Wood on Words: Columnist bares the truth -- can you bear it?
The language of the Second Amendment to the Constitution is a bit clunky, but it clearly guarantees one thing: Americans will forever debate what is meant by the right to bear arms.
If only it had been the right to bare arms. People in this country are less concerned about sleeves.
I don't mean to belittle the debate over gun ownership or the value of dress codes. I'm just introducing another troublesome homonym pair, so please bear with me.
The word "bare," either as an adjective or a verb, is about what's missing: customary covering (bare wooden floors); clothing (bare feet); supplies (bare cupboard); embellishments (bare facts); tools or weapons (bare hands).
Notice with that last one that when people fight barehanded, it means they don't bear arms.
A specific type of barehanded fighting is called "bare-knuckle," in which boxers use their fists unprotected by gloves.
The idea of nakedness is paired with other body parts to convey a variety of ideas, some literal, some not.
Among the former are "barefoot" (no shoes or socks), "barelegged" (no stockings) and "bareheaded" (no hat or other covering).
"Barefaced" can be literal - "uncovered, unmasked or beardless" - but it also can mean "unconcealed; open" or "shameless; brazen; audacious; impudent." Webster's offers the example "a barefaced lie," which, interestingly, is the opposite of "the naked truth."
In "bareback" riding, it's usually the horse that's unadorned, not the rider. Lady Godiva was a notable exception.
And when something is stripped down to the basics, we say the result is a "bare-bones" version.
The verb "bear," mostly about carrying, producing, enduring or exhibiting, is a versatile word.
We can "bear down" or "bear up," "bear out" or "bring to bear."
Sometimes we "bear in mind" or "bear witness." When things upset us, we can "grin and bear it" and later "bear a grudge."
Some things "bear fruit," others "bear the brunt."
There are "crosses to bear," and there are times when we can't "bear to look."
"Bearings" can be small metal balls used to reduce friction in machinery, so "losing our bearings" can sound a bit like "losing our marbles." However, the former means loss of direction, while the latter is slang for loss of sanity.
People who have a confident bearing are often called upon to be "standard-bearers," while being the bearer of bad news is often unbearable.
And then there's the noun "bear," the large, powerful mammal whose characteristics and actions give us "bearhug," "a bear for punishment," "loaded for bear" and the slang for "a difficult task," as in, "Sometimes, writing this column can be a bear."
Barry Wood is a senior copy editor at the Rockford Register Star. Contact him at bwood@rrstar.com