Word of the Day Archive
Friday December 2, 2011
bobbery \BOB-uh-ree\
, noun:
A disturbance or a brawl.
“Allow me, Mr. Ivolgin,” Ippolit suddenly interrupted, irritably, “what's all this bobbery for, if I may ask...”
-- Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Idiot
Kicked up the most delightful bobbery that had ever been witnessed!
-- Anthony Trollope, Is He Popenjoy? A Novel
Bobbery, unexpectedly, is from the Hindu phrase bap re meaning “O father!” It was first recorded in print in 1816 in The Grand Master.
Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation for bobbery
