Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: SHMAH-tuh, noun Notes: Also spelled shmatte; this is a word I could use in conversation Yesterday’s word The word zedonk is “the offspring of a zebra and a donkey”; it can also be called a zonkey, but that’s not as common as zedonk. First usage This word came into usage in the 1970s BackgroundContinue reading “schmatte”

Pronounced: ZEE-dongk (alt: ZEE-duhngk), noun Notes: Just seeing the word, I had no idea; looking at the definition, I feel kind of stupid; maybe you know it or figured it out Yesterday’s word The word gnathonic means “sycophantic” First usage Our word appeared in English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments Our word comes fromContinue reading “zedonk”

Pronounced: na-THON-ick, adj Notes: You may know someone that this word fits Yesterday’s word The word cuittle means “to wheedle, cajole, or coax; to persuade”. As I noted yesterday, this word is mostly used in Scotland First usage Our word goes back to the mid-1500s Background / Comments The background of our word is notContinue reading “gnathonic”

Pronounced: KYOO-tl, verb Notes: This word is mostly used in Scotland Yesterday’s word The word potch, as a verb, means to slap or spank. Similarly, as a noun, it refers to a slap or a spanking First usage Our word came into English in the late 1800s Background / Comments As you may have guessed,Continue reading “cuittle”

Pronounced: poch, verb/noun Notes: I’ve never heard of this word, but you may guess the origin Yesterday’s word The word agnize means “to acknowledge or recognize; to own” First usage This word came into English in the mid-1500s Background / Comments I apologize for this word; I had a word-of-the-day calendar one year, and itContinue reading “potch”

Pronounced: ag-NIZE (alt: AG-nize), verb Notes: This is another case of a word looking like another; it looks like agonize to me (but that isn’t the meaning) Yesterday’s word The word yentz means “to cheat” First usage This word came into English in the 1930s Background / Comments Well, I first thought it would beContinue reading “agnize”

Pronounced: yents, verb Notes: I don’t recall every running across this word Yesterday’s word The word dyad means “a pair, due, or set of two things” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1600s Background / Comments Because I read a lot of Greek/Roman mythology, I confused our word with “dryad”, whichContinue reading “yentz”

Pronounced: DIE-ad, noun Notes: I confused this word with dryad, so I was completely wrong about this word Yesterday’s word The word verklempt means “overcome with emotion; choked up” First usage Our word came into English in the 1990s Background / Comments The ‘f’ and ‘v’ sounds are very similar; the ‘v’ sound is calledContinue reading “dyad”

Pronounced: fuhr-KLEMT (alt: vuhr-KLEMT), noun Notes: I don’t think I’ve heard this word Yesterday’s word The word anagnorisis is “an ‘eureka’ moment; a moment of sudden discovery or revelation” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1700s Background / Comments Our word came from Latin, but as you might expect, given theContinue reading “verklempt”

Pronounced: an-ag-NAWR-uh-sis (alt: an-ag-NOR-uh-sis), noun Notes: Another good word to know Yesterday’s word The word effluvium is “an unpleasant discharge, for example, fumes, vapors, or gases from waste or decaying matter” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments I have a kind of memory that I’ve run across thisContinue reading “anagnorisis”