Dictionary
A compendium of curious words
absquatulate
to leave abruptly
adamantine
unbreakable, anything that is very hard
agelast
someone who never laughs
antediluvian
anything that came before the great flood, or extremely old-fashioned
antipodean
denoting something in the southern hemisphere, particularly when the speaker is in the northern hemisphere, can be used to refer to Australia
atelier
workshop or studio used by an artist
blinkenlights
the fun blinking lights on computers commonly seen in the 80s and prior
boffin
someone involved in technical or scientific research, someone with abstract or arcane knowledge
bourse
the stock market in a non-english speaking country
boondoggle
work or activity that appears useful but is meant to simply waste money, eg Boeing
confabulate
confusing imaginary memories with real ones, filling in the gaps
conflate
to inappropriately confuse or relate two things together
note: most definitions for this word are outdated and only refer to combining textcoopery
a business that makes wooden barrels
crepuscular
animals that are only active at dusk and dawn
cromulent
perfectly acceptable
cynosure
someone that is the center of attention, a statue in the center of a room
defenestrate
to throw someone out of a window, popularized by the russians
denouement
the final act in a play or movie, resolution, the final say
diagetic
describing sound that the characters in a movie can hear and react to, particularly music
dord
no one is quite sure of the meaning of this word...
ebsign
a flag
eigengrau
"brain gray", this is the gray color you see when you close your eyes
embiggen
to enlarge
ersatz
used to describe an artificial or usually inferior subsitute for a product
escutcheon
a coat of arms, specifically the shield
of the first water
something of the finest quality, also used to describe brilliant diamonds
frisson
a sudden strong feeling of excitement
fugue state
when someone (mentally impaired) wanders from home and gets lost
genuflect
to kneel, to show respect
germane
something that is relevant, apropos to the topic at hand
gestalt
anything where the whole is worth more than the sum of its parts
gourmand
someone who takes great pleasure in eating food
gravaman
a formal complaint or grievance
haruspicy
divination by looking at entrails
heliograph
a mirror used to reflect the sun as a signaling device
hermeneutics
a rule or theory about how to interpret something
imbroglio
confused, complicated, and embarassing situation
impignorate
to mortgage or pawn something for money
imprimatur
a stamp of approval, someones guarantee of a good standard
indicia
a formal way of referring to "identifying marks" or "unique characteristics"
inexorable
impossible to stop
ingenue
an innocent or unsophisticated young woman
interrobang
a question mark combined with an exclamation mark
lacunae
an unfilled space, a gap, typically in a bone
lede
opening paragraph of an article
legerdemain
skillful use of one's hands when performing magic or trickery
lenticular
shaped like an eyeball
Lingua Franca
a 3rd language used to communicate between 2 people that speak different languages
littoral
on or near the seashore
lothario
a promiscuous man
louching
describes when a clear spirit suddenly turns milky, cloudy, or opaque (such as when adding cream)
loxodrome
a straight path on a sphere that appears curved (eg. flight paths of airplanes)
malapropism
confusing a word in place of one another, humorously
manifold
obviously
manse
a house
millieu
a persons social environment
nulliparous
a woman who has never had a baby
natatorium
swimming pool
nostrum
ineffective medicine, particularly when prepared by an unqualified person
numismatic
the study of physical money or currency
orthogonal
at right angles
othorexea
the unhealthy obsession with eating healthy
oubliette
tall dungeon with only one hole at the top making escape impossible
panglossian
excessively optimistic perspective
panopticon
a circular prison with cells arranged around a central area, allowing prisoners to be observed at all times
pastiche
an imitation of an art style
peculation
abuse or embezzlement of public funds under your control
penumbra
the shadow from a partial eclipse, or two shadows overlaying each other
phlegmatic
having an unemotional and calm disposition
phosphene
the geometric images you see when you close your eyes and apply pressure
phrenology
outdated practice of studying the skull in relationship to intelligence
pig iron
crude iron
pursy
out of breath, especially a horse
quotidian
the mundane, something part of daily life
rapscallion
rascal
reconnoiter
to make a military observation
Reducto ad Absurdum
reduction to the absurd, taking an argument to its logical extreme
requisition
an official order laying claim to something that belongs to someone else
retinue
a group of advisors to a noble person
revanchism
the desire to reverse loss of land incurred by a organization after a war or social movement, eg. Native Americans practice revanchism
revetment
a barricade of sandbags
rime
fuzzy ice that forms in rare weather circumstances, commonly seen inside a freezer
salubrious
healthy, or something that makes you healthy
sarcopenia
loss of muscle with old age
sequela
the condition leftover from a disease or injury, eg scars, poor lung function
skeumorphic
software design that mimics physical design, commonly seen in Apple products
skinflint
someone who spends as little money as possible
sobriquet
a nickname
sophistry
intellectual sounding but ultimately fallacious arguments intended to deceive, pure bunk
splendiferous
exceedingly fantastic
spondulix
spending money
spoor
tracks left by an animal
styptic
(of a substance) something that stops bleeding when applied to a wound, commonly used for shaving cuts
subsudence
settling / collapsing above ground from underground mines
scyophant
someone who acts lowly to someone else in order to gain advantage, someone who embarrasses themselves to gain influence
tabula rasa
a blank slate, an absence of any preconceived ideas
tautology
saying the same thing twice in different words, repeating something in another way, generally regarded as a logical fallacy
truism
a statement that is obviously true and contributes zero value to a conversation, something intellectual sounding but vacuous
terroir
the soil and environment that contributed to a wines unique flavor
tittivate
to decorate, make better
triptych
a painting divided into 3 sections
triumvirate
a group of 3 men sharing power, as in ancient Rome
truculant
eager to argue
ullage
the empty amount in a container of liquid, or the evaporation of liquid
ultracrepidarian
expressing opinions on matters that are outside your scope of expertise, out of one's depth
umwelt
how an organism experiences its environment through its sensory organs
variolation
primitive form of vaccination where dried scabs from smallpox are crushed and rubbed into scratched skin
verdigris
copper patina
Voir Dire
cross-examination of witnesses in a court room
vugg
the cavity in a rock, like a geode
xertz
to greedily gulp something
zeitgeist
the ideas and beliefs of a particular time period