Wednesday 9 September 2009

Pantopragmatic: my word of the day

While looking for answers to a crossword, I came across "pantopragmatic" in the dictionary. According to Chambers, the word was coined by Thomas Love Peacock (of "Nightmare Abbey" and "Headlong Hall" fame*) . "It seems to be a real art of talking about an imaginary art of teaching every man his own business." (Gryll Grange, chapter VIII)

I can think of a few Labour ministers, on both sides of the border, that it could apply to.

*Not to mention the "War song of Dinas Vawr": "The mountain sheep are sweeter, but the valley sheep are fatter; and so we deemed it meeter to carry off the latter (etc)".

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