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WORD OF THE DAY

When you maunder, you talk in a rambling mutter. People being questioned by reporters should try to answer articulately — they shouldn't just maunder in response.

The difference between a great speech and an interminably boring one is that a good speaker keeps it short (and often funny), but a bad one tends to maunder in a mumbling voice. A novelist who tends to have her characters maunder on endlessly needs a skilled editor. Although maunder sometimes also means "wander aimlessly," it doesn't come from the similar meander but probably from a root meaning "to beg."


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