close

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 07, 2009 is:

sanction • \SANK-shun\  • verb
1 : to make valid or binding usually by a formal procedure (as ratification) *2 : to give effective or authoritative approval or consent to

Example sentence:
The parks committee was willing to sanction the consumption but not the sale of alcohol on park premises.

Did you know?
"Sanction" can also be a noun meaning "authoritative approval" or "a coercive measure." The noun entered English first, in the 15th century, and originally referred to a formal decree, especially an ecclesiastical decree. (The Latin "sancire," meaning "to make holy," is an ancestor.) By the end of the 17th century, the meaning of the noun "sanction" had extended to refer to both a means of enforcing a law (a sense that in the 20th century we began using especially for economic penalties against nations violating international law) and the process of formally approving or ratifying a law. When the verb "sanction" appeared in the 18th century, it had to do with ratifying laws as well. Soon it had also acquired an additional, looser sense: "to approve."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Word of the Day

User Login

Visitors by Country

This month 's Top 10
 26 % United Kingdom
 21 % United States
 7 % Germany
 7 % China
 6 % India
 3 % Russian Federation
 2 % Israel
 2 % Japan
 2 % Poland
 2 % Ukraine
38342 visits from 160 countries

Families' Favourite FrazesBring out your Families' Favourite Frazes

Kitchen Table Lingo is mostly about single words. But we know that there is a lot more ingenuity than that going on behind those kitchen doors.

We are now hungry for those family catchphrases, sayings, metaphors (look it up in a dictionary) and verbal imagery which you have invented. Often they are adaptations of other popular phrases and clichés (such as saying ‘It’s not rocket salad’ instead of ‘It’s not rocket science’ or ‘He’s ten minutes short of a time zone’ for someone who is always late). But sometimes they are completely original like ‘God turned me handle and toads jumped out’ meaning “I said the wrong thing at the wrong moment.”

So try not to send us the well-known and familiar phrases. (In fact, we’ll be running a Google check just in case they are already out there). Instead contribute the unique ones that you’ve made up yourself or have had passed on to you by family, friends or neighbours. Just fill in the form. But no more than 11 words please.

If you have any queries, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Name: This will be used for attribution in published words.
Email: Your email address will not be published.
Telephone: Your telephone number will not be published.
Region: Your country, town or region.
Post/Zip Code: Your postal or ZIP code.
Family Fraze: The Family Fraze you are submitting.
Meaning: What does it mean?
Users: Who uses it?
Derivation: The story behind it? How did it come about?
Verification Code:    Please enter the 5 BOLD characters you see in the anti-spam image.
  Please note that this form will not be submitted if there are any errors showing on the fields above.