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Sunday 6 November 2011

Sunday Rest: Word Not To Use Today: ukase.

I'm afraid English is a terribly greedy language that'll chomp up more or less anything it can get its teeth into.

There are just a few words, though, which get stuck half-way down, like a railway bolt in an ostrich's neck.

Such a word is ukase.

Ukase means an order from on high. Originally a ukase had to come from the tzar or a patriarch*, but now it can come from anyone who doesn't have to bother about listening to arguments.

The Collins dictionary tells us to pronounce it yooKAYZ, but as far as I'm concerned using it in any way at all is cast-iron proof of having absolutely no taste at all.


And in any case, people should ALWAYS listen to arguments!

Word Not To Use Today: ukase. This word comes to us from the Russian word ukaz, from ukazat, which means to command.

*Orthodox Church religious leader.

1 comment:

  1. Yup! This is definitely a word to ESCHEW, which is in itself a good word and one I use constantly. Could do with a Word Den gloss, I reckon!

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