I use some words just because I like to say them. Perfidious is one such word. For reasons I can't fathom it is commonly used by the French to criticize the English. "Perfidious Albion" being the usual framing. Evidently it was used by a Spanish-French playwright in the 1700's and just caught on.
Anyway, I've started using this word - so descriptive of dastardly behavior - to describe the Perfidious Squirrels. My dog hates 'em, and I think he's got the right of it.
Oddly the etymology of the word is a bit "doggy", making this very appropriate.
Perfidy, meaning treachery, faithlessness, or falsehood, comes from the Latin phrase "per fidem decipere" which means "to deceive through trust".
Of course dogs would never do this. That's why they have probably been called Fido, meaning faithful, for a very long time. But oddly, it was Abraham Lincoln who popularized it, having a dog by that name that he regretfully left behind when be became president. Supposedly his wife was concerned he'd chew on things and soil the carpets!
Presidential dogs have gotten away with worse behavior in recent times.
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