Message-ID: <5252990.1075861122841.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Mon, 4 Mar 2002 21:01:17 -0800 (PST) From: wsmith@wordsmith.org To: linguaphile@wordsmith.org Subject: A.Word.A.Day--catechumen Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-From: Wordsmith @ENRON X-To: linguaphile@wordsmith.org X-cc: X-bcc: X-Folder: \Susan_Scott_Mar2002\Scott, Susan M.\Deleted Items X-Origin: Scott-S X-FileName: sscott5 (Non-Privileged).pst catechumen (kat-i-KYOO-men) noun 1. One who is receiving religious instruction in preparation for baptism; a neophyte. 2. A person who is being given basic education of a subject. [From Late Latin catechumenus, from Greek katechoumenos (one being taught orally). "I gave him the manuscript of my first novel to read and awaited his verdict with the expectancy of a catechumen. And when I received his letter - generous, with approval and advice - I felt happy." Mario Vargas Llosa, The Trumpet of Deya, Review of Contemporary Fiction (McLean, Illinois), Spring 1997. This week's theme: words to describe people. Today's AWAD is sponsored by NannyTax, Inc., offering on-line tax preparation and payroll tax compliance services to employers of domestic help. Please visit http://www.nannytax.com ............................................................................ The heights by great men reached and kept / Were not attained by sudden flight, / But they, while their companions slept, / Were toiling upward in the night. -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, poet (1807-1882) AWAD on your Website: http://wordsmith.org/awad/add.html Gift subscription: http://wordsmith.org/awad/gift.html Bulletin board: http://wordsmith.org/board AWAD archives: http://wordsmith.org/awad/archives.html Pronunciation: http://wordsmith.org/words/catechumen.wav http://wordsmith.org/words/catechumen.ram