Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: ay-SEH-fuh-lush, adj Notes: (The initial syllable is a long “a”). This is a word I should have been able to figure out, and I was annoyed with myself for not doing so. Yesterday’s word The word assize refers to “a session of court or a verdict or an inquiry made at such a session”Continue reading “acephalous”

Pronounced: uh-SIZE, noun Notes: From my reading, I see this word capitalized and pluralized (Assizes), but I only had a general idea of the meaning. Research into this word provided good insight (more tomorrow) Yesterday’s word A toxophilite is “a person fond of or expert at archery” Background / Comments This word is a bitContinue reading “assize”

Pronounced: tahk-SAH-fuh-lite, noun Notes: I know of at least one recent high-school graduate who should know this word… do you? Yesterday’s word An unperson is “a person regarded as nonexistent” Background / Comments This comes from George Orwell’s book “1984”; he coined this word as a noun. A much more common synonym is nonperson. FirstContinue reading “toxophilite”

Pronounced: UHN-puhr-suhn, noun Notes: I thought that this word was a verb; nonetheless, I was close to the meaning (however, I did not know the background) Yesterday’s word The word manqué means “short of or frustrated in the fulfillment of one’s aspirations or talents” Background / Comments This word is usually used post-positively (that is,Continue reading “unperson”

Pronounced: mah(n)-KAY, adj (the ‘n’ is barely pronounced) Notes: I wish I’d known this word; there are people I’ve met over the course of my life that this word fits well. Yesterday’s word In addition to the usual plant/food meanings, the word cabbage can mean, as a noun: money, especially in the form of billsContinue reading “manqué”

Pronounced: KAB-ij, noun/verb Notes: I don’t mean the plant or the food; it has other meanings that surprised me. Do you know them? Yesterday’s word The word plenipotentiary means invested with full power of or relating to a person invested fully to transact any business Background / Comments The word derives from two Latin roots:Continue reading “cabbage”

Pronounced: pleh-nuh-puh-TEN-shuh-ree (also pleh-nuh-puh-TEN-shree), adj Notes: Today’s word is long, but I’ve run across it in reading Yesterday’s word The word baragnosis means “loss of the ability to sense weight” Background / Comments Even after reading the definition, I’m was uncertain of what it meant: did it mean unaware of one’s own weight? (the sampleContinue reading “plenipotentiary”

Pronounced: bar-ag-NO-sis or ba-RAG-no-sis, noun Notes: I recognized part of the word, but I had no idea of the meaning… and even after reading the definition, I’m not sure I really understand the word. Yesterday’s word The word meme means an idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a cultureContinue reading “baragnosis”

Pronounced: meem, noun Notes: I think a lot of people know at least one meaning; the word has an interesting background Yesterday’s word The word louche means “not reputable or decent” Background / Comments I have heard the phrase (or thought I heard) “loose morals” or “loose living” for many years, but now I’m wonderingContinue reading “meme”

Pronounced: loosh, adj Notes: I didn’t know this word, but it made me wonder about a few things (see tomorrow’s comments) Yesterday’s word The word bathophobia is “a fear of depths or of falling from a height” Background / Comments As you may have figured out, this is a Greek-based word; a combination of bathosContinue reading “louche”