"application with the hands of pressure and strain upon muscles and joints of the body for therapeutic purposes," 1874, from French massage "friction of kneading" (by 1819), from masser "to massage," possibly from Arabic massa "to touch, feel, handle;" if so, probably the word was picked up in Egypt during the Napoleonic campaign there. Another possibility (suggested by the writings of 18c. French traveler Guillaume Joseph Le Gentil) is that French got it in colonial India from Portuguese amassar "knead," a verb from Latin massa "mass, dough" (see mass (n.1)). Massage parlor first attested 1894, from the start it was a euphemism or disguise name for "house of prostitution."
early 13c., "to stumble over a tree-stump or other obstacle" (obsolete), from the source of stump (n.). From 1590s as "reduce to a stump." Sense of "walk stiffly and clumsily" is first recorded c. 1600. Sense of "baffle, bring to a halt by obstacles or impediments" is first recorded 1807, American English, perhaps in reference to plowing newly cleared land, but compare earlier sense "to challenge, dare" (1766).
Meaning "go on a speaking tour during a political campaign" is from 1838, American English, from phrase stump speech (1820), large tree stumps being a natural perch for rural orators (this custom is attested from 1775), especially in new settlements. Related: Stumped; stumping.
also partizan, 1550s, "one who takes part with another, zealous supporter," especially one whose judgment is clouded by prejudiced adherence to a party, from French partisan (15c.), from dialectal upper Italian partezan (Tuscan partigiano) "member of a faction, partner," from parte "part, party," from Latin partem (nominative pars) "a part, piece, a share, a division; a party or faction; a part of the body; a fraction; a function, office" (from PIE root *pere- (2) "to grant, allot").
In military use, "member of a detachment of troops sent on a special mission," from 1690s. As these commonly were irregular troops, it took on the sense of "guerrilla fighter" in the Peninsular campaign of the Napoleonic wars and again in reference to resistance to Nazi occupation in the Balkans and Eastern Europe in World War II.
place in Wiltshire, England, probably "Mærla's barrow," from an Old English personal name; the second element would be in reference to the ancient mound that formed the nucleus of the later castle. The famous Duke of Marlborough was John Churchill (1650–1722), soldier and statesman, leader of Allied forces during the War of the Spanish Succession, victor of Blenheim (1704).
The Marlboro brand of U.S. cigarettes were marketed from 1923, perhaps based on the earlier Philip Morris Marlborough brand in England. At first marketed as a luxury and ladies' brand, it was revived in 1950s as a men's filtered cigarette and became successful based on an advertisement campaign (from 1954) featuring a rugged cowboy, who was later known as the Marlboro Man (by 1958).
unshaped large piece of tree, early 14c., of unknown origin. Old Norse had lag "felled tree" (from stem of liggja "to lie," hence "a tree that lies prostrate"), but many etymologists deny on phonological grounds that this can be the root of English log. Instead, they suggest an independent formation meant to "express the notion of something massive by a word of appropriate sound" [OED, which compares clog (n.) in its original Middle English sense "lump of wood"].
Log cabin (1770) was the typical dwelling of the poor in antebellum U.S. history in the well-timbered region that was then the West. It has been a figure of the honest pioneer since the 1840 presidential campaign of William Henry Harrison (the original application was derisive and either way it was inaccurate). Falling off a log as a type of something easy to do is from 1839.
Old English spinnan (transitive) "draw out and twist fibers into thread," strong verb (past tense spann, past participle spunnen), from Proto-Germanic *spenwan (source also of Old Norse and Old Frisian spinna, Danish spinde, Dutch spinnen, Old High German spinnan, German spinnen, Gothic spinnan), from PIE *spen-wo-, suffixed form of root *(s)pen- "to draw, stretch, spin."
Intransitive senses of "to form threads from fibrous stuff; to twist, writhe" developed in late Old English. Transitive sense of "cause to turn rapidly" is from 1610s; intransitive meaning "revolve, turn around rapidly" first recorded 1660s. Meaning "attempt to influence reporters' minds after an event has taken place but before they have written about it" seems to have risen to popularity in the 1984 U.S. presidential campaign; as in spin doctor, first attested 1984.
"military expedition under the banner of the cross," 1706, a respelling or replacement of croisade (1570s), from French croisade (16c.), Spanish cruzada, both from Medieval Latin cruciata, past participle of cruciare "to mark with a cross," from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "cross" (see crux).
The modern English form is comparatively late, and even the earlier croisade is post-Middle English (French croisade replaced earlier croisée). Middle English nouns were croiserie (c. 1300), creiserie.
Especially in reference to the medieval expeditions undertaken by European Christians for recovery of the Holy Land from Muslims. Generally they are counted as seven between 1095 and 1271, but some smaller efforts (e.g. the "Children's Crusade") are omitted and the word sometimes is extended to other religiously motivated expeditions (e.g. against the Albigenses or the Prussians). Figurative sense of "vigorous campaign for a moral cause or against a public evil" is from 1786.
early 15c., "to guide, accompany and show the way," from Latin conductus, past participle of conducere "to lead or bring together; contribute, serve," from assimilated form of com "with, together" (see con-) + ducere "to lead" (from PIE root *deuk- "to lead").
Sense of "to lead, command, direct, manage" is from mid-15c., originally military. General meaning "to direct, manage, act as leader of" is from 1630s; especially of a musical performance (1791).
Meaning "behave in a certain way" is from 1710. In physics, "to carry, convey, transmit," 1740. Related: Conducted; conducting. An earlier verb in the same sense was condyten (c. 1400), which goes with conduit.
To conduct is to lead along, hence to attend with personal supervision; it implies the determination of the main features of administration and the securing of thoroughness in those who carry out the commands; it is used of both large things and small, but generally refers to a definite task, coming to an end or issue: as, to conduct a religious service, a funeral, a campaign. [Century Dictionary]
"red oxide of iron, red coating which forms on the surface of iron exposed to the air," Old English rust "rust," in late Old English also figurative, "anything tending to spiritual corrosion, a moral canker," related to rudu "redness," from Proto-Germanic *rusta- (source also of Frisian rust, Old High German and German rost, Middle Dutch ro(e)st), from PIE *reudh-s-to- (source also of Lithuanian rustas "brownish," rūdėti "to rust;" Latin robigo, Old Church Slavonic ruzda "rust"), from suffixed form of root *reudh- "red, ruddy."
As a morbid condition of plants caused by fungal growth, from mid-14c. U.S. colloquial rust-bucket for "old car or boat" is by 1945. Rust Belt "decayed urban industrial areas of mid-central U.S." (1984) was popularized in, if not coined by, Walter Mondale's presidential campaign.
also grape-vine, 1736, from grape + vine. Meaning "a rumor; a secret or unconventional method of spreading information" (1863) is from the use of grapevine telegraph as "secret source of information and rumor" in the American Civil War; in reference to Southerners under northern occupation but also in reference to black communities and runaway slaves.
The false reports touching rebel movements, which incessantly circulated in Nashville, brings us to the consideration of the "grapevine telegraph"—a peculiar institution of rebel generation, devised for the duplex purpose of "firing the Southern heart," and to annoy the "Yankees." It is worthy of attention, as one of the signs of the times, expressing the spirit of lying which war engenders. But it is no more than just to say that there is often so little difference between the "grapevine" and the associated press telegraph, that they might as well be identical. ["Rosecrans' Campaign with the Fourteenth Corps," Cincinnati, 1863]
