1. Quinquagesima — final Sunday before Lent, beginning of Carnival The first appearance of Quinquagesima as a pre-Lenten feast (there is some evidence for the term being used for an anticipatory fast) cannot be found in Italy earlier than the 6th Century. 2. bimble — [British] to walk about in a meandering way with …
Category Archives: Vocabulary
Friday Vocabulary
1. bludge — [Australian slang] to shirk; to scrounge; to live off another’s earnings, esp. as a pimp It was the first time I’d ever bludged school, so I was more nervous than I ever was after. 2. chukka — period in game of polo, lasting from 7 to 7-1/2 minutes of play While …
Friday Vocabulary
1. super — [informal] supernumerary I thought those NPCs were just supers in the adventure after the opening, so I didn’t bring their characters sheets or figures with me for this session. 2. desuetude — disuse, discontinuance of practice His words came croaking and halting, as if his very power of speech had fallen …
Friday Vocabulary
1. crupper — strap looped around horse’s tail attached to saddle to prevent the saddle or harness from moving forward Sir Lee was unsaddled by the black knight’s lance, sent right over the crupper by the mighty blow. 2. Very light — flares used for signaling or illumination, fired from a special pistol Now …
Friday Vocabulary
1. columbary — dovecote Indeed, even such a medical luminary as Sir Thomas Browne sees fit to mention the important role played by the guano (so to speak) found at the floor of columbaries for its use in the production of saltpeter. 2. columbarium — vault or structure built with many niches for placement …
Friday Vocabulary
1. hythe (also hithe) — [British] river landing spot, small port or harbor Originally, Jackson’s Inn had been a rude hythe on the river, and there are some who still say it was smuggling which gave him the ready cash to build his first hostelry. 2. opopanax — gum resin made from various plants, …
Friday Vocabulary
1. traduce — to speak of someone in a malicious and false way, to slander; [archaic] to transmit (from one person or generation to another) Truly he was a very unpleasant individual, and so though one cannot condone it, one can understand why the villagers traduced their parson so. 2. oeillade — amorous look …
Friday Vocabulary
1. vestryman — council member of the local parish Caught in flagrante delicto, as it were, Humber cooly placed the rubber balls in his trouser pockets and wished the vestrymen a good day. 2. ghyll — [UK] ravine, gully Few go to Piers Ghyll now for the hiking, though once this was an important …
Friday Vocabulary
1. doab — [South Asia] tongue of low-lying land between two rivers which join, esp. that between the Ganges and the Yamuna The Gurjars began to extend their control across the Doab until Sher Shah felt constrained to utterly destroy them. 2. epopt — initiate of the Eleusinian Mysteries; any initiate of a secret …
Friday Vocabulary
1. hustle-cap — old penny pitching game where coins are shaken in a cap In the colonial days of Pennsylvania there is even one report of a deadlocked jury determining their verdict by playing a quick game of hustle-cap. 2. tomelet — small tome The new (1929) tomelet from the World’s Classics Library containing …