:: blame the extended gestation.... ::

:: Monday, April 01, 2002 ::

In the 5th century B.C. there was a rabble-rousing
Athenian, a politician named Hyperbolus, who often made
exaggerated promises and claims that whipped people into a
frenzy. But even though it sounds appropriate, Hyperbolus's
name did not play a role in the development of the modern
English word "hyperbole." That noun does come to us from Greek
(by way of Latin), but from the Greek verb "hyperballein,"
meaning "to exceed," not from the name of the Athenian
demagogue.

Merriam-Webster, Inc.

:: Jim Nichols 4/01/2002 08:30:00 AM [+] ::
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