cadge

<font size="-1" face="arial, helvetica"> <p> <strong> <font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 30, 2020 is:</font> </strong> </p> <p> <strong>cadge</strong> &#149; \KAJ\&nbsp; &#149; <em>verb</em><br /> <p><strong>:</strong> <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beg">beg</a>, <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sponge#h2">sponge</a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Examples:</strong><br /> <p>"Reiner had his car and was driving to Manhattan to drop the book off to his editor. Wouk <em>cadged</em> a ride in, and Reiner took him up on his polite offer to read it." — <a href="https://www.newsday.com/entertainment/celebrities/carl-reiner-mel-brooks-fire-island-1.46252946">Frank Lovece, <em>Newsday</em> (Long Island, New York), 30 June 2020</a></p> <p>"A friend ordered the Burrito Grande, easily the biggest burrito I’ve ever seen. I <em>cadged</em> a bite, and the flavors were delicate, but tasty, complemented by the creamy cheese sauce on top." — <a href="https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/entertainment/dining/2019/09/26/large-portions-fresh-flavors-casa-jimador-south-highlands/40198325/">Leslye Gilchrist, <em>The Shreveport (Louisiana) Times</em>, 27 Sept. 2019</a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Did you know?</strong><br /> <p>As long ago as the 1400s, peddlers traveled the British countryside, each with a packhorse or a horse and cart—first carrying produce from rural farms to town markets, then returning with small wares to sell to country folk. The Middle English name for such traders was <em>cadgear</em>; Scottish dialects rendered the term as <em>cadger</em>. Etymologists are pretty sure the verb <em>cadge</em> was created as a <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/back-formation">back-formation</a> of <em>cadger</em> (which is to say, it was formed by removal of the "-er" suffix). At its most general, <em>cadger</em> meant "carrier," and the verb <em>cadge</em> meant "to carry." More specifically, t