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MINARET
- A tall slender tower of a mosque having one or more balconies from which the summons to prayer is cried by the muezzin.
- Usage: Interview with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, leader of Turkey's ruling Justice and Development party (AKP).
Source: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition.
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POROROCA
- A giant tidal bore that creates a rare breaking wave in shallow areas of the Amazon River when an incoming tide from the Atlantic Ocean pushes water inland during extreme low points in the river's flow; meaning "great roar" in the native Tupi Indian dialect of Brazil's Amazon River basin, pororocas have been spotted breaking over 200 kilometers inland, and were first surfed by non-natives in March 1997; surfing the pororoca is no easy feat, as boardriders have to avoid debris washed into the wave from the river banks, as well as deadly predators such as alligators, anacondas, piranhas and the small but deadly candiru.
- Usage: Story on recent efforts to surf the pororoca, part of a growing worldwide movement by boardriders to catch and ride tidal bores.
Source: Boreriders.com.
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