1. clastic — (geology) formed from pieces of broken older rocks The waters were held back by clastic dikes formed from old volcanic fragments mixed with sand which had resolidified over the centuries to form an impermeable barrier. 2. leitmotif — (music) theme associated with particular person, idea, or situation His frustrating insistence that …
Category Archives: Vocabulary
Friday Vocabulary
1. roke — fog, mist; drizzle The yellow sunlight now faded with the day’s passing, and the distant path across the moor disappeared as the roke rolled across the damp, grey heath. 2. peruke — periwig He stuck his head through the wig door and waited patiently as James (or was it Jonathan?) placed …
Friday Vocabulary
1. gyniolatry — worship of women Perhaps Poul Anderson’s gyniolatry may seem to balance Philip K. Dick’s misogyny, though more likely both are perversions of the true view of relations between the sexes. 2. phenakistiscope — first device for viewing animated images, consisting of a revolving disc with distinct illustrations that appeared in motion …
Friday Vocabulary
1. poioumenon — metafiction in which the process of writing or creation is the primary subject He liked Barton Fink as a wonderful example of poioumenon, while I just liked it for John Goodman screaming in a burning hallway. 2. hotbox (also hot box) — (railroads) overheated axle bearing on rail cars and engines …
Friday Vocabulary
1. frowsty — musty, hot and stuffy I knelt by the bed the better to hear his wispy words and tried to ignore the sickbed stench in the frowsty attic room. 2. hoick — (colloquial) to pull or lift up with a jerk Uncle Slim leapt out of the truck, hoicked my cousin out …
Friday Vocabulary
1. gantry — framework or platform supporting a crane; framework across railroad tracks for showing signals; scaffolding framework for rockets I chose to say nothing to Black Tom, waiting instead until the last moment to fall down on the boxcar roof, letting the signal gantry sweep my enemy and his Colt .45 off the train. …
Friday Vocabulary
1. diligence — public stagecoach of early 18th Century, esp. in France I told the innkeeper to run out and hold the diligence while I gathered the soi-disant baroness up from the floor, along with her physical baggage. 2. bedizen — to dress up, esp. in a vulgar manner His green plaid waistcoat was …
Friday Vocabulary
1. callipygian — having shapely buttocks I gladly followed the callipygian blonde up the narrow trail and—not for the first time—gave silent thanks to whomsoever had introduced yoga pants into the realm of fashionable casual wear. 2. manustupration — (archaic) masturbation For centuries the detrimental effects of manustupration upon the body, the psyche, and …
Friday Vocabulary
1. orpiment — yellow arsenic sulfide used as pigment Although most commonly associated with ancient painting, orpiment has many, many uses, and in India and Iran is not infrequently used as a depilatory. 2. bort — low-grade diamonds and fragments of good diamonds, used commonly as abrasive Though over half of mined diamonds are …
Friday Vocabulary
1. pluviophile — lover of rain and rainy days As the storm subsided into a steady shower, Daniel looked out into the comforting grey sky and he realized how much he had missed rainy days, realized that he had always been a pluviophile, perhaps since he used to visit his grandfather in the little county …