Lost Word Of The Day (79)

Although we seem to be swamped with information, I cannot help but think that many cannot see the wood for the trees, to be able to sift out the truth from the many competing shades of opinion. We seem to be in the age of the Gobemouche, a wonderful piece of cod French that describes a credulous person, one who believes all that they hear.

At its most literal, it means fly swallower, gober being the French verb for swallowing and mouche meaning fly. It appeared in Punch or the London Charivari in 1857 when a contributor noted that “The Gobemouche abounds in clubs, coffee-houses, Capel Courts, Bellamy’s, and all old women’s tea-parties”.

As elections loom, our politicians will hope that we are a country of gobemouches. Let’s hope they are proved wrong.