1. descant — to comment or enlarge upon ‘Twould be so very easy to descant upon poodles, those paragons of puppyhood, most distinguished of dogs, those curly-haired canines at the peak of the pack. 2. oriflamme — banner of St. Denis, red with two or three points; ensign or standard serving as a rallying …
Tag Archives: vocabulary
Friday Vocabulary
1. pouter — domestic pigeon, noted for puffing out its crop In contrast to Jack, whose beer belly could be seen before the man himself, Bert had an almost inverse shape, with a narrow waist and overlarge barrel chest, puffed up like a pouter in full distention. 2. fons et origo — source and …
Friday Vocabulary
1. procrustean — producing conformity or uniformity through severe means without regard to natural variation The sentencing guidelines have created a procrustean nightmare which prevents state judges from exercising discretion in even the most egregious cases. 2. winklepickers — shoes with long pointed toe The Leningrad Cowboys are known for their winklepickers and overlong …
Friday Vocabulary
1. flapdoodle — nonsense Certainly the collapse of that Colorado savings and loan during the ’80s had plenty of suspicious circumstances, but Bill was always peddling some flapdoodle about satanism and child abuse being involved so we just learned to tune him out. 2. lusus naturae — freak, sport of nature, deformed creature Palmer’s …
Friday Vocabulary
1. titivate (also tittivate) — to spruce or smarten up We stopped shaving once it became clear that no rescue was forthcoming, save for Harker, who maintained an almost manic hygiene, titivating and preening each morning as if expected a bevy of bachelorettes to stumble into our rude camp of lean-tos and hovels. 2. …
Friday Vocabulary
1. indefeasible — not liable to be annulled or voided, not forfeitable Any arguments for the indefeasible rights of an author to control his writings are undercut by the works of Franz Kafka, most of which were saved only when his friend Max Brod famously ignored Kafka’s final wishes that his unpublished works be burned …
Friday Vocabulary
1. panentheism — belief that God and the universe interpenetrate and influence each other In contradistinction to the identity of God with the universe described by pantheism, panentheism affirms a deity which exists within the universe but is not identical with it, yet which is not entirely separate from that universe as is the case …
Friday Lexicon
Today, after a full year of Friday Vocabulary posts, I am pleased to announce the launch of my Lexicon page, comprising every word I have used in my weekly Vocabulary, along with its definition. (Or at least one definition; several words utilize a meaning other than the most common. Caveat lector!) In addition to showing …
Friday Vocabulary
1. squamous — composed of scales, covered with scales, scaly She had gotten too close to her idol, and now perceived that the shoulders of his fashionable rope sweater were covered in squamous dandruff flakes, and that he had quite hairy ears. 2. cryptesthesia — perception by hidden or paranormal means, such as clairaudience …
Friday Vocabulary
1. chalazion — swollen bump on eyelid caused by clogged oil gland While a chalazion is frequently mistaken for a stye, the latter is usually found at the edge of the eyelid and is quite painful, whereas the former can appear anywhere within the eyelid and does not usually cause pain. 2. dissolute — …