surprise, surprisal
(noun) the act of surprising someone
Source: WordNet® 3.1
surprisal (countable and uncountable, plural surprisals)
(obsolete, military) A surprise attack or ambush; a sudden or unexpected assault. [16th-19th c.]
(obsolete) A sudden coming-upon someone or something unexpectedly or unawares. [17th c.]
(obsolete) A surprising event or occurrence. [17th-19th c.]
(obsolete) The feeling caused by being surprised; surprise, shock, amazement. [17th-19th c.]
An information measure as equal in bits (binary digits) to the base-2 log of 1 over the probability, with the result that the number of choices equals 2n where n is the number of bits.
Source: Wiktionary
Sur*pris"al, n. Etym: [See Surprise, n.]
Definition: The act of surprising, or state of being surprised; surprise. How to secure the lady from surprisal. Milton. Because death is uncertain, let us prevent its surprisal. Barrow.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
8 July 2024
(noun) a line or route along which something travels or moves; “the hurricane demolished houses in its path”; “the track of an animal”; “the course of the river”
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.
