Show TAKE MY WORD FOR IT By Frank Colby From a noted syndicated syndicate d columnist of New York Have you ever come across the wor word d chivvy I used it in a column not long ago and a reader wen went t to the dictionary and couldn't find it By George neither could coin d I I used it somewhat in th the e following manner whereupon whereupon whereupon where where- upon he proceeded to chivvy hi him m from pillar to post The meaning meaning meaning mean mean- ing the word has for me is t to o harass to pick on to worry lorry push around chase Somehow I have the feeling that I heard hear d the word lord somewhere in England If there isn't such a word there ther e ought to be It happens that I do o know the word chivvy It is a variant t spelling of the British dialectal 1 word chevy al also o o occasional occasionally Y spelled chivy Chevy means t to o chase or pursue hence by extension extension extension ex ex- tension to tease torment badger which is the Hie meaning g in which the columnist use used d chivvy I find no evidence in th the e books of my library that chivvy Y or chevy has had any lar currency in American u usage age From Random House Inc New York Some months ag aga ago agoa o a reader took issue with yo you u for saying that the pronunciation tion of faille is file The reader reade r based his objection on the absence absence ab ab- sence Bence of such a pronunciation n from the most recent Merriam Merriam- Websters The query led us t to o check the pronunciation shown show n in our American college dictionary dictionary dictionary diction diction- ary and we came away embarrassed embarrassed embarrassed embar embar- not to have shown what wha t we now believe to be the predominant predominant predominant pre pre- dominant American pronunciation tion of faille In the printing o othe of f the A C D now coming corning off th the e press the first of several variant pronunciations under faille i is s file Eureka At last a realistic realistic realistic realis realis- tic dictionary |