Category Archives: word

Pronounced: bih-SPOKE, adj Notes: I thought this means “spoken for” or something like that… I was wrong. Yesterday’s word The word flapdoodle means “nonsense”. Background The origin of this word is unknown First usage This word showed up in the mid-1800s.

Pronounced: FLAP-doo-dull, noun Notes: You can probably guess this word, but I couldn’t admit that I knew it, so it’s been added Yesterday’s word The word Beltane is the Celtic May Day festival Background This word has been spelled “beltene”, “belltaine”, and “beltine”: it’s earliest mention was in an old Irish dictionary, attributed to Cormac,Continue reading “flapdoodle”

Pronounced: BELL-tane, noun Notes: I knew a little about this word, but could not properly define it. Yesterdays’ word The word quaquaversal means “sloping downward from a center in all directions” Background It comes from Latin: quaqua (in all directions). Note that quaqua comes from qua (in what direction). To quaqua is added versus (towards).Continue reading “Beltane”

Pronunciation: kwah-kwah-VUR-sal, adj Notes: I didn’t have any idea of this word’s meaning Yesterday’s word The word crural means “of or relating to the thigh or leg; specifically, femoral. Background This word usually shows up in a medical context; a “crural artery” or “crural nerve”. It comes from Latin cruralis, which is a combination ofContinue reading “quaquaversal”

Pronounced: KRUR-uhl, adj Notes: When I look at this word, I see “rural”, but that’s a false clue Yesterday’s word The word whigmaleerie means a whim a fanciful contrivance Background Not a lot of background; it is known to be a Scots term, but that’s about it. First usage The word was first used inContinue reading “crural”

Pronounced: hwig-muh-LIR-ee, noun Notes: Also written whigmaleery. This word also looks like something made up. Yesterday’s word The word dovecote has the following meanings (as I noted yesterday, I knew of the first one, but the second was new to me) a small compartmented raised house of box for domestic pigeons a settled or harmoniousContinue reading “whigmaleerie”

Pronounced: DUHV-coat, noun Notes: This word has one definition that is pretty well known, but I was surprised to see a second definition. Yesterday’s word The word metagrobolize means “to puzzle or to mystify” Background This word comes from Middle French matagraboliser. First usage This word was first used in the mid-1600s.

Pronounced: meh-tuh-GRAHB-uh-lize, verb Notes: This sounds like a made-up word (but it isn’t) Yesterday’s word The word transmogrify means “to change of alter greatly and often with grotesque or humorous effect. As I noted yesterday, Calvin of Calvin and Hobbes created a ‘transmogrifier’ – it was a cardboard box on which he put wrote whatContinue reading “metagrobolize”

Pronounced: trans-MAH-gruh-fie, verb Notes: I first ran across this word in Calvin and Hobbes, but my understanding from the context was a bit off. Yesterday’s phrase The phrase stormy petrel occurs in the Sherlock Holmes story The Naval Treaty – at least, the one I remember: Sherlock Holmes says to Watson “You are the stormyContinue reading “transmogrify”

Pronounced: STOR-mee PEH-truhl, noun Notes: I ran across this phrase in Sherlock Holmes. I knew the meaning from the context, but reading the definition gave me a surprise — there was a second meaning of which I was unaware. Do you know this phrase? Yesterday’s word The word pluvial means of or relating to rainContinue reading “stormy petrel”