papilionaceous (puh-pil-ee-uh-NAY-shuhs) adjective
1. Of or pertaining to a butterfly.
2. Belonging to the Papilionaceae family whose plants have petals in the
form of a butterfly, mostly legumes, such as peas and beans.
[From Latin papilion-, stem of papilio (butterfly).]
doolally (DU-lah-lee) adjective
Irrational, deranged, or insane
[After Deolali, an Indian town where British soldiers went mad with waiting for transport.]
ubiety (yoo-BY-i-tee) noun
The condition of existing in a particular location
[From Latin ubi (where) + -ety, a variant of ity.]
ambit (AM-bit) noun
1. Circumference, boundary, or circuit.
2. Scope, range, or limit
[From Latin ambitus (going around), from ambire (to go around).]
"It was an elective office, but it was a legal office, and it had a wide
ambit in social and economic issues."
James Traub, The Attorney General Goes to War, The New York Times
Magazine, Jun 16, 2002.
estival (ES-ti-vuhl) adjective
also aestival, Relating to or occurring in summer
[From Latin aestivus (or or relating to summer) via Old French.]
lanate (LAY-nayt) adjective
Having a woolly surface
[From Latin lanatus, from lana (wool).]
eviscerate (ee-VIH-ser-ayt) verb
1. To remove the entrails of; disembowel.
2. To take away a vital or essential part of
[Latin viscerre, viscert-, ex- + viscera (internal organs)]
tendentious (ten-DEN-shuəss) adjective
written or spoken by somebody who obviously wants to promote a particular cause or who supports a particular viewpoint
[From Medieval Latin tendentia (a cause)]
acuminate (uh-KYOO-mih-nayt) verb
Tapering gradually to a sharp point, as the tips of certain leaves.
[Latin acmintus, past participle of acminre (to sharpen), from acmen (acuteness)]
adagio (ah-DAZH-(ee)-oh) adjective, adverb
In a slow tempo, usually considered to be slower than andante but faster than larghetto. Used chiefly as a direction.
[Italian ad- (at) + agio (ease)]
reticent (REHT-ih-sehnt) adjective
1. Inclined to keep one's thoughts, feelings, and personal affairs to oneself.
2. Restrained or reserved in style.
3. Reluctant; unwilling.
[Latin reticens, reticent- present participle of reticere (to keep silent) : re- + tacere, (to be silent)]
suppurate (SUHP-yuh-rayt) verb intr.
To produce or secrete pus.
[From Latin suppuratus, past participle of suppurare, from sub- + pur- (pus).]
{Note about grammar: I think grammar is really groovy, and as I only recently learned what transitive and intransitive verbs are, I thought I should pass the knowledge along. A transitive verb is one that takes a direct object and an intransitive verb is one that does not.
Example:
Intransitive verb: It snows on the field. "Snows" is the intransitive verb, and you cannot have a direct object unless you say "it snows snow." The rest of my example sentence is a prepositional phrase that describes where it is snowing.}
winsome (WIN-suhm) adjective
1. Cheerful; merry; gay; light-hearted.
2. Causing joy or pleasure; agreeable; pleasant.
[Winsome is from Old English wynsum, from wynn (joy) + -sum (equivalent to Modern English -some, meaning "characterized by")]
capricious (kuh-PREE-shus) adjective
Apt to change suddenly; whimsical; changeable.
[Capricious comes, via French, from Italian capriccio, a shivering, a shudder, finally (influenced by Italian capra, goat) a whim, from capo, head (from Latin caput) + riccio, hedgehog (from Latin ericius). The basic idea is that of a head with hair standing on end, like the spines of a hedgehog.]
lightsome (LIYT-suhm) adjective
1. Providing light; luminous.
2. Covered with or full of light; bright.
3. Light, nimble, or graceful in movement.
4. Free from worry or care; cheerful.
5. Frivolous; silly.
[Light-Old English lçocht . Ultimately from an Indo-European word that is also the ancestor of English levity and lung.]
obdurate (OB-dur-uht) adjective
1. Hardened in wrongdoing or wickedness; stubbornly impenitent
2. Hardened against feeling; hardhearted
3. Not giving in to persuasion; intractable.
[Middle English obdurat, from Late Latin obduratus, past participle of obdurare (to harden) from Latin (to be hard, endure): ob- + durus (hard)]
addicted (uh-DIKT-ihd) past participle
1. To cause to become physiologically or psychologically dependent on a habit-forming substance
2. To occupy (oneself) with or involve (oneself) in something habitually or compulsively
[Latin addicere (to sentence, to favor):ad- + dicere (to adjudge, to say)]
meretricious (mehr-eh-TRISH-us) adjective
1. Attracting attention in a vulgar manner, gaudy
2. Plausible but false or insincere; specious: a meretricious argument
3. Of or relating to prostitutes or prostitution
[Latin meretricius (of prostitutes) from meretrix, meretrc- (prostitute) from merre (to earn money)]
truculent (TRUK-yu-lent) adjective
1. Disposed to fight; pugnacious.
2. Expressing bitter opposition; scathing
3. Disposed to or exhibiting violence or destructiveness; fierce.
[Latin truculentus, from trux, truc- (fierce)]
belligerent (bull-IJ-er-ent) adjective
1. Inclined or eager to fight; hostile or aggressive.
2. Of, pertaining to, or engaged in warfare.
noun
One that is hostile or aggressive, especially one that is engaged in war.
[Latin belligerans, belligerant- present participle of belligerare (to wage war) from belliger (warlike) : bellum(war) + gerere(to make)]
unabashed (un uh BASHT) adjective
1. Not disconcerted or embarrassed; poised.
2. Not concealed or disguised; obvious
[Middle English abaishen (assumed), from Middle French abair (to astonish, alter)]
unfulfilled (uhn-fuhl-FIHLD) adjective
1. not developed or made use of adequately or to the fullest possible extent
2. not satisfied, especially by not having fully realized ambitions or potential
pentimento (pen-tuh-MEN-toh) noun, plural pentimenti
A painting or drawing that has been painted over and shows through it.
[From Italian pentimento (repentance), from pentire (to repent), from Latin paenitere (to regret).]
peregrination (pehr-uh-gruh-NAY-shun) noun
A traveling from place to place; a wandering.
[Peregrination comes from Latin peregrinatio, from peregrinari (to stay or travel in foreign countries) from peregre (foreign) from per (through) + ager(land)]
unfaltering (uhn-FAWL-tuhr-ing) adjective
marked by firm determination or resolution; not shakable
[un + Middle English falteren (to stagger) possibly from Old Norse faltrask (to be puzzled, hesitate)]
outre (oo-TRAY) adjective
Unconventional; eccentric; bizarre.
[Outre comes from French, from the past participle of outer (to exaggerate, to go beyond) from Latin ultra (beyond)]
Definitions taken from Dictionary.com and Wordsmith.org
