| MEPHITIS (muh-FYE-tiss) 1. A stench; 2. A foul, poisonous gas emanating from the earth In Roman myth, the goddess Mephitis had the task of preventing "pestilential exhalations" from the sewers and elsewhere. Her name lives on in our word "mephitis," meaning "a poisonous stench" and "mephitic" (muh-FIHT-ik), which describes anything that smells like one. (Incidentally, the skunk's most distinctive characteristic is reflected in its scientific name: "Memphitis mephitis.") "Methinks there's a mephitis in our midst." obsequious Pronunciation: /ob-SEE-kwee-us/ (adj): Polite or obedient, from fear or from a hope to gain. Example: "Obsequious employees flattered the CEO at the Christmas Party." - MADEFY (MAD-uh-fye) To wet or moisten >From Latin "madere," meaning "to be wet, to drip with." "I'll be very surprised if you don't thoroughly madefy a hanky or two while watching that movie." SCOBBERLOTCHER (SKAH-burr-lotch-urr) An idler No one's sure of the origin of this satisfying-to-say term for a lazy, unproductive person. It first appeared in English around 1697. "I suppose now that you've gone your separate ways, it's okay for me to say that we all thought you could do much better than that rebarbative scobberlotcher!" JEANS (JEENZ) Those ubiquitous, durable pants Jeans were first made out of "jean," a strong cotton fabric. Before this particular fabric came along, people often wore a similar one called "fustian," whose name is of uncertain origin. Later, a type of Italian fustian produced in Genoa caught on in popularity. Speakers of Middle English variously referred to Genoa as "Jene" or "Gene", so they were soon calling this type of fabric "jene fustian"a name later shortened to "jean." "There were double takes all around when Vanessa walked past in what she liked to think of as her Lee press-on jeans." PSITHURISM (SITH-err-iz-um) A low whispering sound, such as the rustle of leaves One of those words that sound like what they mean, psithurism comes from the Greek "psythurisma," which means "a whispering." "One of the things I love about autumn is the psithurism that accompanies a walk in the woods." NUGATORY (NOO-guh-tor-ee, or NYOO-guh-tor-ee) Worthless, trifling, of little or no importance This dismissive term is a descendant of Latin "nugae," which means "jokes" or "trifles." (It's no relation, by the way, to "nugget," which is thought to come from "nug," an English dialectal term for "lump.") "Alas, it appears that he regards her attentions as nugatory at best." DECIMATE (DESS-uh-mayt) To destroy or kill a large part of a group This term derives from a grisly practice among the ancient Roman military: To punish mutinous or cowardly troops, every tenth soldier from those units was routinely selected by lot to be killed by fellow soldiers. The verb for this practice was "decimare," from Latin "decimus," meaning "tenth" (and a relative of such words as "decade" and "decimal"). Therefore, strictly speaking, "decimate" means to "destroy one-tenth of a population." But its sense has expanded to encompass the idea of destroying a large part of a groupand increasingly, it's used to denote any kind of large-scale destruction. "After a week of fighting, commanders said Russian warplanes, helicopters, and artillery have begun to decimate the rebels."Michael R. Gordon, The New York Times MESMERIZE (MEZ-merr-eyes) In the 1760s, the Austrian physician Dr. F. A. Mesmer became convinced that celestial bodies exerted some sort of force affecting the nervous systems of all creatures. Mesmer began to suspect the force was magnetism and proceeded to try to cure his patients by stroking them with magnets. Eventually, he ditched the magnets and instead tried to use what he called "animal magnetism": As soft music played in the background, he'd have patients stand in a circle and join hands. Then he'd move from one to the other, taking a few moments to stare intently into their eyes and touch them with his hand. Some people claimed that Mesmer's methods had cured them, but a government commission investigated him and branded him a charlatan. Mesmer moved to Switzerland, where he died in obscurity in 1815. His hypnotic, spellbinding methods live on in the word "mesmerize" (which is sometimes spelled "mesmerise"). "She seemed to be momentarily mesmerised by a complete inert soft surprise."William Faulkner, in "The Hamlet." LACUNA (luh-KYEW-nuh) A gap or empty space Often referring to a blank or missing space in a manuscript, this word is from Latin "lacus," which means "lake," (and is thus a relative of the name of that shallow body of water, "lagoon"). The plural is "lacunas" or "lacunae" (luh-KYEW-nee). "He wants us to believe that his gut instincts and moral framework can carry him over the lacunae in his knowledge of geopolitics." - New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, commenting on presidential candidate George W. Bush WIDDERSHINS (WIDD-ur-shinnz) In a counterclockwise or contrary direction Also spelled "withershins," this comes from Middle High German "widersinnes," meaning "back in the direction of." "Walking widdershins one wintry morn, Wolfgang scratched his head, trying to remember that odd word for 'counterclockwise.'" AMOK (uh-MUCK) Sixteenth-century European explorers returned from the Indian Ocean carried with them lurid tales of islanders flying into murderous rampages. The Malay language even had a word for it: "amoq," or "in a murderous rage." Portuguese explorers adopted this term as "amouco," which eventually led to English "run amok" or "run amuck." It's unclear just why and to what extent these rampages occurred. In 1772, Captain James Cook explained: "To run amock is to get drunk with opium, to sally forth from the house, kill the person or persons supposed to have injured the Amock, and any other person that attempts to impede his passage." Some Europeans blamed fits of jealousy, while others mused that "running amok" must be an indigenous cultural trait. Of course, these days "running amok" can happen anywhere and often refers to more benign activities. "Run amok with your favorite characters in a complete, 3-D re-creation of their town."from promotional copy for "The Simpsons' Virtual Springfield" CD-ROM, which lets users launch water balloons from Bart's tree house, lob gummy bears at unsuspecting moviegoers, and take doughnut breaks with Homer at the local nuclear power plant. NACREOUS (NAY-kree-uss) Pearly; iridescent-like mother-of-pearl The pearly inner surface of a mollusk shell is sometimes called "nacre," a word believed by some etymologists to derive from Arabic for "small drum"possibly a reference to the hollowed-out shell. "Once the two of them stepped out onto the veranda, Vanessa looked up the nacreous moon and sighed significantly, then ever-so-casually adjusted the strap of her gown." REBARBATIVE (ree-BAR-buh-tiv) Irritating, repellent This prickly word has a "beard" in the middle of it: The "barb" in "rebarbative" goes all the way back to the Latin "barba," meaning "beard." (And yes, Latin "barba" is a linguistic relative of English "barber.") >From the Latin "barba" came the Middle French "se rebarber," which means "to confront or resist." In its most literal sense, though, "se rebarber" meant "to face (an enemy)", that is, to come "beard-to-beard" with him. >From the French verb came the adjective "rebarbatif," meaning "repellent," which in turn inspired this English term that means "causing annoyance, irritation, or aversion." "Still, everyone appeared to be extremely nice, except that that Dr. Greenfield man was a trifle rebarbative. (This was a word which Toby had recently learnt at school and could not now conceive of doing without.)"Iris Murdoch, in her novel "The Bell" DEFALCATE (dih-FAL-kayt) To embezzle This fancy word meaning "to misappropriate funds or property" has agricultural origins. Its original source is the Latin word "falx," which means "sickle." (If you want to describe something as sickle-shaped, you can always say that it's "falcate.") Anyway, the Medieval Latin word "defalcare" literally meant "to cut off with a sickle," as one would do in a field of grass. Gradually this word acquired the more general sense of "to lop off," or "to take away," and today its English descendant "defalcate" most often applies to the taking away of other green stuffi.e., money. "It's difficult to believe he'd defalcate, but there it is." POLIOSIS (pahl-ee-OH-sis) Grayness or whiteness of the hair, especially if premature "Poliosis" comes from the Greek "polios," meaning "gray." The same Greek root colors the English word "polio," a shortened form of the word "poliomyelitis," an inflammation of the spinal cord's "gray matter." "Vanessa cleared her throat and tried again: 'I don't know about you, but I've always found poliosis terribly alluring FOOTLE (FOO-tull) To talk or act foolishly; to waste time Consult several dictionaries, and you'll find all kinds of proposed sources for this word, from Latin "futuere" ("to have sex with") to "footy" (a Northern British dialectal term for "worthless" or "paltry.") Lest we footle further, let's just settle for the verdict of the Oxford English Dictionary: "Of obscure origin." "Darling, promise me you won't footle at the office party this year." POINSETTIA (poin-SET-ee-uh, poin-SET-uh) A tropical American shrub, usually with bright red floral leaves surrounding its tiny, greenish-yellow flowers Joel Roberts Poinsett served as U.S. minister to Mexico during the 1820s. An amateur botanist, Poinsett brought back a showy plant known to Mexicans as "la flor de nochebuena," or "Christmas Eve flower." In Britain, it came to be known as the "Mexican flameleaf," but thanks to Poinsett's tireless efforts to popularize it in the United States, this plant was named the "poinsettia." (Incidentally, Poinsett was a fervent liberal who became notorious in several Latin American countries for meddling in their domestic affairs. For this reason, Mexicans coined the word "poinsettismo" to mean "high-handed, intrusive activity.") "Yes, I know that colorful blossoms can brighten up an otherwise zestless salad, but trust me, I don't think Martha Stewart would advise you to add those poinsettia leaves." HIEMAL (HYE-uh-mull) Having to do with winter "Hiemal" comes from "hiems," the Latin word for "winter." It shares a common linguistic ancestor with another wintry word, "hibernate." "How about a little hiemal frolic in the snow?" MAFFICK (MAFF-ick) To rejoice with an extravagant and boisterous public celebration One of the most famous events during the Boer War was the long siege against the British garrison at Mafeking (MAH-fih-king), a town in north-central South Africa. The lifting of that 217-day siege on May 17, 1900, set off uproarious celebrations in the streets of London. Playing on the name of that South African town, the British coined "mafficking" as a jocular term for, as the Oxford English Dictionary puts it, "extravagant demonstrations of exultation on occasions of national rejoicing." The verb "maffick" soon followed. "So, I assume you plan to maffick on New Year's Eve?" JANUARY (JAN-yoo-er-ee) In Roman myth, Janus was the god of gates, doorways, and all new beginnings. So naturally, the "gateway" to the new year is named in his honor. Janus must have been easy to pick out in a crowd, considering that he had one face on the front of his head and another on the back. This gave him the handy ability to gaze into the past and the future simultaneously. Because he presided over doorways, Janus inspired another familiar English word: "janitor," which in its earliest sense meant "doorkeeper": (In 1686, for example, a writer referred to St. Peter as "the Janitor of heaven.") "Ah, January, when the color of the sky so often matches the pavement." ACCISMUS (ak-SIZZ-muss) The pretended refusal of something that is actually desired very much. Experts in the art of rhetoric use "accismus" to refer to a statement that feigns disinterest. There's a famous instance of accismus early in Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar," when Caesar gives the impression that he's reluctant to accept the crown. A more everyday example might be: "Why no, I couldn't possibly have that last bite of your fallen chocolate souffle with hot fudge sauce." It's from the Greek "akkismos," which means "coyness," or "affectation." "'Really now, Gerald, your accismus is hardly persuasive." DEASIL (DEE-zull) Clockwise Need an opposite for "widdershins"? It's "deasil." This word comes from Scottish Gaelic and is a relative of the Latin word "dexter," which means "to the right" or "on the right side." "That's it'widdershins'!" exclaimed Wolfgang, before stopping, turning around, and walking deasil again. SPRAINTS (SPRAYNTS) Otter droppings Well, who knows? Maybe someday you'll be doing a crossword puzzle and need an eight-letter word for what an otter leaves behind. (By the way, don't confuse spraints with "fumets," which are left behind by deer, or "crottels," which are left behind by bunnies.) "No, no, no, I keep telling youthose aren't spraints, they're fumets!" EXIGUOUS (ig-ZIG-yoo-uss) Extremely scanty, inadequate, small, or meager "Exiguous" comes from Latin "exigere," which means to "measure out." It's a linguistic cousin of "exact." At last she handed the resume back to the boss's nephew and began carefully, "Well, your professional accomplishments are certainly exiguous." - new as of 1-31-01 CANTER (KAN-turr) A smooth easy gait for a horse, faster than a trot, but slower than a gallop. It's a familiar word with a colorful past: After the murder of Thomas a Becket in England's Canterbury Cathedral in the twelfth century, Canterbury became a popular destination for countless religious pilgrims traveling on horseback, including those described in Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales." By the early seventeenth century, the expression "Canterbury pace" had come to mean the easy gait at which these faithful rode to their destination. By 1673, "Canterbury" had become a verb, and by 1706, had shortened to "canter." "Spotting a pile of clothes on the riverbank, Vanessa slowed her steed to a canter, then a trot, then stopped altogether and ever so casually got out her binoculars." PSEPHOLOGIST (see-FALL-oh-jist) A political scientist specializing in the study of elections. In ancient Greece, people sometimes cast votes using pebbles of various colors, depending on their choice. The Greek word for "pebble" was "psephos," the source of this fancy term for an electoral analyst. In the same way, a "psephocrat" is an "elected leader." "I'm no psephologist, but I just can't imagine that his new earth-tone wardrobe is making that much of a difference, can you?" DODDLE (DAHD-ull) Something easy or requiring very little effort This word denotes an endeavor that might be described as a "cakewalk." Its origin isn't clear, though it may come from the verb "doddle," meaning "to totter or walk with short, unsteady steps." "Doddle" used as a noun appeared recently in a news story about Sir Ranulph Fiennes, a 56-year-old British explorer who plans to set out this February 14 in hopes of being the first person ever to trek alone to the North Pole. Fiennes made a similar crossing of the Antarctic in 1993, but this journey will involve additional dangers, such as polar bears, which prompted a friend of Fiennes to observe: "The Antarctic is a doddle compared with the Arctic." COMET (KAHM-et) A celestial body with a long tail This word's origin is surprisingly picturesque: In ancient Greek, the word "kometes" meant "having long hair." Aristotle first applied the name "kometes" to this hurtling body that indeed seems to have long hair trailing from its "head." The name was later adopted into Latin as "cometes," which eventually arrived in English as "comet." "The annual shower comes from dust and ice pellets that break off from the comet Tempel-Tuttle as it whizzes around the sun."ABCNews.com, reporting on the Leonid meteor shower last November 17. FLOTHER (FLUTH-urr) A snowflake The Oxford English Dictionary lists only one instance of this word's use, in a manuscript produced around 1275. But "flother" sounds so light and delicate and flake-like that it certainly seems worth reviving, don't you think? "After all, no two flothers are alike." PLUTOLATRY (ploo-TAHL-uh-tree) Excessive devotion to wealth The ancient Greek word "ploutos" means "wealth." Thus we have in English the words "plutocracy," meaning "rule of the wealthy" (as opposed to "democracy," which refers to rule of, by, and for "the people.") In the same way that "idolatry" involves worship of idols, "plutolatry" means "worship of wealth." "Don't you think the wild popularity of this new quiz show is just another indication of our national plutolatry?" NOSOCOMEPHRENIA (noh-soh-koh-muh-FREE-nee-uh) Depression due to a prolonged hospital stay The ancient Greek word "nosos" meant "disease" (hence English "nosophobia," which denotes the morbid fear thereof). The Greeks' word "nosos" led to their name for the place they tended their sick, "nosokomeion." This ancient word for "hospital" inspired the useful but little-used English noun "nosocomephrenia," as well as the English adjective "nosocomial," which means "pertaining to hospitals." "In addition to all the other side effects, you can also expect to experience nosocomephrenia." MELDROP (MELL-drop) A drop of mucus at the end of the nose Here's an isn't-it-nice-to-know-there's-a-word-for-it word. "Meldrop" comes from an Old Norse term for "a drop or foam from a horse's mouth." "Yes, Darling, your tie matches your suit just fine, but the meldrop has got to go." | |
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