turf
n.— «“If your mother sends you a letter to the editor saying she loves you, check it out. It might be turf. Today especially, there is an 80 percent probability it is turf.” “Turf” is editorial page slang for form letters sent out by special interest groups to create the concept of a “grassroots” outpouring of opinion. The advent of the Internet has fertilized “turf” allowing it to sprout wildly. It is the crab grass of letters to the editor.» —“Turf’s up: Debate letters flow” by Diane Hardisty Bakersfield Californian (California) Oct. 2, 2004. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In the 15th century, the word respair meant “to have hope again.” Although this word fell out of use, it’s among dozens collected in a new book of soothing vocabulary for troubled times. Plus, baseball slang: If a batter...
Asthenosphere, a geologist’s term for the molten layer beneath the earth’s crust, sparks a journey that stretches all the way from ancient Greece to the author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Plus: What the heck is a dogberg? It’s when...