A Lackadaisical Lexicon for Laggard Logophiles

HODOMETRY [noun] measurement of distance of a sea voyage. [Ivan...

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 08:01:41 +1000

HODOMETRY

[noun]

measurement of distance of a sea voyage.

[Ivan Aivazovsky]

MACROLOGY [noun] 1. long and tedious talk without much...

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 05:20:33 +1000

MACROLOGY

[noun]

1. long and tedious talk without much substance; superfluity of words.

2. excessive wordiness.

[Victor Calahan]

DOGMA [noun] 1. an official system of principles or tenets...

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:40:40 +1000

DOGMA

[noun]

1. an official system of principles or tenets concerning faith, morals, behavior, etc., as of a church. Synonyms: doctrine, teachings, set of beliefs, philosophy.

2. a specific tenet or doctrine authoritatively laid down, as by a church. Synonyms: tenet, canon, law.

3. prescribed doctrine proclaimed as unquestionably true by a particular group.

4. a settled or established opinion, belief, or principle. Synonyms: conviction, certainty.

5. Slang: a collection of established opinions which are not necessarily factual.

Etymology: Latin, from Greek, opinion, belief, from dokein, to seem, think; see.

[Michael Sowa]

ACHLUOPHOBIA [noun] the fear of darkness; an abnormal dread of...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:20:23 +1000

ACHLUOPHOBIA

[noun]

the fear of darkness; an abnormal dread of night or darkness. Also nyctophobia.

[jerry8448]

SYNTECTIC [adjective] 1. melting or wasting away. 2. Biology...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:40:21 +1000

SYNTECTIC

[adjective]

1. melting or wasting away.

2. Biology (disease): of, relating to, or produced by syntexis - melting or wasting away.

Etymology: Greek syntēktikos - able to liquefy, liquefactive, from syntēktos (verbal of syntēkein - to dissolve, liquefy).

[Camilla d’Errico]

DESUETUDE [noun] the state of being no longer used or...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 16:00:37 +1000

DESUETUDE

[noun]

the state of being no longer used or practiced.

Etymology: late Middle English < Latin dēsuētūdo, equivalent to dēsuē-, base of dēsuēscere - to become disaccustomed to, unlearn.

[jerry8448]

STYGIAN [adjective] 1. gloomy and dark. 2. having a gloomy or...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:20:21 +1000

STYGIAN

[adjective]

1. gloomy and dark.

2. having a gloomy or foreboding aspect; murky.

3. infernal; hellish.

4. of or relating to the river Styx.

5. completely inviolable, as a vow sworn by the river Styx

Etymology: from Latin Stygius, from Greek Stugios, from Stux - Styx; related to stugein - to hate.

[Paul Rumsey]

EIDOLISM [noun] a belief in ghosts. Etymology: from Greek...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 10:40:19 +1000

EIDOLISM

[noun]

a belief in ghosts.

Etymology: from Greek eidolon, εἴδωλον - ”image, idol, double, apparition, phantom, ghost”.

[Don Maitz]

AMBULATE [verb] to walk about or move from place to place;...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 08:01:50 +1000

AMBULATE

[verb]

to walk about or move from place to place; stroll; wander.

Etymology: Latin ambulātus (past participle of ambulāre - to walk),.

[J. Slattum]

PROSOPAMNESIA [noun] a rare neuropsychological deficit defined...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 05:20:54 +1000

PROSOPAMNESIA

[noun]

a rare neuropsychological deficit defined by an inability to remember faces. It can be subdivided into two different types, including a ‘congenital’ and ‘acquired’ version. Prosopamnesia should not be confused with the similar condition prosopagnosia, which is characterised by a difficulty perceiving faces. An inability to “see” faces in such a manner will naturally be associated with prosopamnesia, as a facial memory trace cannot be formed without an ability to initially see the face.

[jesusgun]

MECONOPHAGIST [noun] one who uses or consumes opiates...

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 02:40:33 +1000

MECONOPHAGIST

[noun]

one who uses or consumes opiates including opium or heroin.

[Henk Bloemhof]

TRUCULENT [adjective] 1. fierce; cruel; savagely brutal. 2....

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:20:16 +1000

TRUCULENT

[adjective]

1. fierce; cruel; savagely brutal.

2. brutally harsh; vitriolic; scathing.

3. aggressively hostile; belligerent.

Etymology: Latin truculentus, equivalent to truc-, stem of trux - savage, pitiless.

[Sandara]

QUIXOTIC [adjective] 1. exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 18:40:19 +1000

QUIXOTIC

[adjective]

1. exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and impractical.

2. caught up in the romance of noble deeds and the pursuit of unreachable goals; idealistic without regard to practicality; extravagantly chivalrous.

3. capricious; impulsive.

Etymology: From English Quixote, a visionary, after Don Quixote, hero of a romance by Miguel de Cervantes.

[Chris Patio]

ANEMO- [prefix] from Greek anemos - the wind. [Vladimir Kush]

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 16:00:38 +1000

ANEMO-

[prefix]

from Greek anemos - the wind.

[Vladimir Kush]

BEREAVEMENT [noun] 1. a period of mourning after a loss,...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:20:19 +1000

BEREAVEMENT

[noun]

1. a period of mourning after a loss, especially after the death of a loved one.

2. a state of intense grief, as after the loss of a loved one; desolation.

3. deprivation or loss by force.

Etymology: Middle English bereven, Old English berēafian; cognate with Dutch berooven, German berauben, Gothic biraubōn.

[vdelrey - Poison Ivy]

OSCULATION [noun] 1. the act of kissing; a kiss. 2. close...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 10:40:35 +1000

OSCULATION

[noun]

1. the act of kissing; a kiss.

2. close contact.

3. Geometry: the contact between two osculating curves or the like.

Etymology: Latin ōsculātiōn- (stem of ōsculātiō) - a kissing, equivalent to ōsculāt(us).

[Natalie Shau]

ENOPTROMANCY [noun] a form of divination involving a mirror and...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:01:34 +1000

ENOPTROMANCY

[noun]

a form of divination involving a mirror and its reflections.

Etymology: French énoptromancie, from Greek enoptron - mirror.

BACCIFEROUS [adjective] bearing berries. Etymology: from Latin...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:20:45 +1000

BACCIFEROUS

[adjective]

bearing berries.

Etymology: from Latin bācifer, from bāca berry + ferre to bear.

[Lauren Marx]

AIDE [noun] the Basque numenistic deity of the air. She could...

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 02:40:26 +1000

AIDE

[noun]

the Basque numenistic deity of the air. She could manifest herself in both good (gentle breeze) and evil (storm wind) forms.

[Artist Unknown]

TRYPANOPHOBIA [noun] needle phobia; the extreme fear of medical...

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 21:20:18 +1000

TRYPANOPHOBIA

[noun]

needle phobia; the extreme fear of medical procedures involving injections or hypodermic needles. It is occasionally referred to as aichmophobia, belonephobia, or enetophobia, although these terms may also refer to a more general fear of sharply pointed objects.

[Marianna Stelmach]