May 12, 2011
Obstinately Stout-hearted?
I have recently discovered Wordnik a cool web site devoted to words and the people who work with them and love them. Â I've taken to clicking on the Random Word link just to see what pops up, and at times I waste hours reading the pages for different words. Â Â
What a difference a hypen makes.  According to Wordnik  stouthearted is defined as "brave; courageous" and secondarily as "pluck" or "stubborn".  Stout-hearted  (note the hyphen) is defined as "having a brave heart,  also obstinate".   It's odd what a difference adding that hyphen makes to the meaning.  It also seems to me that bravery and being obstinate are near antonyms.  Not states to be described by the same word.
