WORD OF THE DAY

WORD OF THE DAY ON THURSDAY

I know. I missed a day again. What can I say? I was writing for pay yesterday.

Today's word is tohubohu and comes from page 99 of The Yiddish Policeman's Union by Michael Chabon.

tohubohu is a noun meaning chaos; disorder; confusion. It comes from the Hebrew tōhū wā-bhōhū

My sentence: After the earthquake, tohubohu was the order of the day. 

Please give us a sentence. 

WORD OF THE DAY

WELCOME TO WEDNESDAY'S

WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word is desuetude. It comes from page 11 of Pnin by Vladimir Nabokov.

desuetude is a noun meaning the condition of not being used or practiced any more; disuse.

It comes from Middle English which came from the Latin word desuetudo, meaning to disuse.

My sentence: Progress is a study in desuetude.

Please contribute a sentence in the comments.

WORD OF THE DAY

pot-au-feu

This week's word is from page 20 of The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Burbery.

pot-au-feu is a French term which translates to English as "pot on the fire." It is a French beef stew.

Here is a recipe: Classic Pot-au-fue. It can also be made with chicken or seafood. There are French restaurants named Pot-au-feu in various US cities, such as Providence, RI and El Paso, TX.

My sentence: In America, or at least in my childhood home,  pot-au-feu was called boiled dinner, which sounds boring but was quite good, especially as made by my mom.

Please contribute a sentence. Be sure to let us know if you make pot-au-feu anytime soon!

WORD OF THE DAY

This week's word comes from page 58 of The Deep Range by Arthur C Clarke.

astrophobia is a noun meaning a fear of stars and space. In Arthur Clarke's book one of the characters had a very bad experience while traveling in space as a spaceship commander and developed astrophobia.

astro comes from the Greek astron which means star.

phobia comes from the Greek phobos which means fear.

My sentence: The young woman was getting counseling to overcome her astrophobia because she wanted to become an astronaut.

Please contribute a sentence in the comments.

WORD OF THE DAY

 

This week's Word of the Day is eructation. I came across this word on page 17 of The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery.

An eructation is a burp! It is the noun form of the verb eruct which means to belch.

eruct comes from the Latin eructare which also means to belch.

My sentence: In some cultures an eructation is considered a compliment to the cook or chef.

Please contribute a sentence in the comments. 

WORD OF THE DAY

Well, I am a day late but I was busy making a dollar yesterday. And it is better than last week when I missed Word of the Day entirely.

I found so many words I did not know in Little, Big by John Crowley plus they are such great words. So please indulge me in a few more. I finished the book in January and have already posted my review. But now my husband is reading (and loving) it. There is really nothing better than when your significant other reads a book you loved and loves it too. We talk about it every night.

 

Today's word is minatory. It is from page 112 of Little, Big. I found this great image though the word could cover many images.

minatory is an adjective meaning menacing or threatening.

It comes from the Old French minatoire which comes from the Late Latin minatorius, a form of minari, which means to threaten.

My sentence: They took a look at the minatory clouds and knew that at least another foot of snow was coming.

Please contribute a sentence in the comments.

WORD OF THE DAY

                     WEDNESDAY MEANS 

                      WORD OF THE DAY!


Today's word is malapert and once again comes from Little, Big by John Crowley, page 75. (I had to look up so many words in that book.) 


malapert is considered an Archaic word, meaning that it is rarely used today but occurs in earlier writings. 


It is an adjective meaning saucy; impudent; pert.
It is also a noun meaning a saucy, impudent person.


It comes from Old French mal which meant badly plus appert which meant experienced or deft; influenced by apert which meant open, bold.



My sentence: When dealing with serious, annoying people, I tend to become malapert.



What is your sentence?


(Last week there were four sentences posted in the comments. That is the most ever in the history of this blog. I was SOOO excited! Thanks to all.)

WORD OF THE DAY

It is Wednesday Word of the Day Day! This week I am hoping for at least two sentences in the comments. Lots of love to A to Z, who gives us a sentence almost every week!

This week the word is condign. It comes from page 72 of Little, Big by John Crowley.

condign is an adjective meaning deserved; suitable; said especially of punishment for wrongdoing.

The word comes from Middle English and Old French, spelled condigne; which came from Latin, spelled condignus and meaning very worthy.

(From Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition)

My sentence: As she sat and cried over the boyfriend who left her, she fantasized about the most condign disasters which could befall the jerk, such as being ignored by all women from now on, crashing his motorcycle or gaining 100 pounds in the next three months.

And your sentence is?

WORD OF THE DAY

This week's word is phthisic from Little, Big by John Crowley, page 24.


phthisis is a noun meaning any wasting disease, as tuberculosis of the lungs.

phthisic the adjective form of the word.

The word comes from Latin which came from Greek, meaning a decay, which came from phthiein, meaning to waste away.

(From Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition)

My sentence: His phthisic appearance made me think that he had not much longer to live.

What is your sentence?

WORD OF THE DAY

It is time for the Word of the Day. If you just want to learn a new word, that is fine. It is more fun if you make up your own sentence using the word and post it in the comments.

This week's word is parvis, which I came across on page 246 in Desert, by 2008 Nobel Prize winner Jean-Marie Gustave LeClezio.

Parvis is a noun meaning an enclosed court or yard in front of a building, especially a church. It can also mean a portico or single line of columns in front of a church.

The word comes from Middle English which derived from the Old French word parevis which came from the Latin paradisus, meaning literally Paradise: the name of the court before St Peter's cathedral in Rome. (Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition.)

My sentence: Looking for a quiet and sacred place to do some serious thinking but feeling shy about entering such a dauntingly holy structure, the young woman settled down on a marble bench in the parvis.

What is your sentence?

WORD OF THE DAY

It is Wednesday, which means it is time to play Word of the Day.

Today's word is one that it seems I always have to look up whenever I come across it. The word is not even in my Webster's College Edition, so I have to look it up on-line. Pictures are always good to help lock in a word, especially if it is something you will not be likely to see anywhere around you in the world.

The word is manticore and comes from page 86 of Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger.

According to Wikipedia, it is a legendary creature having the body of a red lion, a human head with three rows of sharp teeth, a trumpet-like voice, and the tail of either a dragon or scorpion. Being mythical in nature, its characteristics can change depending on which tale is being told.

The original manticore myth was Persian where the name meant man-eater. The English word manticore was borrowed from Latin, mantichora, that being borrowed from Greek, mantikhoras, an erroneous pronunciation of the Persian word.

My sentence: While strolling through the enchanted forest with my girlfriends, I was given a shock when a manticore leaped from the shadows, threatened in a loud voice to eat me and bared its many teeth. My best friend saved us by pointing out that we were women.

Your sentence? And please let us know if you have ever read a tale with an manticore in it.

WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word comes from page 18 of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. It is one of the oldest words I have come across lately and is in fact obsolete (meaning no longer in general use) and archaic (meaning very old.)

wight, a noun

1. [Obsolete] a living being; creature.

Sentence: That wight doth seem to haunt my garden.

2. [Archaic] a human being; person: now sometimes used in a patronizing or commiserating sense.

Sentence: As I strolled the halls of the nursing home, a wight called out to me for a glass of water.

(The origin of this word traces back through Middle English, wiht; to Old English; is related to German wicht when it meant creature and the Gothic word waihts which meant thing.)

From Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition.

Please contribute a sentence in the comments.

WORD OF THE DAY

Wednesday is Word of the Day Day!

Today's word comes from page 6 of The Mystic Masseur, by V S Naipaul.

pundit noun

1. in India, a Brahman learned in Sanskrit, Hindu philosophy, etc.

Sentence: After years spent in study of the Bhagavad Gita and other works, he proclaimed himself a pundit.

2. a person who has great learning.

Sentence: Do you have to go to college to be a pundit?

pundit comes from Hindi which comes from the Sanskrit word pandita


Please contribute a sentence!

WORD OF THE DAY

I've had a request from a reader of this blog to resume the "Word of the Day" feature. Well at least I can do a word of the week.

Contrary to modern education methods, I was trained to look up any word I read that I didn't understand; learn each definition of that word; make up sentences for each definition to increase my understanding of and ability to use the word; then learn the derivation (the origin of the word.) It is a good method. It builds vocabulary, helps my writing skills and speeds my reading because the next time I come across that word, I already know it in any possible context.

This week's word comes from Guardian Angel, by Sara Paretsky, page 2.

thews (thyooz) noun plural, singular thew
1. muscular power; bodily strength
Sentence: She went to a personal trainer to increase her thews.

2. muscles or sinews
Sentence: After admiring each others thews, we went at it.

Derivation: Old English theaw, custom, habit

(Webster's New World Dictionary Student Edition)

Now for the fun: Contribute a sentence using the comments. Use your mental thews!

WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word is quiddity again read in the New York Times Book Review.

It has two definitions and the second definition fits the context in which I read it.

quiddity noun 1 the essential quality of a thing
2 a trifling distinction, quibble
from Middle Latin quidditas from Latin quid what, neuter of quis who

My sentence: Your quiddity about the sauce not being truly French cuisine didn't seem to hamper your enjoyment of it.

If you wish to contribute a sentence just click the comments button at the end of this post.

WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word is eremite, read in the New York Times Book Review. It means a religious recluse; a hermit. It comes from Middle English from Old French ermite, hermite.

My sentence: After years of prayer and meditation in a remote monastery, the eremite returned to a world changed beyond recognition.

Sentence anyone?

WORD OF THE DAY

These word of the day posts are a bit hard to do and I have been lazy. Actually I have been reading, but I have put this off for too long, thinking that it takes up too much of my time. But for readers and writers alike, building vocabulary is key. Do you agree?

Today's word is pilaster and comes from page 16 of Children of Men by PD James. (She, by the way, gave me 8 words to look up in the first 98 pages.) This is a word that I have read and not known (except that it is something on a building) for years, so I finally got honest and looked it up.

pilaster noun
a rectangular support or pier projecting partially from a wall and treated architecturally as a column, with a base, shaft and capital.

derived from the French, pilastre from the Italian pila, a pile, column


My sentence: She dreamed of a room with four pilasters on each wall, every one of which was painted a different color.

Please feel free to leave your sentence in the comments.

WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word is crenelate. It comes from p 16 of Children of Men by P D James. This is a word that I usually go past, knowing that it has something to do with buildings but not really knowing what it means. So this time, I got honest and looked it up. Then I was in a can of worms known by dictionary users as a word chain. Here we go:

crenelate transitive verb meaning to furnish with battlements or crenels, or with squared notches.

which led me to crenels.

crenel noun meaning any of the indentations or loopholes in the top of a battlement or wall, embrasure.

which led me to battlement and embrasure.

battlement noun meaning a parapet with open spaces for shooting built on top of a castle wall, tower or fort.

which led me to parapet (at which point I moved to an easier dictionary.)

parapet noun meaning a wall or bank for protecting troops from enemy fire. From French from Italian from papare, to guard + petto, breast from Latin pectus.

Sentence: OK guys, get behind the parapet before you get shot.

enbrasure noun meaning an opening, as in a parapet, with the sides slanting outward to increase the angle of fire of a gun. (Here we got a much needed picture.) From an obsolete French word, embraser, to widen an opening.

Sentence: Even though the guy was over to the right, I managed to pick him off thanks to the embrasure I was shooting through.

OK back to battlement noun meaning a parapet with open spaces for shooting built on top of a castle wall, tower or fort. From Middle English batelment from Old French bataillier, to fortify from battaille, fortification on a wall or tower. (Another great picture.)

Sentence: The soldiers were placed along the battlement with their bows, arrows and kettles of boiling oil.

OK, cool, so a crenel is a noun meaning any of the indentations or loopholes in the top of a battlement or wall, embrasure. (A crenel is an embrasure, one of those openings with the slanted sides.) It is from Old French, diminutive of the Vulgar Latin crena, a notch.

Sentence: While stooping behind the battlement, I shot an arrow through the crenel.

Back to the original word crenelate transitive verb meaning to furnish with battlements or crenels, or with squared notches.

Sentence: We finished the sand castle but it looked a bit plain so we crenelated the tops of the walls.


There, now you and I can read lots more historical fiction and know what they are talking about instead of guessing. We can also name the parts of our sand castles. All thanks to P D James. How about some sentences, guys?

WORD OF THE DAY

I haven't posted one of these in a while so I have a huge backlog. Please play the game and leave a sentence in the comments.

accidie

Found on page 3 of Children of Men by P D James.

accidie may also be spelled accidia or acedia. In Webster's New World Third College Edition the definition is given after acedia.

It means spiritual sloth or apathy and is one of the seven deadly sins.

It is derived from the Greek akedia which comes from a-, not + kedos, care.

My sentence: In college she discovered drinking which often happened on Saturday nights and led her to accidie on Sunday mornings.

What is your sentence?

WORD OF THE DAY

Today's word comes from page 102 of The Adventures of Augie March, by Saul Bellow.

knar is a noun meaning a knot in wood; esp. a bark covered bulge on a tree trunk or root. It comes from Middle English, knarre which is from Low German knarre, Dutch knar, a stump, knob, knot.

My sentence: I bruised my knuckle when I hit a knar while digging a hole to plant the new bush I won in a drawing on Earth Day.

Anyone else have any experience with knars?