shams
plural of sham
• HMSAS, SAHMs, Sahms, smash
Source: Wiktionary
Sham, n. Etym: [Originally the same word as shame, hence, a disgrace, a trick. See Shame, n.]
1. That which deceives expectation; any trick, fraud, or device that deludes and disappoint; a make-believe; delusion; imposture, humbug. "A mere sham." Bp. Stillingfleet. Believe who will the solemn sham, not I. Addison.
2. A false front, or removable ornamental covering. Pillow sham, a covering to be laid on a pillow.
Sham, a.
Definition: False; counterfeit; pretended; feigned; unreal; as, a sham fight. They scorned the sham independence proffered to them by the Athenians. Jowett (Thucyd)
Sham, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Shammed; p. pr. & vb. n. Shamming.]
1. To trick; to cheat; to deceive or delude with false pretenses. Fooled and shammed into a conviction. L'Estrange.
2. To obtrude by fraud or imposition. [R.] We must have a care that we do not . . . sham fallacies upon the world for current reason. L'Estrange.
3. To assume the manner and character of; to imitate; to ape; to feign. To sham Abram or Abraham, to feign sickness; to malinger. Hence a malingerer is called, in sailors' cant, Sham Abram, or Sham Abraham.
Sham, v. i.
Definition: To make false pretenses; to deceive; to feign; to impose. Wondering . . . whether those who lectured him were such fools as they professed to be, or were only shamming. Macaulay.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
23 January 2025
(adjective) being or located on or directed toward the side of the body to the west when facing north; “my left hand”; “left center field”; “the left bank of a river is bank on your left side when you are facing downstream”
The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.
