prolixity in space

[Jonathan Lighter]

All morning CNN has been reporting a "meteor shower that resembled a
fireball" "raining down on Southern Russia."

What they mean is "a meteoric fireball" or even a "fireball meteor."

Possibly more interesting is the use of "meteor shower" to mean "a single
meteorite and its debris."

JL

--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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