Category Archives: word

Pronounced: tan-TER-uh, noun Notes: I should try to use this word Yesterday’s word The word juberous means “doubtful; undecided; hestitating” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments Our word is merely an altered form of dubious.

Pronounced: JOOB-ur-us, adj Notes: Not a word I’ve run across Yesterday’s word The word slimsy means “flimsy; frail” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments We don’t really know why some words stick around and others don’t. Our word, a blending of slim and flimsy, reached peak popularity inContinue reading “juberous”

Pronounced: SLIM-zee, adj Notes: I didn’t know this was a word; perhaps you can guess the meaning Yesterday’s word The word luteous means First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments Frankly, I don’t know if I’d use this word much; I’d probably describe something as “orange-yellow” or “greenish-yellow” insteadContinue reading “slimsy”

Pronounced: LOO-tee-us, adj Notes: Not a word I knew (and probably not one I can imagine using) Yesterday’s word The word ultima is “the last syllable of a word” First usage Our word came into English in the 1910s Background / Comments I noted yesterday that our word took me back to college; in oneContinue reading “luteous”

Pronounced: UHL-tuh-muh, noun Notes: I should have know this word; it took me back to a college class Yesterday’s word The word leptodactylous means “having slender fingers or toes” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments I could use this word to describe people I know with slender fingers.Continue reading “ultima”

Pronounced: lep-tuh-DAK-tuh-luhs, adj Notes: Interesting word that I didn’t know, but could use Yesterday’s word The word eurytopic means “tolerant of wide variation in one or more environmental factors” First usage Our word came into English in the 1930s Background / Comments Our word came from Greek words eurys (broad; wide) and topos (place). ThereContinue reading “leptodactylous”

Pronounced: yore-ih-TAH-pik, adj Notes: I’ve not run across this word (and I don’t think I can use it very much) Yesterday’s word The word borstal is “a reformatory for young offenders” First usage Our word came into English in the 1900s (1900-1910) Background / Comments I have either read this word somewhere, or perhaps heardContinue reading “eurytopic”

Pronounced: BORE-stuhl, noun Notes: I’ve run across this word, but I didn’t really know the definition Yesterday’s word The word decussate means “to intersect or cross” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments Our word is mostly found in scientific contexts; it came from the Latin word decussatus (dividedContinue reading “borstal”

Pronounced: DEH-kuh-sate, verb Notes: Another of the words I haven’t seen before Yesterday’s word The word vardy means “judgment or opinion” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1700s Background / Comments Our word is a from a dialect variant of verdit, which is from verdict, which is from the Anglo-Normal words verContinue reading “decussate”

Pronounced: VAR-dee, noun Notes: A useful word, but not one I know Yesterday’s word The word extenuate means First usage Our word came into English in the early to mid-1500s Background / Comments As I noted, I have heard the term “extenuating circumstances” — they are, properly, circumstances that mitigate an event. Our word cameContinue reading “vardy”