- Today's Word
Finagle
[fi-NAY-guhl]
Definition
- (verb) To obtain something by devious or dishonest means, often through trickery or manipulation. It can also mean to use clever or underhanded methods to achieve a goal or to wangle or worm one’s way into or out of a situation.
Example
Despite not having a reservation, Tom managed to finagle his way into the fully-booked restaurant by sweet-talking the maître d’.
Fun Fact
The origin of “finagle” is uncertain, but it first appeared in American English in the 1920s. Some linguists speculate it might be a blend of “fiddle” and “wangle,” both of which can mean to manipulate or obtain by devious means. The word gained popularity during the mid-20th century and has since become a colorful way to describe clever, albeit sometimes unethical, problem-solving. Interestingly, in scientific circles, the term “finagle factor” is used jokingly to describe an arbitrary correction factor applied to make experimental results match theoretical predictions.
(adjective) Showy and cheap in appearance; flashy in a way that suggests low quality or poor taste.
The hotel lobby was all tawdry glamour — gold-painted fixtures, velvet ropes, and crystal chandeliers that turned out to be plastic on closer inspection.
Tawdry is one of English’s most remarkable etymological stories — it derives directly from St. Audrey, a 7th century Anglo-Saxon queen who died of a throat tumor she believed was divine punishment for her youthful vanity in wearing elaborate necklaces. At the annual St. Audrey’s Fair held in her honor on the Isle of Ely, cheap lace necklaces were sold as souvenirs — called “St. Audrey’s lace,” which over time was slurred into “tawdry lace,” and eventually just tawdry. A queen’s dying regret became an adjective for everything she once loved.