Category Archives: New word

verbatim (not including phrases or usage, though that is arguably the best part): love, v.1 DRAFT REVISION June 2010 Etm. /lv/, U.S. /lv/  Forms: . OE hlufian (rare), OE lufian, OE luuian (rare), lOE lofodest (2nd singular past indicative, perh. transmission error), lOE … Continue reading →

Concomitant: existing or occurring with something else, often in a lesser way; accompanying; concurrentThis term is used at time to describe symptoms or medical processes. “She was not looking forward to the hangover with its concomitant headache.” Found at work: … Continue reading →

Ancraophobia: fear of the wind. It’s pretty safe to say that my cat is ancraophobic, which according to a youtube.com search, isn’t all that odd. Props to these fine fellows for their scientific research on the subject.Source: The Phobia List … Continue reading →

Aculeate [ê-‘kyu-lee-yêt] Definition: Having a stinger, like a bee or wasp, or sharp prickles, like a rose or thistle. If you know someone with a prickly personality, you will find today’s word handy, “Otto Mattick has aculeate tongue capable of … Continue reading →

Sounds scarier than it is. The murder board is a group of people questioning a person who is in preparation for an oral examination or a Senate confirmation hearing. The murder board should be as tough if not quite a … Continue reading →

My biggest regret in packing for school was leaving behind my vampire teeth. My second was neglecting to bring my Compact OED so I could give more detailed descriptions of lovely words like “swash.” After I do well on my … Continue reading →

Now when I first saw this word, I thought for sure it was related to ubiquitous, which is a fun Weighty Word. However, I was wrong in this assumption. Where ubiquitous comes from the Latin word ubīqu(e) meaning everywhere, iniquitous … Continue reading →

Primogeniture: Being born first, or in my family’s case, this guy: Term also refers to the law where the first-born son would inherit land. I have yet to find a word to describe “guy-in-family-best-at-putting-sisters-into-a-headlock,” but I’ll keep looking.

Rabbit killer: A slayer of the weak who can look fragile against the strong. BBC sports used this term to describe Robinho: “His truly great performances came in the two meetings with Chile, a 3-0 win in a group game … Continue reading →

The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon occurs when a person, after having learned some (usually obscure) fact,  word, phrase, or other item for the first time, encounters that item again, perhaps several times, shortly after having learned it.   My friend Adam from … Continue reading →

I keep forgetting this wonderful word exists. I first saw it through Word Of the Day on Yourdictionary.com, but I found it again in Edward Gorey’s Amphigorey Again. Zeugma is a figure of speech describing the joining of two or … Continue reading →

This tidbit I forwarded on to my brother-in-law who is attempting to mainstream a word or two of his own: “The ants are my friends/They’re blowin’ in the wind.” New Yorker magazine’s blog The Book Bench celebrated the fact that … Continue reading →

If someone says they want to lapidate you, do not think they want to date you on their lap. In fact, you should probably run away as they are thinking about stoning you to death. Lapidate (verb)Pronunciation: [‘læp-ê-deyt]Definition: To stone, … Continue reading →

Umbriphilous (adj.) Fond of the shade. “Although this is a botanical word, used to describe things arboreal, I choose to use it to describe myself.” Shea, Ammon. Reading the OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages I found a book that … Continue reading →

I was discussing my desire to have more intellectual conversations at work with a friend today and he offered me this word: Hierophant: An ancient Greek priest who interpreted sacred mysteries, especially the priest of the Eleusinian mysteries. An interpreter … Continue reading →