Word of the Day

verb

Nick was shanghaied by Erika into helping out at the charity fundraiser after her first volunteer bailed out.

"In time, the new novel, lurching around his psyche, dragged itself away and became real. How I loved to see him shanghaied like that, careening down the rum-soaked wharves of imagination, where any roustabout idea might turn to honest labor." — From Diane Ackerman's 2011 book One Hundred Names for Love: A Memoir

In the 1800s, long sea voyages were very difficult and dangerous, so people were understandably hesitant to become sailors. But sea captains and shipping companies needed crews to sail their ships, so they gathered sailors any way they could — even if that meant resorting to kidnapping by physical force or with the help of liquor or drugs. The word "shanghai" comes from the name of the Chinese city of Shanghai. People started to use the city's name for that unscrupulous way of obtaining sailors because the East was often a destination of ships that had kidnapped men onboard as crew.

Test Your Memory: What recent Word of the Day can refer to something that has the shape of a crescent or half-moon? The answer is ...

Visit our archives to see previous selections »

Can you say "cuteness"?

The "\'kyüt-nəs\" onesie

Browse all items »

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP