Pronounced: uh-FLAY-tid, adj
Notes: I haven’t run across this word, and could not figure out the meaning
Yesterday’s word
The word slithy means “smooth and active; slimy; slithery”
First usage
Our word came into English in the late 1800s
Background / Comments
This word was created by Lewis Carroll in the novel Through the Looking-Glass (full title is Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There), published in 1871. This novel is the sequel to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, published in 1865. Through the Looking-Glass has a kind of chess theme (instead of playing cards, as in the first book). I’ve read that all chess pieces are represented except a bishop. This is also the book than contains “Jabberwocky” and “The Walrus and the Carpenter”, as well as the characters Tweedledee and Tweedledum. Our word is a combination of slimy and lithe.
Richard's Vocabulary Word-of-the-Day 