Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: aw-JEE-uhn stable, noun Notes: I know the reference, but not the actual meaning Yesterday’s word The word trencherman is a hearty eater a hanger-on; parasite First usage This word showed up in the late 1500s Background / Comments The word comes from trencher (a flat piece of wood on which food is served orContinue reading “Augean stable”

Pronounced: TREN-chur-man, noun Notes: I ran across this word in some reading, but I don’t think it’s very well known Yesterday’s word The word eleemosynary means “of, relating to, or supported by charity” First usage The word came into English in the early 1600s Background / Comments This is a fancy word for “charitable” (whichContinue reading “trencherman”

Pronounced: eh-lih-MAH-suh-ner-ee, adj Notes: I think I’ve run across this word in my reading… it’s a good one to read Yesterday’s word The word whipjack means “a beggar who pretends to be an out-of-luck sailor” First usage This word came into English in the mid-1500s Background / Comments It is thought that the word comesContinue reading “eleemosynary”

Pronounced: WHIP-jack, noun Notes: I don’t think I’ve ever run across this word Yesterday’s word The word arcanum means mysterious or specialized knowledge, language, or information accessible or possessed only by the initiate (usually used in plural) elixir First usage This word goes back to the late-1500s Background / Comments This word is more frequentlyContinue reading “whipjack”

Pronounced: ar-KAY-num, noun Notes: You may know this word; the plural may be more well-known Yesterday’s word The word azymous means “unleavened; unfermented” First usage This word goes back to the mid-1700s Background / Comments As I noted yesterday, this word is one that Christians and Jews may know: the Jewish feat of Passover isContinue reading “arcanum”

Pronounced: ay-ZIGH-muss, adj Notes: Nice, fancy word for something that Christians and Jews know well Yesterday’s word The word phosphene is “a luminous impression due to the excitation of the retina” — the shapes of light you see if you close your eyes and press on them with your fingers. First usage This word showedContinue reading “azymous”

Pronounced: FAHS-feen, noun Notes: A word for something most of us know; I didn’t know there was a word for it. Yesterday’s word The word vaquero means “a livestock handler; cowboy” First usage The word came back into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments Today’s word is from the Spanish word vaquero (cowboy), whichContinue reading “phosphene”

Pronounced: vah-KER-oh, noun Notes: I was a little off on this word Yesterday’s word The word fatidic means “of or relating to prophecy” First usage This word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments This word has an interesting double reference. First of all, it comes from the Latin word fatum (fate), makingContinue reading “vaquero”

Pronounced: fay-TIH-dik, adj Notes: A simple word, but I’ve never heard of it Yesterday’s word The word expergefaction means awakening or arousing the state of being awakened or aroused First usage This word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments Our word comes from the Latin word expergefacere (to awaken), which is madeContinue reading “fatidic”

Pronounced: ex-SPUR-juh-fak-shun, noun Notes: A long word for a common thing Yesterday’s word The word scofflaw is “a contemptuous law violator” First usage This word goes back to the 1920s Background / Comments A wealthy Prohibitionist sponsored a contest in the 1920s to create a word to mean “a lawless drinker” (he wanted a wordContinue reading “expergefaction”