Vocabulary list--#28

disambiguate

dis-am-big-yoo-eyt

verb

To remove the ambiguity from; make unambiguous.


duplicity

doo-pliss-uh-tee

noun

The disguising of true intentions by deceptive words or action.


euthenics

yoo-then-iks

noun

A science concerned with bettering the condition of human beings through the improvement of their environment.


execrate

ek-suh-krayt

verb

1. To declare to be evil or detestable, denounce.
2. To detest utterly.

   
favonian

fuh-voh-nee-uhn

adjective

1. Of or pertaining to the West.
2. Mild or favorable, propitious.


grok

grok

verb

1. To understand thoroughly and intuitively.
2. To communicate sympathetically.


hemidemiseemiquaver

hem-ee-dem-ee-sem-ee-kwey-ver

noun

1. [Music]. Chiefly British. a sixty-fourth note.


hobbyhorse

hah-bee-horss

noun

A topic to which one constantly reverts.


hypocroism

hahy-pok-uh-riz-uhm

noun

1. A pet name.
2. The practice of using a pet name.


lacinate

luh-sin-ee-eyt

adjective

[Botany, Zoology]. Cut into narrow. irregular lobes, slashed, jagged.


lese-majeste

vay-maj-uh-stee

noun

1. An offense violating the dignity of a sovereign.
2. A detraction from or an affront to dignity or importance.


mot juste

moh-zhyst

noun

The exact appropriate word.


noosphere

noh-uh-sfeer

noun

[Ecology]. The biosphere including and modified by such human activities as agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, urbanization, and industrialization.


previse

pri-vahyz

verb

1. To foresee.
2. To forewarn.


panegyric

pan-i-jir-ik

noun

1. A lofty oration or writing in praise of a person or thing, eulogy.
2. Formal or elaborate praise.


philosophaster

noun

A person who pretends to know more than they do to impress others.


philosophunculist

noun

A person who pretends to know more than they do to impress others.


philososphincter

noun

A person who has an inability to discern the difference between education and intelligence.


steampunk

steem-punk

noun

Science fiction dealing with 19th-century societies dominated by historical or imagined steam-powered technology.


tautology

taw-tol-uh-jee

noun

1. Needless repetition of an idea, especially in words other than those of the immediate context, without imparting additional force or clearness, as in "widow woman."
2. An instance of such repetition.


tumultuary

too-muhl-choo-er-ee

adjective

1. Confused, disorderly, haphazard, tumultuary habits of studying.
2. Tumultuous, turbulent.


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POSP stringer Tim had some time on his hands...so here is another vocabulary list.

ambrosia

am-broh-zhee-uh

noun

1a. The food of the Greek and Roman gods.
1b. The ointment or perfume of the gods.
2. Something extremely pleasing to taste or smell.
3. A dessert made of oranges and shredded coconut.


ambulant

am-byul-luhnt

adjective

1. Moving from place to place, itinerant, shifting.
2. [Medicine]: Patient able to walk.


antebellum

an-tih-bel-um

adjective

Existing before a war, especially, existing before the Civil War.


arsy-varsy

ar-see-vahr-see

adjective

1. Informal: Wrong end foremost' completely backwards.
2. Informal: In a backward or thoroughly mixed up fashion.


chivy

chiv-ee

verb

1. To tease or annoy with persistent petty attacks.
2. To move or obtain by small maneuvers.


clement

clem-uhnt

adjective

1. Mild or merciful in disposition, lenient, compassionate.
2. [Of temperature] mild or temperate, pleasant 


crapulous

krap-yuh-luhs

adjective

1. Given to or characterized by excessive drinking or eating.
2. Suffering from or due to such excess.


dactylogram

dak-til-uh-gram

noun

A fingerprint.


diffident

dif-uh-dunt

adjective

1. Hesitant in acting or speaking through lack of self-confidence.
2. Reserved, unassertive.


droke

drohk

noun

A valley with steeply sloping sides.


epithalamion

ep-uh-thuh-let-mee-on

noun

A poem or song in honor of a bridegroom and bride.


evince

ih-vinns

verb

1. To constitute outward evidence of.
2. To display clearly, reveal.


faze

fayz

verb

To disturb the composure of, disconcert, daunt.


gallinipper

gal-uh-nip-er

noun

Informal. any of various insects that sting or bite, especially a large American mosquito, Psorophora ciliata.


garboil

gahr-boil

noun

[Archaic]: confusion.


germane

jer-mayn

adjective

Being at once relevant and appropriate, fitting.


gloze

glohz

verb

To explain away, extenuate, gloss over.


Incongruous

in-kahn-gruh-wus

adjective

1. Not harmonious, incompatible.
2. Not conforming, disagreeing.
3. Inconsistent within itself.


onomasticon

on-uh-mas-ti-kon

noun

1. A list or collection of proper names.
2. A list or collection of specialized terms as those used in a particular field.


peregrine

per-i-grin [green-grahyn]

adjective

1. Foreign, alien, coming from abroad.
2. Wandering, traveling, migrating.


perdue

per-dur

verb

To continue to exist, last.


prate

preyt

verb

To talk incessantly and pointlessly, babble.
To utter in empty or foolish talk.



prevaricator

pri-var-i-key-ter

noun

1. A person who speaks falsely, liar, mythomaniac.
2. Speaking to avoid the truth, quibbler, equivocator.


rident 

rahyd-nt

adjective

Laughing, smiling, cheerful.


sophomoric

sahf-mor-ik

adjective

1. Conceited and overconfident of knowledge but poorly informed and immature.
2. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a sophomore.


sparge

spahrj

verb

To sprinkle or scatter.


strident

strahyd-nt

adjective

1. Making or having a harsh sound, grating, creaking, such as insects or hinges.
2. Having a shrill or irritating quality or character such as writing.


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Some kool words from POSP stringer Tim.

apercu

ap-er-soo

noun

1. A brief survey or sketch, outline.
2. An immediate impression, especially an intuitive insight.


apophasis

uh-pah-fuh-sis

noun

The raising of an issue by claiming not to mention it.


calvous

kal-vuhs

adjective

Lacking all or most of the hair on the head, bald.


crinose

krin-ohs

adjective

Hairy.


desiderium

des-i-deer-ee-uhm

noun

An ardent longing, as for something lost.


disambigulate

dis-am-big-yoo-eyt

verb

To remove the ambiguity from, make unambiguous.


Janus-faced

jay-nus-fayst

noun

Having two contrasting aspects, especially duplicitous, two-faced.


jardiniere

jahr-duh-neer

noun

1a. An ornamental stand for plants or flowers.
1b. A large usually ceramic flowerpot holder.
2. A garnish for meat consisting of several cooked vegetables cut into pieces.


lambent

lam-buhnt

adjective

1. Dealing lightly and gracefully with a subject, brilliantly playful, lambent wit.
2. Running or moving lightly over a surface, lambent tongues of flame.


oleaginous

oh-lee-aj-nus

adjective

1. Resembling or having the properties of oil, oily, also, containing or producing oil.
2. Marked by an offensively ingratiating manner or quality.


operose

ah-puh-rohss

adjective

Tedious, wearisome.


osculate

os-kyuh-leyt

verb

1. To kiss.
2. To bring into close contact or union.


pericope

puh-rik-uh-pee

noun

1. A selection from a book.
2. A portion of sacred writing read in a divine service, lesson; lection.


phiology

fi-lol-uh-jee

noun

1. [Obsolete]. The love of learning and literature.
2. The study of literary texts and of written records, the establishment of their authenticity and their original form and the determination of their meaning.


pica

pye-kuh

noun

An abnormal desire to eat substances (as chalk or ashes) not normally eaten.


precocial

prih-koh- shul

adjective

Capable of a high degree of independent activity from birth.


pulchritudinous

puhl-tood-n-uhs

adjective

Physically beautiful, comely.


rathskeller

raht-skel-er

noun

An usually basement tavern or restaurant.


rimple

rim-puhl

verb

To wrinkle, crumple, crease.

noun

A wrinkle.


scaramouch

skar-uh-mouch

noun

1. A rascal or scamp.
2. Stock character in commedia dell'arte and farce who is a cowardly braggart, easily beaten and frightened.


serein

suh-ran

noun

[Meterology] Fine rain falling after sunset from which no clouds are visible.


singultus

sing-guhl-tuhs

noun

Hiccup.


sweven

swev-uhn

noun

[Archaic] A vision, dream.


tintinnabular

tin-ti-nab-yuh-ler

adjective

Of or pertaining to bells or bell ringing.


troth

trowth

noun

1. One word or promise, especially in engaging oneself to marry.
2. Faithfulness, fidelity, or loyalty by my troth.


viridity

vuh-rid-uh-tee

noun

1. The quality or state of being green.
2. The color of grass or foilage.
3. Naive innocence.


ursprache

oor-shrah-kuhn

noun

Hypothetically reconstructed parent language, as Proto-Germanic, the ancestor, Germanic languages.


wyvern

wye-vern

noun

A mythical animal usually represented as a 2-legged winged creature resembling a dragon.



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Here'sssssssss Tim with a new list of words.

achromic

ey-kroh-mik

adjective

Colorless, without coloring matter.


adscititious
ad-suh-tish-us

adjective

1. Derived or acquired from something on the outside.
2. Supplemental, additional.


agnize

ag-nahyz

verb

To recognize, acknowledge, own.


analphabetic

an-al-fuh-bet-ik

adjective

1. Not alphabetic, an analphabetic arrangement of letters.
2. Unable to read or write, illiterate: analphabetic peoples.


cadge

kaj

verb

Beg, sponge.


catharsis

kuh-thar-seez

noun

1. The purging of the emotions or relieving of emotional tensions, especially through
certain kinds of art, as tragedy or music.
2. [Medicine/Medical] Purgation.


cock-a-hoop

kah-kuh-hoop

adjective

1. Triumphantly boastful, exulting.
2. Awry.


collimate

kah-luh-mayt

verb

To make (something, such as light rays) parallel.


cuittle

ky-tl

verb

To wheedle, cajole,or coax.


epistolary

ih-pist-uh-lair-ee

adjective

1. Of, relating to, or suitable to a letter.
2. Contained in or carried on by letters.
3. Written in the form of a series of letters.


hippophile

ip-uh-fahyl

noun

Lover of horses.


hospitalist

hah-spih-tuh-list

noun

A physician who specializes in treating hospitalized patients of other physicianimms.


immisible

ih-mis-uh-buhl

adjective

Not miscible, incapable of being mixed.


infix 

in-fiks

noun

A derivational or inflectional affix appearing in the body of a word.


lodestar

lohd-stahr

noun

One that serves as an inspiration, model, or guide.


madeleine

mad-uh-lun

noun

1. A small rich shell-shaped cake.
2. One that evokes a memory.


maslin

maz-lin

noun

1. Mixture, medley.
2. A mixture of different grains, flour or meals, especially rye with wheat.


minutia
muh-noo-shee-uh

noun

A minute or minor detail.


oneiric

oh-nye-rik

adjective

Of or relating to dreams, dreamy.


opusculum

oh-pusk-yuh-lum

noun

A minor work (as of literature).


omphalospsis

om-fuh-loh-skep-sis-om

noun

Contemplation of one's navel as an aid to meditation.


passe-partout

pas-pahr-too

noun

1. Something that passes everywhere or provides a universal means of passage.
2. A master key, skeleton key.


perforce

per-forss

adverb

By force of circumstances.


picayune

pik-ee-yoon

adjective

1. Of little value or account, small, trifling: a picayune amount.
2. Petty, carping, or prejudiced: I didn't want to seem picayune by criticizing.


recondite

rek-un-dyte

adjective

1. Hidden from sight, concealed.
2. Difficult or impossible for one of ordinary understanding or knowledge to comprehend, deep.
3. Of, relating to, or dealing with something little known or obscure.


sallow

sal-oh

adjective

Of a grayish greenish yellow color suggesting sickliness.


tabula rasa

tab-yuh-luh-rah-zuh

noun

1. The mind in its hypothetical primary blank or empty state before receiving outside impressions.
2. Something existing in its original pristine state.


timorous

tim-uh-rus

adjective

1. Of a timid disposition, fearful.
2. Expressing or suggesting timidity.


virescent 

vuh-ress-unt

adjective

Beginning to be green, greenish.


xylography

zahy-log-ruh-fee

noun

The art of engraving on wood, or of printing from such engravings.

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Marilyn Monroe Reading Ulysses

The Valentine heart burst with a new list of words from POSP stringer Tim.

aphesis

af-uh-sis

noun

Historical Linguistics. The disappearance or loss of an unstressed initial vowel or syllable, as in the formation of the word slant from aslant.


boffin

bof-in

noun

A scientist or technical expert.


boîte

bwaht; Fr. bwat

noun

A nightclub, cabaret.


farceur

fahr-sur

noun

1. A joker, wag.
2. A writer or director of or actor in farce.


galligaskins

gal-i-gas-kinz

noun

1. Leggings or gaiters, usually of leather.
2. Loose hose or breeches worn in the 16th and 17th centuries.


lexophile

leks-o-file

noun

A lover of words, one who derives pleasure from various use of words, who appreciates the nuances surrounding different words, and who is alert to synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and homonyms, often using them for effect, sometimes in humor.


logy

loh-ghee

adjective

Marked by sluggishness and lack of vitality, groggy.


malversation 

mal-ver-say-shun

noun

1. Misbehavior and especially corruption in an office, trust, or commission.
2. Corrupt administration.


neologize

nee-ol-uh-jahyz

verb

1. To make or use new words or create new meanings for existing words.
2. To devise or accept new religious doctrines.


parvenu 

pahr-vuh-noo

noun

One who has recently or suddenly risen to an unaccustomed position of wealth or power and has not yet gained the prestige, dignity, or manner associated with it.


passim

pass-im

adverb

Here and there.


perspicuous

per-spik-yoo-uhs

adjective

Clearly expressed or presented, lucid.


pettifogging

pet-ee-fog-ing, -faw-ging

adjective

1. Insignificant, petty, pettifogging details.
2. Dishonest or unethical in insignificant matters, meanly petty.


pusillanimous

pyoo-suh-lan-uh-mus

adjective

Lacking courage and resolution, marked by contemptible timidity.


refulgence

rih-full-junss

noun

A radiant or resplendent quality or state, brilliance.


riposte

ri-pohst

noun

1. A quick, sharp return in speech or action, counterstroke, a brilliant riposte to an insult.
2. Fencing. A quick thrust given after parrying a lunge.

verb

1. To make a riposte.
2. To reply or retaliate.


rutilant 

roo-tuh-lunt

adjective

Having a reddish glow.


sessile

ses-il, -ahyl

adjective

1. Zoology. Permanently attached, not freely moving.
2. Botany. Attached by the base, or without any distinct projecting support, as a leaf issuing directly from the stem


visage

viz-ij

noun

1. The face, countenance, or appearance of a person or sometimes an animal.
2. Aspect, appearance.


williwaw

wil-ee-waw

noun

A violent squall that blows in near-polar latitudes, as in the Strait of Magellan, Alaska, and the Aleutian Islands.


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POSP stringer Tim is on a short vacation and sent this short vocabulary list.

abecedarian

ay-bee-see-dair-ee-un

adjective

1a. Of or relating to the alphabet.
1b. Alphabetically arranged.
2. Rudimentary.


agnification

ag-na-fa-kay-shun

noun

The representation (as in painting) of persons as sheep or lambs.


bosky

bos-kee

adjective

1. Covered with bushes, shrubs, and small trees, woody.
2. Shady.


cathexis

kuh-THEK-sis

noun

1. Psychoanalysis. The investment of emotional significance in an activity, object, or idea.
2. Psychoanalysis. The charge of psychic energy so invested.


chinoiserie

sheen-wah-zuh-ree

noun

A style in art (as in decoration) reflecting Chinese qualities or motifs also, an object or decoration in this style.


eupeptic 

yoo-pep-tik

adjective

1. Of, relating to, or having good digestion.
2. Cheerful, optimistic.


gustatory

guss-tuh-tor-ee

adjective

Relating to or associated with eating or the sense of taste.


hibernaculum

hahy-ber-nak-yuh-luhm

noun

1. A protective case or covering, especially for winter, as of an animal or a plant bud.
2. Winter quarters, as of a hibernating animal.


misology

mi-sol-uh-jee, mahy

noun

Distrust or hatred of reason or reasoning.


misoneism

mis-oh-nee-iz-uhm, mahy-soh

noun

Hatred or dislike of what is new or represents change.


nimiety

nih-mye-uh-tee

noun

Excess, redundancy.


oeillade

œ-yad

noun

An amorous glance, ogle.


ostentatious

ah-stun-tay-shus

adjective

Marked by or fond of conspicuous or vainglorious and sometimes pretentious display.


parageusia

par-uh-gyoo-zhuh, -zhee-uh, -zee-uh

noun

An abnormal or hallucinatory sense of taste.


paraphernalia

pair-uh-fuh-nail-yuh

noun

1. The separate real or personal property of a married woman that she can dispose of by will and sometimes according to common law during her life.
2. Personal belongings.
3a. Articles of equipment, furnishings.
3b. Accessory items, appurtenances.


pococurante

poh-koh-kyoo-ran-tee

adjective

Indifferent, nonchalant.


saponaceous

sap-uh-nay-shus

adjective

Resembling or having the qualities of soap.


umbriferous

uhm-brif-er-uhs

adjective

Casting or making shade.

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POSP stringer Tim's well of words spill over this May.

abecedarian

ey-bee-see-dairn-ee-uhn

noun

1. A person learning the letters of the alphabet.
2. A beginner in any field of learning.


adret

a-dray

noun

A side of the mountaqin receiving direct sunlight.


anagnorsis

an-ag-nawr-uh-sis

noun

[In ancient Greek tragedy] the critical moment of recognition or discovery, especially preceding peripeteia.


aplomb

uh-plahm

noun

Complete and confident composure or self-assurance, poise.


axiomatic

ak-see-uh-mat-ik

adjective

1. Of or pertaining to the nature of an axiom, obvious, self-evident.
2. Aphoristic.


bonnyclabber

bah-nee-klab-er

noun

Sour milk that has thickened or curdled.


caprine

kap-rahyn, -rin

adjective

Of or pertaining to goats.


coterie

koh-tuh-ree

noun

1. A group of people who associate closely.
2. An exclusive group, clique.
3. From the French meaning a group of farmers.


eidetic

eye-det-ik

adjective

Marked by or involving extraordinarily accurate and vivid recall especially of visual images.


effloresce

ef-luh-res

verb

1. To burst into bloom; blossom.
2. [Chemistry]: a. To change either throughout or on the surface to a mealy or powdery substance upon exposure to air, as a crystalline substance through loss of water of crystallization. b. To become incrusted or covered with crystals of salt or the like through evaporation or chemical change.


fissiparous

fih-sip-uh-rus

adjective

1. Tending to break up into parts.
2. Creating disunity or dissension, divisive.


grimalkin

gri-mal-kin

noun

1. A cat.
2. Old female cat.


inkhorn 

iunk-horn

adjective

Ostentatiously learned, pedantic.


kickshaw

kik-shaw

noun

1. A fancy dish, delicacy.
2. A showy trifle, trinket.


lionize

lye-uh-nyze

verb

To treat as an object of great interest or importance.


obliquity

uh-blik-wi-tee

noun

1. A divergence from moral conduct, rectitude ect. immorality; dishonesty or the like.
2. The state of obliquity.


matrifocal

ma-truh-fol-kulh

adjective

1. Focused or centered on the mother.
2. Of, pertaining to, or designating a family unit or structure headed by the mother and lacking a father permanently or for extended periods.


melange

may-lahnzh

noun

A mixture often of incongruous elements.


mien

meen

noun

1. Air or bearing especially as expressive of attitude or personality, demeanor.
2. Appearance, aspect.


nettle

net-l

verb

1. To annoy, irritate, provoke.
2. To sting as a nettle does.


risible

rizz-uh-bul

adjective

1. Capable of laughing.
2. Disposed to laugh.
3. Arousing or provoking laughter.
4. Associated with, relating to or used in laughter.


scherzo

skert-so

noun

[Music.] A movement or passage of light or playful character, especially as the second or third movement of a sonata or a symphony.


shinplaster

shinn-plass-ter

noun

1. A piece of privately issued paper currency; especially, one poorly secured and depreciated in value.
2. A piece of paper money in denominations of less than one dollar.


sciamachy

sahy-am-uh-kee

noun

An act or instance of fighting a shadow or an imaginary enemy.


spumescent

spyoo-mes-uhnt

adjective

Foamy, foamlike\frothy like.


svelte 
svelt

adjective

1a. Slender, lithe.
1b. Having even and smooth lines, sleek.
2. Urbane, suave.

tarantism

tar-unh-tiz-uhm

noun

1. A mania characterized by an uncontrollable impulse to dance, especially as prevalent in southern Italy from the 15th to the 17th century, popularly attributed to the bite of the tarantula. Also, tarentism.


verbicide

vur-buh-sahyd

noun

1. The willful distortion or depreciation of the original meaning of a word.
2. A person who willfully distorts the meaning of a word.


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A gum-bichromate photographic print by Robert de Machey.

These words from POSP stringer Tim won't melt the snow or warm the air, but they will please the mind.


ailurophilia

ahy-loor-uh-fil-ee-uh, ey-loor

noun

A liking for cats, as by cat fanciers.


artless

ahrt-lus

adjective

1. Lacking art, knowledge, or skill, uncultured.
2a. Made without skill, crude.
2b. Free from artificiality, natural.
3. Free from guile or craft, sincerely simple.


august

aw-guhst

adjective

1. Venerable, eminent, an august personage.
2. Inspiring reverence or admiration; of supreme dignity or grandeur, majestic.


billingsgate

bil-ingz-gayt

noun

Coarsely abusive language.


blatherskite

blath-er-skahyt

noun

1. A person given to voluble, empty talk.
2. Nonsense, blather.


cheeseparing

cheez-pair-ing

noun

1. Something worthless or insignificant>
2. Miserly economizing.


cognizant

kog-nuh-zuhnt, kon-uh

adjective

1. Having cognizance; aware (usually followed by of ): He was cognizant of the difficulty.
2. Having legal cognizance.


crepitate 

krep-uh-tayt

verb

To make a crackling sound, to make a series of short, sharp noises.


decoct

dih-kahkt

verb

1. To extract the flavor of by boiling.
2. Boil down, concentrate.


dulcify

duhl-suh-fahy

verb

1. To make more agreeable; mollify; appease.
2. To sweeten.


fantod 

fan-tahd

noun

1a. [Plural], a state of irritability and tension.
1b. Fidgets.
2. An emotional outburst, fit.


froward

froh-erd

adjective

Habitually disposed to disobedience and opposition.


geomancy

jee-uh-man-see

noun

Divination by geographic features or by figures or lines.


gritty

grit-ee

adjective

1. Containing or resembling grit.
2. Courageously persistent, plucky.
3. Having strong qualities of tough uncompromising realism.


hegira 

hih-jye-ruh

noun

A journey especially when undertaken to escape from a dangerous or undesirable situation, exodus.


jingoism 

jing-goh-iz-im

noun

Extreme chauvinism or nationalism marked especially by a belligerent foreign policy.


lingua franca

ling-gwuh frang-kuh

noun

1. Any language that is widely used as a means of communication among speakers of other languages.
2. [Initial capital letter] the Italian-Provençal jargon [with elements of Spanish, French, Greek, Arabic, and Turkish] formerly widely used in eastern Mediterranean ports.


picayun

pik-ee-yoon

adjective

Of little value, paltry, also: petty, small-minded.


pluvial

ploo-vee-uhl

adjective

1. Of or pertaining to rain; rainy.
2. [Geology]. occurring through the action of rain.


probity

proh-buh-tee

noun

Adherence to the highest principles and ideals, uprightness.


redoubtable 

rih-dout-uh-bul

adjective

1, Causing fear or alarm, formidable.
2. Illustrious, eminent, broadly, worthy of respect.


sciamachy

sahy-am-uh-kee

noun

An act or instance of fighting a shadow or an imaginary enemy.


serendipity 

sair-un-dip-uh-tee

noun

The faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for, also: an instance of this.


schatzi

shaht-see

noun

Slang. sweetheart, darling.


solatium

soh-lay-shee-um

noun

A compensation [as money] given as solace for suffering, loss, or injured feelings.


toothsome

tooth-suhm

adjective

1. Pleasing to the taste, palatable, a toothsome dish.
2. Pleasing or desirable, as fame or power.
3. Voluptuous, sexually alluring, a toothsome blonde.


zeitgeber

tsyte-gay-ber

noun

An environmental agent or event that provides the stimulus setting or resetting a biological clock of an organism.


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Is POSP's wordsmith Tim aware of these words?

Since June 27th, 2010, POSP stringer Tim has provide an enormous quantity of words to add to one's vocabulary. I wonder if he has heard of the following?

"Mark Forsyth's top 10 lost words"

From snollygoster to wamblecropt, these forgotten words just might come handy, says the author of The Horologicon

The Guardian

Everybody has, on occasion, looked up a word in a dictionary and let their eye wander to the next word and thought: "Really? There's a word for that?", whether it's the little plastic aglets on the end of your shoelaces or the nurdle of toothpaste squeezed onto your toothbrush in the morning. I have simply had that feeling more than most.

1. Wamblecropt

Wamblecropt means overcome with indigestion. Once upon a time, you might observe that your stomach was wambling a bit. If the wambles got so bad you couldn't move, you were wamblecropt. It's the most beautiful word in the English language to say aloud. Try it.

2. Sprunt

Sprunt is an old Scots word (from Roxburgh, to be precise) meaning "to chase girls around among the haystacks after dark". I would dearly love to have lived in a time and a place where this was such an everyday activity that they needed a single-syllable word for it. Old dialect words give us a glimpse of lost worlds, and sprunt is my favourite glimpse.

3. Groke

Another old Scots word, to groke is to gaze at somebody while they're eating in the hope that they'll give you some of their food. The word was originally used to refer to dogs – and any dog owner whose canine friend has salivated beside them while they eat a steak will know why – but it can also be used to describe that colleague who sidles up to you from across the office when you open a box of chocolates.

4. Uhtceare

Uhtceare is an Old English word that refers to anxiety experienced just before dawn. It describes that moment when you wake up too early and can't get back to sleep, no matter how tired you are, because you're worried about the day to come.

5. Snollygoster

Snollygoster is a 19th century American word for "a dishonest or corrupt politician". Or, to take an original definition from the editor of a Georgia newspaper: "a snollygoster is a fellow who wants office, regardless of party, platform or principles, and who, whenever he wins, gets there by the sheer force of monumental talknophical assumnacy". The only reason I can imagine such a delicious word would die out is that all politicians are now honest.

6. Ultracrepidarian

Ultracrepidarianism is when you give your opinion on a topic about which you know nothing. What makes this word so useful is that nobody knows what it means. Tell someone they are ultracrepidarian and they'll probably consider it a compliment.

7. Gongoozle

I found gongoozle deep in the Oxford English Dictionary while I was researching The Horologicon. To gongoozle is to stare idly at a canal or watercourse. At the time, I thought it a weirdly precise and unnecessary word, but since then I've noticed gongoozlers everywhere. Walk along a riverbank or seafront on a sunny afternoon and you'll see lots of people happily gongoozling. I realised that I'd been gongoozling for years; I'd just never known the word.

8. Snudge

To snudge is to stride around as though you're terribly busy, when in fact you are doing nothing. It's particularly useful for the modern office, especially with the invention of the smartphone. You can snudge around all day without anyone realising you're checking up on the score in the Ashes.

9. Feague

Feague is a term from around the 18th century that means to put a live eel up a horse's bottom. Apparently, this was a horse dealer's trick to make an old horse seem more lively, which I suppose it would. But it does imply that you should never trust an 18th century horse dealer – especially if you're a horse, or an eel. I hope you find no use for this word. In 2012, a chap who walked into Auckland City Hospital, in New Zealand, could have saved himself a lot of embarrassment if he had simply announced: "I need to be de-feagued".

10. Sir Richard has taken off his considering cap

Benjamin Franklin, when he wasn't inventing bifocals and supporting the American Revolution, collected slang terms for being drunk. This is my favourite one, especially after a hard day's work. It sums up the feeling of work being over and drinking having begun.

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More words from POSP stringer Tim.

battology

buh-TOL-uh-jee

noun

Wearisome repetition of words in speaking or writing.


circadian

sur-KEY-dee-uhn, -KAD-ee-, sur-kuh-DEE-uhn

adjective

Noting or pertaining to rhythmic biological cycles recurring at approximately 24-hour intervals.


decoupage

day-koo-PAHZH

noun

1. The art of decorating surfaces by applying cutouts (as of paper) and then coating with usually several layers of finish (as lacquer or varnish).
2. Work produced by decoupage.


de profundis

dey proh-FOON-dis

adverb

Out of the depths (of sorrow, despair, etc.).


diglossia

dahy-GLOS-ee-uh, -GLAW-see-uh

noun

1. The widespread existence within a society of sharply divergent formal and informal varieties of a language each used in different social contexts or for performing different functions, as the existence of Katharevusa and Demotic in modern Greece.
2. Pathology. the presence of two tongues or of a single tongue divided into two parts by a cleft.


genethliac

juh-NETH-lee-ak

adjective

Of or pertaining to birthdays or to the position of the stars at one's birth.


integrant

IN-ti-gruhnt

adjective
 
Making up or being a part of a whole, constituent.

noun

1. An integral part.
2. A solid, rigid sheet of building material composed of several layers of the same or of different materials.


isolato

ahy-suh-LEY-toh

noun

A person who is spiritually isolated from or out of sympathy with his or her times or society.


ken

ken

noun

1. Knowledge, understanding, or cognizance; mental perception: an idea beyond one's ken.
2. Range of sight or vision.


lenitive

LEN-uh-tiv

adjective

Alleviating pain or harshness, soothing.


lyceum

lahy-SEE-uhm

noun

1. An institution for popular education providing discussions, lectures, concerts, etc.
2. A building for such activities.
3. (initial capital letter) the gymnasium where Aristotle taught, in ancient Athens.
4. A lycée.


mishpocha

mish-PAW-khuh, -POOKH-uh

noun

An entire family network comprising relatives by blood and marriage and sometimes including close friends, clan.


mordacious

mawr-DEY-shuhs

adjective

1. Sharp or caustic in style, tone, etc.
2. Biting or given to biting.


motza

MOT-ser

noun

A large amount of money, especially a sum won in gambling.


muliebrity
myoo-lee-EB-ruh-tee

noun

Femininity.


orotund 

OR-uh-tund

adjective

1. Marked by fullness, strength, and clarity of sound, sonorous.
2. Pompous, bombastic.


pasquinade

pas-kwuh-NEYD

noun
 
A satire or lampoon, especially one posted in a public place.

verb
 
To assail in a pasquinade or pasquinades.


stichomythia

stik-uh-MITH-ee-uh

noun

Dialogue especially of altercation or dispute delivered by two actors in alternating lines (as in classical Greek drama).


syllogism

SIL-uh-jiz-um

noun

1. A deductive scheme of a formal argument consisting of a major and a minor premise and a conclusion/
2. A subtle, specious, or crafty argument.
3. Deductive reasoning.


theurgy

THEE-ur-jee

noun

1. The working of a divine or supernatural agency in human affairs.
2. A system of beneficent magic practiced by the Egyptian Platonists and others.


trachle

TRAH-khuh

noun

1. An exhausting effort, especially walking or working.
2. An exhausted or bedraggled person.

verb

1. To fatigue; tire; wear out.
2. To bedraggle.


wuther

WUHTH-er

verb

(of wind) to blow fiercely.


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