androcracy

Pronounced: an-DROK-ruh-see, noun

Notes: This was a borderline case; I worked out this meaning — you probably can, too

Yesterday’s word

The word williwaw means

  • a sudden violent gust of cold land air common along mountainous coasts of high latitudes
  • a violent commotion
First usage

The word showed up in the mid-1800s

Background / Comments

Our word is interesting because it just appeared in the year above, and the origin is a mystery. It was first used to name fierce winds in the Strait of Magellan. The writers were British, so it is theorized that they learned the word from British sailors and/or seal hunters. I ran across the word in a story I read in high school that used the word to describe a storm on Attu, part of the Aleutians. I could tell from the context that it was a kind of storm, but I didn’t look up the exact meaning.

williwaw

Pronounced: WIH-lih-waw, noun

Notes: I’ve run across the word in reading an had an idea of the meaning from the context, but I found the origin interesting

Yesterday’s word

The word ailurophobia is “a fear of cats”

First usage

This word showed up in the first decade of the 1900s

Background / Comments

As with many of the “phobia” words, the source is Greek; the combination of ailuro- (cat) and phobia (fear).

ailurophobia

Pronounced: aye-loor-uh-FOE-bee-uh (alternative: ay-loor-uh-FOE-bee-uh), noun

Notes: A fear of something, but I could not figure out the word

Yesterday’s word

The word chautauqua is “any of various traveling lectures and performances that flourished in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

First usage

Came into usage in the mid-1800s

Background / Comments

The original Chautauqua was started just after the US Civil War at Chautauqua Lake in New York State as an assembly for training church workers. After a while, the program was broadened to include lectures on a wide variety of subjects, as well as entertainment. The event proved so successful that it spawned other chautauquas throughout the US, each offering a mix of education, entertainment, and religion. Chautauquas reached their peak in the 1920s but greatly dwindled by the 1940s. The original institution at Chautauqua Lake still offers an annual program of performances and lectures. I was unaware of this bit of US history, but just after I used this word, I ran across it in an article about a man; he was a speaker at an chautauqua.

chautauqua

Pronounced: shuh-TAW-kwe, noun

Notes: I think only US history buffs may get this one

Yesterday’s word

The word sitomania means “an abnormal craving for food”

First usage

The word came into English in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

This is another word from Greek: sito- (grain, food) plus -mania (excessive enthusiasm or craze). Because of the word ‘abnormal’ in the definition, I’m not certain if this word is appropriate for pregnancy cravings. Note that there is an opposite — sitophobia (a morbid aversion to food).

sitomania

Pronounced: sy-tuh-MAY-nee-uh, noun

Notes: A word I didn’t know, but I is something we could use

Yesterday’s word

The word lickerish means “greedy; desirous” or “lecherous”

First usage

This word showed up in the mid-1600s

Background / Comments

This word came into English twice; the background is the Anglo-French word lecher (to lick; to live in debauchery). In the 1300s when it first came over, it was lickerous, but by the 1600s, this word wasn’t used, and the variant lickerish was used to describe both a person who is fond of good food and the tempting food itself. Then the word was extended and because a synonym of “greedy” and “desirous”. Its use extended again to describe people and things having or suggesting lustful desires, and thus we have the current meaning.

lickerish

Pronounced: LIH-krish (alt LIK-kuh-rish), adj

Notes: Not what I thought

Yesterday’s word

The word monophobia means (as you may have figured out) “fear of being alone”

First usage

The word came into being in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

The word comes from two pretty well-known Greek words: mono- (one) and -phobia (fear). This sounds like a pretty terrible phobia, as most people are alone at some point in their lives.

monophobia

Pronounced: mon-uh-FOE-bee-uh, noun

Notes: I almost didn’t use this one; I think it’s guessable

Yesterday’s word

The word quantal means “of, relating to, or having only two experimental alternatives (such as dead or alive, all or none)”. It can also refer to something that relates to a quantum.

First usage

This word is relatively recent, coming about in the 1930s

Background / Comments

The word comes from Latin, from the word quanti, which is the plural of quantus (how much?). We also get the word “quantity” from the same root.

quantal

Pronounced: KWAHN-tuhl, adj (the “uh” is barely pronounced)

Notes: Interesting word

Yesterday’s word

The word segue means (as a verb) “to make a smooth transition from once section or topic to another, in conversation, music, film, etc. As a noun, it refers to such a transition.

First usage

This word came into English in the mid-1700s

Background / Comments

The word comes from Italian segue (there follows), which is the third-person singular present of seguire (to follow), which came from Latin sequi (to follow).

segue

Pronounced: SEG-way (alternatively, SAY-gway), verb/noun

Notes: This is a word I know in pronunciation (you probably do, too), but I wasn’t aware of the correct spelling

Yesterday’s word

The word sprachgefühl means “an intuitive sense of what is linguistically appropriate”

First usage

This word came into English in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

As you can probably guess, this word comes from German: spache (language, speech) plus gefühl (feeling). It’s a great capability to have, but the word is relatively rare.

Rejected word

The word allusion (an indirect reference to something – as in literature) was rejected because I knew the meaning. I actually enjoying sprinkling my speech with allusions (some easier to figure out than others).

sprachgefühl

Pronounced: SPRACK-guh-fuel, noun

Notes: This is a great word to know

Yesterday’s word

The word sophrosyne means “soundness of mind, as expressed in moderation, self-control, and prudence

First usage

This word goes back to the late 1800s

Background / Comments

The word comes from the Greek word sophrosyne which comes from sophon (of sound mind, prudent). As I noted yesterday, the pronunciation is a bit unusual.