Word of the Day

[glennagirl.livejournal.com]

SUNDAY, JANUARY 5

Svengali

[sfen-GAH-lee]Part of speech: noun

Origin: english, 1894

• A manipulative person with sinister motives
• Someone attempting to dominate another to do their bidding

Examples of Svengali in a sentence

• The general was a svengali whose fanaticism swayed an entire country. 
• UNCLE, most notably Alexander Waverly, had no use for manipulative people whose power base made them into svengali like figures. 

About Svengali

Svengali owes its invention to a literary work. The character Svengali is a proper noun, but anyone can turn into a common noun svengali. Just pull out some manipulative tactics, and you’ll be the next svengali.

The word svengali comes from the 1894 novel by George du Maurier, Trilby. In this book, Svengali is a hypnotist who manipulates the title character. This isn’t the book’s only cultural contribution. The narrow-brimmed trilby hat is named after the distinctive hat worn by Trilby.

Comments

[redqueen88.livejournal.com]

Also, George du Maurier was the grandfather of Daphne du Maurier, author of Rebecca