This week's theme: words formed by false splitting.

auger (AW-guhr) noun

   Any of various boring tools resembling a corkscrew, used in carpentry,
   digging, etc.

[From the misdivision of "a nauger" as "an auger". Ultimately from the
Indo-European root nobh- (navel) that is also the source of nave, navel,
umbilical, omphaloskepsis (navel gazing), and Hindi nabhi (navel).]

Today's word in Visual Thesaurus: http://visualthesaurus.com/?w1=auger

-Anu Garg (words at wordsmith.org)

  "What is the strangest thing you've seen coming out of the ground?
   Once I had a T-shirt come out of the ground as we pulled the auger up."
   Francois Marchand; Q&A with Kathy Fiebich; Edmonton Journal (Canada);
   Sep 2, 2007.

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Pronunciation:
http://wordsmith.org/words/auger.wav
http://wordsmith.org/words/auger.ram

Permalink: http://wordsmith.org/words/auger.html

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