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This week's theme There is a word for it. This week's words hypergelast skeuomorph hey rube snood serein Roll the dice Get a random word from A.Word.A.Day archives Discuss Feedback RSS/XML A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg hey rube PRONUNCIATION: (hay roob) MEANING: noun: 1. A fight between members of a circus and the general public. 2. A call to rally circus members in a fight. ETYMOLOGY: The term originated in the 19th century when circuses were rowdy affairs and Hey Rube was the rallying cry to call all circus people to help in a fight with townspeople. It's not clear whether Rube in this term was someone specific or simply a use of the informal term rube (shortened form of Reuben) for an unsophisticated person from a rural area. USAGE: "I said 'Shut it, Camel! I'm dealing with a situation here.' Walter says. 'What kind of situation?' says Camel. "'Jacob's messed up.' "'What? How? Was there a hey rube?'" Sara Gruen; Water for Elephants; Algonquin Books; 2006. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: Men build too many walls and not enough bridges. -Isaac Newton, physicist, mathematician, and philosopher (1642-1727)

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