The Day's (Dangerous) Drabble
Given my Elves' tendency to eat and drink a lot, I must proclaim today's word a dangerous one....
quaff \KWOFF; KWAFF\, transitive verb:
To drink with relish; to drink copiously of; to swallow in large draughts.
intransitive verb:
To drink largely or luxuriously.
noun:
A drink quaffed.
Examples
"He gets drunk with his guides, makes eyes at the girls and gamely quaffs snake wine."
-Pico Iyer, "Snake Wine and Socialism," New York Times, December 15, 1991
"If you were patient and kept your nose clean, you could slowly, almost effortlessly, rise from serf to squire and maybe even all the way to knight, in which case you, too, would be entitled to quaff bowl-size martinis at midday."
-Charles McGrath, "Office Romance," New York Times Magazine, March 5, 2000
"Instead they consume caviar, feed off foie gras, chomp exotic cheeses, and quaff champagne."
-"Internet Shopper," Times (London), August 11, 2000
Etymology
Quaff is of unknown origin.
A Reason for Celebration
Fëanor sat at the center of a table laden with roasted pheasants, venison steaks, a rainbow of vegetables, and quaffs of his father’s finest wine. Any other Elf of his age would be delighted and overwhelmed, but Fëanor saw none of it, trained were his eyes on the door.
At last they entered: his new master and the homely, russet-haired daughter.
He stood in the midst of his father’s sentence, and Finwë faltered, though less at Fëanor’s rudeness than the uncharacteristic smile on his face. He watched his son kiss the girl on the cheek.
Now, the festival could begin.
quaff \KWOFF; KWAFF\, transitive verb:
To drink with relish; to drink copiously of; to swallow in large draughts.
intransitive verb:
To drink largely or luxuriously.
noun:
A drink quaffed.
Examples
"He gets drunk with his guides, makes eyes at the girls and gamely quaffs snake wine."
-Pico Iyer, "Snake Wine and Socialism," New York Times, December 15, 1991
"If you were patient and kept your nose clean, you could slowly, almost effortlessly, rise from serf to squire and maybe even all the way to knight, in which case you, too, would be entitled to quaff bowl-size martinis at midday."
-Charles McGrath, "Office Romance," New York Times Magazine, March 5, 2000
"Instead they consume caviar, feed off foie gras, chomp exotic cheeses, and quaff champagne."
-"Internet Shopper," Times (London), August 11, 2000
Etymology
Quaff is of unknown origin.
A Reason for Celebration
Fëanor sat at the center of a table laden with roasted pheasants, venison steaks, a rainbow of vegetables, and quaffs of his father’s finest wine. Any other Elf of his age would be delighted and overwhelmed, but Fëanor saw none of it, trained were his eyes on the door.
At last they entered: his new master and the homely, russet-haired daughter.
He stood in the midst of his father’s sentence, and Finwë faltered, though less at Fëanor’s rudeness than the uncharacteristic smile on his face. He watched his son kiss the girl on the cheek.
Now, the festival could begin.