Thread: Word of the Day

Perfervid
per·fer·vid /pərˈfɜrvɪd/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[per-fur-vid] -adjective very fervent; extremely ardent; impassioned: perfervid patriotism.
[Origin: 1855–60; < NL perfervidus. See per-, fervid]

—Related formsper&#183;fer&#183;vid&#183;i&#183;ty, per&#183;fer&#183;vid&#183;ness, noun
per&#183;fer&#183;vid&#183;ly, adverb
per&#183;fer&#183;vor; especially British, per&#183;fer&#183;vour, noun

Where I saw or heard the word: reading a Newsweek article.

Will I use it? No.

Reason: It sounds ugly.

acetylseryltyrosylserylisoleucylthreonylserylproly lserylglutaminylphenylalanylvalylphenylalanylleucy lserylserylvalyl- tryptophylalanylaspartylprolylisoleucylglutamylleu cylleucylasparaginylvalylcysteinylthreonylserylser yl- leucylglycylasparaginylglutaminylphenylalanylgluta minylthreonylglutaminylglutaminylalanylarginylthre onyl-
threonylglutaminylvalylglutaminylglutaminylphenyla lanylserylglutaminylvalyltryptophyllysylprolylphen yl-
alanylprolylglutaminylserylthreonylvalylarginylphe nylalanylprolylglycylaspartylvalyltyrosyllysylvaly ltyrosyl-
arginyltyrosylasparaginylalanylvalylleucylaspartyl prolylleucylisoleucylthreonylalanylleucylleucylgly cylthre-
onylphenylalanylaspartylthreonylarginylasparaginyl arginylisoleucylisoleucylglutamylvalylglutamylaspa raginyl-
glutaminylglutaminylserylprolylthreonylthreonylala nylglutamylthreonylleucylaspartylalanylthreonylarg iny-
larginylvalylaspartylaspartylalanylthreonylvalylal anylisoleucylarginylserylalanylasparaginylisoleucy lasparag-
inylleucylvalylasparaginylglutamylleucylvalylargin ylglycylthreonylglycylleucyltyrosylasparaginylglut aminylas-
paraginylthreonylphenylalanylglutamylserylmethiony lserylglycylleucylvalyltryptophylthreonylserylalan ylpro-
lylalanylserine.

(teakdoor has randomly inserted spaces in the word, dunno why?)

I like perfervid better.

Lugubrious

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This lu&#183;gu&#183;bri&#183;ous /lʊˈgubriəs, -ˈgyu-/

Pronunciation[loo-goo-bree-uhs, -gyoo-] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation –adjective mournful, dismal, or gloomy, esp. in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner: lugubrious songs of lost love.
[Origin: 1595–1605; < L lūgubri(s) mournful (akin to lūg&#233;re to mourn) + -ous]

—Related formslu&#183;gu&#183;bri&#183;ous&#183;ly, adverb
lu&#183;gu&#183;bri&#183;ous&#183;ness, lu&#183;gu&#183;bri&#183;os&#183;i&#183;ty /ləˌgubriˈɒsɪti, -ˌgyu-/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[luh-goo-bree-os-i-tee, -gyoo-] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation, noun

—Synonyms sorrowful, melancholy.
—Antonyms cheerful.

Will I use this word? No.

Reasons:

1. I don't like the sound of it.

2. It will make me sound arrogant.

3. Many people will not understand its meaning.

treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Where I saw or heard the word: Lancet.

Will I use it? Hope not.

Reason: It sounds ugly if one has it.

Fizzle
fiz&#183;zle (fzl)
intr.v. fiz&#183;zled, fiz&#183;zling, fiz&#183;zles
1. To make a hissing or sputtering sound.
2. Informal To fail or end weakly, especially after a hopeful beginning.
n. Informal
A failure; a fiasco.
[Probably from obsolete fise, a breaking wind, from Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse fsa, to break wind.]
Word History: Philemon Holland, in his 1601 translation of Pliny's Natural History, wrote that if asses eat a certain plant, "they will fall a fizling and farting." Holland's asses provide a vivid example of the original meaning of the word fizzle, which was, in the decorous phrasing of the Oxford English Dictionary, "to break wind without noise." During the 19th century fizzle took on a related but more respectable sense, "to hiss, as does a piece of fireworks," illustrated by a quotation from the November 7, 1881, issue of the London Daily News: "unambitious rockets which fizzle doggedly downwards." In the same century fizzle also took on figurative senses, one of which seems to have been popular at Yale. The Yale Literary Magazine for 1849 helpfully defines the word as follows: "Fizzle, to rise with modest reluctance, to hesitate often, to decline finally; generally, to misunderstand the question." The figurative sense of fizzle that has caught on is the one most familiar today, "to fail or die out."

malediction

(noun) the act of calling down a curse that invokes evil. EXAMPLE: In the fairy tale "Sleeping Beauty," the princess is trapped in a death-like sleep because of the malediction uttered by an angry witch. curse, denunciation

Will I use it? Yes, I might write it, but I want utilize this word, orally.

Possible negatives: People will misunderstand this word's meaning.

Endoplasmic reticulum
In cell biology, this is a complex pipe-like system of membranes that occupies much of the cytoplasm in cells and which contains many of the enzymes which mediate biodegradation of xenobiotics.

Where: I remember it from high school biology.

Why: It sounds cool.

Will I use it: Unfortunately it never pops up in normal conversation.

doohickey


An unspecified object or small device, especially a mechanical one.

Originally Posted by Plan B

Endoplasmic reticulum
In cell biology, this is a complex pipe-like system of membranes that occupies much of the cytoplasm in cells and which contains many of the enzymes which mediate biodegradation of xenobiotics.

Where: I remember it from high school biology.

Why: It sounds cool.

Will I use it: Unfortunately it never pops up in normal conversation.

well actually you have the Rough Endoplasmic reticulum or RER for short or the smooth endoplasmic reticulum or SER for short. The RER is also quite famous for being the site for protein synthesis.........

hir&#183;sute

/ˈhɜrsut, hɜrˈsut/ Pronunciation Key -

[hur-soot, hur-soot] Pronunciation Key

-adjective

1.hairy; shaggy. 2.Botany, Zoology. covered with long, rather stiff hairs. 3.of, pertaining to, or characteristic of hair.
[Origin: 1615–25; < L hirsūtus rough, shaggy, bristly; akin to horrid]

—Related formshir&#183;sute&#183;ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. pilose, unshaved, bearded, bushy, woolly, furry.

-
Will I use this word?

No.

Why?

Most people (and me) don't know, nor will remember what it means.

frabjuous - adj delightful, joyous, hence ~ LY adv

(made by Lewis Carroll perh. on FAIR, JOYOUS)

I like Lewis Carroll & quite like this word because it just sounds made up. Will I use it? Nope.

gruntle - cause to be more favorably inclined; gain the good will of; "She managed to mollify the angry customer"


Next time you employ someone, make sure they are experienced at gruntling.

digitigrade - a & n (animal) that walks on its toes, not touching the ground with its heels (eg dog, cat, lion)

(from Latin digitus + gradus [walking] )

Will I be using it? Eerrm, I think not.

^ I usually try a bit of the old 'digitigrading' to the bedroom when I come home full as a bull, 3 hours late and the missus is asleep on the couch with the rolling pin nestled to her bosom.

I'm greedy. I'll taking my favourite word and favourite sound.

Drool

'Click' (the sound of a digital camera)

Admonish : reprove, critisize.

Will not use it, as I can use the word critisize, which is more common.

occasionalism - (zho) n doctrine of some Cartesians that volition and sensation are connected with the following & preceding material phenomena not casually but as separately produced by God on the same occasion


Will I be using it? Eeerrrm, I didn't even understand the definition, so I think not.

fug /fʌg/ –noun stale air, esp. the humid, warm, ill-smelling air of a crowded room, kitchen, etc.
[Origin: 1885–90; of obscure orig.; cf. earlier Brit. slang fogo stench

schadenfreude

Taking glee or great pleasure at the misfortune of others.
I abhor people who do this.

sesquipedalian
A personal fav.

Keeping on the s's


sanctimonious - a making a show of piety or sanctity.

lob&#183;scouse ɒbskaʊs/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[lob-skous] –noun a stew of meat, potatoes, onions, ship biscuit, etc.

(I thought it was when a person from Liveerpool drops in announced and won't leave)

hexakosioihexekontahexaphobia.

Pollyanna:

Pol·ly·an·na /ˌpɒliˈænə/ Pronunciation Key

Pronunciation[pol-ee-an-uh]

noun 1.an excessively or blindly optimistic person.

adjective 2.(often lowercase) Also, Pol·ly·an·na·ish. unreasonably or illogically optimistic: some pollyanna notions about world peace.

Source: dictionary.com

Will I use this word: no

Why: I don't know.

Originally Posted by Milkman

Pollyanna:

Pol·ly·an·na /ˌpɒliˈænə/ Pronunciation Key

Pronunciation[pol-ee-an-uh]

noun 1.an excessively or blindly optimistic person.

adjective 2.(often lowercase) Also, Pol·ly·an·na·ish. unreasonably or illogically optimistic: some pollyanna notions about world peace.

Source: dictionary.com

Will I use this word: no

Why: I don't know.

I like this word. It reminds me of the monty python scene when the soldier is in hospital with his legs blown off, and when his commanding officer asks him how he's coping, he very happily replies "Smashing sir, it's just a scratch, sir. I'm good as gold, i can't wait to get back out to the front!" or something to the likes...

Nice thread Milky.