Category Archives: word

Pronounced: purr-FORCE, adv Notes: This didn’t mean what I thought it meant… Yesterday’s word The word dundrearies is “long, flowing sideburns” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments Our was named after Lord Dundreary, a character in the play Our American Cousin by Tom Taylor. Lord Dundreary had long,Continue reading “perforce”

Pronounced: done-DRIR-eez, noun Notes: This word has an interesting tie-in with a US President Yesterday’s word The word totes means “totally; absolutely; definitely” First usage Our word came into English in the 2000s (2000-2009)! Background / Comments I think our word is the first one from the 21st century. It is merely a shortening ofContinue reading “dundrearies”

Pronounced: tohts, adv Notes: This may be newest word I’ve featured to date (and it’s not a brand name) Yesterday’s word The word salvo means a simultaneous discharge of two or more guns or bombs a sudden burst a spirited attack First usage Our word came into English in the late 1500s Background / CommentsContinue reading “totes”

Pronounced: SAL-voh, noun Notes: I thought this was a synonym for “gunfire”, but that’s not correct Yesterday’s word The word ambivert is “one having the characteristics of both an extrovert and an introvert” First usage Our word came into English in the 1920s Background / Comments At first glance, our word seems to have contradictoryContinue reading “salvo”

Pronounced: AM-bih-vuhrt, noun Notes: This is another word that I didn’t know the meaning of, but after reading it, it made sense Yesterday’s word The word zaftig means “having a full rounded figure; pleasantly plump” First usage Our word came into English in the 1930s Background / Comments Our word came from the Yiddish wordContinue reading “ambivert”

Pronounced: ZAFF-tig, adj Notes: Not a word I know about Yesterday’s word The word superbious means “proud; insolent” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1500s Background / Comments It is nice to have another word for “proud” in my vocabulary. Our word came from the Latin word superbiosus (proud; insolent), whichContinue reading “zaftig”

Pronounced: su-PUHR-bee-us, adj Notes: A new word for me – and a useful one! Yesterday’s word The word bioturbation is “the restructuring of sedimentary deposits (such as at the bottom of a lake or seabed) by moving organisms (such as worms or burrowing clams)” First usage Our word came into English in the 1960s BackgroundContinue reading “superbious”

Pronounced: by-oh-tuhr-BAY-shun, noun Notes: This is one of the words about which I had no inkling of the meaning, but when I saw it, I thought “of course!” (perhaps you will do better than me) Yesterday’s word The word handfast, as a noun, means “a contract or agreement, especially about a betrothal of marriage”. AsContinue reading “bioturbation”

Pronounced: HAND-fast, noun/verb Notes: I don’t think I’ve run across this — you may be able to guess one of the definitions Yesterday’s word The word wifty means “eccentrically silly or scatterbrained; ditzy” First usage Our word came into English in the 1910s (but see Comments below) Background / Comments The reference material indicated thatContinue reading “handfast”

Pronounced: WHIFF-tea, adj Notes: Another word that I have not heard about Yesterday’s phrase The phrase dead hand means the stifling influence of something, especially of the past on the present the perpetual ownership of property by institutions, such as churches First usage Our phrase came into English in the early 1600s Background / CommentsContinue reading “wifty”