ganas
n.— «“It’s an immigrant community that has a lot of ganas—a lot of desire to move ahead,” Professor Smith said of Mexicans in New York. The trouble, he added, is that the economic, social and community support needed to get ahead has not kept pace with that desire.» —“When the Diploma Is Just a Dream” by Emily Brady New York Times June 24, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In Cockney rhyming slang, apples and pears is a synonym for “stairs,” and dustbin lids means kids. Plus, sniglets are clever coinages for things we don’t already have words for. Any guesses what incogsneeto means? It’s the...
Ribbon fall. Gallery forest. You won’t find terms like these in most dictionaries, but they and hundreds like them are discussed by famous writers in the book Home Ground: A Guide to the American Landscape. The book is an intriguing collection...