Words looked up in the course of reading. Definitions copied (with some degree of error) from my American Heritage Dictionary. Examples pulled straight out of my ass.
acromegaly (n) - A chronic disease of adults marked by enlargement of the bones in the extremities, face, and jaw. "Andre the Giant comes to mind as notable figures afflicted with acromegaly."
shale (n) - A fissile rock composed of layers of clay-like, fine grained sediments. "I have this recurring nightmare where I go to chew on my nails, and they crack and crumble like shale."
permutation (n) - The process of altering the order of a given set of objects in a group. "The sandwich shop by my house has like one sandwich with endless permutations of the same four high-sodium Italian meats."
genuflect (v) - To touch the knee or bend the knee to the floor or ground, as in worship. "I get entirely uncomfortable when my shoe comes untied - there's nothing worse than having to sort of genuflect in public to set the laces straight again."
apse (n) - Architecture: A usually semi-circular or polygonal, often vaulted, recess, especially the termination of the sanctuary of a church. "The Catholic Church offered an apology today after a newly-instated Cardinal was caught pogo-sticking in the apse of Notre Dame in the middle of the night."
capacious (adj) - Capable of containing a large quantity, spacious or roomy. "There's nothing as sacred to a Cadillac owner as a capacious parking space."
rejoinder (n) - An answer, especially to a reply. "Acrid adolescent rejoinders have been one of the more sore points of my teaching career."
revenant (n) - One that returns after a lengthy absence; one who returns after death. "As far as revenants go, I like to think that Zombie Steinbeck would make an excellent drinking partner."
transom (n) - A horizontal crosspiece above a door, or between a door and the window above it. "My brother, at 6'6" has a sort of permanent indent in his forehead from tromping into transoms."
claret (n) - A red table wine produced in the Bordeaux region of France; a dark or grey purplish red, to dark purplish pink. "She lifted her shirt to reveal a series of claret-colored bruises along her side."
picric acid (n) - A poisonous, explosive yellow crystalline solid, used in explosives, dyes, and for etching copper. "His teeth were rotted through, the canines especially having an almost picric tint to them."
sobriquet (n) - An affectionate or humorous nickname. "I've come to think of being called a Polak as a sort of endearing sobriquet."
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Malapropist Tribune: 8/1/2012
Words looked up in the course of reading. Definitions copied (with some degree of error) from my American Heritage Dictionary. Examples pulled straight out of my ass.
perfunctory (adj) - Done routinely and with little interest or care; acting w/ indifference. "After several years of attendance, even a quadruple hit of LSD can't do much to liven perfunctory company dinners."
portcullis (n)- A grating of iron or wooden bars or slats, suspended in the gateway of a fortified place & lowered to block passage. "The King had an ugly habit of ordering his men to drop the portcullis on ever other passing peasant, making more or less unpopular among the masses."
codicil (n)- Law: A supplement or appendix. "It turned out that according to some buried codicil in my contract, I was in fact required to work 60 hours during Christmas week."
cordite (n)- Any of a family of smokeless explosive powders consisting chiefly of nitrocellulose, nitroglycerin, & petroleum that have been dissolved in acetone, dried, & extruded in cords. "The gunman blew a string of cordite vapor from the barrel of his revolver."
extrude (v)- To push or thrust out, to shape by forcing through a die. "I don't remember my mother well, save for a series of sunlit memories of her in which she extruded icing through a silver-tipped nozzle onto fresh-baked cakes & cookies."
miasma (n)- A noxious atmosphere, an influence. "I have to be careful with what I say at work, lest I spread a miasma of hate about the office."
contracture (n)- An abnormal, often-permanent shortening, as of muscle or scar tissue, that results in distortion or disfiguration. "The gate attendant's contractured arms forced Bill to sort of lean way in to hand him his tickets.
votary (n)- A person bound by vows to live a life of religious worship or service; a devout adherent of a cult or religion. "He wasn't so much an agent as he was a votary of the secret service, bathing, exercising, and during particular stretches of loneliness, even sleeping with his gun and badge."
vicissitude (n)- A change or variation; a usually unforeseen change in circumstance or experience that affects one's life, especially in a trying way. "It's life's little vicissitudes that have a cute habit of leaving you scratching your noggin and trying to decide between the noose, revolver, or family-sized bottle of Tylenol."
acrostic (n)- A poem or series of lines in which certain letters, usually the first in each line, form a name, motto, or sentence when read in order. "Post modern anti-structuralists be damned - the acrostic poem is our generation's richest art form."
wimple (n)- A cloth worn around the head, framing the face, and drawn into folds beneath the chin, worn by women in medieval times as part of the habit for certain orders of nuns. "Do you ever feel like you were born on the wrong era? I often find myself on the bus longing to make eye contact for a lovely-eyed and primly-wimpled young lady."
ort (n)- Small scrap of food leftover after a meal is finished. "I refuse to make cornbread when we have company. David's like a human vacuum cleaner when it comes to those inevitable golden orts."
perfunctory (adj) - Done routinely and with little interest or care; acting w/ indifference. "After several years of attendance, even a quadruple hit of LSD can't do much to liven perfunctory company dinners."
portcullis (n)- A grating of iron or wooden bars or slats, suspended in the gateway of a fortified place & lowered to block passage. "The King had an ugly habit of ordering his men to drop the portcullis on ever other passing peasant, making more or less unpopular among the masses."
codicil (n)- Law: A supplement or appendix. "It turned out that according to some buried codicil in my contract, I was in fact required to work 60 hours during Christmas week."
cordite (n)- Any of a family of smokeless explosive powders consisting chiefly of nitrocellulose, nitroglycerin, & petroleum that have been dissolved in acetone, dried, & extruded in cords. "The gunman blew a string of cordite vapor from the barrel of his revolver."
extrude (v)- To push or thrust out, to shape by forcing through a die. "I don't remember my mother well, save for a series of sunlit memories of her in which she extruded icing through a silver-tipped nozzle onto fresh-baked cakes & cookies."
miasma (n)- A noxious atmosphere, an influence. "I have to be careful with what I say at work, lest I spread a miasma of hate about the office."
contracture (n)- An abnormal, often-permanent shortening, as of muscle or scar tissue, that results in distortion or disfiguration. "The gate attendant's contractured arms forced Bill to sort of lean way in to hand him his tickets.
votary (n)- A person bound by vows to live a life of religious worship or service; a devout adherent of a cult or religion. "He wasn't so much an agent as he was a votary of the secret service, bathing, exercising, and during particular stretches of loneliness, even sleeping with his gun and badge."
vicissitude (n)- A change or variation; a usually unforeseen change in circumstance or experience that affects one's life, especially in a trying way. "It's life's little vicissitudes that have a cute habit of leaving you scratching your noggin and trying to decide between the noose, revolver, or family-sized bottle of Tylenol."
acrostic (n)- A poem or series of lines in which certain letters, usually the first in each line, form a name, motto, or sentence when read in order. "Post modern anti-structuralists be damned - the acrostic poem is our generation's richest art form."
wimple (n)- A cloth worn around the head, framing the face, and drawn into folds beneath the chin, worn by women in medieval times as part of the habit for certain orders of nuns. "Do you ever feel like you were born on the wrong era? I often find myself on the bus longing to make eye contact for a lovely-eyed and primly-wimpled young lady."
ort (n)- Small scrap of food leftover after a meal is finished. "I refuse to make cornbread when we have company. David's like a human vacuum cleaner when it comes to those inevitable golden orts."
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