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Word of the DayWednesday, January 14, 2009

jettison

\JET-uh-suhn, JET-uh-zuhn\ , verb:
1.
to throw goods overboard to lighten a ship or aircraft in distress
noun:
1.
the act of throwing goods overboard when a craft is in distress; also, the goods thrown overboard
verb:
1.
(figurative) to throw away; discard
See the full Dictionary.com entry |See Synonyms on Thesaurus.com
Quotes:
He guessed that Richardson decided to jettison the facial hair after his wife found it scratchy.
-- Liz Sidoti, Boston Globe, 2008-12-03
But with economic anxiety sweeping the public, some banks have decided to jettison traditional ads touting products and instead market traits like stability and security.
-- Paul Donski, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2008-11-28
Origin:
noun by 1425 from Anglo-Fr. getteson, from Old French getaison "act of throwing (goods overboard)," especially to lighten a ship in distress, from Late Latin jactionem, from jectare "toss about." The verb is first attested 1848.
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