Words of the Wee 04

Whenever I read, I keep a pencil handy and I underline words that I don’t know and dog ear the page so that I can go back and look them up in the dictionary. I have always been interested in etymology and even took Latin for three years. I hope that these words can help all of us in our writings. Be sure to check out your dictionary for additional usages of the words and spellings associated with changing the word from adjective to adverb to noun … etc.

ASKEW

adverb

Pronounced: ass-KEW

Meaning: Out of line or to one side.

Example: Jared’s house was leaning because one of the joints had gone

askew

.

* * * * *

MONOLITH

noun

Pronounced: MONO-lith

Meaning: Something resembling a great stone.

Example: Sir Larry is considered a pillar of strength by his friends and a hulking obstinate

monolith

by his enemies.

* * * * *

SKIRMISH

noun

Pronounced: SKER-mish

Meaning: A minor dispute or contest between opposing parties.

Example: Winston hopes that his

skirmish

with the neighbors over his dog does not foreshadow a lengthy feud.

* * * * *

CRESCIVE

adjective

Pronounced: KRESS-siv

Meaning: Increasing or growing.

Example: The

crescive

vines traveled up the trellis.

* * * * *

GALVANIZE

verb

Pronounced: GAL-vin-eyes

Meaning: To stimulate as if by the application of an electrical current.

Example: The enemy attack served to

galvanize

the government into immediate action.

* * * * *

ERUDITION

noun

Pronounced: ay-rue-DISH-un

Meaning: An extensive knowledge acquired chiefly from books.

Example: The schoolmaster was esteemed as a man of great

erudition

.

* * * * *

WITTICISM

noun

Pronounced: WIT-ti-ciz-um

Meaning: A clever or amusing expression.

Example: The careful use of a

witticism

in Kevin’s speech helped hold the attention of the listeners.

* * * * *

CHURLISH

adjective

Pronounced: CHUR-lish

Meaning: Difficult to work with or deal with.

Example: Although he was a brilliant conductor, Toscanini could be

churlish

at times.

* * * * *

RENOUNCE

verb

Pronounced: ree-NOUNss

Meaning: To announce one’s abandonment of the ownership of, give up, abandon or resign something possessed.

Example: In 1936, Prince Edward of Wales decided to

renounce

his claim to the throne of England and marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson.

* * * * *

IRIDESCENT

adjective

Pronounced: ear-ri-DES-cent

Meaning: Showing colors like those of the rainbow.

Example: Louis C. Tiffany developed a famous type of

iridescent

glass.

* * * * *

DERELICT

noun

Pronounced: DARE-uh-licked

Meaning: A thing voluntarily abandoned by its owner with the intention of not retaking it and rightly claimed by the first person who takes possession of it.

Example: Tom sank his yacht when his rescuers arrived lest it become a

derelict.

* * * * *

PTARMIC

noun

Pronounced: TAR-mick

Meaning: A substance that causes sneezing.

Example: Andrea is extremely allergic to dust, an everpresent

ptarmic

difficult for her to avoid.

* * * * *

BOUDOIR

noun

Pronounced: BOOD-wah

Meaning: A woman’s dressing room, bedroom or private sitting room.

Example: The

boudoir

adjacent to the master bedroom was, to Brooke, the most fascinating room on the tour.

* * * * *

JUNTA

noun

Pronounced: HOON-tah

Meaning: A closely knit group of persons composing or dominating a government, especially after a revolutionary seizure of power.

Example: The military

junta

set up its headquarters in the former presidential palace.

* * * * *

ONEROUS

adjective

Pronounced: OH-ner-uss

Meaning: That involves, imposes or constitutes much oppressive or irksome work, effort, difficulty or responsibility.

Example: Ron grudgingly completed the

onerous

task of cutting and stacking the firewood.

* * * * *

FARCICAL

adjective

Pronounced: FAR-sick-kal

Meaning: Receiving or meriting laughter or amused scorn as utterly without claim to serious consideration or as laughably inept.

Example: Shakespeare employs

farcical

characters in many of his plays to provide comic relief.

* * * * *

LIQUESCENT

adjective

Pronounced: lih-KWES-scent

Meaning: Being, becoming or tending to become liquid; melting.

Example: When a giant asteroid hits the ground, it is transformed into a

liquescent

mass that becomes a fireball.

* * * * *

VULNERARY

adjective

Pronounced: VUL-ner-ar-ree

Meaning: Promoting the healing of wounds; curative.

Example: There was a section in the old medical book about

vulnerary

herbs.

* * * * *

KESTREL

noun

Pronounced: KES-trill

Meaning: A common small European falcon.

Example: Sean found an injured

kestrel

on the roof of the library.

* * * * *

TENET

noun

Pronounced: TIN-net

Meaning: A principle, dogma, belief or doctrine generally held to be true, especially one held in common by members of a group or profession.

Example: The basic

tenet

of Central High’s Key Club is that community service benefits everyone.

* * * * *

NIHILISM

noun

Pronounced: NYE-hill-izm

Meaning: A viewpoint that all traditional values and beliefs are unfounded and that all existence is consequently senseless and useless.

Example: The rock star’s lyrics were criticized for advocating a bleak

nihilism

.

* * * * *

YORE

noun

Pronounced: YORR

Meaning: Time past and especially time long past.

Example: Adam’s favorite books contain stories about knights of

yore

.