Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, my words are from an online magazine called Death and Taxes. They put together a list of 18 Obsolete Words that Should Never Have Gone Out of Style. There are some great words on that list – you should read the whole list – and here are my favorites:

Spermologer: A picker-up of trivia, of current news, a gossip monger, what we would today call a columnist — “The Word Museum: The Most Remarkable English Words Ever Forgotten” by Jeffrey Kacirk

Resistentialism: The seemingly spiteful behavior shown by inanimate objects —www.ObsoleteWord.Blogspot.com

Wonder-wench: A sweetheart — “The Word Museum: The Most Remarkable English Words Ever Forgotten” by Jeffrey Kacirk

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, my words are from all over! The first one is from an article in The Atlantic about convenience foods. Others are from my current read, Waiting for Sunrise by William Boyd. It has taken me a couple of weeks to get through this, which isn’t a good sign. Hopefully, I’ll get drawn in soon.

1. Commensality - Fellowship at table; the act or practice of eating at the same table.

“Americans cling to the ideal of family commensality as an elixir for personal and societal ills (e.g., children’s vulnerability to drugs, smoking, and obesity) and as de rigueur for kindling children’s school success.”

2. Parterre - A level space in a yard occupied by an ornamental arrangement of flower beds

“He could walk the graveled, weedy paths of the neglected parterre whenever he felt like fresh air or needed exercise.”

3. Calabashes – gourds

“It was full of artefacts from  Hamo’s trips to west and central Africa – sculptures, pottery, calabashes, animal hides on the door.”

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, my words are from Waiting for Sunrise by William Boyd.

1. Architraves - The molded frame around a doorway or window.

“…the slanting sunrays picking out the details on the grand, solid buildings, casting sharp, dark shadows on the caryatids and the friezes, the pediments and the cornices, the balusters and the architraves.

2. Capuziner - Cappuccino, from a name for the Capuchin monks the drink is named for.

“When [the brandy] arrived, he tipped it in his capuziner and took out Blanche’s letter.”

3. Frowsty – Stale and unclean smelling

“He remembered the small frowsty room in Dover Street, the one gas lamp, cleanish sheets on the narrow bed.”

What new words did you learn this week?

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, my words are from An Extraordinary Theory of Objects: A Memoir of an Outsider in Paris by Stephanie la Cava. My Teaser yesterday was about sailing miniature ships in the bidet (everyone knows what a bidet is, right?). These are some of the words I wasn’t so familiar with — the nice thing is that most of them are well-defined in the text:

1. Aposematic – Coloration or markings that serve to repel or warn predators

Poison arrow tree frogs’ colorful skins are the furthest adaptation from camouflage, rather aposematic markings signaling to predators that the paper clip-sized creatures can kill.

2. Tapirage – a method of changing color

“Legend says that certain indigenous tribes would rub a variety of the poison on the skins of young parrots to make their feathers fill out in different colors, a process called tapirage.”

3. Busk - A stay or stiffening strip for a corset

“Perhaps the most coveted work was a busk, a gift for a love waiting patiently at home, made of a slab of bone that would be used as a stay in corsets.

4. Entheogens - A psychoactive substance used for the purpose of inducing a mystical or spiritual experience.

“In later years Wasson, who detested the word hallucinogens, preferred to use the word entheogens instead, which means ‘god within’.”

5. Sumptuary Laws - Laws made for the purpose of restraining luxury or extravagance, particularly against inordinate expenditures in the matter of apparel, food, furniture, etc. Traditionally, they were laws that regulated and reinforced social hierarchies and morals through restrictions on clothing, food, and luxury expenditures.

“The gems were rare in Egyptian jewelry, and is said that Julius Caesar tried to create sumptuary laws that restricted the wearing of pearls to only Rome.”

And here’s a word I came across online that I love! And, in fact, it’s an excellent description of my reading habits:

6. Librocubicularist - A person who reads in bed

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This is the final batch of words from Something Red. Starting next week, I hope to have some new words from some new books.

1. Watchet - a light blue color

“Over hose of green went an overshirt of watchet-colored wool; to Hob’s delight, there was a leather belt dyed a rich blue, with a gilt buckle.”

2. Caitiff – wretched, cowardly

“Nay,  brother, I flee this field of battle; I confess myself a caitiff knight; you must fight yourself free of these ferocious women.”

3. Smaragds – emeralds

“On her wrist, all bone and dry loose white skin, was a silver bracelet studded with smaragds, glints of green in the light from the fireplace.”

4. Mortrews – Leftover foods, especially  meats ground in a mortar and re-served

“In addition, there was a nearly untouched dish of salt-cod mortrews; the fish pounded, mixed with stock and eggs and crumbled bread, and the resulting dumpling poached.

5. Camlet - A rich cloth of Asian origin, supposed originally to have been made of camel’s hair and silk and later made of goat’s hair and silk or other combinations.

“…the tall esquire turned and went into the passageway to the kitchen, returning at once with a camlet cloak that they had brought down with them from their quarters.”

6. Cramoisy - Crimson

7. Perse - Dark grayish blue or purple

“He asked at one point, as he stood there with overgowns of different colors, cramoisy in one hand and perse in the other.”

8. Spalpeen - a rascal or layabout

“This drink, this singing, is that which Herself had from the Great Queen; whatever that smiling spalpeen may have used, it was not this drink, nor this singing.”

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week,I’ve got more words from Something Red by Douglas Nicholas. Like I said last week, medieval novels always give you some great choices:

1. Virgate - A varying measure of land, typically 30 acres

“Osbert’s grandafther, Forwin atte Well, had been a prosperous householder — Osbert still had his tunic, dyed a forest green and trimmed with squirrel –farming his three virgates of land…”

2. Housecarl – A member of the body-guard of a Danish or English king or noble.

“In keeping the peace in his house he was aided by three stalwart and jovial sons and a few housecarls.”

3. Traneen - chiefly Irish. : something of little or no value, a trifle

“She looked away and spoke towards the fire. ‘It’s not that I care a traneen, mind.’”

4. Reeve - The president of a village or town council.

“His wealth and influence in the region were such that no reeve molestd him, and though the village priest was known to grumble bitterly, nothing more than that came of it.”

5. Selions - a mediaeval open strip of land or small field used for growing crops, usually owned by or rented to peasants

“The fields were divided among villagers, so that they looked like the blankets sewed from scraps by the grandmams in Hob’s old village: square furlongs and long, narrow selions all set this way and that to follow the runoff of rainwater.”

6. Falchion - A broad, slightly curved sword with the cutting edge on the convex side

“He ran at the outlaw, who bore a short heavy falchion and a targe much like Jack’s own, but without a spike.”

7. Murrey - The deep purple-red color of a mulberry.

“Fastened to his surcoat was a brooch worn as a badge: a silver disk inlaid with murrey-colored enamel, against which the white fountain of Blanchefontaine stood out, rendered in raised silver.”

You don’t need to hear anything but these words to know when this story takes place, do you?

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, my words are from Something Red by Douglas Nicholas. Doesn’t it always seem that medieval books give you a whole host of new words — words that you probably won’t get a chance to use in casual conversation. Here’s my crop from Something Red so far:

1. Pintle: A pin or a bolt on which another part pivots.

“Hob led the ox inside, and closed the stall door on its creaking wooden pintles.”

2. Cotehardie:  14th to 16th-century unisex garment tailored to fit the torso and arms, usually with a row of buttons down the front as well as down each fitted sleeve from the elbow to the wrist.

“She had donned a plain white woolen cotehardie and had pushed the snug sleeves up her arms a little way to keep them free of her food.”

3. Escaffignons: a small light shoe made from rich material.

“Hob had a glimpse of silken escaffignons, Heaven blue, on tiny feet, peeping from beneath her robe.”

4. Dorter: a dormitory or residence hall.

“Dimly, he remembered stumbling up with Jack Brown to the men’s dorter.”

5. Pelice: a fur-lined garment

“The door opened and Doctor Vytautas, swathed in a generous linen night-robe and a sable-lined pelice, came out onto the little black platform.”

I was not able to find a good definition for pelice. The closest I could find in a couple of medieval clothing references, was pelican, a fur-lined garment worn between the chemise and the cote. Seemed pretty close to me.

6. Pawl: A hinged or pivoted device adapted to fit into a notch of a ratchet wheel to impart forward motion or prevent backward motion.

“Hob heard the gates close behind them, and a moment later the clack clack of the pawls: just ahead, the portcullis slid sideways into the rock.”

So, medieval clothes and architecture. I don’t think I’ll be able to slip them into cocktail party conversation, but they are still fun to know.

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

Today, my words come from Killing Them Softly (Cogan’s Trade Movie Tie-in Edition) (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard). I picked it up on a whim at the airport, and I’ve got mixed feelings about it. Be sure to check back for my review.

1. Jalousied – fitted with jalousies (window slats)

“The jalousied door of Room 26 was slightly ajar.”

This is one of those words that I have seen before, but I never stopped to look up.

2. Ginzo – an ethnic slur for a person of Italian descent

“The guy from Detroit,” Cogan said. “Sharp-looking little ginzo.”

What new words did you learn this week?

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, my words are from Buried on Avenue B by Peter de Jonge. Tore through this one – terrific mystery! Be sure to check back for the review!

1. Libitinarii – Roman undertakers

“The text continues: ‘The Libitinarii would then ensure…’”

2. Terpsichorean - of or related to dancing

“There are the acrobatic Hungony sisters, ‘marvels of strength and agility,’ and the Marvells themselves, contortionists who perform ‘terpsichorean originalities and odd feats of gyration with curious comic episodes.’”

3. Dysplasia - Abnormal development or growth of tissues, organs, or cells.

“Each of those lines, which is a form of dysplasia, was left on the teeth after a serious illness or a very high fever.”

Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.

This week, I’ve got more words from The Meaning of Night: A Confession, by Michael Cox. There were so many new words in the book, it required multiple weeks!

1. Encomia - a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly

“And I am naturally sensible of the encomia he has seen fit to bestow on me.”

2. Sciagraphs - an old term for photographic negatives

“..where I was inducted into the art of producing photogenic drawings of the kind I had seen in New College, and into all the mysteries of sciagraphs, developers, and exposure;”