sweeping
n.— «If this sounds like the rush associated with gambling, it’s not far off. Sweepstaking offers some of the same thrill as pulling the slots but without any legal or moral hurdles, and without having to leave the home. (Sweepstakes winnings are filed on annual tax returns in the same way as the spoils of gambling.) Outsiders view sweepers—insofar as they notice them—as sad sacks grubbing for handouts. Especially in its extremes, the hobby earns its low reputation. “Karen Evers,” who is out of work with a disability, toils 40 hours a week on the sweeps and pays acquaintances to fill out entry cards for up to 20 more hours per week, because her disability makes it painful to write. She credits her dedication to sweeping as a factor in the dissolution of her marriage. » —“Jeepers Creepers, Where’d You Get Those Sweepers?” by Fred Meyer Slate Oct. 14, 2004. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
What if, instead of being an inanimate object, a dictionary were alive? That’s the idea behind a lavishly illustrated new children’s book called The Dictionary Story (Bookshop|Amazon) by Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston. This is part of a...
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...