Category Archives: word

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 a usually cylindrical box for holding light articles of attire a structure (such as a baseball park) having relatively small interior dimensions First usage Our word came intoContinue 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 a tuft of hair brushed up above the forehead a woman considered to be promiscuous First usage The first definition came into English in the late 1800s; the second definition cameContinue 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 an apprehensive, indecisive person (lowercase) a small villiage (but see the Comments below) 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 IContinue reading “cathexis”

Pronounced: HAM-lit, noun Notes: There are a couple of meanings; one is pretty well known, but the other one is surely related to the Shakespeare play Yesterday’s word The word consigliere is “counselor; advisor” First usage Our word came into English in the 1600s (but see Comments below) Background / Comments Our word came fromContinue reading “Hamlet”

Pronounced: cone-sill-YEH-reh, noun Notes: The word looks Italian to me, but I didn’t know the definition Yesterday’s word The word Bardolphian means “have a red complexion, especially a red nose” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1700s Background / Comments I was way off on my guess at the meaning of ourContinue reading “consigliere”

Pronounced: bar-DOL-fee-uhn, adj Notes: I’ve not run across this word Yesterday’s phrase The phrase warp speed is “the highest possible speed” First usage Our phrase came into English in the 1960s (possibly the 1970s) Background / Comments If you thought that warp speed was related to the speed of light, you probably enjoy science fiction.Continue reading “Bardolphian”

Pronounced: warp speed, noun Notes: How one defines this depends upon how much of a science fiction aficionado one is Yesterday’s word The word benedict is “a newly married man; especially one who was previously thought to be a confirmed bachelor” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1800s Background / CommentsContinue reading “warp speed”

Pronounced: BEN-ih-dict, noun Notes: I know “benediction”, but not this word Yesterday’s word The word epenthesis is “the insertion or development of a sound or letter in the body of a word” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments There are lots of examples of this – one ofContinue reading “benedict”

Pronounced: ih-PEN-thuh-sus (alt: ih-PENT-thus-sus), noun Notes: A technical term that many of us have experience with Yesterday’s word The word Ophelian means “displaying madness, suicidal tendencies, and similar characteristics” First usage Our word came into English in the first decade of the 1900s Background / Comments You probably recognized (as I did) “Ophelia”, a characterContinue reading “epenthesis”