yips
n.— «Carl Hubbell says he got the “yips” so bad during his recent slump that he was walking into closed doors.» —“Tales in Tidbits” by Bill Braucher in New York Hammond Times (Ind.) July 3, 1937. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Advice about college essays from the winner of a top prize for children’s literature: Kelly Barnhill encourages teens to write about experiences that are uniquely their own, from a point of view that is theirs and no one else’s. Plus, why do we say...
While compiling the Oxford English Dictionary, lexicographer James Murray exchanged hundreds of letters a week with authors, advisors, and volunteer researchers. A new collection online lets you eavesdrop on discussions about which words should be...