Editor's Corner

Hello, and happy Thursday!

Today I have the other five words from the article “9 Words for the Wild and Carefree” for you. Again, if you would like more information about each of the words, click the link above.

• lightsome (adjective) free from care: lighthearted

• kamikaze (adjective) having or showing reckless disregard for safety or personal welfare

The adjective kamikaze has its origin in a weather event: in the 13th century, Kublai Khan, the Mongol emperor of China, tried to conquer Japan by sending out great fleets of ships—on two separate occasions. Both times, the efforts were thwarted by storms, which the Japanese took to be protection from the gods. They dubbed their inclement salvation kamikaze, "divine wind." Six and a half centuries later, during World War II, Japanese members of a special air corps assigned to make suicidal crashes on targets were called kamikaze, after the storms that had saved the country from their 13th century would-be invaders. English speakers readily adopted both the noun, which refers to those Japanese pilots or the planes they flew, and the adjective, which can describe kamikaze pilots or people or things having or showing reckless disregard for safety or personal welfare.

• slaphappy (adjective) buoyantly or recklessly carefree or foolish: happy-go-lucky

• insouciant (adjective) lighthearted unconcern: nonchalance

• hellbender (noun, slang) one who is exceedingly reckless or otherwise extreme

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

Symitar Documentation Services