Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: DEF-luh-grate, verb Notes: I thought this might be putting out a fire (I was wrong) Yesterday’s word The word scaramouch means “a boastful coward, buffoon, or rascal” Background / Comments This is another word from the Italian commedia dell’arte (Italian comic theater popular in the 1500s to 1700s). The character is Scaramouche – heContinue reading “deflagrate”

Pronounced: SCAR-uh-moosh, SCAR-uh-mooch, SKER-uh-moosh, SKER-uh-mooch, noun Notes: Also spelled “scaramouche” Yesterday’s word The word antipode means the parts of the earth diametrically opposite the exact opposite or contrary Background / Comments The word is Greek; anti- (opposite) and the root pod (foot). The place from which I got this word claims that this word wasContinue reading “scaramouch”

Pronounced: AN-tuh-PODE, noun Notes: I’m pretty sure that I could figure out the meaning of this word in context, but I was at a loss when running across it standalone. Yesterday’s word The word cockade refers to “an ornament, such as a rosette or knot of ribbons, worn as a badge on a hat, lapel,Continue reading “antipode”

Pronounced: kah-KADE, noun Notes: I’m pretty sure I’ve run across this word, but I only had a vague sense of the meaning Yesterday’s word The word auctorial means “of or relating to an author” Background / Comments This word has an interesting background… in ancient Rome, auctioneers, grantors, and vendors were called auctors, from theContinue reading “cockade”

Pronounced: awk-TORE-ee-uhl, adj Notes: I’m surprised that I haven’t run across this word, but there is another word that is in more common use Yesterday’s word The word crunt means “a blow on the head with a club” Background The background is unknown, but thought to be an imitative word. First usage This word cameContinue reading “auctorial”

Pronounced: krunt, noun Notes: An interesting word Yesterday’s word The word bimillenary means “a period of 2,000 years” or “a 2,000th anniversary” Background The word was created by adding bi- (an English prefix meaning ‘two’) to millenary, which comes from Latin millenarium (a period of a thousand years). First usage This word isn’t quite 2,000Continue reading “crunt”

Pronounced: bye-MIH-luh-ner-ee, noun Notes: I debated about adding this word… you can probably guess the meaning Yesterday’s word The word capitano means “a swaggering, cowardly person, especially a soldier, policeman, etc” Background The word does mean ‘captain’, but in Italian, not Spanish. But the word comes from another stock character in commedia dell’arte – Capitano.Continue reading “bimillenary”

Pronounced: kap-uh-TAH-no Notes: I guessed some kind of Spanish-English (“Spanglish”) word for “captain” (but that’s not right) Yesterday’s word The word recusant means “refusing to submit to authority” Background / Comments This word goes back to Henry VIII — he separated from the Roman Catholic Church in the mid-1500s and created the Church of England,Continue reading “capitano”

Pronounced: reh-KYUH-zuhnt, adj Notes: There is another word that we use far more often than this word Yesterday’s word The word columbine, as an adjective, means “of or relating to a dove, in innocence, gentleness, color, etc”. As a noun, it can mean: a servant girl a saucy sweetheart a plant of the genus AquilegiaContinue reading “recusant”

Pronounced: KOL-um-bine, noun/adj Notes: This is another multiple-source words. I know one meaning, but there are three different meanings for the noun and one for the adjective. I know one of the noun meanings. Which ones do you know? Yesterday’s word As I mentioned yesterday, I knew that spinous meant “having spines”, but I didContinue reading “columbine”