Running the gauntlet or gantlet

Word games: Remember the Clint Eastwood movie "The Gauntlet"? Eastwood faced all kinds of obstacles while taking a prostitute, played by Sondra Locke, from Las Vegas. At one time, a gauntlet was a glove for a set of armor, and a gantlet was a series of tests.

The second definition of gauntlet comes closer here.

gaunt·let 2 also gant·let (gôntlt, gänt-) n.
1. a. A form of punishment or torture in which people armed with sticks or other weapons arrange themselves in two lines facing each other and beat the person forced to run between them.
b. The lines of people so arranged.
2. An onslaught or attack from all sides: "The hostages . . . ran the gauntlet of insult on their way to the airport" (Harper's).
3. A severe trial; an ordeal.

Definition of run the gantlet:

1. to be punished by means of the gantlet
2. to proceed while under attack from both sides, as by criticism

Why did I bring this up? I just found gantlet used correctly. Early in Wednesday's practice, the skill-position players ran a gantlet of blocking pads thrust at them by teammates.

If dictionaries are changing the word, it won't last long.

Contact: I can be reached at tgilli52@gmail.com or nc3022@yahoo.com. Also, my Twitter handle is EDITORatWORK.

More EDITOR@WORK blog entries

• You really DO need an editor

• Reminders for would-be novelists

• What I do when I'm editing

• What I charge (it's a deal) and what I edit

• Slogging through the Internet

• J-school: More eyes on your stories

• J-school: Go out and learn

• Rookie mistakes for magazine writers

Entries from The Dog Blog

• Katie cried

• Growl and pull

• 10 years with Lady

• ... said the spider to ...

• The Dog Diary (2014)

• YIP! YIP! The stereo-sound huskies

• What Lady and Michael Jackson had in common

Blog entries from The Auto Racing Journal

• Angel in Black: Remembering Dale Earnhardt Sr.

(a book of great stories about the Intimidator)

• Then Junior Said to Jeff...

(the book of great NASCAR stories)

• My best day as a sports writer

• Jeff Gordon's milk toast to Dale Earnhardt

• Wayne Auton: A life in racing

More blog entries by Tom Gillispie

• Resume for a writer and editor

• An editor's views on powerful writing

• Advice for be and would-be novelists

• Links to TG's stories online

• Favorite quotes

• What I do when I'm editing

Anecdotes by Tom Gillispie

• Wipeout at Death Valley

• Days with rainbows

• A desperate writer working in the dark

• Yer outta there!