Dictionary of Interesting Words

2010-11-17T17:06:00.000-08:00

This word came up on Twitter today:

@socratic I chuckle every time I see the word "cyber" in a promotion or advertisement. Welcome to 1999!

I remember it from science fiction that I read in my teenage years, but I'm not sure where I saw it first.

cybernetics
n : (biology) the field of science concerned with processes of
communication and control (especially the comparison of
these processes in biological and artificial systems)

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

This reference dates the word to 1948:

The term was first proposed by Norbert Wiener in the book referenced below. Originally, cybernetics drew upon electrical engineering, mathematics, biology, neurophysiology, anthropology, and psychology to study and describe actions,feedback, and response in systems of all kinds. It aims to understand the similarities and differences in internal workings of organic and machine processes and, by formulating abstract concepts common to all systems, to understand their behaviour.

Modern "second-order cybernetics" places emphasis on how the process of constructing models of the systems is influenced by those very systems, hence an elegant definition - "applied epistemology".

Related recent developments (often referred to as sciences of complexity) are distinguished as separate disciplines are artificial intelligence, networks}, systems theory, chaos theory, the boundaries between those and cybernetics proper are not precise.

["Cybernetics, or control and communication in the animal and the machine", N. Wiener, New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1948]

(2002-01-01)

-- From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (27 SEP 03)

lozenge

2010-05-12T11:17:00.001-07:00

This is a word that has been lurking at the far back edge of my consciousness for several years. I had always thought of a "lozenge" as being a flat disc impregnated with medicine, as in "throat lozenge," usually rather starchy in nature, with a strong medicinal flavor.

One interesting thing about this word is that I believed it to be amongst the collection of words that certain Americans have perversely modified, such as "escape" (pronounced ek-scape), "frustration" (flustration), "automatic" (automagic), and "sarcasm" (sourcasm). I have heard the pronounciation lah-zen-jur, and was today reminded of this when I overheard someone pronounce it lah-sen-jur.

And so, when I looked in my dictionary, imagine my surprise to discover its cousin "losenger."

??????????????????????????????????????

Lozenge
Lozenge Loz"enge (l[o^]z"[e^]nj), n. [F. lozange, losange;
perh. the same as OF. losengef flattery, praise, the heraldic
sense being the oldest (cf. E. hatchment, blazon). Cf.
Losenger, Laudable.]
1. (Her.)
(a) A diamond-shaped figure usually with the upper and
lower angles slightly acute, borne upon a shield or
escutcheon. Cf. Fusil.
(b) A form of the escutcheon used by women instead of the
shield which is used by men.
[1913 Webster]

2. A figure with four equal sides, having two acute and two
obtuse angles; a rhomb.
[1913 Webster]

3. Anything in the form of lozenge.
[1913 Webster]

4. Specifically: A small cake of sugar and starch, flavored,
and often medicated. -- originally in the form of a
lozenge.
[1913 Webster]

Lozenge coach, coach of a dowager, having her coat of
arms painted on a lozenge. [Obs.] --Walpole.

Lozenge-molding (Arch.), a kind of molding, used in Norman
architecture, characterized by lozenge-shaped ornaments.
[1913 Webster] Lozenged

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Tablet Ta"blet, n. [F. tablette, dim. of table. See Table.]
1. A small table or flat surface.
[1913 Webster]

2. A flat piece of any material on which to write, paint,
draw, or engrave; also, such a piece containing an
inscription or a picture.
[1913 Webster]

3. Hence, a small picture; a miniature. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]

4. pl. A kind of pocket memorandum book.
[1913 Webster]

5. A flattish cake or piece; as, tablets of arsenic were
formerly worn as a preservative against the plague.
[1913 Webster]

6. (Pharm.) A solid kind of electuary or confection, commonly
made of dry ingredients with sugar, and usually formed
into little flat squares; -- called also lozenge, and
troche, especially when of a round or rounded form.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

lozenge
n 1: a small aromatic or medicated candy
2: a dose of medicine in the form of a small pellet [syn: pill,
tablet, tab]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

107 Moby Thesaurus words for "lozenge":
achievement, alerion, animal charge, annulet, argent,
armorial bearings, armory, arms, azure, bandeau, bar, bar sinister,
baton, bearings, bend, bend sinister, billet, blazon, blazonry,
bolus, bordure, broad arrow, cadency mark, canton, capsule,
chaplet, charge, chevron, chief, coat of arms, cockatrice, coronet,
crescent, crest, cross, cross moline, crown, device, difference,
differencing, eagle, ermine, ermines, erminites, erminois,
escutcheon, falcon, fess, fess point, field, file, flanch,
fleur-de-lis, fret, fur, fusil, garland, griffin, gules, gyron,
hatchment, helmet, heraldic device, honor point, impalement,
impaling, inescutcheon, label, lion, mantling, marshaling, martlet,
mascle, metal, motto, mullet, nombril point, octofoil, or,
ordinary, orle, pale, paly, pean, pheon, pill, purpure, quarter,
quartering, rose, sable, saltire, scutcheon, shield, spread eagle,
subordinary, tablet, tenne, tincture, torse, tressure, troche,
unicorn, vair, vert, wreath, yale

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Losenger
Losenger Los"en*ger, n. [OF. losengier, losengeor, fr.
losengier to deceive, flatter, losenge, flattery, Pr.
lauzenga, fr. L. laus praise. Cf. Lozenge.]
A flatterer; a deceiver; a cozener. [Obs.] --Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]

To a fair pair of gallows, there to end their lives
with shame, as a number of such other losengers had
done. --Holinshed.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

opsimath

2010-02-13T13:28:00.001-08:00

This word comes courtesy of a Merle Regal crossword puzzle in the 7 February 2010 Seattle Times. It was one of those words that was nearly all filled in save one letter, and it just doesn't look like anything (OPS_MATH) and has one holding his head in despair. I grabbed my old broken down Webster Collegiate off the dining room table and - nothing. Look at the puzzle again. Damn. Google to the rescue: there it is. The first really useful hit other than Wikipedia was from alphadictionary.com, and I will provide the link here to their entry for this most contemporary of words.

I suppose an opsimath is what I am, having gone to school at the age of 49. I hope I will continue to learn new things for the rest of my life. Study is not the drudgery I thought it was in my youth -- but then today I get to pick the subject.

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

An opsimath can refer to a person who begins, or continues, to study or learn late in life.^[1] The word is derived from the Greek οψε (opse), meaning 'late' and μανθανω (manthano), meaning 'learn'.^[2]

Opsimathy was once frowned upon, used as a put down with implications of laziness,^[3] and considered less effective by educators than early learning.^[4] However, the opsimath population is increasing in the USA,^[5] and the emergence of "opsimath clubs"^[6] proves that opsimathy is no longer looked down upon,^[7] but is in fact desirable.^[8]

Notable opsimaths include Joseph Henry Blackburne, the leading English chess player in the late 19th Century, who didn't learn the chess moves until the comparatively late age of 19.^[9]

[Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opsimath.]

ephemeris, ephemera, ephemeral

2010-01-09T23:18:00.000-08:00

Trying to better understand a poem ("Chapter Sixty-Three," by Fred Longworth of San Diego), I looked up ephemeris and was delighted to discover a three-way definition, in short, a fascinating word lurking in the mists of this endlessly frustrating language. Ephemeris may be a star chart, a diary, or a magazine.

A star chart is, after all, a kind of time reference, which is, after all, what a journal or diary is, and "journal," after all, is a synonym for "magazine."

An ephemeral thing, on the other hand, is a thing that lasts only a day—as do certain plants or animals. Ephemeral may mean "likely to disappear," "ghostly," (that's my idea, maybe defective) or "transitory."

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()(()()()()()()())))()()()()()()()()()()().()

Ephemeris
Ephemeris E*phem"e*ris, n.; pl. Ephemerides. [L., a diary,
Gr. ?, also, a calendar, fr. ?. See Ephemera.]
1. A diary; a journal. --Johnson.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Anat.)
(a) A publication giving the computed places of the
heavenly bodies for each day of the year, with other
numerical data, for the use of the astronomer and
navigator; an astronomical almanac; as, the "American
Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac."
(b) Any tabular statement of the assigned places of a
heavenly body, as a planet or comet, on several
successive days.
[1913 Webster]

3. (Literature) A collective name for reviews, magazines, and
all kinds of periodical literature. --Brande & C.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

ephemeris
n : an annual publication containing astronomical tables that
give the positions of the celestial bodies throughout the
year; "today computers calculate the ephemerides"
[also: ephemerides (pl)]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0
ddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd

Ephemera

Ephemera E*phem"e*ra, n. [NL., fr. Gr. ? a day fly, fr. ?
daily, lasting but a day; ? over + ? day.]
1. (Med.) A fever of one day's continuance only.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Zo["o]l.) A genus of insects including the day flies, or
ephemeral flies. See Ephemeral fly, Ephemeral.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Ephemeron E*phem"e*ron, n.; pl. Ephemera. [NL. See
Ephemera.] (Zo["o]l.)
One of the ephemeral flies.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

ephemera
See ephemeron
[also: ephemerae (pl)]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

ephemera
n 1: something transitory; lasting a day
2: an insect that lives only for a day in its winged form [syn:
ephemeron]
[also: ephemerae (pl)]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

ephemeron
n : an insect that lives only for a day in its winged form [syn:
ephemera]
[also: ephemera (pl)]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&$$&&&&&&&

Ephemeral
Ephemeral E*phem"er*al, a.
1. Beginning and ending in a day; existing only, or no longer
than, a day; diurnal; as, an ephemeral flower.
[1913 Webster]

2. Short-lived; existing or continuing for a short time only.
"Ephemeral popularity." --V. Knox.
[1913 Webster]

Sentences not of ephemeral, but of eternal,
efficacy. --Sir J.
Stephen.
[1913 Webster]

Ephemeral fly one of a group of neuropterous
insects, belonging to the genus Ephemera and many allied
genera, which live in the adult or winged state only for a
short time. The larv[ae] are aquatic; -- called also day
fly May fly.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Ephemeral E*phem"er*al, n.
Anything lasting but a day, or a brief time; an ephemeral
plant, insect, etc.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

ephemeral
adj : enduring a very short time; "the ephemeral joys of
childhood"; "a passing fancy"; "youth's transient
beauty"; "love is transitory but at is eternal";
"fugacious blossoms" [syn: passing, short-lived, transient,
transitory, fugacious]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

47 Moby Thesaurus words for "ephemeral":
brief, brittle, capricious, changeable, corruptible, deciduous,
dying, episodic, evanescent, evergreen, fading, fickle, fleeting,
flitting, fly-by-night, flying, fragile, frail, fugacious,
fugitive, half-hardy, hardy, impermanent, impetuous, impulsive,
inconstant, insubstantial, momentary, mortal, mutable, nondurable,
nonpermanent, passing, perennial, perishable, short, short-lived,
subject to death, temporal, temporary, transient, transitive,
transitory, undurable, unenduring, unstable, volatile

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

raceme

2010-01-05T21:24:00.000-08:00

Another gift from a crossword puzzle, raceme was the answer to the clue "flower arrangement." Well, it's not exactly a flower arrangement in the sense of a bouquet, or a wreath, but it is a description of how a flower might be designed, or arranged.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Raceme
Raceme Ra*ceme" (r[.a]*s[=e]m"; 277), n. [L. racemus a bunch
of berries, a cluster of grapes. See Raisin.] (Bot.)
A flower cluster with an elongated axis and many one-flowered
lateral pedicels, as in the currant and chokecherry.
[1913 Webster]

Compound raceme, having the lower pedicels developed
into secondary racemes.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

raceme
n : usually elongate cluster of flowers along the main stem in
which the flowers at the base open first

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

limn

2010-01-04T21:20:00.000-08:00

The almost unpronounceable limn just came to us from a crossword puzzle. The clue was "describe." I thought it might mean something like that but I had to look it up to be sure. A part of me thought it might have something to do with singing, but of course it's more to do with painting. Painting, singing... what's the difference.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Limn
Limn Limn (l[i^]m), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Limned (l[i^]md); p.
pr. & vb. n. Limning (l[i^]m"n[i^]ng or l[i^]m"[i^]ng).]
[OE. limnen, fr. luminen, for enluminen, F. enluminer to
illuminate, to limn, LL. illuminare to paint. [root]122. See
Illuminate, Luminous.]
1. To draw or paint; especially, to represent in an artistic
way with pencil or brush.
[1913 Webster]

Let a painter carelessly limn out a million of
faces, and you shall find them all different. --Sir
T. Browne.
[1913 Webster]

2. Hence: To picture in words; to describe in graphic terms.
[PJC]

3. To illumine, as books or parchments, with ornamental
figures, letters, or borders.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

limn
v 1: trace the shape of [syn: delineate, outline]
2: make a portrait of; "Goya wanted to portray his mistress,
the Duchess of Alba" [syn: portray, depict]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

60 Moby Thesaurus words for "limn":
bring to life, cartoon, catch a likeness, chalk, character,
characterize, charcoal, chart, color, contour, copy, crayon,
crosshatch, dash off, daub, delineate, depict, describe, design,
diagram, doodle, draft, draw, evoke, express, give words to, hatch,
hit off, image, interpret, map, notate, outline, paint,
paint a picture, pencil, picture, picturize, portray, print,
profile, register, render, represent, rub, schematize, scratch,
scumble, set forth, shade, silhouette, sketch, stencil, symbolize,
take a rubbing, tint, trace, trace out, trace over, write

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

trull

2010-01-04T17:36:00.000-08:00

I saw this word in a newspaper article recently, and thought it was a typographical error. Then just now, reading Sandman for March 2000, "The Sandman presents Petrefax," I saw it again.

Another derogatory term for a certain type of female, trull seems as delightfully fresh as it is sexist, and unworthy of use in polite conversation.

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

Trull
Trull Trull, n. [G. trolle, trulle; cf. OD. drol a jester,
Dan. trold an elf, imp, Sw. troll a goblin, Icel. troll,
tr["o]ll, a giant, fiend, demon. Cf. Droll, Troll.]
1. A drab; a strumpet; a harlot; a trollop. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]

2. A girl; a wench; a lass. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

upshot

2009-12-21T14:20:00.000-08:00

Upshot is a word that I've suppressed in my own speech, as until now I've never taken the time to look it up. It may be taken to mean outcome, or conclusion, but it certainly has the spring and bark of a more direct, even onomatopoetic, word.

"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

Upshot

Upshot Up"shot`, n. [Up + shot, equivalent to scot share,

reckoning. Cf. the phrase to cast up an account.]

Final issue; conclusion; the sum and substance; the end; the

result; the consummation.

[1913 Webster]

I can not pursue with any safety this sport to the

upshot. --Shak.

[1913 Webster]

We account it frailty that threescore years and ten

make the upshot of man's pleasurable existence. --De

Quincey.

[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

upshot

n : a phenomenon that follows and is caused by some previous

phenomenon; "the magnetic effect was greater when the rod

was lengthwise"; "his decision had depressing

consequences for business"; "he acted very wise after the

event" [syn: consequence, effect, outcome, result,

event, issue]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

85 Moby Thesaurus words for "upshot":

accomplishment, aftereffect, aftermath, answer, ascertainment,

backwash, burden, by-product, clearing up, climax, completion,

conclusion, consequence, consequent, core, corollary, cracking,

culmination, decipherment, decoding, denouement, derivation,

derivative, determination, development, disentanglement,

distillate, effect, end, end result, ending, event, eventuality,

eventuation, explanation, fallout, feedback, finding, finding-out,

finish, fruit, gist, harvest, interpretation, issue, legacy,

logical outcome, meat, offshoot, offspring, outcome, outgrowth,

pith, precipitate, product, purport, reason, repercussion,

resolution, resolving, result, resultant, riddling, sense, sequel,

sequela, sequence, sequent, short, solution, solving, sorting out,

termination, thrust, unraveling, unriddling, unscrambling,

unspinning, untangling, untwisting, unweaving, wake, working,

working-out, wrap-up

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

Cataract

2009-12-17T15:34:00.000-08:00

This wonderful word has two meanings, seemingly so distinct, so separate, one wonders if there were not originally two words, one for each, which sounded somewhat alike. Ignorance and Laziness being powers of nature on par with water and gravity, people would have begun to substitute one word for the other, eventually blurring the distinction, and begetting this monstrosity that means, on the one hand, a waterfall, and on the other, a distortion or imperfection in the lens of the eye -- fairly common among human beings these days, especially if said beings are of advanced years.

???????????????????????????????????????????????????

Cataract

Cataract Cat"a*ract, n. [L. cataracta, catarracles, a

waterfall, Gr. ?, ?, fr. ? to break down; in the passive, to

fall or rush down (of tumors) to burst; kata` down + ? to

break.]

1. A great fall of water over a precipice; a large waterfall.

[1913 Webster]

2. (Surg.) An opacity of the crystalline lens, or of its

capsule, which prevents the passage of the rays of light

and impairs or destroys the sight.

[1913 Webster]

3. (Mach.) A kind of hydraulic brake for regulating the

action of pumping engines and other machines; -- sometimes

called dashpot.

[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

cataract

n 1: clouding of the natural lens of the eye

2: a large waterfall; violent rush of water over a precipice

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

146 Moby Thesaurus words for "cataract":

Niagara, ablepsia, amaurosis, benightedness, blepharitis,

blind side, blind spot, blindfolding, blinding, blindness,

blurring the eyes, cascade, cataclysm, cecity, choroiditis, chute,

collapse, come down, comedown, conjunctivitis, crash, cross-eye,

darkness, debacle, declension, declination, defective vision,

defluxion, deluge, depriving of sight, descend, descending,

descension, descent, detached retina, dim-sightedness, dip down,

down, downbend, downcome, downcurve, downfall, downflow, downgrade,

downpour, downrush, downtrend, downturn, downward trend, drop,

drop down, drop off, drop serene, dropping, economic blindness,

engulf, esotropia, ever-during dark, excecation, eye defect,

eyelessness, fall, fall down, fall off, falling, falls, flood,

flooding, force, fresh, freshet, glaucoma, go down, go downhill,

gravitate, gravitation, gutta serena, hoodwinking, inclination,

inundate, inundation, iritis, keratitis, lack of vision, linn,

lose altitude, making blind, nappe, niphablepsia, optic neuritis,

overbrim, overflow, overrun, overwhelm, parachute,

partial blindness, pink eye, pitch, plummet, plummeting, plunge,

pounce, pour, pour down, pour out, pour over, precipitate,

psychic blindness, rain, rapids, reduced sight, retinoblastoma,

river, run over, sault, sightless eyes, sightlessness, slop, slosh,

snow blindness, soul-blindness, spate, spill, spill out,

spill over, spiritual blindness, spout, stone-blindness, stoop,

sty, submerge, swamp, sweep, swoop, torrent, total blindness,

trachoma, trend downward, unenlightenment, unseeingness, uveitis,

walleye, waterfall, waterflood, watershoot, whelm

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

Rumination

2009-12-06T09:04:00.000-08:00

Thinking of this and that, swallowing thoughts and bringing them back up, trying desperately to enhance the presentation, the word rumination occurred to me as a description of what I had written.

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Rumination
Rumination Ru`mi*na"tion, n. [L. ruminatio: cf. F.
rumination.]
1. The act or process of ruminating, or chewing the cud; the
habit of chewing the cud.
[1913 Webster]

Rumination is given to animals to enable them at
once to lay up a great store of food, and afterward
to chew it. --Arbuthnot.
[1913 Webster]

2. The state of being disposed to ruminate or ponder;
deliberate meditation or reflection.
[1913 Webster]

Retiring full of rumination sad. --Thomson.
[1913 Webster]

3. (Physiol.) The regurgitation of food from the stomach
after it has been swallowed, -- occasionally observed as a
morbid phenomenon in man.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

rumination
n 1: a calm lengthy intent consideration [syn: contemplation, reflection,
reflexion, musing, thoughtfulness]
2: (of ruminants) chewing (the cud); "ruminants have remarkable
powers of rumination"
3: regurgitation of small amounts of food; seen in some infants
after feeding

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

Eschatology

2009-11-22T15:55:00.000-08:00

Yet another word to thank Fred Longworth for, eschatology appears in "Pelagia," which I referred to in the last post (littoral). Final things. What happens when we die. The thing we don't know. The end of life, which everyone fears to some extent, but about which no one complains after having experienced it.

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

Eschatology
Eschatology Es`cha*tol"o*gy, n. [Gr. ? the furthest, last +
-logy.]
The doctrine of the last or final things, as death, judgment,
and the events therewith connected.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

eschatology
n : the branch of theology that is concerned with such final
things as death and judgment; heaven and hell; the end of
the world

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

95 Moby Thesaurus words for "eschatology":
Buddhology, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Mariolatry, Mariology,
Mercersburg theology, Z, apodosis, apologetics, canonics,
catastrophe, ceasing, cessation, coda, conclusion, consummation,
crack of doom, crisis theology, culmination, curtain, curtains,
day of doom, death, decease, denouement, destination, destiny,
dialogical theology, divinity, doctrinalism, doctrinism, dogmatics,
doom, doomsday, effect, end, end point, ending, envoi, epilogue,
existential theology, expiration, fate, final solution,
final twitch, final words, finale, finality, finis, finish, goal,
hagiography, hagiology, hierology, izzard, last, last breath,
last days, last gasp, last things, last trumpet, last words,
latter end, logos Christology, logos theology, natural theology,
neoorthodox theology, neoorthodoxy, omega, patristic theology,
payoff, period, peroration, phenomenological theology,
physicotheology, quietus, rationalism, religion, resolution,
resting place, scholastic theology, secularism, soteriology,
stoppage, stopping place, swan song, systematics, term, terminal,
termination, terminus, the Judgment, theology, trump of doom,
windup

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

Littoral

2009-11-22T15:36:00.000-08:00

This wet word washed up in a comment to a poem by Fred Longworth, called "Pelagia," at Wild Poetry Forum. I know I've seen it before, even knew what it meant in a vague way, but still, littoral could be such great pun.

"We found littorally hundreds of clams."

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Littoral
Littoral Lit"to*ral, a. [L. littoralis, litoralis, from
littus, litus, the seashore: cf. F. littoral.]
1. Of or pertaining to a shore, as of the sea.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Biol.) Inhabiting the seashore, esp. the zone between
high-water and low-water mark.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

littoral
adj : of or relating to a coastal or shore region
n : the region of the shore of a lake or sea or ocean [syn: litoral,
littoral zone,
-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

78 Moby Thesaurus words for "littoral":
aquatic, balneal, bank, beach, benthic zone, berm, bordering,
borderline, boundary, bounding, coast, coastal, coastland,
coastline, deep-sea, determinant, determinative, determining,
embankment, estuarine, estuarine area, extreme, foreshore,
fringing, frontier, grallatorial, intertidal zone, ironbound coast,
lido, limbic, liminal, limit, limiting, marginal, natant,
natatorial, natatory, pelagic zone, plage, playa, rimming,
riparial, riparian, riparious, riverside, riviera, rockbound coast,
sands, sea margin, seabank, seabeach, seaboard, seacliff, seacoast,
seashore, seaside, shingle, shore, shoreline, shoreside, shoreward,
skirting, splash zone, strand, sublittoral, submerged coast,
supralittoral, swimming, terminal, threshold, tidal, tidewater,
water-dwelling, water-growing, water-living, water-loving,
waterfront, waterside

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

festoon

2009-09-26T09:06:00.000-07:00

Well, hang upon me a string of flowers. Drape a garland over my arm in a "depending curve." Signify a feast. Festoon.

Apparently unrelated to cartoon, festoon still bears (in my mind) a dual clownship resulting from that "-oon" ending (let us not forget buffoon) and a recollection of Feste the Fool, from Twelfth Night. (Twelfth is a semi-interesting word itself, by virtue of its spelling, twelve's v changing to an f the way it happens in fifth looks somehow impossible, perhaps because of that w early in the word, which sets me up for some Welsh conundrum.)

Therefore let me festoon this lowly dictionary with this fruity word.

It's too bad one can't say "fruity" without certain connotations.

The image is from Wikimedia Commons, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Festoon_(PSF).png.

?/?/?/?/?/?/?/?/??/?/?/?/?/?/?/?/??/?/?/?/?/?/?/?/??/?/?/?/?/?/?/?/??/?/?/?/?/?/?/?/?

Festoon
Festoon Fes*toon", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Festooned; p. pr. &
vb. n. Festooning.]
To form in festoons, or to adorn with festoons.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Festoon Fes*toon", n. [F. feston (cf. Sp. feston, It.
festone), prob. fr. L. festum festival. See Feast.]
1. A garland or wreath hanging in a depending curve, used in
decoration for festivals, etc.; anything arranged in this
way.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Arch. & Sculp.) A carved ornament consisting of flowers,
and leaves, intermixed or twisted together, wound with a
ribbon, and hanging or depending in a natural curve. See
Illust. of Bucranium.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

festoon
n 1: a curtain of fabric draped and bound at intervals to form
graceful loops
2: an embellishment consisting of a decorative representation
of a string of flowers suspended between two points; used
on pottery or in architectural work
3: flower chains suspended in loops between points [syn: festoonery]
v : decorate with strings of flowers; "The public buildings were
festooned for the holiday"

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

57 Moby Thesaurus words for "festoon":
arc, boughpot, bouquet, boutonniere, bow, bravery, buttonhole,
catacaustic, catenary, caustic, chaplet, chiffon, circle,
clinquant, conchoid, corsage, crook, curl, curve, diacaustic,
ellipse, festoons, finery, flower arrangement, folderol, foofaraw,
frilliness, frilling, frills, frills and furbelows, frippery,
froufrou, fuss, gaiety, garland, gaudery, gilding, gilt,
gingerbread, hook, hyperbola, lei, lituus, nosegay, parabola,
paste, pinchbeck, posy, sinus, spray, superfluity, tinsel, tracery,
trappings, trickery, trumpery, wreath

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

eleemosynary

2009-09-11T13:19:00.001-07:00

This wonderful O. Henry gem describes many a person in these hard times. How much better to be termed an eleemosynary than "on welfare," as the vernacular would have it.

In "The Cop and the Anthem," we meet Soapy, an itinerant denizen of the City who is beginning to feel the advent of winter. Soapy's plan for winter is to be incarcerated, rather than to avail himself of the "...endless round of institutions, municipal and , on which he might set out and receive lodging and food with the simple life." [Links go to enotes.com. Here's a link to the entire story on that site. If you haven't read it, don't deprive yourself any longer.]

O. Henry's stories are one of the great delights of being alive and reading English. He loved words, and left us all a great gift, despite living a life that would have turned many a man to bitter self-pity.

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Eleemosynary
Eleemosynary El`ee*mos"y*na*ry, n.; pl. Eleemosynaries.
One who subsists on charity; a dependent. --South. Elegance

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Eleemosynary El`ee*mos"y*na*ry (?; 277), a. [LL.
eleemosynarius, fr. eleemosyna alms, Gr. ? alms. See Alms.]
1. Relating to charity, alms, or almsgiving; intended for the
distribution of charity; as, an eleemosynary corporation.
[1913 Webster]

2. Given in charity or alms; having the nature of alms; as,
eleemosynary assistance. "Eleemosynary cures." --Boyle.
[1913 Webster]

3. Supported by charity; as, eleemosynary poor.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

eleemosynary
adj : generous in assistance to the poor; "a benevolent
contributor"; "eleemosynary relief"; "philanthropic
contributions" [syn: beneficent, benevolent, philanthropic]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

42 Moby Thesaurus words for "eleemosynary":
almsgiving, altruistic, beneficent, benevolent, bighearted,
charitable, complimentary, costless, expenseless, for free,
for love, for nothing, free, free as air, free for nothing,
free gratis, free of charge, free of cost, freebie, freehearted,
generous, giftlike, given, good, gratis, gratuitous, greathearted,
humane, humanitarian, largehearted, liberal, munificent,
on the house, openhanded, philanthropic, unbought, unpaid-for,
untaxed, welfare, welfare statist, welfarist, without charge

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

aleatory

2009-09-11T13:14:00.000-07:00

This gem comes from a crossword puzzle. Of course. I love the sound of it, but even more I love the way it makes me feel like I'm reading a story by O. Henry, which reminds me of one of the many wonderful words he used, eleemosynary, which will be entered here forthwith.

Aleatory means "dependent on chance," and thereby describes a great deal of reality.

--------------------------------------------------------------

Aleatory
Aleatory A"le*a*to*ry, a. [L. aleatorius, fr. alea chance,
die.] (Law)
Depending on some uncertain contingency; as, an aleatory
contract. --Bouvier.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

aleatory
adj : dependent on chance; "the aleatory element in life"

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

116 Moby Thesaurus words for "aleatory":
Nachtmusik, absolute music, accidental, adaptation, adventitious,
adventurous, air varie, aleatoric, aleatory music, amorphous,
arrangement, blobby, blurred, blurry, broad, casual, causeless,
chamber music, chamber orchestra, chance, chancy, chaotic,
circumstantial, composition, conditional, confused, contingent,
descant, destinal, dicey, disordered, electronic music, etude,
exercise, fatal, fatidic, fluky, foggy, fortuitous, full of risk,
fuzzy, general, harmonization, hazardous, hazy, hit-or-miss, iffy,
ill-defined, imprecise, inaccurate, inchoate, incidental,
incidental music, incoherent, indecisive, indefinable, indefinite,
indeterminable, indeterminate, indistinct, inessential, inexact,
instrumental music, invention, lax, loose, nocturne, nonessential,
nonspecific, obscure, occasional, opus, orchestration, orderless,
piece, production, program music, provisional, random, ricercar,
riskful, risky, score, shadowed forth, shadowy, shapeless, sonata,
sonatina, speculative, stochastic, string orchestra,
string quartet, study, sweeping, theme and variations, trio,
uncaused, unclear, undefined, undestined, undetermined,
unessential, unexpected, unforeseeable, unforeseen, unlooked-for,
unplain, unpredictable, unspecified, vague, variation, veiled,
venturesome, venturous, wildcat, work

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

smithereen

2009-09-05T12:32:00.000-07:00

In my study of Finnegans Wake [page 79, lines 27 - 36] I encountered this passage:

...Kate Strong, a widow (Tiptip!)--she pulls a lane picture for
us, in a dreariodreama setting, glowing and very vidual, of old
dumplan as she nosed it, a homelike cottage of elvanstone with
droppings of biddies, stinkend pusshies, moggies' duggies, rotten
witchawubbles, festering rubbages and beggars' bullets, if not
worse, sending salmofarious germs in gleefully through the
smithereen panes--Widow Strong, then, as her weaker had
turned him to the wall (Tiptiptip!), did most all the scavenging
from good King Hamlaugh's gulden dayne though her lean
besom cleaned but sparingly ...

I wondered if the word smithereen might have been a Joycean invention. Apparently not. According to this fellow, and others, the word is older than Joyce, first appearing in 1829. It does seem to originate from an old Irish word, smidirin, which means "small bit or fragment." (By the way, if you follow the previous link, you'll be at a site called The Word Detective, [home page link] and the discussion goes on into the phrase "Wild Goose Chase," which is not uninteresting at all.)

And so, a moment during which I wondered if Joyce's language, like Shakespeare's, was slowly becoming part of our common speech. Not so, at least not yet. William has had more time.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

1913 Webster:

Smith`er`eens´ Pronunciation: smĭth`ẽr`ēnz´

n. pl.

Fragments; atoms; smithers.

Moby Thesaurus words for "smithereen":
bit, butt, chip, chunk, clip, clipping, collop, crumb, cut,
cutting, dollop, end, fragment, gob, gobbet, hunk, lump, modicum,
moiety, morceau, morsel, nip, paring, particle, patch, piece,
rasher, scoop, scrap, shard, shaving, shiver, shred, slice, sliver,
snack, snatch, snick, snip, snippet, splinter, stitch, stump, tag,
tatter

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

bijou

2009-09-05T12:27:00.000-07:00

Freely will I admit that this word has never meant anything to me except the name of many a movie theatre. Seeing the word "Roxy" somewhere odd made me think about traditional theatre names, and "bijou" came to mind.

A finely worked piece.

********************************

Bijou
Bijou Bi*jou", n.; pl. Bijoux. [F.; of uncertain origin.]
A trinket; a jewel; -- a word applied to anything small and
of elegant workmanship.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

bijou
n : a small and delicately worked piece
[also: bijoux (pl)]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

33 Moby Thesaurus words for "bijou":
anklet, armlet, bangle, beads, bracelet, breastpin, brooch, chain,
chaplet, charm, chatelaine, circle, coronet, crown, diadem,
earring, fob, gem, jewel, locket, necklace, nose ring, pin,
precious stone, rhinestone, ring, stickpin, stone, tiara, torque,
wampum, wristband, wristlet

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

mouldering

2009-08-31T19:55:00.000-07:00

Now here's a cheery one. Mouldering seems to be decomposition, but it implies a certain dryness, a crumbling to dust rather than the (urp) wet sort of gelatinous mess one might find in mortificacious circumstances.

The dead are sleeping in their sepulchres:
And, mouldering as they sleep, a thrilling sound,
Half sense half thought, among the darkness stirs,
Breathed from their wormy beds all living things around,
And, mingling with the still night and mute sky,
Its awful hush is felt inaudibly.

[From "A Summer Evening Churchyard," by Percy Bysshe Shelley]

nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

Mouldering
Molder Mold"er, Moulder Mould"er, v. i. [imp. & p. p.
Molderedor Mouldered; p. pr. & vb. n. Moldering or
Mouldering.] [From Mold fine soft earth: cf. Prov. G.
multern.]
To crumble into small particles; to turn to dust by natural
decay; to lose form, or waste away, by a gradual separation
of the component particles, without the presence of water; to
crumble away.
[1913 Webster]

The moldering of earth in frosts and sun. --Bacon.
[1913 Webster]

When statues molder, and when arches fall. --Prior.
[1913 Webster]

If he had sat still, the enemy's army would have
moldered to nothing. --Clarendon.
[1913 Webster] Molder

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

mouldering
adj : becoming rotten; "a field covered with thousands of
decomposing bodies"; "John Brown's body lies
a-moldering in the grave" [syn: decomposing, moldering]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

remonstrate

2009-08-31T10:09:00.000-07:00

Remonstrate is a word about which I was a little confused. I thought it to be tinged with regret. It is not. In fact, remonstrate seems to have little time or inclination for regret in any degree. Remonstrate would have your attention and show you, without confusion, obfuscation or obtuseness, its point. It would leave you with the truth of whatever matter with which remonstration deals, and how this affects you is a matter of interest to you and you alone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remonstrate Re*mon"strate (-str?t), v. t. [imp. & p. p.
Remonstrated (-str?*t?d); p. pr. & vb. n. Remonstrating.]
[LL. remonstratus, p. p. of remonstrare to remonstrate; L.
pref. re- + monstrare to show. See Monster.]
To point out; to show clearly; to make plain or manifest;
hence, to prove; to demonstrate. [Obs.] --Jer. Taylor.
[1913 Webster]

I will remonstrate to you the third door. --B. Jonson.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Remonstrate Re*mon"strate, v. i.
To present and urge reasons in opposition to an act, measure,
or any course of proceedings; to expostulate; as, to
remonstrate with a person regarding his habits; to
remonstrate against proposed taxation.
[1913 Webster]

It is proper business of a divine to state cases of
conscience, and to remonstrate against any growing
corruptions in practice, and especially in principles.
--Waterland.
[1913 Webster]

Syn: Expostulate, Remonstrate.

Usage: These words are commonly interchangeable, the
principal difference being that expostulate is now
used especially to signify remonstrance by a superior
or by one in authority. A son remonstrates against the
harshness of a father; a father expostulates with his
son on his waywardness. Subjects remonstrate with
their rulers; sovereigns expostulate with the
parliament or the people.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

remonstrate
v 1: argue in protest or opposition
2: present and urge reasons in opposition [syn: point out]
3: censure severely or angrily; "The mother scolded the child
for entering a stranger's car"; "The deputy ragged the
Prime Minister"; "The customer dressed down the waiter for
bringing cold soup" [syn: call on the carpet, rag, trounce, reproof, lecture, reprimand, jaw,
dress down, down}, scold, chide, berate, bawl
out, out}, chew up, words}, lambaste, lambast]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

81 Moby Thesaurus words for "remonstrate":
admonish, beef, bitch, boggle, boycott, call in question, caution,
challenge, charge, combat, complain, complain loudly, confront,
contend with, cry out against, daunt, demonstrate,
demonstrate against, demur, dispute, dissent, dissuade, encourage,
enjoin, enter a protest, except, exhort, expostulate, face down,
face out, face up to, fight, frighten off, front, holler, howl,
incite, induce, intimidate, inveigh against, issue a caveat, kick,
kick against, kid out of, make a stand, march, meet head-on, move,
object, offer resistance, oppose, persuade, picket, preach,
press objections, prompt, protest, raise a howl, rally,
recalcitrate, reluct, resist, revolt, scruple, show fight, sit in,
squawk, stand, stand at bay, stand up against, stand up to,
state a grievance, strike, strive against, talk out of, teach in,
unpersuade, urge, warn, withstand, yell bloody murder

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

scrim

2009-08-24T23:35:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is nearly the end of summer and finally, an interesting word.

Scrim describes a type of cloth. Scrim is used for curtains, glued on the inside of fabric panels to make them resist shrinking, and also refers to a curtain used in the theater.

An excerpt from some open-source online dictionaries follows:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Scrim
Scrim Scrim, n.
1. A kind of light cotton or linen fabric, often woven in
openwork patterns, -- used for curtains, etc,; -- called
also India scrim.
[1913 Webster]

2. pl. Thin canvas glued on the inside of panels to prevent
shrinking, checking, etc.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

scrim
n : a firm open-weave fabric used for a curtain in the theater

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

34 Moby Thesaurus words for "scrim":
act drop, asbestos, asbestos board, backdrop, batten, border,
cloth, coulisse, counterweight, curtain, curtain board, cyclorama,
decor, drop, drop curtain, fire curtain, flat, flipper, hanging,
rag, scene, scenery, screen, side scene, stage screw, tab, tableau,
teaser, tormentor, transformation, transformation scene, wing,
wingcut, woodcut

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

nonplussed

2009-04-12T08:44:00.000-07:00

And should I not celebrate this little resurgence of the Dictionary with this gem, a lovely inverted action, unadded adjective to indicate an addled state, to describe ones feeling upon seeing the unseeable, hearing the unhearable, experiencing the impossible. Stopped by embarrassment, a lovely thing in itself.
---------------------

Nonplussed
Nonplus Non"plus`, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Nonplusedor
Nonplussed; p. pr. & vb. n. Nonplusing or Nonplussing.]
To puzzle; to confound; to perplex; to cause to stop by
embarrassment.
[1913 Webster]

He has been nonplused by Mr. Dry's desiring him to tell
what it was that he endeavored to prove. --Spectator.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

nonplus
v : be a mystery or bewildering to; "This beats me!"; "Got me--I
don't know the answer!"; "a vexing problem"; "This
question really stuck me" [syn: perplex, vex, stick,
get, puzzle, mystify, baffle, beat, pose, bewilder,
flummox, stupefy, gravel, amaze, dumbfound]
[also: nonplussing, nonplusses, nonplussed]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

nonplussed
adj : filled with bewilderment; "at a loss to understand those
remarks"; "puzzled that she left without saying
goodbye" [syn: at a loss(p), puzzled]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

nonplussed
See nonplus

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

26 Moby Thesaurus words for "nonplussed":
addled, at a loss, at a nonplus, at a stand, at a standstill,
at an impasse, baffled, bamboozled, beat, bewildered, buffaloed,
confounded, dazed, floored, fuddled, in a dilemma, in suspense,
licked, muddled, mystified, on tenterhooks, perplexed, puzzled,
stuck, stumped, thrown

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

extant

2009-04-12T08:35:00.000-07:00

Oh dear, I've neglected this little project. Summoned back by an unlikely but elegant little word, it seems that this word's always been around, slipping in and out of the room, avoiding a direct look or even a glance -- but undeniably present, at times.

Look at that Latin etymology. "...to stand out or forth ..."

But, more to the point is, 'way down in the definition, is "Still existing; not destroyed or lost; outstanding." Ah. That's it. Not destroyed, not lost, still existing. So not just existing, but still existing. Not destroyed. And not lost.

------------------
Extant
Extant Ex"tant, a. [L. extans, -antis, or exstans, -antis, p.
pr. of extare, exstare, to stand out or forth; ex out + stare
to stand: cf. F. extant. See Stand.]
1. Standing out or above any surface; protruded.
[1913 Webster]

That part of the teeth which is extant above the
gums. --Ray.
[1913 Webster]

A body partly immersed in a fluid and partly extant.
--Bentley.
[1913 Webster]

2. Still existing; not destroyed or lost; outstanding.
[1913 Webster]

Writings that were extant at that time. --Sir M.
Hale.
[1913 Webster]

The extant portraits of this great man. --I. Taylor.
[1913 Webster]

3. Publicly known; conspicuous. [Obs.] --B. Jonson.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

extant
adj : still in existence; not extinct or destroyed or lost;
"extant manuscripts"; "specimens of graphic art found
among extant barbaric folk"- Edward Clodd [ant: extinct]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

37 Moby Thesaurus words for "extant":
actual, alive, around, as is, being, contemporaneous, contemporary,
current, existent, existing, fresh, immanent, immediate, in being,
in effect, in existence, in force, instant, latest, living, modern,
new, on foot, present, present-age, present-day, present-time,
prevalent, running, subsistent, subsisting, that be, that is,
topical, under the sun, up-to-date, up-to-the-minute

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

lackadaisical

2009-03-05T07:28:00.000-08:00

I have until today rejected this word as invalid, a piece of trash contrived by the ignorant to substitute for "apathetic," "lazy," or "unconcerned." Derived from what seemed to me to be a delightfully Elizabethan "lack-a-daisy," or "lack-a-day," I looked down upon lackadaisical as an abominable construction.

This morning, however, reading "Cadets -- On not flying in the Royal Air Force," by Paul West, in Harper's Magazine of January 2009, I find myself nonplussed. This short memoir of Mr. West's cadet training on the Isle of Man in 1954 is one of the very best pieces of writing I've ever encountered. His use of language is nothing less than masterful. And he uses lackadaisical, thusly:

"One pressed on through a maze of ... tests concocted by lackadaisical but implacable Flying Officers with degrees in nonliterary subjects ..."

And so, as I have so many times before and will many times again should I be blessed with more time Alive, I must admit that I was wrong. This is a word, a fine word, a word rooted deeply in my native tongue.

Please read this treatment in the alphaDictionary.com, and I shall go and (perhaps) sin no more.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

lackadaisical
lackadaisical lack`a*dai"si*cal (l[a^]k`[.a]*d[=a]"z[i^]*kal),
a. [From Lackadaisy, interj.]
1. Affectedly pensive; languidly sentimental; dreamy.
[1913 Webster]

2. Lacking spirit or liveliness; lethargic; listless;
languid.
[PJC]

3. Indolent; lazy; idle, especially in a dreamy manner.
[PJC] -- Lack`a*dai"si*cal*ly, adv.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

lackadaisical
adj 1: lacking spirit or liveliness; "a lackadaisical attempt"; "a
languid mood"; "a languid wave of the hand"; "a hot
languorous afternoon" [syn: dreamy, languid, languorous]
2: idle or indolent especially in a dreamy way; "she was
annoyingly lackadaisical and impractical";
"a...lackadaisical, spiritless young man-about-town"-
P.G.Wodehouse

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

119 Moby Thesaurus words for "lackadaisical":
Micawberish, apathetic, ataractic, backward, benumbed, blase,
bored, careless, casual, cold, cool, dallying, dead, debilitated,
degage, delaying, devil-may-care, dilatory, dillydallying,
disinterested, dispassionate, disregardful, dopey, dormant, droopy,
drugged, dull, easy, easygoing, emasculated, enervated, exanimate,
faineant, foot-dragging, free and easy, heavy, hebetudinous,
heedless, idle, inactive, inanimate, inattentive, incurious,
indifferent, indolent, inert, inexcitable, insouciant, jaded,
laggard, lagging, languid, languishing, languorous, lax, lazy,
leaden, lethargic, lifeless, limp, lingering, listless, loitering,
lukewarm, lumpish, mindless, moribund, negligent, nonchalant, numb,
offhand, passive, perfunctory, phlegmatic, pococurante, pooped,
procrastinating, procrastinative, procrastinatory, reckless,
regardless, remiss, romantic, sated, sentimental, shuffling, slack,
sleepy, slothful, slow, sluggish, somnolent, spiritless, stagnant,
stagnating, stultified, supine, tepid, torpid, turned-off,
unanxious, uncaring, unconcerned, undiscriminating, unemotional,
unenthusiastic, unexcitable, unexcited, unimpressed, uninspired,
uninterested, unmindful, unmoved, unsolicitous, vegetable,
vegetative, wan, weary, world-weary

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

anomie

2009-02-23T21:52:00.000-08:00

Will Shortz's New York Times Sunday Crossword Puzzle is a great favorite at our house. We do the puzzle while we're eating dinner or otherwise sitting around, and sometimes it takes us all week to get it done.

This week's puzzle asked for a six-letter word meaning "cultural instability." From where I pulled anomie I cannot say -- I was thinking that it sounded a lot like ennui but knew it didn't mean the same thing.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Results of a Google search for "define:anomie."

personal state of isolation and anxiety resulting from a lack of social control and regulation
lack of moral standards in a society
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
Anomie, in contemporary English, means a condition of malaise in individuals, characterized by an absence or diminution of standards or values. ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anomie
Alienation or social instability caused by erosion of standards and values
en.wiktionary.org/wiki/anomie
A state of normlessness in society, most commonly occurring during periods of dramatic social change.
metta.spencer.name/acpapers/1999-sociological-studies-overview.html

scansion

2009-02-22T19:11:00.000-08:00

Perhaps scansion doesn't strike you as all that interesting of a word, but I just love the way it sounds. "Analysis of verse into metrical patterns" is a little mystifying.

The word is taken from words that mean "climb."

Sometimes when I read poetry I'm frustrated by a poet who doesn't seem to realize that she's established an interesting metrical pattern that has taken me in until it's broken by a line that doesn't betray the slightest awareness of said pattern, leading me to think that I've been misreading the work, then wondering if perhaps the effect is intentional, or unintentional.

Take, for example:

Song, by Seamus Heaney

A rowan like a lipsticked girl.
Between the by-road and the main road
Alder trees at a wet and dripping distance
Stand off among the rushes.

There are the mud-flowers of dialect
And the immortelles of perfect pitch
And that moment when the bird sings very close
To the music of what happens.

  -- Seamus Heaney

(Thanks to The Wondering Minstrels for this poem.)

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Scansion Scan"sion, n. [L. scansio, fr. scandere, scansum, to
climb. See Scan.] (Pros.)
The act of scanning; distinguishing the metrical feet of a
verse by emphasis, pauses, or otherwise.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

scansion
n : analysis of verse into metrical patterns

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

21 Moby Thesaurus words for "scansion":
Stabreim, alliterative meter, blocking, detailing, enumeration,
itemization, measure, meter, metrical pattern, metrics, numbers,
parsing, prosodic pattern, prosody, quantitative meter, resolution,
scanning, schematization, syllabic meter, vers libre,
versification

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

asseverate

2009-02-20T18:17:00.000-08:00

Asseverate is not unlike its synonym aver, albeit possessing six more letters and two more syllables. And when writing about assertion, confirmation, emphatic truth or bold declaration it is damned handy to have them both.

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Asseverate As*sev"er*ate, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Asseverated;
p. pr. & vb. n. Asseverating.] [L. asseveratus, p. p. of
asseverare to assert seriously or earnestly; ad + severus.
See Severe.]
To affirm or aver positively, or with solemnity.
[1913 Webster]

Syn: To affirm; aver; protest; declare. See Affirm.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

asseverate
v : state categorically [syn: assert, maintain]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

57 Moby Thesaurus words for "asseverate":
acknowledge, affirm, allege, announce, annunciate, argue, assert,
assever, attest, aver, avouch, avow, bear witness, certify,
confess, contend, declare, depone, depose, disclose, enunciate,
express, express the belief, give evidence, have, hold, insist,
issue a manifesto, lay down, maintain, manifesto, nuncupate,
predicate, proclaim, profess, pronounce, protest, put, put it,
quote, recite, relate, say, set down, speak, speak out, speak up,
stand for, stand on, state, submit, swear, testify, vouch, vow,
warrant, witness

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

aver

2009-02-20T18:16:00.002-08:00

A working ox, aver carries quite a punch for such a tiny unprepossessing arrangement of only two vowels and two consonants. One had better be very sure before putting aver to work.

QQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ

Aver A"ver ([=a]"v[~e]r), n. [OF. aver domestic animal, whence
LL. averia, pl. cattle. See Habit, and cf. Average.]
A work horse, or working ox. [Obs. or Dial. Eng.]
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Aver A*ver" ([.a]*v[~e]r"), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Averred
([.a]*v[~e]rd"); p. pr. & vb. n. Averring.] [F. av['e]rer,
LL. adverare, averare; L. ad + versus true. See Verity.]
1. To assert, or prove, the truth of. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]

2. (Law) To avouch or verify; to offer to verify; to prove or
justify. See Averment.
[1913 Webster]

3. To affirm with confidence; to declare in a positive
manner, as in confidence of asserting the truth.
[1913 Webster]

It is sufficient that the very fact hath its
foundation in truth, as I do seriously aver is the
case. --Fielding.
[1913 Webster]

Then all averred I had killed the bird. --Coleridge.
[1913 Webster]

Syn: To assert; affirm; asseverate. See Affirm.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

aver
v 1: report or maintain; "He alleged that he was the victim of a
crime"; "He said it was too late to intervene in the
war"; "The registrar says that I owe the school money"
[syn: allege, say]
2: to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true; "Before
God I swear I am innocent" [syn: affirm, verify, assert,
avow, swan, swear]
[also: averring, averred]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

56 Moby Thesaurus words for "aver":
acknowledge, affirm, allege, announce, annunciate, argue, assert,
assever, asseverate, attest, avouch, avow, bear witness, certify,
contend, declare, defend, depone, depose, disclose, enunciate,
express, give evidence, have, hold, insist, issue a manifesto,
justify, lay down, maintain, manifesto, nuncupate, predicate,
proclaim, profess, pronounce, protest, put, put it, quote, recite,
relate, say, set down, speak, speak out, speak up, stand for,
stand on, state, submit, swear, testify, vouch, warrant, witness

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

triptych

2009-02-20T18:16:00.001-08:00

Triptych is one of those words that one seldom sees, unless one is reading an affected, overblown description, perhaps a prospectus for a piece of real estate or cruise brochure.

It came to me from a poem, a good poem that I enjoyed, which proved to me that it actually is a word, and not just a fabrication by a greedy marketeer. Can I find that poem now to link it? No.

?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Triptych Trip"tych, n. [Gr. ? consisting of three layers or
plates; ? (see Tri-) + ?, ?, a fold, layer.]
Anything in three parts or leaves. Specifically:
(a) A writing tablet in three parts, two of which fold over
on the middle part.
[1913 Webster]
(b) A picture or altarpiece in three compartments.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

triptych
n : art consisting of a painting or carving (especially an
altarpiece) on three panels (usually hinged together)

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

117 Moby Thesaurus words for "triptych":
Domesday Book, abstract, abstraction, account book, address book,
adversaria, album, altarpiece, annual, appointment calendar,
appointment schedule, blankbook, block print, blotter, calendar,
cashbook, catalog, classified catalog, clover, collage,
color print, commonplace book, copy, court calendar, cyclorama,
daub, daybook, desk calendar, deuce-ace, diary, diptych, docket,
engagement book, engraving, fresco, icon, illumination,
illustration, image, journal, leash, ledger, likeness, log,
logbook, loose-leaf notebook, memo book, memorandum book,
memory book, miniature, montage, mosaic, mural, notebook, pad,
panorama, petty cashbook, photograph, picture, pocket notebook,
pocketbook, police blotter, print, representation, reproduction,
scrapbook, scratch pad, set of three, shamrock, spiral notebook,
stained glass window, stencil, still life, table, tableau, tablet,
tapestry, tercet, ternary, ternion, terzetto, three, threesome,
tierce, trefoil, trey, triad, trialogue, triangle, tricorn,
trident, triennium, trihedron, trilogy, trimester, trine, trinity,
trinomial, trio, triphthong, triple crown, triple threat, triplet,
triplopy, tripod, trireme, triseme, triskelion, trisul,
triumvirate, triunity, trivet, troika, wall painting, workbook,
writing tablet, yearbook

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

Mizpah

2009-02-20T18:14:00.000-08:00

Mizpah is another word discovered in a poem, this one by Laurie Byro, on Desert Moon (since this is a workshop that link will most likely break after a while; if you catch it before I do, please let me know) Review Poetry Workshop. Between the dictionary definitions below, and a visit to Wikipedia, I have a confusing collection of meanings. It seems, mostly, to be a place name for various places in the Old Testament and/or Hebrew Bible, but may be taken to mean "watchtower," reminiscent, I suppose, of Bob Dylan's great old song.

At first I thought it might be another spelling of "mitzvah," but it is not.

All Along the Watchtower, by Bob Dylan

And, just in case you thought old Jehovah was a softie, after the story of Abraham and Isaac:

From Judges 11 in the King James version of the Bible:

29 Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the children of Ammon. 30 And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the children of Ammon into mine hands, 31 Then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. 32 So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD delivered them into his hands. 33 And he smote them from Aroer, even till thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto the plain of the vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.
34 And Jephthah came to Mizpeh unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances: and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me: for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back. 36 And she said unto him, My father, if thou hast opened thy mouth unto the LORD, do to me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon. 37 And she said unto her father, Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my fellows. 38 And he said, Go. And he sent her away for two months: and she went with her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains. 39 And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she knew no man. And it was a custom in Israel, 40 That the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.

********************************************************
Mizpah or Miz'peh, watch-tower; the look-out. (1.) A place in Gilead,
so named by Laban, who overtook Jacob at this spot (Gen. 31:49)
on his return to Palestine from Padan-aram. Here Jacob and Laban
set up their memorial cairn of stones. It is the same as
Ramath-mizpeh (Josh. 13:26).

(2.) A town in Gilead, where Jephthah resided, and where he
assumed the command of the Israelites in a time of national
danger. Here he made his rash vow; and here his daughter
submitted to her mysterious fate (Judg. 10:17; 11:11, 34). It
may be the same as Ramoth-Gilead (Josh. 20:8), but it is more
likely that it is identical with the foregoing, the Mizpeh of
Gen. 31:23, 25, 48, 49.

(3.) Another place in Gilead, at the foot of Mount Hermon,
inhabited by Hivites (Josh. 11:3, 8). The name in Hebrew here
has the article before it, "the Mizpeh," "the watch-tower." The
modern village of Metullah, meaning also "the look-out,"
probably occupies the site so called.

(4.) A town of Moab to which David removed his parents for
safety during his persecution by Saul (1 Sam. 22:3). This was
probably the citadel known as Kir-Moab, now Kerak. While David
resided here he was visited by the prophet Gad, here mentioned
for the first time, who was probably sent by Samuel to bid him
leave the land of Moab and betake himself to the land of Judah.
He accordingly removed to the forest of Hareth (q.v.), on the
edge of the mountain chain of Hebron.

(5.) A city of Benjamin, "the watch-tower", where the people
were accustomed to meet in great national emergencies (Josh.
18:26; Judg. 20:1, 3; 21:1, 5; 1 Sam. 7:5-16). It has been
supposed to be the same as Nob (1 Sam. 21:1; 22:9-19). It was
some 4 miles north-west of Jerusalem, and was situated on the
loftiest hill in the neighbourhood, some 600 feet above the
plain of Gibeon. This village has the modern name of Neby
Samwil, i.e., the prophet Samuel, from a tradition that Samuel's
tomb is here. (See NOB.)

Samuel inaugurated the reformation that characterized his time
by convening a great assembly of all Israel at Mizpeh, now the
politico-religious centre of the nation. There, in deep
humiliation on account of their sins, they renewed their vows
and entered again into covenant with the God of their fathers.
It was a period of great religious awakening and of revived
national life. The Philistines heard of this assembly, and came
up against Israel. The Hebrews charged the Philistine host with
great fury, and they were totally routed. Samuel commemorated
this signal victory by erecting a memorial-stone, which he
called "Ebenezer" (q.v.), saying, "Hitherto hath the Lord helped
us" (1 Sam. 7:7-12).

-- From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary

Mizpah, Mizpeh, a watch-tower; speculation

-- From Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (late 1800's)

Mizpah, MN (city, FIPS 43540)
Location: 47.92255 N, 94.21544 W
Population (1990): 100 (41 housing units)
Area: 7.8 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 56660

-- From U.S. Gazetteer (1990)

Mizpah, MN -- U.S. city in Minnesota
Population (2000): 78
Housing Units (2000): 51
Land area (2000): 3.029863 sq. miles (7.847308 sq. km)
Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km)
Total area (2000): 3.029863 sq. miles (7.847308 sq. km)
FIPS code: 43540
Located within: Minnesota (MN), FIPS 27
Location: 47.925154 N, 94.206407 W
ZIP Codes (1990): 56660
Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
Headwords:
Mizpah, MN
Mizpah

-- From U.S. Gazetteer Places (2000)

(see poem in DMPW Lori, Leah? being buried with your cat)

pinion

2009-02-16T21:56:00.000-08:00

Pinion is a sleeper. My thanks to Melissa Resch for waking me up in her poem "Wingus Envious," at the Desert Moon Review.

I thought I knew what pinion meant. Well, I knew part of it. But it has layers, appropriately enough, as its basic meaning seems to have to do with feathers.

Look how it goes from a wing joint, farthest from the bird's body, to "a fetter for the arm." One imagines a crusty jailer coining the phrase. But the prison humor sticks -- we say we've "pinioned" someone to the floor by holding their wrists.

Wikipedia says:

A pinion is a round gear used in several applications:

usually the smallest gear in a gear drive train. In many cases, such as remote controlled toys, the pinion is also the drive gear, although in the case of John Blenkinsop's The Salamanca, the pinion was rather large.

the smaller gear that drives in a 90-degree angle towards a crown gear in a differential drive.

the round gear that engages and drives a rack in a rack and pinion mechanism and against a rack in a rack railway.

Wikipedia further says, in a disambiguation page:

Pinion may refer to:

Pinion, the smallest gear in a gear drive train
"Pinion" (song), a song by Nine Inch Nails from the 1992 EP Broken
Pinions, the outermost primary flight feathers on a bird's wing
Pinioning, the act of surgically removing a bird's pinion joint

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Pinion Pin"ion, n. (Zool.)
A moth of the genus Lithophane, as Lithophane antennata,
whose larva bores large holes in young peaches and apples.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Pinion Pin"ion, n. [OF. pignon a pen, F., gable, pinion (in
sense 5); cf. Sp. pi[~n]on pinion; fr. L. pinna pinnacle,
feather, wing. See Pin a peg, and cf. Pen a feather,
Pennat, Pennon.]
1. A feather; a quill. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]

2. A wing, literal or figurative.
[1913 Webster]

Swift on his sooty pinions flits the gnome. --Pope.
[1913 Webster]

3. The joint of bird's wing most remote from the body.
--Johnson.
[1913 Webster]

4. A fetter for the arm. --Ainsworth.
[1913 Webster]

5. (Mech.) A cogwheel with a small number of teeth, or
leaves, adapted to engage with a larger wheel, or rack
(see Rack); esp., such a wheel having its leaves formed
of the substance of the arbor or spindle which is its
axis.
[1913 Webster]

Lantern pinion. under Lantern.

Pinion wire, fluted longitudinally, for making the
pinions of clocks and watches. It is formed by being drawn
through holes of the shape required for the leaves or
teeth of the pinions.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Pinion Pin"ion, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pinioned; p. pr. & vb.
n. Pinioning.]
1. To bind or confine the wings of; to confine by binding the
wings. --Bacon.
[1913 Webster]

2. To disable by cutting off the pinion joint. --Johnson.
[1913 Webster]

3. To disable or restrain, as a person, by binding the arms,
esp. by binding the arms to the body. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]

Her elbows pinioned close upon her hips. --Cowper.
[1913 Webster]

4. Hence, generally, to confine; to bind; to tie up.
"Pinioned up by formal rules of state." --Norris.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

pinion
n 1: a gear with a small number of teeth designed to mesh with a
larger wheel or rack
2: any of the larger wing or tail feathers of a bird [syn: flight
feather, quill feather]
3: wing of a bird [syn: pennon]
v 1: bind the arms of [syn: shackle]
2: cut the wings off (of birds)

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

70 Moby Thesaurus words for "pinion":
anchor, appendage, arm, bind, bough, branch, bridle, chain, crest,
enchain, entrammel, fasten, feather, fetter, gyve, hackle, hamper,
hand, handcuff, hobble, hog-tie, hopple, imp, joint, lash, leash,
leg, limb, link, lobe, lobule, make fast, manacle, member, moor,
offshoot, organ, panache, peg down, picket, pin down, plume,
plumule, put in irons, quill, ramification, restrain, rope, runner,
scapular, scion, secure, shackle, spray, sprig, spur, straitjacket,
strap, switch, tail, tendril, tether, tie, tie down, tie up,
topknot, trammel, tuft, twig, wing

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

trapezium, trapezia

2009-02-13T15:11:00.000-08:00

This word also comes from the poem "Duggan Celebrates St. Patrick's Day," a nice piece of verse to which I have referred elsewhere.

He'd fly through the air with the greatest of ease,
That daring young man on the flying trapeze.
His movements were graceful, all girls he could please
And my love he purloined away.

(I copied these lyrics from a website where the lyrics to the entire song may be seen. I take no responsibility for their accuracy or lack thereof.)

Trapezia! Trapezoid, trapezium, no parallel sides. The flying trapezium.
Trap. Easy. Yum.

#############################################

Trapezia
Trapezium Tra*pe"zi*um, n.; pl. E. Trapeziums, L.
Trapezia. [NL., fr. Gr. ? a little table, an irregular
four-sided figure, dim. of ? a table, for ?; ? (see Tetra-)
+ ? foot, akin to ? foot; hence, originally, a table with
four feet. See Foot.]
1. (Geom.) A plane figure bounded by four right lines, of
which no two are parallel.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Anat.)
(a) A bone of the carpus at the base of the first
metacarpal, or thumb.
(b) A region on the ventral side of the brain, either just
back of the pons Varolii, or, as in man, covered by
the posterior extension of its transverse fibers.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

trapezium
n 1: a quadrilateral with no parallel sides [ant: parallelogram]
2: a multiple star in the constellation of Orion [syn: the
Trapezium]
3: the wrist bone on the thumb side of the hand that
articulates with the 1st and 2nd metacarpals [syn: trapezium
bone, trapezium}]
[also: trapezia (pl)]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

trapezia
See trapezium

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

quiff

2009-02-13T14:34:00.000-08:00

This word came to me from a poem. There were several other words in the poem that I classified as "interesting," from which you may derive some of the criteria or lack of same that I use in judging whether or not to include a word in this Dictionary.

The poem in question is called "Duggan Celebrates St. Patrick's Day," by Arthur Seeley, and I found it on the Desert Moon Poetry Review Workshop. I don't know for how long it will remain on there; please let me know if the preceding link doesn't work.

By way of explanation, here are the first four lines of "Duggan Celebrates:"

His face was as brown as ale
and as finely etched as a Dublin street map,
the flicked quiff on him
white as the head on a glass of Guinness.

I was at a loss to know what quiff meant, but when I looked it up I could see Duggan as clearly as if I had a photograph, and my admiration for this poem began to grow. By the end of it I could, as I remarked in the workshop comments, almost smell it.

QQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQQ

quiff
n : a prominent forelock (especially one brushed upward from the
forehead)

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

From Wikipedia:

"The quiff is a hairstyle that combines the 1950s pompadour hairstyle, the 50s flattop, and sometimes a mohawk. The etymology of the word is uncertain but may derive from the French word "coiffe" which can mean either a hairstyle or, going further back, the mail knights wore over their heads and under their helmets."

limn

2009-02-10T21:22:00.000-08:00

I like limn because its root is "light." To "illuminate" a manuscript -- I've always loved that phrase. How perfect. To shine light on written words with pictures and decoration. Illustrated works can be so very beautiful.

The painting above is from Wikimedia Commons. Its title is Heures de Maréchal de Boucicaut (Stundenbuch), Szene: Dame während der Messe, by Meister des Maréchal de Boucicaut. It is in the public domain.
********************************************************************

Limn
Limn Limn (l[i^]m), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Limned (l[i^]md); p.
pr. & vb. n. Limning (l[i^]m"n[i^]ng or l[i^]m"[i^]ng).]
[OE. limnen, fr. luminen, for enluminen, F. enluminer to
illuminate, to limn, LL. illuminare to paint. [root]122. See
Illuminate, Luminous.]
1. To draw or paint; especially, to represent in an artistic
way with pencil or brush.
[1913 Webster]

Let a painter carelessly limn out a million of
faces, and you shall find them all different. --Sir
T. Browne.
[1913 Webster]

2. Hence: To picture in words; to describe in graphic terms.
[PJC]

3. To illumine, as books or parchments, with ornamental
figures, letters, or borders.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

limn
v 1: trace the shape of [syn: delineate, outline]
2: make a portrait of; "Goya wanted to portray his mistress,
the Duchess of Alba" [syn: portray, depict]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

60 Moby Thesaurus words for "limn":
bring to life, cartoon, catch a likeness, chalk, character,
characterize, charcoal, chart, color, contour, copy, crayon,
crosshatch, dash off, daub, delineate, depict, describe, design,
diagram, doodle, draft, draw, evoke, express, give words to, hatch,
hit off, image, interpret, map, notate, outline, paint,
paint a picture, pencil, picture, picturize, portray, print,
profile, register, render, represent, rub, schematize, scratch,
scumble, set forth, shade, silhouette, sketch, stencil, symbolize,
take a rubbing, tint, trace, trace out, trace over, write

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

scrim

2009-02-08T22:42:00.000-08:00

In the poem I just read, scrim is probably used to mean "curtain." I don't know what I would have said it meant before I looked it up. Maybe some type of border or fabric-related item? Hmm. Well, as one may see in the definition below, scrim had a very specific meaning which has broadened over time.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Scrim
Scrim Scrim, n.
1. A kind of light cotton or linen fabric, often woven in
openwork patterns, -- used for curtains, etc,; -- called
also India scrim.
[1913 Webster]

2. pl. Thin canvas glued on the inside of panels to prevent
shrinking, checking, etc.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

scrim
n : a firm open-weave fabric used for a curtain in the theater

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

34 Moby Thesaurus words for "scrim":
act drop, asbestos, asbestos board, backdrop, batten, border,
cloth, coulisse, counterweight, curtain, curtain board, cyclorama,
decor, drop, drop curtain, fire curtain, flat, flipper, hanging,
rag, scene, scenery, screen, side scene, stage screw, tab, tableau,
teaser, tormentor, transformation, transformation scene, wing,
wingcut, woodcut

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

picric

2009-02-06T19:05:00.000-08:00

picric: Lovable for its obscurity if not for its similarity to dining al fresco is this little gift from a recent Harper's magazine article about David Foster Wallace. Michael Pietsch says it "Means 'yellowish.'" (Harper's Magazine January 2009 p. 26, "Always Another Word.")

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Picric
Picric Pi"cric, a. [Gr. ? bitter.] (Chem.)
Pertaining to, or designating, a strong organic acid (called
picric acid), intensely bitter.
[1913 Webster]

Note: Picric acid is obtained by treating phenol with strong
nitric acid, as a brilliant yellow crystalline
substance, C6H2(NO2)3.OH. It is used in dyeing silk
and wool, and also in the manufacture of explosives, as
it is very unstable when heated. Called also
trinitrophenol, and formerly carbazotic acid.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

desultory

2009-02-02T21:07:00.000-08:00

Desultory: this is me. All over the place. "Flighty" is a good synonym. This is a word that I didn't really have in my vocabulary. I knew it was there, but to produce an exact meaning would have been difficult.

Much of my life has been desultory. I have flitted from one pursuit to another. Fortunately I've been able to stay married and make (sort of) a living throughout. While earning our daily bread I've pursued avocations such as ham radio, old-time fiddling, bicycling, a few attempts at novel-writing, and lately, poetry.

Aimless. Without a plan. Oh yeah.

((((((((((((((((((((((())))))))))))))))))))))))

Desultory
Desultory Des"ul*to*ry, a. [L. desultorius, fr. desultor a
leaper, fr. desilire, desultum, to leap down; de + salire to
leap. See Saltation.]
1. Leaping or skipping about. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]

I shot at it [a bird], but it was so desultory that
I missed my aim. --Gilbert
White.
[1913 Webster]

2. Jumping, or passing, from one thing or subject to another,
without order or rational connection; without logical
sequence; disconnected; immethodical; aimless; as,
desultory minds. --Atterbury.
[1913 Webster]

He [Goldsmith] knew nothing accurately; his reading
had been desultory. --Macaulay.
[1913 Webster]

3. Out of course; by the way; as a digression; not connected
with the subject; as, a desultory remark.

Syn: Rambling; roving; immethodical; discursive; inconstant;
unsettled; cursory; slight; hasty; loose.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

desultory
adj : marked by lack of definite plan or regularity or purpose;
jumping from one thing to another; "desultory
thoughts"; "the desultory conversation characteristic
of cocktail parties"

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

211 Moby Thesaurus words for "desultory":
aberrant, aberrative, adrift, afloat, aimless, alternating,
amorphous, broken, by the way, capricious, careening, casual,
catchy, changeable, changeful, chaotic, choppy, circuitous,
dancing, dangerous, departing, designless, deviable, deviant,
deviating, deviative, deviatory, devious, digressive,
disarticulated, disconnected, discontinuous, discursive, disjunct,
disordered, disorderly, disorganized, dispersed, disproportionate,
dizzy, eccentric, episodic, errant, erratic, excursive,
fast and loose, fickle, fitful, flickering, flickery, flicky,
flighty, flitting, fluctuating, fluttering, fluttery, formless,
freakish, frivolous, giddy, gratuitous, guttering, halting,
haphazard, hazardous, herky-jerky, heteroclite, hit-or-miss,
immethodical, impetuous, impulsive, inchoate, incoherent,
inconsistent, inconstant, indecisive, indirect, indiscriminate,
infirm, insecure, insubstantial, intermittent, intermitting,
irregular, irresolute, irresponsible, jerky, labyrinthine, loose,
lurching, maundering, mazy, meandering, meaningless, mercurial,
misshapen, moody, nonsymmetrical, nonsystematic, nonuniform,
on-again-off-again, orderless, out-of-the-way, patchy, perilous,
planetary, planless, precarious, promiscuous, provisional,
purposeless, rambling, random, restless, risky, rough, roving,
scatterbrained, scrappy, senseless, serpentine, shaky, shapeless,
shifting, shifty, shuffling, slippery, snaky, snatchy, spasmatic,
spasmic, spasmodic, spastic, spineless, spluttering, sporadic,
spotty, sputtering, sputtery, staggering, straggling, straggly,
stray, swerving, systemless, temporary, tentative, ticklish,
treacherous, turning, twisting, unaccountable, unarranged,
uncertain, unclassified, unconsidered, uncontrolled, undependable,
undirected, undisciplined, unequal, uneven, unfaithworthy, unfixed,
ungraded, unjoined, unmethodical, unmetrical, unordered,
unorganized, unplanned, unpredictable, unregular, unreliable,
unrestrained, unrhythmical, unsettled, unsolid, unsorted, unsound,
unstable, unstable as water, unstaid, unsteadfast, unsteady,
unsubstantial, unsure, unsymmetrical, unsystematic, untrustworthy,
ununiform, vacillating, vagrant, vague, variable, veering,
vicissitudinary, vicissitudinous, volatile, wandering, wanton,
wavering, wavery, wavy, wayward, whimsical, winding, wishy-washy,
wobbling, wobbly, zigzag

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

vouchsafe

2009-02-02T20:54:00.000-08:00

Now this is a word straight from the Book of Common Prayer, from my Episcopalian pre-1979 childhood. Stoop down, condescend, take a moment from your Heavenly time, your Holy schedule, and do a little favor for one of your faithful, O Lord:

And of thy mercy, O heavenly Father, vouchsafe that we, who now serve thee here on earth, may at last, together with them, be found meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light...

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

Vouchsafe
Vouchsafe Vouch*safe", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vouchsafed; p.
pr. & vb. n. Vouchsafing.] [Vouch + safe, that is, to vouch
or answer for safety.]
[1913 Webster]
1. To condescend to grant; to concede; to bestow.
[1913 Webster]

If ye vouchsafe that it be so. --Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]

Shall I vouchsafe your worship a word or two?
--Shak.
[1913 Webster]

It is not said by the apostle that God vouchsafed to
the heathens the means of salvation. --South.
[1913 Webster]

2. To receive or accept in condescension. [Obs.] --Shak.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Vouchsafe Vouch*safe", v. i.
To condescend; to deign; to yield; to descend or stoop.
--Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]

Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.
--Bk. of Com.
Prayer.
[1913 Webster]

Vouchsafe, illustrious Ormond, to behold
What power the charms of beauty had of old. --Dryden.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

vouchsafe
v 1: grant in a condescending manner
2: promise or agree condescendingly, as a special favor

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

69 Moby Thesaurus words for "vouchsafe":
OK, accord, administer, admit, afford, allot, allow, award, bestow,
bestow on, communicate, condescend, confer, consent, deal,
deal out, deign, descend, dish out, dispense, dole, dole out,
donate, extend, fork out, gift, gift with, give, give freely,
give leave, give out, give permission, give the go-ahead,
give the word, give up, grant, hand out, heap, help to, impart,
issue, lavish, leave, let, let have, lower oneself, make possible,
mete, mete out, offer, okay, permit, pour, present, proffer, rain,
release, render, say the word, serve, shell out, shower, slip,
snow, stoop, suffer, supply, tender, yield

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

perturb, perturbation

2009-02-02T18:13:00.000-08:00

Perhaps perturb and perturbation should have separate entries in a proper dictionary, but since this is anything but proper, or a dictionary for that matter, I shall list them both here.

Perturb looks incomplete, a stub of a word. One doesn't say "perturb" easily. It smacks of pretension, snobbery, even malapropism. It stops abruptly with an unsmooth "b." It makes one wonder if it's a necessary word. Doesn't it mean the same thing as "disturb?"

Perturbation, on the other hand, rhymes with "masturbation," and thereby lends itself to ridicule. This is naturally endearing to me. Furthermore, as revealed in the formal definitions copied below, it has a scientific, specifically astronomical, meaning -- even more endearing.

To say that I am in a state of perturbation (what? what did you say?) can certainly mean that I am upset, but also that I am knocked out of kilter, pulled from my orbit by that old devil Gravity, the weak force.

May I disturb you? Certainly. May I perturb you? Do you need to ask? You either do or you don't. Perhaps you could ask forgiveness.

And don't even think about perturbing my church pew.

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB

Perturb
Perturb Per*turb", v. t. [L. perturbare, perturbatum; per +
turbare to disturb, fr. turba a disorder: cf. OF. perturber.
See Per-, and Turbid.]
1. To disturb; to agitate; to vex; to trouble; to disquiet.
[1913 Webster]

Ye that . . . perturb so my feast with crying.
--Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]

2. To disorder; to confuse. [R.] --Sir T. Browne.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

perturb
v 1: disturb in mind or make uneasy or cause to be worried or
alarmed; "She was rather perturbed by the news that her
father was seriously ill" [syn: unhinge, disquiet, trouble,
cark, distract, disorder]
2: disturb or interfere with the usual path of an electron or
atom; "The electrons were perturbed by the passing ion"
3: cause a celestial body to deviate from a theoretically
regular orbital motion, especially as a result of
interposed or extraordinary gravitational pull; "The
orbits of these stars were perturbed by the passings of a
comet"
4: throw into great confusion or disorder; "Fundamental
Islamicists threaten to perturb the social order in
Algeria and Egypt" [syn: derange, throw out of kilter]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

110 Moby Thesaurus words for "perturb":
abash, addle, addle the wits, afflict, agitate, ail, alarm,
ball up, be the matter, beat, beat up, becloud, bedazzle, befuddle,
beset, bewilder, bother, bug, burden, churn, churn up, cloud,
complicate matters, concern, confuse, convulse, daze, dazzle,
disarrange, discombobulate, discomfit, discomfort, discommode,
discompose, disconcert, dishevel, dismay, disorder, disorganize,
disorient, disquiet, distract, distress, disturb, electrify,
embarrass, embroil, entangle, excite, ferment, flummox, flurry,
fluster, flutter, fog, fret, fuddle, fuss, harass, inconvenience,
irk, jar, jolt, jumble, knock galley-west, load with care, maze,
mist, mix up, moider, muddle, paddle, perplex, perturbate, plague,
pother, psych, put out, put to it, puzzle, raise hell, rattle,
rile, ripple, rock, roil, roughen, ruffle, rumple, shake, shake up,
shock, spook, stagger, stir, stir up, swirl, throw,
throw into confusion, torment, trouble, unnerve, unsettle, upset,
vex, whip, whip up, whisk, work up, worry

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb

Perturbation
Perturbation Per`tur*ba"tion, n. [L. perturbatio: cf. F.
perturbation.]
1. The act of perturbing, or the state of being perturbed;
esp., agitation of mind.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Astron.) A disturbance in the regular elliptic or other
motion of a heavenly body, produced by some force
additional to that which causes its regular motion; as,
the perturbations of the planets are caused by their
attraction on each other. --Newcomb.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

perturbation
n 1: an unhappy and worried mental state; "there was too much
anger and disturbance"; "she didn't realize the upset
she caused me" [syn: disturbance, upset]
2: (physics) a secondary influence on a system that causes it
to deviate slightly
3: activity that is an intrusion or interruption; "he looked
around for the source of the disturbance"; "there was a
disturbance of neural function" [syn: disturbance]
4: a disposition that is confused or nervous and upset [syn: fluster]
5: the act of causing disorder [syn: disruption]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

235 Moby Thesaurus words for "perturbation":
ado, aggravation, agitation, all-overs, angst, animation, anxiety,
anxiety hysteria, anxiety neurosis, anxious bench, anxious concern,
anxious seat, anxiousness, apprehension, apprehensiveness, arousal,
arousing, baffle, bafflement, befuddlement, bewilderment, bluster,
bobbery, boil, boiling, bother, botheration, brouhaha, bustle,
cankerworm of care, care, chaos, chills of fear, churn, cloud,
cold creeps, cold shivers, cold sweat, commotion, concern,
concernment, confoundment, confusion, conturbation, convulsion,
creeps, daze, derangement, dilemma, disarrangement, disarray,
disarticulation, discombobulation, discomfiture, discomposure,
disconcert, disconcertedness, disconcertion, disconcertment,
disharmony, dishevelment, disintegration, disjunction, dislocation,
disorder, disorderliness, disorganization, disorientation,
disproportion, disquiet, disquietude, disruption, distress,
disturbance, dread, ebullience, ebullition, eddy, effervescence,
electrification, embarrassment, embroilment, enigma, entropy,
exacerbation, exasperation, excitation, excitement, exhilaration,
fear, fear and trembling, feery-fary, ferment, fermentation, fever,
feverishness, fidgets, fix, flap, flummox, flurry, fluster,
flutter, flutteration, fog, foment, fomentation, foreboding,
forebodingness, frenzy, fuddle, fuddlement, fume, fuss,
galvanization, goose bumps, gooseflesh, haphazardness, haze,
heartquake, horripilation, hubbub, hurly-burly, hurry,
hurry-scurry, incitement, incoherence, indiscriminateness,
inflammation, infuriation, inharmonious harmony, inquietude,
insanity, irregularity, irritation, jam, jimjams, jitters, jumble,
jumpiness, lathering up, maelstrom, malaise, maze, mess,
misarrangement, misgiving, mist, moil, most admired disorder,
muddle, muddlement, mystery, nerviness, nervous tension,
nervousness, nonplus, nonsymmetry, nonuniformity, overanxiety,
palpitation, pell-mell, perplexity, pickle, pins and needles,
plight, pother, predicament, problem, promiscuity, promiscuousness,
provocation, pucker, puzzle, puzzlement, quaking, quandary,
quiver of terror, randomness, restlessness, riddle, roil, rout,
row, ruffle, scrape, seethe, seething, shivers, shuffle, shuffling,
solicitude, steaming up, stew, stimulation, stimulus, stir,
stirring, stirring up, strain, suspense, sweat, swirl, swirling,
swivet, tension, thrill of fear, tizzy, to-do, trepidation,
trepidity, trouble, tumult, tumultuation, turbidity, turbulence,
turmoil, twitter, unassuredness, unease, uneasiness, unquietness,
unrest, unsettlement, unsymmetry, ununiformity, uproar, upset,
vexation, vortex, whipping up, whirl, working up, yeastiness,
zeal

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

PERTURBATION. This is a technical word which signifies disturbance, or
infringement of a right. It is usually applied to the disturbance of pews,
or seats in a church. In the ecclesiastical courts actions for these
disturbances are technically called "suits for perturbation of seat." 1
Phillim. 323. Vide Pew.

-- From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856)

indigenous

2009-01-31T20:57:00.000-08:00

Indigenous came to my attention today when I was catching up on the blog "It Really Is Upside Down," written by my good friend Vet, who lives in New Zealand. In the post in question, he cites a news article wherein the phrase "indigenous immigrants" is used, and rightly rails against this abomination.

Indigenous means, more or less, "native." What are "native immigrants?"

Another friend, in a comment on that blog, pointed out that this poor word has most likely fallen into the mire of politically correct jargon and can be taken to mean "brown."

Great horny toads. Are we not past such childish squirming? Dr. King must find a lot to laugh at from his heavenly vantage point. President Obama, too, from his.

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Indigenous
Indigenous In*dig"e*nous, a. [L. indigenus, indigena, fr. OL.
indu (fr. in in) + the root of L. gignere to beget, bear. See
In, and Gender.]
[1913 Webster]
1. Native; produced, growing, or living, naturally in a
country or climate; not exotic; not imported.
[1913 Webster]

Negroes were all transported from Africa and are not
indigenous or proper natives of America. --Sir T.
Browne.
[1913 Webster]

In America, cotton, being indigenous, is cheap.
--Lion Playas.
[1913 Webster]

2. Native; inherent; innate.
[1913 Webster]

Joy and hope are emotions indigenous to the human
mind. --I. Taylor.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

indigenous
adj : originating where it is found; "the autochthonal fauna of
Australia includes the kangaroo"; "autochthonous rocks
and people and folktales"; "endemic folkways"; "the
Ainu are indigenous to the northernmost islands of
Japan" [syn: autochthonal, autochthonic, autochthonous,
endemic]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

40 Moby Thesaurus words for "indigenous":
aboriginal, atavistic, autochthonous, bodily, born, coeval,
congenital, connatal, connate, connatural, constitutional, endemic,
genetic, hereditary, homebred, homegrown, in the blood, inborn,
inbred, incarnate, inherent, inherited, innate, instinctive,
instinctual, local, natal, native, native to, native-born, natural,
natural to, organic, original, physical, primal, primitive,
temperamental, unacquired, vernacular

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

effacement

2009-01-31T20:42:00.001-08:00

As I was struggling to find the right word or words today to talk to someone about unduly intense modesty, even self-deprecation, I thought about "self effacement," and looked up this word.

How interesting to notice that effacement may refer to the change that takes place in the uterus during labor. Whew. "Self effacement" takes on a whole new layer of meaning, doesn't it?

I avoided the use of effacement in my conversation, somewhat taken aback. And, after all, it was not the right word anyway. Disrespecting yourself is not the same as withdrawing into the background.

Though I am not a religious person, there are parts of the Bible that I really love:

8 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; 9 And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. 10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. 11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

~Luke 14, verses 8-11. King James, of course.

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

Effacement
Effacement Ef*face"ment, n. [Cf. F. effacement.]
The act if effacing; also, the result of the act.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

effacement
n 1: shortening of the uterine cervix and thinning of its walls
as it is dilated during labor
2: withdrawing into the background; making yourself
inconspicuous [syn: self-effacement]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

redound

2009-01-31T09:11:00.000-08:00

I read the word redound in a Wikipedia article about Don Quixote:

Cervantes helped move beyond the narrow literary conventions of the chivalric romance literature that he spoofed, which consists of straightforward retelling of a series of acts that redound to the knightly virtues of the hero.

It would be easy to read redound incorrectly and get rebound.

Other possibilities include:

refound remound repound reround resound rewound

(The image of Honoré Daumier's painting of Don Quixote astride Rocinante is copied from the abovementioned article in Wikipedia, and used under the GFDL.)

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Redound
Redound Re*dound", n.
1. The coming back, as of consequence or effect; result;
return; requital.
[1913 Webster]

We give you welcome; not without redound
Of use and glory to yourselves ye come. --Tennyson.
[1913 Webster]

2. Rebound; reverberation. [R.] --Codrington.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Redound Re*dound" (r?*dound"), v. i. [imp. & p. p.
Redounded; p. pr. & vb. n. Redounding.] [F. redonder, L.
redundare; pref. red-, re-, re- + undare to rise in waves or
surges, fr. unda a wave. See Undulate, and cf.
Redundant.]
1. To roll back, as a wave or flood; to be sent or driven
back; to flow back, as a consequence or effect; to
conduce; to contribute; to result.
[1913 Webster]

The evil, soon
Driven back, redounded as a flood on those
From whom it sprung. --Milton.
[1913 Webster]

The honor done to our religion ultimately redounds
to God, the author of it. --Rogers.
[1913 Webster]

both . . . will devour great quantities of paper,
there will no small use redound from them to that
manufacture. --Addison.
[1913 Webster]

2. To be in excess; to remain over and above; to be
redundant; to overflow.
[1913 Webster]

For every dram of honey therein found,
A pound of gall doth over it redound. --Spenser.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

redound
v 1: be excessive in quantity
2: be deflected; "His actions redound on his parents"
3: be added; "Everything he does redounds to himself"
4: have an effect for good or ill; "Her efforts will redound to
the general good"

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

coulis

2009-01-26T20:11:00.000-08:00

coulis: provided by the inimitable Chris Elliot, aka "Brakeformoose" on thisisby.us (the soon-to-be-defunct online writing site; the link will soon be broken), refers to a "strained liquid," or "French sauce which can be sweet or savory, depending on what it is meant to accompany. The term is also used to refer to the rich juices which flow from meats while they are roasting. As a general rule, coulis is thick and evenly textured, and it can be made from fruits and vegetables." ["What is Coulis?" at wisegeek.com]

Chris used this word to describe Hunt's tomato sauce in a humorous essay, part of his "Dismayed Gourmet" series.

Wikipedia has a stub article on Coulis as of this writing.

punctum

2009-01-26T16:16:00.000-08:00

punctum: was mentioned in somebody's poem -- I can't seem to locate the exact source at the moment -- recently. I don't think I've ever heard it before. "A point or small area," it says below. Also, "punctum caecum, etc." as shown below. "Punctum vegetationis" has a lovely music.

Punctum vegetationis
Hereupon befalls the onus

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Punctum Punc"tum, n. [L., a point.]
A point.
[1913 Webster]

Punctum c[ae]cum. blind point.] (Anat.) Same as Blind
spot, Blind.

Punctum proximum, point. See under Point.

Punctum remotum, point. See under Point.

Punctum vegetationis point of vegetation] (Bot.), the
terminal cell of a stem, or of a leaf bud, from which new
growth originates.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

punctum
n : (anatomy) a point or small area

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

crepuscular

2009-01-24T07:49:00.000-08:00

crepuscular: This word was used twice in something I just read. I had no idea what it meant, although I'm sure I'd seen it before. Twilight. Somehow twilight just doesn't seem like "crepuscular." Crepuscular should mean twisted, wrinkled, and old, looking like Scrooge or some other Dickens devil.

Crepuscular Cre*pus"cu*lar (-k?-l?r), Crepusculous
\Cre*pus"cu*lous\ (-l?s), a. [Cf. F. cr['e]pusculaire.]
1. Pertaining to twilight; glimmering; hence, imperfectly
clear or luminous.
[1913 Webster]

This semihistorical and crepuscular period. --Sir G.
C. Lewis.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Zool.) Flying in the twilight or evening, or before
sunrise; -- said certain birds and insects.
[1913 Webster]

Others feed only in the twilight, as bats and owls,
and are called crepuscular. --Whewell.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

crepuscular
adj : like twilight; dim; "the evening's crepuscular charm"

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

enchase

2009-01-20T22:26:00.000-08:00

enchase: Again, the product of a crossword puzzle, this archaic word comes to us due to a need for certain vowels and certain consonants to be in certain places. But it has a certain flair, no? A transitive verb meaning to set a gem in a casing, a "chase." How does this relate to the more commonly understood "chase." Or, for that matter, the concept of a "chaser."

A bearing runs in a race.
Type -- that's it.
Type is imposed in a chase.

A rectangular iron frame in which pages or columns of type are imposed. [1913 Webster]

***

Enchase En*chase", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Enchased; p. pr. &
vb. n. Enchasing.] [F. ench[^a]sser; pref. en- (L. in) +
ch[^a]sse box containing relics, frame, case, the same word
as caisse case. See 1st Case, and cf. Chase, Encase,
Incase.]
1. To incase or inclose in a border or rim; to surround with
an ornamental casing, as a gem with gold; to encircle; to
inclose; to adorn.
[1913 Webster]

Enchased with a wanton ivy twine. --Spenser.
[1913 Webster]

An precious stones, in studs of gold enchased,
The shaggy velvet of his buskins graced. --Mickle.
[1913 Webster]

2. To chase; to ornament by embossing or engraving; as, to
enchase a watch case.
[1913 Webster]

With golden letters . . . well enchased. --Spenser.
[1913 Webster]

3. To delineate or describe, as by writing. [Obs.]
[1913 Webster]

All which . . . for to enchase,
Him needeth sure a golden pen, I ween. --Spenser.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

sporadic

2009-01-19T22:31:00.000-08:00

Sporadic: will always trigger the reaction "Sporadic E," which is a type of "skip," experienced in radio communication. The link will provide more information for the curious. The reaction is testimony to my youthful exposure to Amateur Radio. It is a useful adjective, and sporadically a fine adverb.

Sporadic Spo*rad"ic (-r[a^]d"[i^]k), a. [Gr. ? scattered, fr. ?, ?, scattered, fr. ? to sow seed, to scatter like seed: cf. F. sporadique. See Spore.] Occurring singly, or apart from other things of the same kind, or in scattered instances; separate; single; as, a sporadic fireball; a sporadic case of disease; a sporadic example of a flower.

[1913 Webster]

Sporadic disease a disease which occurs in single and scattered cases. See the Note under Endemic, a.

[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

sporadic
adj : recurring in scattered and irregular or unpredictable
instances; "a city subjected to sporadic bombing raids"
[ant: continual]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

165 Moby Thesaurus words for "sporadic":
aimless, amorphous, broadcast, broken, capricious, careening, casual, catching, catchy, chance, changeable, changing, choppy, communicable, contagious, desultory, deviating, deviative, deviatory, different, diffuse, disarticulated, disconnected, discontinuous, discrete, disjunct, disordered, disorderly,
dispersed, dispread, disproportionate, disseminated, dissipated, distributed, divaricate, divergent, diversified, diversiform, eccentric, endemic, epidemial, epidemic, epiphytotic, epizootic, erose, erratic, few, fitful, flickering, fluctuating, formless, frivolous, gratuitous, guttering, halting, haphazard, herky-jerky,
heteroclite, hit-or-miss, immethodical, impulsive, inchoate, incoherent, inconsistent, inconstant, indiscriminate, infectious, infective, inoculable, intermittent,
intermitting, irregular, jagged, jerky, lurching, meaningless, mercurial, misshapen, motley, mutable, nonconformist, nonstandard, nonsymmetrical, nonsystematic,
nonuniform, occasional, on-again-off-again, orderless, pandemic, patchy, periodical, pestiferous, pestilential, planless, pluralistic, promiscuous, ragged, rambling, random, rare, rough, scarce, scattered, scrappy, seldom, senseless, separate, shapeless, single, snatchy, sparse, spasmatic, spasmic, spasmodic,
spasmodical, spastic, spotty, spread, spreading, staggering, straggling, straggly, strewn, strown, systemless, taking, unarranged, uncertain, unclassified, uncommon, undirected, unequable, unequal, uneven, unexpected, unfrequent, ungraded,
unjoined, unmethodical, unmetrical, unordered, unorganized, unorthodox, unregular, unrhythmical, unsettled, unsorted, unstable, unsteady, unsymmetrical, unsystematic, ununiform, vague, variable, variegated, variform, various, varying, veering, wandering, wavering, widespread, wobbling, wobbly, zymotic

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

puerile

2009-01-19T21:47:00.001-08:00

Puerile came to me in an email from a poet, asking for some feedback, input, criticism, if you will, on a new poem. She said "It's either less puerile or less crap than the stuff I've been writing over the last couple months."

I think of this word as meaning thin and weak, mewling, unseemly, immature.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Puerile Pu"er*ile, a. [L. puerilis, fr. puer a child, a boy:
cf. F. pu['e]ril.]
Boyish; childish; trifling; silly.
[1913 Webster]

The French have been notorious through generations for
their puerile affectation of Roman forms, models, and
historic precedents. --De Quincey.
[1913 Webster]

Syn: Youthful; boyish; juvenile; childish; trifling; weak.
See Youthful.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

puerile
adj 1: of or characteristic of a child; "puerile breathing"
2: displaying or suggesting a lack of maturity; "adolescent
insecurity"; "jejune responses to our problems"; "their
behavior was juvenile"; "puerile jokes" [syn: adolescent,
jejune, juvenile]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

31 Moby Thesaurus words for "puerile":
asinine, babish, babyish, beardless, boyish, boylike, calflike,
childish, childlike, coltish, foolish, girlish, girllike, immature,
inconsequential, infantile, infantine, insignificant,
irresponsible, juvenile, kiddish, maiden, maidenly, puplike,
puppyish, puppylike, ridiculous, shallow, silly, sophomoric,
trivial

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

ontology

2009-01-17T21:21:00.001-08:00

Ontology: makes me dizzy. Ontology means everything. Everything.

Ontology \On*tol"o*gy\, n. [Gr. ? the things which exist
(pl.neut. of ?, ?, being, p. pr. of ? to be) + -logy: cf. F.
ontologie.]
1. That department of the science of metaphysics which
investigates and explains the nature and essential
properties and relations of all beings, as such, or the
principles and causes of being.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Computers) A systematic arrangement of all of the
important categories of objects or concepts which exist in
some field of discourse, showing the relations between
them. When complete, an ontology is a categorization of
all of the concepts in some field of knowledge, including
the objects and all of the properties, relations, and
functions needed to define the objects and specify their
actions. A simplified ontology may contain only a
hierarchical classification (a {taxonomy}) showing the
type subsumption relations between concepts in the field
of discourse. An ontology may be visualized as an abstract
graph with nodes and labeled arcs representing the objects
and relations.

Note: The concepts included in an ontology and the
hierarchical ordering will be to a certain extent
arbitrary, depending upon the purpose for which the
ontology is created. This arises from the fact that
objects are of varying importance for different
purposes, and different properties of objects may be
chosen as the criteria by which objects are classified.
In addition, different degrees of aggregation of
concepts may be used, and distinctions of importance
for one purpose may be of no concern for a different
purpose.
[PJC]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

ontology
n : the metaphysical study of the nature of being and existence

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

28 Moby Thesaurus words for "ontology":
aesthetics, axiology, casuistry, cosmology, epistemology, ethics,
existentialism, first philosophy, gnosiology, logic,
mental philosophy, metaphysics, moral philosophy, phenomenology,
philosophastry, philosophic doctrine, philosophic system,
philosophic theory, philosophical inquiry,
philosophical speculation, philosophy, school of philosophy,
school of thought, science of being, sophistry, theory of beauty,
theory of knowledge, value theory

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

ontology

1. <philosophy> A systematic account of Existence.

2. <artificial intelligence> (From philosophy) An explicit
formal specification of how to represent the objects, concepts
and other entities that are assumed to exist in some area of
interest and the relationships that hold among them.

For {AI} systems, what "exists" is that which can be
represented. When the {knowledge} about a {domain} is
represented in a {declarative language}, the set of objects
that can be represented is called the {universe of discourse}.
We can describe the ontology of a program by defining a set of
representational terms. Definitions associate the names of
entities in the {universe of discourse} (e.g. classes,
relations, functions or other objects) with human-readable
text describing what the names mean, and formal {axioms} that
constrain the interpretation and well-formed use of these
terms. Formally, an ontology is the statement of a {logical
theory}.

A set of {agents} that share the same ontology will be able to
communicate about a domain of discourse without necessarily
operating on a globally shared theory. We say that an agent
commits to an ontology if its observable actions are
consistent with the definitions in the ontology. The idea of
ontological commitment is based on the {Knowledge-Level}
perspective.

3. <information science> The hierarchical structuring of
knowledge about things by subcategorising them according to
their essential (or at least relevant and/or cognitive)
qualities. See {subject index}. This is an extension of the
previous senses of "ontology" (above) which has become common
in discussions about the difficulty of maintaining {subject
indices}.

(1997-04-09)

-- From The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (27 SEP 03)

Termagant

2009-01-17T21:20:00.005-08:00

Termagant: This word leapt out of a page in Joseph Mitchell's book Up in the Old Hotel. He used it to describe an unrepentant, drunken woman who, as the story reveals, turns out to be a person of some character.

Termagant Ter"ma*gant, a.
Tumultuous; turbulent; boisterous; furious; quarrelsome;
scolding. -- Ter"ma*gant*ly, adv.
[1913 Webster]

A termagant, imperious, prodigal, profligate wench.
--Arbuthnot.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Termagant Ter"ma*gant, n. [OE. Trivigant, Termagant, Termagant
(in sense 1), OF. Tervagan; cf. It. Trivigante.]
1. An imaginary being supposed by the Christians to be a
Moslem deity or false god. He is represented in the
ancient moralities, farces, and puppet shows as extremely
vociferous and tumultous. [Obs.] --Chaucer. "And
oftentimes by Termagant and Mahound [Mahomet] swore."
--Spenser.
[1913 Webster]

The lesser part on Christ believed well,
On Termagant the more, and on Mahound. --Fairfax.
[1913 Webster]

2. A boisterous, brawling, turbulent person; -- formerly
applied to both sexes, now only to women.
[1913 Webster]

This terrible termagant, this Nero, this Pharaoh.
--Bale (1543).
[1913 Webster]

The slave of an imperious and reckless termagant.
--Macaulay.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

termagant
n : a scolding nagging bad-tempered woman [syn: shrew]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

80 Moby Thesaurus words for "termagant":
Jezebel, Mafioso, Xanthippe, Young Turk, amazon, battle-ax, beast,
beldam, berserk, berserker, bitch, bitch-kitty, boisterous, bomber,
brute, cat, common scold, demon, devil, disorderly, dragon, fiend,
fire-eater, firebrand, fishwife, fury, goon, gorilla, grimalkin,
gunsel, hag, hardnose, harpy, hell-raiser, hellcat, hellhag,
hellhound, hellion, holy terror, hood, hoodlum, hothead, hotspur,
incendiary, killer, limitable, mad dog, madcap, monster, mugger,
ogress, rapist, raucous, revolutionary, rowdy, rowdyish,
rumbustious, savage, scold, she-devil, she-wolf, shrew, siren,
spitfire, terror, terrorist, tiger, tigress, tough, tough guy,
tumultuous, ugly customer, unruly, violent, virago, vixen,
wild beast, wildcat, witch, wolf

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

abscission

2009-01-17T21:20:00.003-08:00

Abscission: I found this word when I was trying to find out more about deciduous trees for a poem . As I recall, the trees mostly got left out, and abscission didn't get used either. For my limited (nonexistent) experience with the word, abscission means dropping leaves in the fall. I further take it to mean the intentional dropping or cutting off of something.

Abscission Ab*scis"sion, n. [L. abscissio. See Abscind.]
1. The act or process of cutting off. "Not to be cured
without the abscission of a member." --Jer. Taylor.
[1913 Webster]

2. The state of being cut off. --Sir T. Browne.
[1913 Webster]

3. (Rhet.) A figure of speech employed when a speaker having
begun to say a thing stops abruptly: thus, "He is a man of
so much honor and candor, and of such generosity -- but I
need say no more."
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

abscission
n 1: shedding of flowers and leaves and fruit following formation
of scar tissue in a plant
2: the act of cutting something off [syn: cutting off]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

Abscission (from Latin abscindere, from ab- ‘off, away’ + scindere ‘to cut’) is the shedding of a body part. It most commonly refers to the process by which a plant intentionally drops one or more of its parts, such as a leaf, fruit, flower or seed, though the term is also used to describe the shedding of a claw by an animal.

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abscission

Albedo

2009-01-17T21:20:00.001-08:00

Albedo: I was looking for words about snow. What's particularly interesting to me about albedo is the feedback aspect. See the Wikipedia quote below.

Al*be"do, n. [L., fr. albus white.]

Whiteness. Specifically: (Astron.) The ratio which the light
reflected from an unpolished surface bears to the total light
falling upon that surface.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

albedo
n : the ratio of reflected to incident light [syn: reflective
power]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

"The albedo of an object is the extent to which it diffusely reflects light from the Sun."

Snow
Snow albedos can be as high as 90%; this, however, is for the ideal example: fresh deep snow over a featureless landscape. Over Antarctica they average a little more than 80%. If a marginally snow-covered area warms, snow tends to melt, lowering the albedo, and hence leading to more snowmelt (the ice-albedo positive feedback).

--http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albedo

ne plus ultra

2009-01-17T21:19:00.003-08:00

Ne plus ultra: This little gem came from a crossword puzzle. Need I say more? Up until that moment, not long ago, I had never seen or heard this "word" before.

Ne plus ultra Ne plus ul"tra\ [L., no further; ne no, not +
plus more + ultra beyond.]
1. The uttermost point to which one can go or attain; hence,
the summit of achievement; the highest point or degree;
the acme.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]

2. A prohibition against proceeding further; an insuperable
obstacle or limiting condition. [Obs. or R.]
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

ne plus ultra
n : the state of being without a flaw or defect [syn: perfection,
flawlessness] [ant: imperfection]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

101 Moby Thesaurus words for "ne plus ultra":
acme, acme of perfection, all, apex, apogee, authority,
authorization, be-all and end-all, blue ribbon, brow, cap,
capstone, ceiling, championship, climax, cloud nine, command,
consummation, control, crest, crown, culmen, culmination,
directorship, dominion, edge, effectiveness, end, extreme,
extreme limit, extremity, first place, first prize, headship,
heaven, heavens, hegemony, height, high noon, highest,
highest degree, highest pitch, highest point, imperium, influence,
jurisdiction, kingship, last word, leadership, limit, lordship,
management, mastership, mastery, maximum, meridian, most,
mountaintop, new high, no place higher, noon, nth degree, palms,
paramountcy, peak, perfection, pink, pink of perfection, pinnacle,
pitch, point, pole, power, presidency, primacy, record, ridge,
rule, say, seventh heaven, sky, sovereignty, spire, summit,
supremacy, sway, the whole, tip, tip-top, top, top spot, ultimate,
upmost, upper extremity, uppermost, utmost, utmost extent,
uttermost, vertex, very top, zenith

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

louche

2009-01-17T21:19:00.001-08:00

louche I think this was used in a comment on a poem on Wild Poetry Forum recently. Sort of a slur of "lewd" and "gauche?"

louche adj.
of questionable taste, decency, or morality; not reputable;
as, a louche nightclub; a louche painting.

Syn: shady.
[WordNet 1.5 +PJC]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

louche
adj : of questionable taste or morality; "a louche nightclub"; "a
louche painting" [syn: shady]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

impecunious

2009-01-17T21:18:00.001-08:00

Impecunious: was used in a humorous article about corn dogs by Chris Eliott, aka "Brakeformoose."

Im"pe*cu"ni*ous, a. [L. im- not + pecunia money:
cf. F. imp['e]cunieux.]
Not having money; habitually without money; poor.
[1913 Webster]

An impecunious creature. --B. Jonson.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

impecunious
adj : not having enough money to pay for necessities [syn: hard
up, straitened circumstances(p)}, penniless, penurious,
pinched]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

30 Moby Thesaurus words for "impecunious":
badly off, destitute, distressed, down to bedrock, embarrassed,
feeling the pinch, hard up, ill off, in Queer Street,
in narrow circumstances, in reduced circumstances,
in straitened circumstances, land-poor, narrow, on the edge,
out of pocket, pinched, poor, poorly off, poverty-stricken,
reduced, short, short of cash, short of funds, short of money,
squeezed, straitened, strapped, unmoneyed, unprosperous

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

oxidization

2009-01-17T21:08:00.001-08:00

oxidization: It's what we're doing. Combining with oxygen. Rusting, burning. Oxidizing. Carbon, oxygen, hydrogen ... that's about it. What I don't know about chemistry could fill many a library. But I know that those three elements make just about everything. Add nitrogen, everything else. It's a conspiracy.

***

oxidization n.
The process of oxidizing; the addition of oxygen to a compound with a loss of electrons. The process always occurs accompanied by reduction.

Syn: oxidation, oxidisation.
[WordNet 1.5]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

oxidization
n : the process of oxidizing; the addition of oxygen to a compound with a loss of electrons; always occurs accompanied by reduction [syn: oxidation, oxidisation]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

athwart

2009-01-17T21:06:00.001-08:00

Athwart: naturally means to be across a thwart. I don't know what made me think of this word, but I was looking for a word to use in a poem and there it was, athwart my course.
...............................

Athwart A*thwart", prep. [Pref. a- + thwart.]
1. Across; from side to side of.
[1913 Webster]

Athwart the thicket lone. --Tennyson.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Naut.) Across the direction or course of; as, a fleet
standing athwart our course.
[1913 Webster]

Athwart hawse, the stem of another vessel, whether
in contact or at a small distance.

Athwart ships, the ship from side to side, or in
that direction; -- opposed to fore and aft.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Athwart A*thwart", adv.
1. Across, especially in an oblique direction; sidewise;
obliquely.
[1913 Webster]

Sometimes athwart, sometimes he strook him straight.
--Spenser.
[1913 Webster]

2. Across the course; so as to thwart; perversely.
[1913 Webster]

All athwart there came
A post from Wales loaden with heavy news. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]

-- From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

athwart
adv 1: at right angles to the center line of a ship
2: at an oblique angle; "the sun shone aslant into his face"
[syn: obliquely, aslant]

-- From WordNet (r) 2.0

63 Moby Thesaurus words for "athwart":
across, across the grain, adverse to, against, against the grain,
against the tide, against the wind, at cross-purposes,
at cross-purposes with, at daggers, at daggers drawn, at issue,
at odds, at variance, at war with, athwartships, bendwise, beyond,
bias, biased, biaswise, catercorner, catercornered, con, contra,
contrariwise, contrawise, counter, counter to, crisscross, cross,
cross-grained, crossway, crossways, crosswise, dead against,
diagonal, eyeball-to-eyeball, in conflict with, in confrontation,
in hostile array, in opposition, in opposition to, kittycorner,
oblique, obliquely, opposed to, over, overthwart, sideways,
sidewise, slant, thwart, thwartly, thwartways, transversal,
transverse, transversely, traverse, up in arms, versus, vis-a-vis,
with crossed bayonets

-- From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0