{UAH} WORD OF THE DAY March 15, 2019---two-bit

WORD OF THE DAY March 15, 2019

two-bit    adjective | TOO-BIT     Definition   1 : cheap or trivial of its kind : petty, small-time   2 : of the value of two bits   Scroll down for more about two-bit      TRENDING NOW: non sequitur sequitur trope self-made SEE ALL      PEOPLE ARE READING   Can 'Exponential' Mean 'Lots'?       Playing the 'Wild Card'     'Animadversion' — Video Word of the Day 3/14/2019       Why Is 'Celtic' Pronounced Two Ways?         WORD GAMES AND QUIZZES: WEEKLY CHALLENGE   A Green Quiz   How many questions can you answer about the word "green"?     PLAY NOW     Nailed this quiz? We have plenty more to try!  TAKE ME THERE         Did You Know?   The money-related definition of two-bit makes its etymology obvious: it is derived from the noun phrase two bits. However, two bits is an interesting phrase because it actually means "the value of a quarter of a dollar." There is no such thing as a single bit, at least not anymore. The now-obsolete Spanish dollar (also known as a peso or piece of eight) was composed of eight reales, or eight bits, so a quarter of the dollar equaled two bits. The phrase two bits carried over into U.S. usage. It first appeared in print in English in the early 1700s (and later developed the figurative sense of "something of small worth or importance"), and was followed by its adjectival relative sometime around the beginning of the 19th century. These days, the adjective has far surpassed the noun in popularity.     Examples of TWO-BIT   "In 1956, he published Allen Ginsberg's Howl and Other Poems at City Lights Books, which was then, [Lawrence] Ferlinghetti says, both a one-room bookshop and a 'two-bit poetry press' in San Francisco." — Ira Silverberg, The Document Journal, December 10, 2018   "Bright lights shining through the foggy 1950s London air is the memorable backdrop of Jules Dassin's story of a two-bit American hustler, Harry Fabian, doing everything he can to stay ahead of his arrears and the doomed end pursuing him." — Kevin P. Sullivan, Vulture, 22 Jan. 2019   Test Your Vocabulary   Unscramble the letters to create a word that indicates the sum of two pennies: ETCUPNEP.   VIEW THE ANSWER           WORD OF THE YEAR 2018     Justice + 10 more   Read why justice is our Word of the Year, plus lodestar, epiphany, pansexual, and 7 more top words!   SEE THE FULL LIST            MORE WORD FUN:     WORD GAMES          TRENDING NOW          WORDS AT PLAY      FOLLOW US:

--
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com