Word of the Day Archive
June 2004
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- starveling: one who is starving or being starved; also, poor in quality.
- autochthonous: indigenous; native.
- palliate: to make an offense seem less serious; also, to relieve or lessen without curing.
- vade mecum: a book or other thing that one regularly carries about.
- comely: pleasing to the sight.
- dictum: an authoritative statement.
- mendicant: a beggar.
- enjoin: to direct or impose with authority; also, to forbid.
- braggadocio: empty boasting.
- homily: a sermon or lecture; also, an inspirational saying or a platitude.
- recumbent: reclining; lying down.
- sonorous: yielding sound; impressive in sound.
- bedizen: to dress or adorn in gaudy manner.
- equanimity: calmness; composure.
- primogeniture: the state of being the firstborn; also, an exclusive right of inheritance that belongs to the eldest son.
- ancillary: subordinate, subsidiary; auxiliary.
- Potemkin village: a false front or facade.
- favonian: pertaining to the west wind; soft; mild; gentle.
- trenchant: forceful and vigorous; also, caustic; also, clear-cut.
- yeasty: frothy; foamy; spumy, like yeast.
- deipnosophist: one skilled in table talk.
- jeremiad: a doleful story; also, a dolorous or angry tirade..
- delectation: great pleasure; delight.
- pin money: money for incidental expenses; also, a trivial sum.
- ab ovo: from the beginning.
- woolgathering: indulgence in idle daydreaming.
- peccant: sinning.
- nolens volens: whether unwilling or willing.
- quisling: a collaborator; a traitor.
- misprize: to despise; also, to undervalue.
