The Facts on File Dictionary of Foreign Words and Phrases (Writers Reference) (68 page)

sheyl(h See SHEIKH.

shiatsu (sheeatsoo), shiatzu JAPANESE
[finger pressure, abbreviated form of
shiatsuryoho, from shi finger, atsu pressure and ryoho treatment] noun a
type of massage in which specific areas of the body are kneaded with the fingers and palms.

shibboleth (shibalath, shibaleth)
HEBREW [from shibbolet stream, flood]
noun a catchword or slogan that is
associated with a particular group,
sect, or class but is generally derided
by others as being devoid of meaning,
a truism or platitude; can also refer to
a custom or usage that is peculiar to a
particular group, class, or nationality:
"It was as if she had just awakened to the
assurance she was beloved. That was the
shibboleth the cry by which she sounded
the closed depths of her love and called
to the stricken life of a woman's insatiate
vanity" (Zane Gre),, Call of the Canyon,
1924).

shih-tzu (shittsuu, sheetsuu) CHINESE
[from shizi lion] noun a small sturdy
dog with a long silky coat, short legs,
and a tail that curls upward.

shiksa (shikse), shikse YIDDISH [feminine of sheygets non-Jewish boy, from
Hebrew sheges blemish, abomination]
noun insulting term for a non-Jewish
woman or girl, or for a Jewish woman
or girl who is judged to have lapsed in
her religious obligations.

shillelagh (shelylee), shillalah IRISH
[after Shillelagh, Ireland] noun a cudgel: "The constable laid out the last of
the troublemakers with a by blow of his
shillelagh."

shish kebab (shish kabahb), sheesh
kebab TURKISH [from ~iskebabi, from
his spit and kebab roast meat] noun
phrase (in Turkish cuisine) a dish
comprising pieces of marinated meat
and vegetables cooked on a skewer.

shivaree See CHARIVARI.

shlemiel See SCHLEMIEL.

shlep See SCHLEPP.

shlock See SCHLOCK.

shmaltz See SCHMALTZ.

shmatte (shmata), schmatte YIDDISH
[from schmatte, itself from Polish
szmata rag] noun rag (usually referring to ragged clothing).

shmooze See SCHMOOZE.

shmuck See SCHMUCK.

shnozzle See SCHNOZZLE.

shofar (shofahr) HEBREW noun (plural shofars or shofroth, shofrot)
(in Judaism) a wind instrument made
from a ram's horn, which is used in
synagogue rituals.

shogun (shogun) JAPANESE [from shogun general, from Chinese pang jun
general] noun an hereditary military
ruler or warlord in Japan prior to the
mid-19th century: "The shoguns wielded

supreme power among their followers but
dissipated much of their energy in petty
squabbles with their rivals."

shtetl (shtetal) YIDDISH [little town]
noun (plural shtetls or stetlach,
shtetlahk) formerly, a small Jewish
town or village in Eastern Europe:
"The musical Fiddler on the Roof is
set in the shtetl of Anatevka in Tsarist
Russia."

shtick (shtik), shtik, schtick YIDDISH
[from shtik pranks, piece] noun a
stage routine, gimmick, or gag; can
also refer to a person's individual
interest or activity.

shtoom (shtom) YIDDISH [from German stumm silent] adjective silent,
dumb, mute: "The gang members agreed
to keep shtoom if they were questioned by
the police."

shufti (shooftee, shaftee), shufty ARABIC [from sufti have you seen?, from
safa to see] noun a look, a glance,
a peep: "They decided to have a quick
shufti round the building to see if anyone
was left inside."

shul (shuul), schul YIDDISH [from
German Schule school] noun a synagogue.

sibyl (sibal) GREEK [from sibulla
prophetess] noun a female seer or
prophetess of ancient Greece or
Rome; subsequently applied more generally to any female fortuneteller, sorceress, or wise person:
"The emperor consulted a sibyl to find
out what the future might have in store
for him."

sic (sik) LATIN [so, thus] adverb
thus, so written, as follows (usually
indicating that something unlikely,
questionable, or misspelled has been
copied exactly from the original).

sic passim (sik pSim) LATIN [thus,
so throughout] adverb phrase so
throughout, the same wherever found
(referring to a recurring word or idea
in a particular text or other work).

sic semper tyrannis (sik sempar
tiranis) LATIN [thus always to tyrants]
interjection this is how tyrants end
(as quoted by John Wilkes Booth as
he assassinated Abraham Lincoln in
1865, and since adopted as the motto
of the state of Virginia).

sic transit gloria mundi (sik tranzit
gloreca min(Ice) LATIN [thus passes
away the glory of the world, as quoted
by the German religious writer
Thomas a Kempis (1380-1471)] interjection see how worldly glory and
success does not last.

siddha (sidha) SANSKRIT noun (in
the Jain religion) a person who has
attained a high level of spiritual
perfection.

siecle (seeekal) FRENCH [century,
ultimately from Latin saeculum generation] noun a century, or more
generally an age or era: "With the coronation of the new king began a siecle d'or
in French history."

sieg heil (zeek hil) Sieg heil GERMAN
[hail victory] interjection hail victory
(shout of acclamation adopted by the
German Nazi party in the 1930s).
-noun such a shout of acclamation:
"The protestors laid siege to the governor's
office, daubing slogans on the walls and
soluting him mockingly with sieg heils."

sierra (siera, seeaira) SPANISH [saw,
ultimately from Latin serra saw] noun
a range of mountains, especially one
with a jagged, sawlike outline: "She colored invisibly, with a warmth against which
the breeze from the sierra seemed to have
lost its cooling power in the sudden melting
of the snows" (Joseph Conrad, Nostromo,
1904) .

siesta (seeesta) SPANISH [from Latin
sexta Nora sixth hour, noon] noun a
midday or afternoon nap or short rest,
particularly one taken in a hot country:
"Fie always took a siesta after lunch in the
bars of Barcelena."

siffleur (siflar) FRENCH [whistler,
from s!ffler to whistle] noun a person who whistles (especially one who
entertains publicly by whistling).
'"noun, feminine siffleuse (siflerz).

signor (seen tr, seenyor) ITALIAN
[from signore, ultimately from Latin
senior superior, lord] noun (plural signors
or signori, seen ororee) title of respect
addressed to a man of superior social
standing. abbreviated forms S., Sig.

signora (seenQ1) ITALIAN [feminine
of signore, ultimately from Latin senior
superior, lord] noun (plural signoras or
signore, seenmoray) title of respect
addressed to a married woman of
superior social standing. abbreviated
forms S., Sig.

signorina (seenyoreen3) ITALIAN
[young lady, diminutive of signora,
ultimately from Latin senior superior, lord] noun (plural signorinas or
signorine, seenyoreenee) title of
respect addressed to an unmarried
woman of superior social standing.

silhouette (silawet) FRENCH [after
the French controller of finances and
author Etienne de Silhouette (1709-
67), possibly in reference to the shortlived tenure of his office] noun a
dark image seen against a lighter background, or the outline of a person
or object. verb to depict someone
or something in outline: "The castle
loomed over them, silhouetted against the
setting sun."

silo (silo) SPANISH [from Latin sirus,
ultimately from Greek siros pit] noun
a cylindrical bin, pit or tower used to
store silage, crops, or other material;

can also refer to an underground storage silo for guided missiles: At noon
they drove into her first farmyard, a private
village, a white house with no porches save
a low and quite dirty stoop at the back,
a crimson barn with white trimmings, a
glazed brick silo, an ex-carriage-shed, now
the garage of a Ford, an unpainted cowstable-..." (Sinclair Lewis, Main Street,
1920).

s'il vows plait (seel voo play) FRENCH
[if it pleases you] adverb phrase please,
if you please. -abbreviated form S.V.P.

simile (sim3lee) LATIN [something
similar, from the neuter of similis like,
similar] noun a figure of speech in
which two otherwise dissimilar things
are compared (usually introduced by
"as" or "like"): "As sharp as mustard' and
as quiet as a mouse' are similes."

similiter (similitair) LATIN [in like
manner] noun (in law) the form by
which either party, in pleading, accepts
his or her opponent's tendered issue,
also known as joinder in issue."

simpatico (simpaatiko) ITALIAN/SPANISH [sympathetic, ultimately from
Latin sympathia sympathy, itself from
Greek sumpathes having a fellow-feeling] adjective sympathetic, congenial, agreeable, likable: "Ray Kennedy
used to know about all their little doings,
but since his death there was no one
whom-the Mexicans considered simpatico" (Willa Cather, The Song of the Lark,
1915).

sine (sih) LATIN [from sinus curve]
noun a trigonometric function equal
to the ratio between the length of the
side opposite an acute angle in a rightangled triangle and the length of the
hypotenuse.

sine anno (sha)'anO) LATIN [without a
year] adverb phrase undated. -abbreviatedforms S.A., s.a.

sine causa (sinay koza, sinay kowza)
LATIN [without cause] adverb phrase
for no reason.

sine die (sinay decay) LATIN [without day] adverb phrase indefinitely,
without a date being fixed for a future
meeting or action: "The court adjourned
sine die." "adjective indefinite. -abbreviatedforms S.D., s.d.

sine prole (sinay prolay) LATIN [without offspring] adverb phrase without
issue, without children: "He died sine
prole.-abbreviated form S.E, s.p.

sine qua non (sinay kwah non) LATIN
[without which not] noun phrase
something essential, something indispensable: "Humility is the sine qua non
of their religion." "adjective phrase essential, indispensable.

sinfonia (sinfoneea, sinfaneea) ITALIAN [from Latin symphonia symphony, instrumental harmony, ultimately
from Greek sumphonos harmonious]
noun an overture to a larger musical composition; may also refer to a
small-scale symphony or to a small
orchestra.

sinfonia concertante (sinfaneea konsertantay) ITALIAN [symphony in concerto style] noun phrase a concerto
written for more than one solo instrument.

sinfonietta
(sinfanta, sinfonyta) ITALIAN [diminutive of sinfonia, from
Latin symphonia symphony, instrumental harmony, ultimately from
Greek sumphonos harmonious] noun
a relatively small-scale symphony;
may also refer to a small symphony
orchestra.

singspiel (singspeel, zingshpeel) GERMAN [from singen to sing and Spiel
play] noun (plural singspiels or singspiele, singspeela, zingshpeela) a
genre of musical entertainment combining songs and comic dialogue that
became popular in Germany in the
late 18th century.

sirocco (saroko), scirocco (sharoko)
ITALIAN [from Arabic sharq east]
noun a hot dry wind that blows from
North Africa into the northern Mediterranean region at certain times of
year; may also be used to refer to
similar oppressive hot winds in other
parts of the world: "The sirocco came early that year, driving tourists out of the
coastal resorts."

sitzlcrieg (sitskreeg), Sitzkrieg GERMAN [seat war, sitting war, from
sitzen to sit and Krieg war, imitating
blitzkrieg lightning war] noun a war
or other confrontational situation in
which no actual hostilities are taking
place or in which a major conflict is
avoided.

si vis pacem, para bellum (see vis
pahchem para belam) LATIN [if you
want peace, prepare for war] verb
phrase if you wish for peace, get
ready for war.

skald (skold), scald OLD NORSE [from
Old Norse skald] noun a composer,
poet, or traveling minstrel in ancient
Scandinavia.

skoal (skol) DANISH [from skaal cup,
bowl] interjection a drinking toast
health!

slainte (slahntsha) GAELIC [from sldinte
mhor good health] interjection a
drinking toast health!

slalom (slahlam) NORWEGIAN [from
slalom sloping track] noun (in skiing)
a zigzag downhill course in which competitors must steer through flags or
other markers: She fell in the downhill
event, but took second place in the slalom."
-verb to ski downhill on a zigzag course
delineated by flags or other markers.

smorgasbord (smorgasbord) SWEDISH
[from smorgas sandwich and bord table]
noun a buffet including a wide variety of hot and cold dishes, such as
meat and fish dishes, pickles, cheeses,
and salads; by extension, any mixture
of diverse elements: "The committee
came up with a compromise, a smorgasbord
of initiatives and resolutions."

smorzando (smortsando) ITALIAN
[present participle of smorzare to
extinguish] adverb (in music) dying
away. 'noun (plural smorzandos or
smorzandi, smortsandee) a passage of
music in which the sound dies away.

Snr. See SENHOR.

Snr. See SENOR.

Snra. See SENHORA.

Shra. See SENORA.

Snrta. See SENHORITA.

SFirta. See SENORITA.

sobriquet (sobrikay, sobriket, sobrik, sobriket), soubriquet FRENCH
[nickname] noun a nickname or epithet: ". . . as he had a rather flightly
and dissolute mode of conversing, and
furthermore avowed that among his intimate friends he was better known by the
sobriquet of The Artful Dodger,' Oliver
concluded that, being of a dissipated and
careless turn, the moral precepts of his benefactor had hitherto been thrown away
upon him" (Charles Dickens, Oliver
Twist, 1837).

soi-disant (swah-deezon ) FRENCH
[saying oneself] adjective so-called,
self-styled, supposed, would-be: "He
was too little of an aristocrat to join the
club of Royal True Blues, and too little of
a democrat to fraternise with an affiliated
society of the soi-disant Friends of the
People, which the borough had also the
happiness of possessing" (Walter Scott,
TheAntiquary, 1816).

soigne (swahnyy), soignee FRENCH
[past participle of soigner to take care
of] noun well-groomed, sleek, elegant: "She was accompanied by a young
man in a bottle-green velvet suit, wellspoken and soigne in appearance."