Words

My collection of unknown (to me) words I found reading.

Updated 1 week, 1 day ago

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

A

Abattoir

(n) A slaughterhouse

Abstemious

(n) Marked by restraint especially in the consumption of food or alcohol

Acedia

(n) Spiritual or mental sloth; apathy

Aegis

(n) The protection, backing, or support of a particular person or organization

Agita

(n) Anxiety, stress, or aggravation

Apéritifs

(n) Drinks, usually alcoholic, served before a meal

Autopoiesis

(n) Literally "self-creation"; refers to a system capable of reproducing and maintaining itself by creating its own parts

Avuncular

(adj) In the manner of an uncle
(adj) Friendly, kind or helpful to younger people

B

Baccanal

(n) An occasion of wild and drunken revelry

Bitumen

(n) Bitumen is a black, sticky substance derived from petroleum or coal primarily used as a binder in road construction and waterproofing

Bivouav

(n) A temporary camp without tents or cover, used especially by soldiers or mountaineers
(v) To set up a bivouac

Brusque

(adj) Abrupt or offhand in speech or manner

C

Caber

(n) A roughly trimmed tree trunk used in the Scottish Highland sport of tossing the caber

Cabriolet

(n) A light two-wheeled carriage with a hood, drawn by one horse
(n) A car with a roof that folds down

Carnelian

(n) An orange or orange red variety of semi-precious stone

Chiaroscuro

(n) An effect of contrasted light and shadow created by light falling unevenly or from a particular direction on something. Imagine a portrait where the only source of lighting in a candle.

Clade

(n) A group of organisms believed to have evolved from a common ancestor

Coquettish

(adj) Flirtatious

Cote

(n) A shelter for mammals or birds, especially pigeons

Crenelation

(n) A wall around the top of a castle with regular spaces in it through which defenders can shoot

Cyanosis

(n) A bluish or purplish discoloration of the skin, lips, and nail beds that indicates a lack of oxygen in the blood

D

Daylighting: (v) The opening up and restoration of a previously buried watercourse, one which had at some point been diverted below ground
Decollate: (v) To Behead
Decolletage: (n) A low cut neckline on a dress
Demiurge: (n) A being responsible for the creation of the universe
Diaphanous: (adj) (Especially of fabric) light, delicate, and translucent.
Digestifs: (n) Drinks, typically alcoholic, served after a meal
Détante: (n) The easing of hostility or strained relations, especially between countries
Dysphemism: (n) A derogatory or unpleasant term used instead of a pleasant or neutral one

E

"Esse quam videri": To be, rather than to seem (Latin)
Eucatasrophe: (n) A sudden turn of events in a story that ensures that the protagonist does not meet some terrible, impending, and very plausible and probable doom.

F

Fabulist

(n) A liar, especially a person who invents elaborate, dishonest stories
(n) A person who composes or relates fairy tales or fables

Farpotshket

Broken, because someone tried to fix it (Yiddish)

Felid

(n) A member of the cat family

Flense

(v) Slice the skin or fat from (a carcass, especially that of a whale)

Florid

(adj) Having a red or flushed complexion
(adj) Elaborately or excessively intricate or complicated

Frisson

(n) A sudden, strong feeling of excitement or fear

Fusuma

(n) In Japanese architecture, fusuma (襖) are vertical rectangular panels which can slide from side to side to redefine spaces within a room, or act as doors.

G

Grisaille: (n) A method of painting in gray monochrome, typically to imitate sculpture

H

Hepcat: (n) A stylish or fashionable person, especially in the sphere of jazz or popular music

I

Iatrogenesis

(n) Harm caused by the healer

Inchoate

(adj) Just begun and so not fully formed or developed
(adj) Anticipating or preparatory to a further criminal act (legal)

Indolance

(n) Laziness

Insouciant

(adj) Showing a casual lack of concern; indifferent

Insouciance

(n) Casual lack of concern; indifference

Insouciant

(adj) Showing a casual lack of concern; indifferent

J

Jeremiad

(n) A long, mournful complaint or lamentation
(n) A list of woes

L

Lambent

(adj) Of light or fire, glowing, gleaming, or flickering with a soft radiance

Lascivious

(adj) Feeling or revealing an overt and often offensive sexual desire

Latibulate

(v) To lay oneself in a corner or hiding place

Limn

(v) To depict or describe in painting or words

Lurid

(adj) Very vivid in color, especially so as to create an unpleasantly harsh or unnatural effect
(adj) Presented in vividly shocking or sensational terms, especially giving explicit details of crimes or sexual matters

M

Mawkish

(adj) Sentimental in an exaggerated or false way
(adj | archaic) Having a faint sickly flavor

Mendacity

(n) Untruthfulness; lying

Misericord

(n) a long and narrow knife used during the High Middle Ages to deliver mercy killings to mortally wounded knights

N

Noctilucent: (adj) Shining or glowing at night
Nonpareil: (adj) Having no match or equal; unrivaled

O

Obeisance

(n) Deferential respect
(n) A gesture expressing a deferential respect, such as a bow or curtsey

Offal

(n) The entrails and internal organs of an animal used as food

Ossuary

(n) A container or room in which the bones of dead people are placed.

P

Paean

(n) A song of praise or triumph

Paroxysm

(n) A sudden attack or violent expression of a particular emotion or activity
(n | medical) A sudden recurrence or attack of a disease; a sudden worsening of symptoms

Parracide

(n) The killing of a parent or other near relative

Pot-valiance

(n) Bold or courageous under the influence of alcohol

Prandial

(adj) During or relating to dinner or lunch

Prima facie

(adj) Based on the first impression; accepted as correct until proved otherwise (Latin)

Prolix

(adj) Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy

Prurient

(adj) Having or encouraging an excessive interest in sexual matters

Pseudopodia

(n) A temporary arm-like projection of a eukaryotic cell membrane that is emerged in the direction of movement; literally "false foot"

Psithurism

(n) The rustling, whispering sound made by wind blowing through trees and leaves

"Pulvis et umbra sumus"

We are but dust and shadow (Latin)

Pyrrhic

(adj) Of a victory, won at too great a cost to have been worthwhile for the victor

Q

Querent: (n) An inquirer, specifically one who consults an astrologer

R

Revanchism: (n) A policy of seeking to retaliate, especially to recover lost territory

S

Sedge

(n) A grass-like plant

Soporific

(adj/n) Tending to induce drowsiness or sleep

Sortition

(n) The selection of public officials or jurors at random, i.e. by lottery, in order to obtain a representative sample

Spoor

(n) The track or scent of an animal
(v) Follow the track or scent of (an animal or person)

Supernal

(adj) A being or coming from on high
(adj) Located in or belonging to the sky

Suppurate

Undergo the formation of pus; fester

Surcease

(n) Cessation
(v | archaic) Cease

T

Tarn

(n) A small mountain lake

Thanatography

(n) An account, usually written, of a person's death

Tumescent

(adj) swollen or becoming swollen, especially as a response to sexual arousal
(adj) pompous or pretentious, especially of language or literary style

U

Ululation: (n) Ululation is a high-pitched, wavering vocal sound produced by rapidly moving the tongue and uvula while vocalizing.

V

Valise

(n) A small traveling bag or suitcase

Verdigris

(n) A bright bluish-green encrustation or patina formed on copper or brass by atmospheric oxidation, consisting of basic copper carbonate

Verger

(n) An official in a church who acts as a caretaker or attendant

Vergescu

(n) A white shield carried byt a novice knight, particularly in arthurian legends

Vestal

(adj) Chaste or pure; virginal
(adj) Relating to the Roman goddess Vesta

Vicissitude

(n) A change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant

W

Wan: (adj) Of a person's complexion or appearance, pale and giving the impression of illness or exhaustion

Z

Zoetrope: (n) A 19th-century optical toy consisting of a cylinder with a series of pictures on the inner surface that, when viewed through slits with the cylinder rotating, give an impression of continuous motion.

#reading