verisimilitude

verisimilitude

(n)

(ve-ree-suh-mil-uh-tyood)

"appearance of being true or real"

It will take some convincing by both parties that their promises have verisimilitude.

(in reference to the election announced yesterday)

propinquity

propinquity

(n)

(pruh-ping-kwuh-tee)

"nearness in position, proximity"
"close kinship"
"similarity"

I found this word when I was looking in the dictionary for propitious

I have noticed that there are a tremendous amount of words starting with "p" that I don't use.

Thanks to the propinquity of a buzzing restaurant strip to the hospital, my sister and I enjoyed a delicious meal without having to venture too far tonight.

I like this one for a change from proximity.
  

munificent

munificent

(adj)

(myoo-nif-uh-suhnt)

"splendidly generous"

I am finding that most of the words I am exploring in this blog I have heard of. 

My challenge each day is really to learn or use a word for the first time.

"I have many munificent friends - with their hospitality, support and company."

propitious

propitious

(adj)

(pruh-pish-uhs)

"favourable,auspicious"

"well-disposed"

It was not a propitious start to the week for me, when my computer decided to have some problems.

pertinacious

pertinacious

(adj)

(per-tuh-nay-shuhs)

"stubborn, persistent, obstinate in a course of action"

Some people think being pertinacious is admirable- I am not one of them.

My neighbour is a very pertinacious man, as well as being a bully.

nugatory

nugatory
(adj)

(nyoo-guh-tuh-ree)

"futile, trifling, worthless"
"inoperative, not valid"

I thought that was a nugatory attempt at appearing genuinely sincere. He was exposed as a self-serving egotist.

(Me to a friend after reading an article about a well-known chef)

condign

condign
(adj)

(kuhn-duyn)

"severe and well-deserved".

That was a condign punishment. 

cruciverbalist

cruciverbalist

(n)

(cru-ci-ver-bal-ist)

"a constructor or enthusiast of crosswords"

I have recently become a cruciverbalist.  

An enthusiast, not a constructor.

Crossword puzzles are a continuing source of inspiration for this blog and my expanding vocabulary.

pellucid

pellucid
(adj)

(puh-loo-sid)

"transparent"
of speech "clear"

My argument was pellucid.
I exposed the weaknesses in his strategy and even surprised myself with my clarity.

narcoleptic

narcoleptic

(n)

(nar-co-lep-tic)

"a person who has sudden and uncontrollable, though often brief, attacks of deep sleep, sometimes accompanied by paralysis and hallucinations."

I am glad I only suffer from mild insomnia and am not a narcoleptic.

corporeal

corporeal

(adj)

(kay-paw-ree-uhl)

"bodily, physical, material as distinct from spiritual"

I wonder if my corporeal cravings could be subdued if I had a more spiritual nature.  

turbid

turbid

(adj)

(ter-buhd)

"muddy, thick, not clear liquid"

"confused, disordered style"

It was hot last week and I was by the river.  I put my wine tumbler into the water and drew out a glass of turbid water. I decided I should stick to wine.

perspicuous

perspicuous

(adj)

(puh-spik-yoo-uhs)

"easily understood, clearly expressed"

I dont use this because I think I confuse this word with yesterdays word - perspicacious.

Not that I have ever said either of them.

"That was a perspicuous opinion that you had about the economy"

"That was a perspicious recipe that you gave me"

perspicacious

perspicacious

(adj)

(per-spuh-kay-shuhs)

"having mental penetration or discernment"

I aspire to be a perspicacious person.

cretaceous

cretaceous

(adj)

(kruh-tay-shuhs)

"of or like chalk"

No way did I guess this one or work this one out.

"Her complexion is slightly cretaceous"

Sounds hideous.

absquatulate

absquatulate

(v)

(ab-squat-u-late)

To depart in a hurry, abscond"

"to die"

"to argue"

This word was read to me this week and we both knew we had never it before.  We imagined squatting and moving from a squat. 

I think we were close.

"Miller built a cabin on the claim before he absquatulated"

A very evocative word we thought.

splenetic

splenetic

(adj)

(spluh-net-ik)

"bad tempered, peevish"

I am feeling very splenetic today - I didn't get enough sleep last night and I am getting the run around today. 

While I had a feeling it may have been derived from the latin word for spleen - why does spleen mean bad tempered?

defalcate

defalcate

(v)

(dee-fal-kayt)

"misappropriate"

It is a sad sign of our times that nearly everyday in the media there is a story about someone who has defalcated funds from their clients or investors.

recreant

recreant

(adj/n)

(rek-ree-uhnt)

"cowardly"  (adj)

"coward" (n)

This one rolls off the tongue. I particularly like it as a noun.

I believe that most bullies are recreants, and use threats and intimidation to hide behind their own weakness and need for power and control.

Try using recreant when challenging a bully.  That will confuse them

mendacious

mendacious

(adj)

(men-day-shuhs)

"lying or untruthful"

I am continuing my new interest of doing crossword puzzles and these are a constant source of new words.

I always felt that he was a mendacious man.

(referring to a politician in the media recently)

cornucopia

cornucopia
(n)

(kaw-nyuh-koh-pee-uh)

"a symbol of plenty" or "abundant supply"

A rural news story drew my attention to this lovely word - which I always thought meant a mixture, a jumble, a potpourri.

This headline may just be an editors play on words - but it is a visual one.

"Cornucopia of corn"
A semi truck and trailer was completely buried by corn after knocking the loading chute off the Dillwyn elevator, Thursday.

My turn

We had a cornucopia of dishes to chose from at the party last weekend.

(to one of my friends)

decoction

decoction

(n)

(duh-kok-shuhn)

"the resulting liquid" from "boiling down to extract an essence"

Another crossword clue - and it immediately made me think of concocting or mixing something.

It wasn't too hard then to get me closer to answering the clue correctly without checking the dictionary first.

"Have you ever tried boiling down balsamic vinegar? It creates an amazing decoction which is a great base for a decadent salad dressing-  drizzled on rocket, blue cheese, toasted walnuts and slices of pear or apple."

phlegmatic

phlegmatic

(adj)

(fleg-mat-ik)

"calm, unexcitable, unemotional"

"apathetic"

I am finding that many of the words I come across I may have seen before, but I haven't or don't use them.

It is hard to remain phlegmatic about the challenges we are facing in our apartment building.

(to my husband in frustration about a body corporate issue)

concatenate

concatenate

(v)

(kuhn-kat-uh-nayt)

"link together (a chain of events, things, computer data"

I have received a lot of different information for the project from a variety of organisations.

 I am spending time this week trying to concatenate the material we have been provided to make sense for the promotional campaign.  

(Used in a report to client)

glossolalia

glossolalia

(n)

(glos-uh-lay-lee-uh)

"babbling, meaningless speech associated with schizophrenic disorders and certain religious states - speaking in tongues"

Not a word I am likely to use every day, but it did come up in a conversation I was part of on New Year's Day about this blog and was as a suggested word that I may not know.

I am fascinated with the idea of glossolalia but I am not truly convinced that it is not put on.

eschew

eschew

(v)

(es-choo or uhs-choo)

"avoid,abstain from"

Again, a word I know the meaning of but don"t use. Why not? This is the crux of my challenge this year. Use a different word to say what I mean. 
Absorb it,understand it and use it.

Should I eschew blogging, mindless internet surfing and trivial websites and focus on other important life issues?

Should I eschew rich food and wine?

(To myself)

quotidian

quotidian

(adj)

(kwo-tid-ee-uhn)

"occurring or recurring daily"

"commonplace"

I came across this word yesterday in a novel by Doris Lessing

...for this love,which was of the quotidian, daily bread sort...

( referring to middle-aged love)

It prompted me to recall the name of a chain of bakeries I had seen in  New York - Le Pain Quotidian, which now makes sense to me, and I can also now pronounce it.

putrescent

putrescent

(adj)

(pyoo-tres-uhnt)

"rotting"

The meaning of this word is easy to work out if you think about it, the pronunciation harder.

"The smell of putrescent fish can sometimes put me off going to the fish market."


Why not just say rotting,you might ask? Such a good and basic word.

Because putrescent sounds even more putrid.

lachrymose

lachrymose

(adj)

(lak-ruh-mohs)

"given to weeping,teary"

This clue appeared in a crossword that I was doing last week, and while I had read it before I had never really known what it meant or how to pronounce it.

 I do like the sound of it.

"Went and saw it last week. I was lachrymose during some emotional scenes - especially the one when she walks out of the water."

(To a friend who asked me if I had seen Love is All You Need.)

minutiae

minutiae

(n.pl)

(muy-nyoo-shee-uy)

"very small, precise details"

I know what this word means but I have heard it pronounced in many different ways. I may have used it once but did not feel confident that I was pronouncing it correctly. It's a hard one. I can't seem to get it to run smoothly off my tongue.

Have practised saying it and will try it out later today - perhaps:

Planning any event means focussing on the minutiae to make sure that everything runs smoothly. 

(to a colleague in relation to the large event I am in the middle of coordinating)

farrago

farrago 
(n)

(fuh-rah-goh)

"a medley or hotchpotch"


Who is responsible for this farrago?

(when I saw the mess in the kitchen)