In 1884, Angelo Moriondo of Turin, Italy, demonstrated the first working example of an espresso machine.
SHIFTY
shifting, shifty
(adjective) changing position or direction; “he drifted into the shifting crowd”; “their nervous shifting glances”; “shifty winds”
devious, shifty
(adjective) characterized by insincerity or deceit; evasive; “a devious character”; “shifty eyes”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Adjective
shifty (comparative shiftier, superlative shiftiest)
Subject to frequent changes in direction.
(of a person's eyes) Moving from one object to another, not looking directly and steadily at the person with whom one is speaking.
Having the appearance of being dishonest, criminal or unreliable.
Resourceful; full of, or ready with, shifts or expedients.
Source: Wiktionary
Shift"y, a.
Definition: Full of, or ready with, shifts; fertile in expedients or contrivance. Wright. Shifty and thrifty as old Greek or modern Scot, there were few things he could not invent, and perhaps nothing he could not endure. C. Kingsley.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
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Word of the Day
21 April 2025
ENCYCLOPEDIA
(noun) a reference work (often in several volumes) containing articles on various topics (often arranged in alphabetical order) dealing with the entire range of human knowledge or with some particular specialty
Coffee Trivia
