hooping
n.— «But though his teaching was done, Rodgers’ “hoop” was just beginning, in a voice turned musical pendulum. “I’ve got pow-er, to live for Him!” Rodgers half sang, half spoke, his lips an inch from the microphone. His words rose up the scale, dropped low, rose again.…Hooping has a long tradition in America’s black churches, and the expression sounds like what it describes: the lifting singsong delivery at a sermon’s peak that folds congregation and pastor together in jubilant worship.» —“Minister known for hooping, energetic style of delivering a sermon” by Steven G. Vegh Virginian-Pilot (Hampton Roads, Virginia) July 31, 2006. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In 1971, when a new public library opened in Troy, Michigan, famous authors and artists were invited to write letters to the city’s youngest readers, extolling the many benefits of libraries. One of the loveliest was from E.B. White, author of...
Eric from Harrisonburg, Virginia, wants to know: What’s the origin of footloose and fancy-free, which describes someone unencumbered by obligations or worries? This is part of a complete episode.
Related