The expression “coffee break” was first attested in 1952 in glossy magazine advertisements by the Pan-American Coffee Bureau.
SCREECHING
scream, screaming, shriek, shrieking, screech, screeching
(noun) sharp piercing cry; “her screaming attracted the neighbors”
screech, screeching, shriek, shrieking, scream, screaming
(noun) a high-pitched noise resembling a human cry; “he ducked at the screechings of shells”; “he heard the scream of the brakes”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Verb
screeching
present participle of screech
Noun
screeching (plural screechings)
The act of producing a screech.
hysterical screechings
Source: Wiktionary
SCREECH
Screech, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Screeched; p. pr. & vb. n. Screeching.] Etym: [Also formerly, scritch, OE. skriken, skrichen, schriken, of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. skrækja to shriek, to screech, skrija to titter, Sw. skrika to shriek, Dan. skrige; also Gael. sgreach, sgreuch, W. ysgrechio, Skr. kharj to creak. Cf. Shriek, v., Scream, v.]
Definition: To utter a harsh, shrill cry; to make a sharp outcry, as in terror or acute pain; to scream; to shriek. "The screech owl, screeching loud." Shak.
Screech, n.
Definition: A harsh, shrill cry, as of one in acute pain or in fright; a shriek; a scream. Screech bird, or Screech thrush (Zoöl.), the fieldfare; -- so called from its harsh cry before rain.
– Screech rain.
– Screech hawk (Zoöl.), the European goatsucker; -- so called from its note. [Prov. Eng.] -- Screech owl. (Zoöl.) (a) A small American owl (Scops asio), either gray or reddish in color. (b) The European barn owl. The name is applied also to other species.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
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Word of the Day
31 March 2025
IMPROVISED
(adjective) done or made using whatever is available; “crossed the river on improvised bridges”; “the survivors used jury-rigged fishing gear”; “the rock served as a makeshift hammer”
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