Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: laz-uh-RET-oh, noun Notes: Not a word I’ve ever run across Yesterday’s word The word hypocorism is First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments Before I started this blog, I did a year of vocabulary entries on Facebook, but I found a blog like this to be better. BeforeContinue reading “lazaretto”

Pronounced: hi-PAH-kuh-rih-zuhm, noun Notes: See tomorrow’s comments about this word Yesterday’s word The word Methuselah means First usage Our word came into English in the late 1300s Background / Comments Methuselah is a biblical figure from the Old Testament – he is the longest lived individual, having lived 969 years. Adam, by contrast, lived toContinue reading “hypocorism”

Pronounced: meh-THOO-zuh-luh, noun Notes: There are a couple of meanings; I knew one, and was a bit fuzzy about the other Yesterday’s word The word bumptious means “presumptuously, obtusely, and often noisily self-assertive; obtrusive” First usage Our word came into English around 1800 Background / Comments My idea about our word was that it meanContinue reading “Methuselah”

Pronounced: BUM(P)-shus, adj Notes: I had an idea about this word, but it was (mostly) wrong Yesterday’s word The word Ananias means “a liar” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1800s Background / Comments Our word comes from the Bible; specifically, the book of Acts in the New Testament. But IContinue reading “bumptious”

Pronounced: an-uh-NY-uhs, noun Notes: I did know this word; I find the origin interesting Yesterday’s phrase The phrase Sturm und Drang means “turmoil” First usage Our phrase came into English in the late 1700s Background / Comments As you might expect, our word came from German, which it means “storm and stress”. When it firstContinue reading “Ananias”

Pronounced: shtourm-unt-DRANG, noun Notes: People who know German may know this word Yesterday’s word The word mew can mean, as a noun As a verb, it can mean First usage Various; the first three nouns and the verbs came into English in the late 1300s. The sound definitions (fourth and fifth above) came into EnglishContinue reading “Sturm und Drang”

Pronounced: myoo, noun/verb Notes: I was sure I knew this word, but it had eight definitions; I knew three of them Yesterday’s word The word bandbox is First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments In the 1600s, a “band” could refer to ruffs – the large round collars ofContinue reading “mew”

Pronounced: BAN(d)-box, noun Notes: I think I’ve run across the word, but I didn’t know what it is Yesterday’s word The word quiff means First usage The first definition came into English in the late 1800s; the second definition came into English in the 1920s Background / Comments It is thought that the first definitionContinue reading “bandbox”

Pronounced: kwif, noun Notes: I didn’t know either of the definitions of this word Yesterday’s word The word cathexis is “investment of mental or emotional energy in a person, object, or idea” First usage Our word came into English in the 1920s Background / Comments I confused our word with “catharsis”, which is a purgingContinue reading “quiff”

Pronounced: kuh-THEK-suhs, noun Notes: I confused this word with another word Yesterday’s word The word Hamlet means First usage The first definition came into English in the 1900s (1900-1910); the second definition came into English in the mid-1300s Background / Comments I knew the origin of the first definition (after the main character in Shakespeare’sContinue reading “cathexis”