A Glowering Glow

A few days ago "glower" was the word on the Word of the Day feed in the right-hand column. I knew what the word was, what it meant, mostly because I've had many teachers, ex-girlfriends, my ex-wife and even my sisters and parents practice that particular expression on me many, many times.

glower \GLAU-uhr\, intransitive
verb:1. To look or stare angrily or with a scowl.
noun:1. An angry or scowling look or stare.

It made me think about someone just trying to learn the English language and what they would think of this word the first time they saw it.

The root of the word is "glow":

glow intr.v. glowed, glow·ing, glows

1. To shine brightly and steadily, especially without a flame: Embers glowed in the furnace.

2. a. To have a bright, warm, usually reddish color: The children's cheeks glowed from the cold.

b. To flush; blush.

3. To be exuberant or radiant: parents glowing with pride.

n. 1. A light produced by a body heated to luminosity; incandescence.

2. Brilliance or warmth of color, especially redness: "the evening glow of the city streets when the sun has gone behind the tallest houses" (Seán O'Faoláin).

3. A sensation of physical warmth.

4. A warm feeling, as of pleasure or well-being

So, two words, nearly alike, meaning almost the opposite in certain instances.

No wonder foreigners have so much trouble learning English.

Heck, no wonder I have so much trouble with it!