Friday, May 11, 2007

Life List Day 54 - Finally Learn the Meaning of Obsequious

It's been a tough couple days - a lot of shit going on in my life. It's hard to stay focused on a life list when I'm so overwhelmed.

My "new thing" for the day won't exactly set the world afire, but - as my ex used to say to me when I'd complain he wasn't being the sort of husband I wished he be - "I'm here, ain't I?" So today I'm learning a new word. Obsequious.

I've always like how it sounds (ub-see-kwee-us) but have never known what it meant. Upon looking it up at dictionary.com, I realize I also didn't know how it was spelled - I thought it started with a u.

So, obsequious:
1. characterized by or showing servile deference; fawning
2. obedient; dutiful.

Used in a sentence:

My son gave me an obsequious smile and got right to his homework.

Hey, a woman can dream.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

Okey, Dokey! Here goes...

The students in Ms B's first grade class were obsequious after given directions.

The dog became more obsequious after learning new commands.

Anonymous said...

Despite the Queen's unpopularity, her staff took their orders obsequiously, taking care of her with efficiency and diligence.

The difference between obsequiousness and subservient/dutiful is that obsequiousness implies a fakeness.

JILL SMOLINSKI said...

"The difference between obsequiousness and subservient/dutiful is that obsequiousness implies a fakeness."

NOW I get it!! That makes so much more sense to me - and it also makes my sample sentence all the more true, since the best pre-homework smile I could ever hope for would be a fake one.

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