My Interesting Word of the Week!

Recrudescence:

\Re'cru*des"cence\, n. A return of something after a period of abatement; relapse.

Due to space constraints, words from A to O are on this page. Words from P to Z, resources, and other fun word links can be found on the second page.

Absquatulate:

\Ab*squat"u*late\, v. To run away, usually taking something or someone along; abscond; decamp.

Adust:

\A*dust"\, a. Inflamed or scorched; dried out by heat; sunburnt.

Alula:

\Al"u*la\, n. (Zoology) A false wing.

Animadversion:

\An'i*mad*ver"sion\, n. Adverse criticism.

Argot:

\Ar'got"\, n. A secret language or conventional slang of a particular group.

Arsenious:

\Ar*se"ni*ous\, a. Pertaining to, consisting of, or containing arsenic.

Aurigation:

\Au'ri*ga"tion\, n. The act of driving a chariot or carriage.

Autarky:

\Au"tar*ky\, n. Economic independence as a national policy; self-sufficiency.

Bellicose:

\Bel"li*cose'\, a. Inclined to war or contention; having a ready disposition to fight.

Bivouac:

\Biv"ouac\, n. 1: Temporary living quarters specially built by the army for soldiers 2: campsite v. to live in a tent.

Bort:

\Bort\, n. Imperfect or coarse diamonds, or scraps left over from cutting other diamonds.

Bowdlerize:

\Bowd"ler*ize\, v. To censor; to edit or omit parts considered offensive.

Braze:

\Braze\, v. 1: To solder 2: to harden.

Calumniate:

\Ca*lum"ni*ate\, v. To accuse falsely of crime or offense; to slander.

Campestral:

\Cam*pes"tral\, a. Relating to open fields; growing in a field.

Catoptromancy:

\Ca*top"tro*man'cy\, n. Divination through the use of a mirror, by submerging a mirror in water and having a sick person to look at himself in it. If the image was distorted and ghastly, it was an ill omen; if fresh and healthy, it was favorable.

Caudate:

\Cau"date\, Caudated \Cau"da*ted\ a. 1: (Zoology) Having a tail or taillike appendage 2: Of a leaf shape; tapering gradually into a long taillike tip n. Amphibians that resemble lizards

Charivari:

\Cha*ri'va*ri"\, n. A mock serenade of discordant noises, designed to annoy and insult.

Chrestomathy:

\Chres*tom"a*thy\, n. A selection of passages, with notes, etc., to be used in learning a language.

Chuff:

\Chuff\, n. A coarse or stupid man a. Stupid; churlish v. blow hard and loudly.

Clepsydra:

\Clep"sy*dra\, n. A clock measuring time by the escape of water.

Collimate:

\Col"li*mate\, v. 1: To make or place parallel to something 2: Adjust the line of site.

Concatenation:

\Con*cat'e*na"tion\, n. A series or order of things depending on each other, as if linked together; a chain, a succession.

Corolla:

\Co*rol"la\, a. The petals of a flower collectively.

Corv�e:

\Cor'vee\, n. Unpaid labor required by a lord of his subjects instead of taxes.

Crepuscular:

\Cre*pus"cu*lar\, adj. 1: Pertaining to twilight; glimmering; hence, imperfectly clear or luminous 2: (Zoology) Flying in the twilight or evening, or before sunrise; feeding only in the twilight or evening.

Declivitous:

\De*cliv"i*tous\, a. Descending gradually; moderately steep; sloping; downhill.

Dup:

\Dup\, v. To open; from "do up".

Edacious:

\E*da"cious\, adj. Given to eating; voracious; devouring.

Eleemosynary:

\El'ee*mos"y*na*ry\, adj. 1: Related to charity, philanthropy 2: given in alms 3: supported by charity; as, eleemosynary poor.

Emprise:

\Em*prise"\, n. 1: An endeavor; adventure 2: The qualities which prompt one to undertake difficult and dangerous exploits v. to undertake.

Evanescent:

\Ev'a*nes"cent\, a. 1: Liable to vanish like vapor; fleeting 2: Vanishing from notice; imperceptible.

Exordium:

\Ex*or"di*um\, n. The introduction or beginning, esp. of a formal speech.

Fenestration:

\Fen'es*tra"tion\, n. The arrangement and proportioning of windows.

Foist:

\Foist\, n. 1: A light and fast-sailing ship [Obs.] 2: A trick or fraud; a swindle [Obs.] v. 1: to force onto another 2: to insert surreptitiously or without warrant; to pass off (something counterfeit) as genuine, true, or worthy.

Foy:

\Foy\, n. A feast given by one about to leave a place.

Frutescent:

\Fru*tes"cent\, a. (Botany) Somewhat shrubby in character; Tending to be shrub-like

Fusty:

\Fusty\, a. 1: Moldy and ill-smelling 2: old-fashioned and out of date.

Gibelike:

\Gibe"like\, a. Abusing vocally, expressing contempt or ridicule; derisive; mocking.

Hircine:

\Hir"cine\, adj. 1: Goatlike; of or pertaining to a goat or goats 2: Of a strong goatish smell.

Incarnadine:

\In*car"na*dine\, a. Flesh-colored; of a carnation or pale red color v. make flesh-colored; dye red or crimson.

Jeremiad:

\Jer'e*mi"ad\, n. A tale of sorrow, disappointment, or complaint; a long and mournful complaint.

Lambeth:

\Lam"beth\, n. (fr. Saxon laom-hithe) Muddy landing place. (from Off the Map: The Curious Histories of Place-Names by Derek Nelson, published by Kadonsha International, New York, 1997; page 16)

Lambent:

\Lam"bent\, a. 1. Flickering or playing lightly over a surface, as light or flame 2. Playful and brilliant, as wit 3. Glowing softly.

Legerdemain:

\Leg'er*de*main"\, n. Sleight of hand; any artful deception or trick.

Levant:

\Le"vant\, n. Former name of geographical area in the eastern Mediterranean a. 1: rising or having risen from rest, as of cattle 2: (obs) eastern v. to run off without paying one's debts; to decamp.

Lycanthrope:

\Ly"can*thrope\, n. A monster able to change appearance from human to wolf; werewolf.

Matriculate:

\Ma*tric"u*late\, v. To enroll, to be admitted into membership, esp. in a university or college.

Moil:

\Moil\, v. 1: to work hard 2: for a liquid to be agitated; boil 3: moisten or soil n. a spot; a defilement.

Morion:

\Mo"ri*on\, n. A kind of open helmet without a visor, and somewhat resembling a hat, a metal helmet worn by common soldiers in the 16th century.

Myomancy:

\My"o*man'cy\, n. Divination by the movements of mice.

Nitid:

\Nit"id\, a. 1. Bright; lustrous; shining 2. Sprightly, dashing, fine.

Occidental:

\Oc'ci*den"tal\, a. 1: Western; opposed to oriental 2: possessing inferior hardness, brilliancy, or beauty -- used of gems.

Ochlocracy:

\Och*loc"ra*cy\, n. A form of government by the multitude; a mobocracy.

Orismology:

\O'ris*mol"o*gy\, n. That department of natural history which concerns of technical terms.

Ort:

\Ort\, n. A morsel left at the end of a meal; a fragment; refuse.

Interesting Word of the Week, Page Two

This page updated August 24, 2001.