

ostinato (ostinahto) ITALIAN [obstinate, from Latin obstinatus] noun (plural
ostinatos orostinati, ostanahtee) (in music) a melodic passage that is
repeated throughout a musical composition. adjective repeated over and
over again, recurring.

Ostpolitik (ostpolitik) GERMAN [east
policy] noun politics dealing with
the countries of eastern Europe, formerly under Soviet domination.

o tempora! o mores! (o tempos o
mora),z) LATIN [o the times! o the
manners!, quoting the Catilinam of
Cicero (106-43 B.C.)] interjection oh
what times! what manners! (usually
lamenting the standards of the contemporary world).

ottava (otahv5) ITALIAN [octave]
adverb (in music) an octave higher
or lower than written. adjective
(in music) an octave higher or lower
than written.

ottava rima (Otahv5 reem5) ITALIAN
[octave rhyme] noun phrase (plural
ottava rimas, otaava reemaz) (in
heroic poetry) a stanza of eight-,
10-, or 11-syllable lines in which the
first six lines rhyme alternately and
the last two form a rhyming couplet:
"Wherefore, as a memorial of them, I
bought there several Legends of Female
Saints and Martyrs, and of other Ladies
quite the reverse, and held up as warnings; all of which are written in ottava
rima, and sold for three halfpence apiece"
(Thomas Carlyle, Life of John Sterling,
1851).

ottocento (otochento) ITALIAN [eight
hundred] noun the 19th century in
Italy, with particular reference to Italian culture of that period.

ottoman (otaman) FRENCH [probably from Italian ottomano, itself after
Osman, I founder of the Ottoman
Empire] noun an upholstered seat,
couch, or sofa, usually lacking a back;
may also refer to an upholstered footstool or to a variety of corded silk
or rayon fabric: "Take the armchair,
Miss Cuthbert. Anne, you sit here on the
ottoman and don't wiggle" (Luc), Maud
Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables,
1908).

oubliette (oobleeet) FRENCH [from
oublier to forget] noun a small dungeon with a trapdoor opening, in
which prisoners may be confined and
forgotten: "The royal prisoner was threatened with incarceration in the castle oubliette if he refused to sign the charter."

outrance (ootrahns) FRENCH [excess,
from outrer to pass beyond] noun the
last extremity, the utmost: "The battle
will be a 1'outrance, sith the said offence
was of a deadly sort, admitting of no composition" (Mark Twain, A Connecticut
Yankee in King Arthur's Court, 1889).

outre (ook) FRENCH [exaggerated,
past participle of outrer to carry to
excess] adjective bizarre, unconventional, eccentric: "The more outre and
grotesque an incident is the more carefully it deserves to be examined, and the very
point which appears to complicate a case
is, when duly considered and scientcally
handled, the one which is most likely to
elucidate it." (Arthur Conan Doyle, The
Hound of the Baskervilles, 1902).

OUZO (OOZO) GREEK noun an aniseed-flavored Greek liqueur.

OVUM (ovam) LATIN [egg] noun (plural
ova, ova) the female reproductive
egg, cell, or gamete.

oxymoron (okseemoran) GREEK [neuter of oxymoros pointedly foolish] noun

(plural oxymorons or oxymora,
okseemora) a saying, expression, or
word in which apparently contradictory elements or ideas are combined:
"The phrase a loving enemy' was just one of
several oxymorons that peppered his speech."

oyez (oyes, oyez, oiyay, oyay), oyes
FRENCH [hear ye, imperative plural of
oir, from Latin audire to hear] interjection hear this! (as uttered by town
criers, court officers, etc.).

oy vay (oi y) YIDDISH interjection
ejaculation expressing surprise, despair,
or delight.

p. See PIANO.

p.a. See PAR AVION; PER ANNUM.

PA. See PAR AVION.

pace (piasee, (chat' pahkay) LATIN
[with peace, ablative of pax peace]
preposition with all due respect to,
with due deference to.

pacha See PASHA.

pachuco (pachooko) SPANISH [flashily dressed] noun a Mexican American youth with a taste for fashionable
clothing (usuall), referring to members of Mexican American gangs); can
also refer to the slang argot used by
such gangs.

pachyderm (akiderm) GREEK [pachydermos thick-skinned] noun an elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, pig,
or other example of thick-skinned
nonruminant hoofed mammals.

pacifico (pasifiko) SPANISH [peaceful]
noun a person of peaceful character or intentions, a pacifist: `journalists
detected a waning in the influence of the
pac!cos in the senate."

paddy (adee) MALAY [from padi]
noun rice, or a piece of wetland in
which rice is grown.

padre (pkdra),, .(dree) SPANISH/
ITALIAN/PORTUGUESE [from Latin
pater father] noun a priest; often
referring to a chaplain in the armed
forces: "The padre was summoned to give
the dying man the last rites."

padrone (padronee) ITALIAN [protector, owner, from Latin patronus patron] noun (plural padrones,
padroneez, or padroni, padronee)
a master, boss, employer, or patron;
may also refer to an Italian hotel
proprietor or innkeeper: "But this:
that I, a confidential man and a Corsican, should have to ask your pardon for
bringing on board your vessel, of which I
was Padrone, a Cervoni, who has betrayed
you -a traitor) that is too much."
(Joseph Conrad, The Mirror of the Sea,
1906).

paean Ocean) GREEK [hymn of thanksgiving addressed to Apollo, from
Paian, the Greek name for Apollo]
noun a tribute or expression of
praise, triumph, or thanksgiving: "This
quickly took us out of range of Red-Eye,
and the last we saw of him was far out on
a point of land, where he was jumping up
and down and chanting a paean of victory"
(Jack London, Before Adam, 1906).

paedophilia See PEDOPHILIA.

paella (pa)A5, payay(l)a) SPANISH
[pot, pan, ultimately from Latin
patella small pan] noun (in Spanish
cuisine) a dish of rice, meat, seafood, and vegetables flavored with
saffron.

pagoda (pagoda) PORTUGUESE [temple, probably ultimately from Persian
butkada idol temple] noun a Buddhist
or Hindu temple or sacred building,
usually taking the form of a tower with
several stories and upcurving roofs;
can also refer to any other tower of a
similar design.

pain au chocolat (pan o shokalah)
FRENCH [bread with chocolate] noun
phrase a rectangular piece of flaky
pastry baked with chocolate inside: "We
bought fresh croissants and pain au chocolat
for breakfast"

paisan (pizahn) ITALIAN [from paisano
peasant] noun (informal) a fellow

countryman or friend, used as a term
of address between people of Italian
or Spanish origin: Hey, paisan! How
you loin'?"

paisano (pizahna) SPANISH [peasant,
from French paysan] noun a peasant
of Spanish or Italian origin; also used
as a term of address between people
of Spanish or Italian origin.

pak choi See sox CHOY.

pakora (pakora) HINDI [dish of vegetables in gram flour] noun an Indian
snack or appetizer consisting of pieces
of vegetable or meat in seasoned batter, deep-fried, and usually served
with a spicy dipping sauce.

paladin (paladin) FRENCH [from Italian paladino courtier, from Latin palatinus officer of the palace] noun a
heroic champion or knight errant:
"Stories are still told of the great deeds performed by the paladins of Charlemagne's
court"

palais de danse (palay da dons)
FRENCH [palace] noun phrase dance
palace, public ballroom. abbreviated
form palais.

palazzo (palatso) ITALIAN [from Latin
palatium palace] noun (plural palazzos
or palazzi, palatsee) a palace, mansion, or other large house in Italy, or in
the Italian style: "But, without this occupation, the life of Vronsky and ofAnna, who wondered at his loss of interest in it, struck
them as intolerably tedious in an Italian
town; the palazzo suddenly seemed so obtrusively old and dirty..." (Leo Tolstoy, Anna
Karenina, 1874-76).

palisade (pilasayd) FRENCH [from palissade, from Latin pal us stake] noun a
pointed stake or row of pointed stakes
used as a defensive barrier: "The river
slid along noiselessly as a shade, the swelling reeds and sedge forming a flexible
palisade upon its moist brink" (Thomas
Hardy, Far From the Madding Crowd,
1874).

palladium (palideeam) GREEK [palladion statue of Pallas Athena] noun
(plural palladiums or palladia,
palhdeea) a statue of Pallas Athena
that was venerated in classical times
as the guardian of Troy; since applied
to anything considered a safeguard or
protection.

palomino (paldmeeno) SPANISH [from
Latin palumbinus like a dove] noun a
horse with a tan-colored coat and white
mane and tail, or a light tan color.

pampas (Pampas) SPANISH [from
Quecha pampa plain] plural noun a
grassy plain, a prairie (usually referring specifically to the extensive
grasslands of South America): "There
are few cowboys working in the traditional way on the pampas of South
America today." May also refer to a
yellow-green color.

pan- (pan) GREEK [all] prefix all
or all-inclusive, e.g., panacea, panAmerican.

panacea (panaseed) GREEK [panakeia
cure-all, from panakes all-healing]
noun a remedy for all ills, a universal remedy, a cure-all: "Her faith in her
solution as a panacea for the world's ills
was touching but shortlived."

panache (panash) FRENCH [from Italian pennachio plume, tuft, ultimately
from Latin pinnaculum small wing]
noun a small tuft of feathers on a
hat or helmet and, by extension, flamboyance, style, verve, or confidence:
"They made their entrance with a certain
panache, swords jangling and capes flapping in the breeze."

panatela (panatela), panatella, panetela SPANISH [a long thin biscuit, ultimately from Latin panis bread] noun a
long, slender variety of cigar.

pancetta (pancheta) ITALIAN [diminutive of pancia belly, paunch] noun (in
Italian cuisine) a variety of unsmoked
bacon.

pandemic (pandemik) GREEK [pandemos of all the people] noun a
widespread outbreak, as of disease
or panic: "Fears were raised that the
cases already reported would inevitably
multiply and develop into a pandemic."
'"adjective widespread, worldwide,
universal.

pandemonium (pandamoneeam) GREEK
[evil spirit] noun hell, the infernal
regions; may also refer more generally to any state of uproar, disorder, or
tumult.

pandit See PUNDIT.

panegyric (panaj irik) GREEK [paneyrikos of or for a festival assembly]
noun a eulogy, a hymn of praise:
"Such men ... who take all their kindness
as a matter of course, and not as a subject for panegyric" (George Eliot, Adam
Bede, 1859).

panem et circeneses (panam et serkenzeez, panam et kerkenzayz) LATIN
[bread and circuses] noun phrase bread
and circuses, symbolizing food and
entertainment (the provision of which
has cynically been thought to be sufficient to keep the common populace
under control since classical times).