cat funds
n.pl.— Note: “Cat” is short for “catastrophe.” «A ticking countdown to hurricane season will color Washington this week, when state officials overseeing these so-called “cat funds” will meet with lawmakers drafting the legislation. The timing is critical for several of these states, whose public funds are running on empty.» —“Fla. finds state allies in renewed push for federal hurricane insurance help” by Evan Lehmann New York Times April 21, 2009. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Many of us struggled with the Old English poem “Beowulf” in high school. But what if you could actually hear “Beowulf” in the English of today? There’s a new translation by Maria Dahvana Headley that uses contemporary...
Have you ever googled your own name and found someone else who goes by the very same moniker? There’s a word for that: googleganger. Plus, the language of hobbyists and enthusiasts: If you’re a beekeeper, perhaps you call yourself a...