What's Your Word for the Day? Showing 2,751-2,800 of 3,049

[Cathy]

Newengland wrote: "We all know certain animal adjectives, like assinine (like an ass), canine (like a dog), and feline (like a cat), but how about some less familiar ine's:

vespine -- like a wasp

soricine -- like a..."

I loved these words when I was a kid (caprine??)

Others I liked were equine (I'm a sagitarius after all), leonine (lion), ursine (bear) and pavonine (peacock).

Next I had a thing for the gloomy "icide" words - patricide, matricide, fratricide, regicide etc

[Ken, Moderator]

Yikes. The "-icide" words! Funny how we get into word groups like that. Also appealing, I think, are all the "animals in groups" words. A "murder" of crows. A "pod" of whales. A "flock" of birds. A "school" of fish (scale of 1 to 10), etc.

[Ken, Moderator]

Here's a word I came across in my readings last night. It's one of those many words I've come across before but never enough to remember the meaning. Maybe this time? Definition and examples courtesy of dictionary dot all-is-com:


anodyne
\AN-uh-dyn\ , adjective;

1.Serving to relieve pain; soothing.

2.Not likely to offend; bland; innocuous.


noun:

1.A medicine that relieves pain.

2.Anything that calms, comforts, or soothes disturbed feelings.


Quotes:

But for the most part the British charts were clogged with anodyne ballads.
-- Nigel Williamson, "Here's a little story, to tell it is a must", Times (London), January 11, 2000

He is alternately accused of being too much the warrior and too anodyne.
-- Hanna Rosin, "The Madness of Speaker Newt", New Republic, March 17, 1997

Numbness . . . may have replaced pain as the complaint of our century now that aspirin analgesia, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDS), and other anodynes can take away the pains of the civilized world.
-- Howard M. Spiro, Facing Death

An avid fisherman himself, McGarr shares Nellie's philosophy: "I do not merely fish for fish," she would say, "I fish for doubt's anodyne and care's surcease."
-- Marilyn Stasio, "Crime", New York Times, September 19, 1993

This third novel by a reporter for The New York Times shrewdly examines love as an anodyne for rural isolation.
-- "Notable Books of the Year 1997", New York Times, December 7, 1997

[Ruth]

I always think anodyne sounds like it should be a battery terminal.

[Susan]

Or someone who talks through their nose.

[Cathy]

I also came across this word recently and couldn't put a meaning to it - it was used twice in The Little Stranger I kept thinking of anodised cups we had when I was a child - a set of different coloured metal tumbers in a zipped leather cover.

[Ken, Moderator]

The book I am reading now (A Time of Gifts) is loaded with vocabulary beyond my ken. I don't have it beside me, but I can see I'll have to rectify that and bring it here so I can provide a word a day (maybe 8 times a day). Really. Putting me to shame, he is.

[Cathy]

I have the Oxford word of the day emailed to me, and my recent favourite is 'limerence':
The state of being romantically infatuated or obsessed with another person, typically experienced involuntarily and characterized by a strong desire for reciprocation of one's feelings but not primarily for a sexual relationship.
It has been suggested that this state results from fluctuations in the levels of various neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine.

Nice to put a word to how I spent a lot of time in my late teens!

[Ken, Moderator]

I think Iowa is between the states of Limerence and Ennui. Thank God for the Interstate!

[Cecily]

All these wonderful words of the day, but how many do you remember, let alone use? And how do you do it?

[Ken, Moderator]

I forget 97% of them. Probably we've put up the SAME Words of the Day multiple times. And no one's noticed! Except for Gabs....

[Ken, Moderator]

Safer that way....

[Cathy]

"Marmoreal" - resembling marble - whiteness, smoothness hardnesss.

Found this one in Bereft and needed to look it up. Nicely written book!

[Ruth]

I know marmoreal means marble-like, but every time I see the word I can't help thinking boobs.

[Susan]

Perhaps that's what they are like after a boob job.

[Ken, Moderator]

milky white, anyway

[Stephen]

I know it's a bit clinical but my word for the day is

hebephrenia he·be·phre·ni·a (hē'bə-frē'nē-ə, -frěn'ē- e)
n. A schizophrenia, usually starting at puberty, characterized by foolish mannerisms, senseless laughter, delusions, hallucinations, and regressive behavior.

I know it sounds like the adolescent norm, but I've always heard of it as the willingness to engage in limitless unimportant minor tasks accompanied by the inability to perform ANY important ones.

[Ruth]

Stephen wrote: "the willingness to engage in limitless unimportant minor tasks accompanied by the inability to perform ANY important ones. "

Oh lord, I'm doomed.

[Debbie, sardonic princess of cheerfulness]

Hahahahaha!!!! Love you Ruth!

[Stephen]

It's been a few days since we've had a new word of the day... How about?

berrieh (Yiddish) - an extremely energetic, talented, competent woman

There seem to be plenty of examples right here in this group.

BTW... I'm still curious about who answered my trivia question about which religion Ganesh was most familiar with in Ordinary Magic with choice c). Plaigarism

[Ken, Moderator]

Ganesh = Hinduism. What a religion! Poly- and monotheistic all at once!

[Anthony]

Newengland wrote: "What a religion! Poly- and monotheistic all at once!"
There seems often to be a monotheistic element in polytheistic religions - perhaps a deus otiosus - whom one approaches only indirectly. And indeed, some monotheistic religions have saints or other intermediaries.

[Ken, Moderator]

True. This is the rap Protestants place on Catholics -- their God-worship of a woman (of all things) in the poly-form of the Virgin Mary.

[Ruth]

Not to mention the idea of the Trinity.

[Aryn]

And the trinity is: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Two men and a ghost. Rather contradicts the biblical ban on spiritism and the accult, no? Meanwhile, the female 'deity' doesn't even get to be mentioned in the Big 3.

[Stephen]

OK all... I'd like to propose a new word for the day


insidious
in·sid·i·ous   [in-sid-ee-uhs] operating or proceeding in an inconspicuous or seemingly harmless way but actually with grave effect.

It's not a new word to me and probably not to most of you but I just started watching the movie version of Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go and it gave me a whole new appreciation for the word.

On it's surface it's the story of a group of kids being raised in a private school environment but its really an exploration of some of the emotional and ethical issues around what cloning could become in a dystopian society. While I generally avoid dystopian fiction, this one snuck in under the radar as YA love story. I'm only partway through the movie and while I keep wanting to switch it off, I know that I'm not going to. And that I'll get and read the book that inspired it.

See what I mean about insidious?

[Ken, Moderator]

Grave effect? And just in time for Halloween!

[Stephen]

Two words for the day...

Ort [awrt] Usually, orts. a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal. The reason this kinda useless word qualifies is because of the Ort Cloud. That accumulation of small leftovers after the solar system was formed. It's thought that the Ort Cloud contains over a billion small bodies. Talk about not cleaning your plate!

Second is

nous  [noos, nous] 2. slang (Brit) common sense; intelligence

The reason that this one makes todays top of mind list is because I heard it used today on a BBCAmerica broadcast episode of Law & Order UK. I had a friend years ago here in St. Pete and she was kind of a wacky British Ex-pat who used the word to mean "Ready, Willing and Able" It had a special meaning as these were special people. Not only bright and capable but willing to do. For her to say someone had nous was high praise indeed.

[Ken, Moderator]

There are small bodies in a cloud? Sounds very Edgar Allan Poe.

And yes, I have heard of ORT as leftovers on a plate, though our parents never used it back in the "clean your plate" days when you and I might actually be forced to remain at the supper table until every last scrap of food was gone (sigh)...

[Stephen]

Newengland wrote: "There are small bodies in a cloud? Sounds very Edgar Allan Poe...." Funny you should mention him. The reference came up while I was reading

The Evolution of Ethan Poe by Robin Reardon Her protagonist is very proud of his relation to old Edgar Allen.

[Joanne]

Ort is a popular crossword puzzle word, as is eft.

[D.E.]

My word: percheron ... any of a breed of powerful rugged draft horses that originated in the Perche region of France. Major kudos to anyone who can name the book I am currently reading, whence this word galloped.

[Ken, Moderator]

Would it be The Count of Monte Crisco Oil?

[Joanne]

Fat chance.

[D.E.]

Geez ... not even a single serious guess? From a community of readers? You let me down, folks.

[Aryn]

But they have GREAT senses of humor

[D.E.]

I'm still holding out the challenge. The answer would be fairly easy to uncover with a minimal amount of online sleuthing. Come on, book lovers, where did I come across the word 'percheron'?

[Ken, Moderator]

Humor is our way of giving up, D.E. I mean, I could throw out some titles but it would be the wildest of wild guesses unless you're reading Black Beauty, Seabiscuit, or Mr Friend Flicka.

[D.E.]

Do I have to make it interesting? OK then - I have not added the book in question to my book list on Goodreads, so don't waste time there. Seek elsewhere, in the way that all savvy online seekers do. Whoever names the novel first will receive a free copy of my own novel, The Trees in Winter. And I'm not just horsing around!

[Stephen]

OK I always like a good puzzle. How about a secondary clue? Perhaps so as to suggest a time period? I know that the Perche region of France is near Normandy but that could suggest a plethora of WWII books. In the mean time I'll hazard a guess... Henry V (although I think that that took place a bit further north in France)

[D.E.]

You're definitely on the right track, Stephen, but have some gaul if you thought it would be that easy. I did just finish reading King Lear, but that is neither here nor there, so best not to perch on the Bard's shoulder for the story I'm currently reading. It seems you are drawing upon your own knowledge to discover the answer, which is great, but don't be too proud to let Larry Page and Sergey Brin help you out, should you be so inclined.

[Anthony]

I read "Percheron" on a wine label. Does that count?

[D.E.]

Only if you send me a bottle.

[Carol]

There are the Percheron saga books by Fiona Mcintosh books and others.


Odalisque

[D.E.]

That's interesting, Kitty! But the book I'm reading is none of those.

[Carol]

I know , just thought I would throw those out there. I have not read any either.

[Joanne]

Oh, D.E., Surely you meant "gall" up there in message 3170 ?

[D.E.]

No, Joanne. I indeed meant 'gaul' --trying to be clever (and hinty)--and thought that to capitalize it would have been a little too heavy-handed, and also unnecessary given the caliber of minds I was addressing. Nice to see someone picked up on it. But I'm still waiting for a winner. What novel that contains the word 'percheron' am I reading? Does anyone have the Gaul to provide the correct answer?

[D.E.]

Deadline for winning a copy of my novel in this impromptu little contest is Wed. 10/26 at 5pm.

[Joanne]

Aha, the hinty-ness of it went right over my head. Gosh all hemlock, you're clever.