Search found 7466 matches
- Sun Mar 17, 2024 6:20 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Bonkers
- Replies: 0
- Views: 1228
Bonkers
• bonkers • Pronunciation: bawng -kêrz • Hear it! Part of Speech: Adjective Meaning: 1. Crazy. nuts, balmy, daft, loony, bananas, meshuga. 2. (British navy slang) Tipsy, light-headed, mildly drunk. Notes: Today's word is a rather funny synonym of crazy. It contains a very rare suffix, -ers, which p...
- Sat Mar 16, 2024 10:09 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Blarney
- Replies: 0
- Views: 1269
Blarney
• blarney • Pronunciation: blahr -nee • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun, mass Meaning: 1. Persuasive cajolery, eloquent flattery, silver tongued speech. 2. Nonsense, poppy-cock; foolish, misleading talk. Notes: Today's word is a lexical orphan, albeit an unusual one. It is unusual for a noun to refer...
- Fri Mar 15, 2024 5:15 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Obfuscate
- Replies: 4
- Views: 1134
Obfuscate
• obfuscate • Pronunciation: ahb -fê-skayt • Hear it! Part of Speech: Verb, transitive Meaning: 1. To dim or darken, to obscure by light deprivation or other means. 2. To make confusing, to obscure the meaning of, to make less comprehensible. Notes: The spelling of this word is rather easy since th...
- Thu Mar 14, 2024 9:01 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Relic
- Replies: 0
- Views: 755
Relic
• relic • Pronunciation: re -lik • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: 1. An object or idea that has survived history in ways others in their class have not, a remnant. 2. An object or idea cherished for its association with a famous historical or religious figure, a memento. Notes: Today's word...
- Wed Mar 13, 2024 6:53 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Funambulism
- Replies: 0
- Views: 724
Funambulism
• funambulism • Pronunciation: fê- næm -byê-li-zêm • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: 1. Rope or wire walking, tightrope or slack-rope, highwire, or skywalk. 2. A delicate complicated maneuver requiring a balancing act between two opposing forces. Notes: I love words that lead us down the gar...
- Tue Mar 12, 2024 10:49 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Hypocorism
- Replies: 3
- Views: 375
Hypocorism
• hypocorism • Pronunciation: hai-pê- kor -ri-zêm • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: 1. A pet name, a nickname, an unofficial affectionate label. 2. The use of such names. Notes: Here is the word for all shortened names and some labels, including diminutive nicknames like Billy or Jimmy , or ...
- Mon Mar 11, 2024 10:33 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Furlong
- Replies: 0
- Views: 764
Furlong
• furlong • Pronunciation: fêr -lawng • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: A unit of length measuring 660 feet, 220 yards, 1/8 of a mile or 201 meters. Notes: Here is a word that is bit dated but still available. If you are a horse-racing fan, you hear it often. It is unrelated to furlough , so...
- Sun Mar 10, 2024 10:48 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Apricity
- Replies: 2
- Views: 327
Apricity
• apricity • Pronunciation: ê- pri -si-ti • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: The light or warmth of the sun, especially in winter. Notes: Here is a pretty word with a pleasant meaning that has been crushed under the wheels of time. Actually, before it became a victim of chronology back in the...
- Sat Mar 09, 2024 2:48 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Luftmensch
- Replies: 4
- Views: 860
Re: Luftmensch
Monika Freund sent this comment about luftmensch : In German there is a similar expression: Luftnummer . It means, if someone promises something that, upon closer inspection, turns out to be impossible, that is also a „Luftnummer“. “Das ist eine Luftnummer,” is what people say, for example, when som...
- Fri Mar 08, 2024 7:58 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Meritocracy
- Replies: 2
- Views: 305
Meritocracy
• meritocracy • Pronunciation: mer-ri- tah -krê-si • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: Governance by people chosen on the basis of merit, for their competence rather than birth, wealth or other criteria. Notes: This word, parallel to democracy , comes with the same full panoply of derivational...
- Thu Mar 07, 2024 11:28 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Lambaste
- Replies: 2
- Views: 365
Lambaste
• lambaste • Pronunciation: læm- bayst • Hear it! Part of Speech: Verb, transitive Meaning: No, today's word has nothing to do with basting lamb, not even if you are on the lam: it means 1. to beat or thrash thoroughly or 2. to scold or chastise furiously. Notes: Today's Good Word is a lexical orph...
- Wed Mar 06, 2024 10:34 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Steeplejack
- Replies: 0
- Views: 802
Steeplejack
• steeplejack • Pronunciation: stee -pêl-jæk • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: Someone who works on spires, steeples, smokestacks, and other tall structures. Notes: Today we have a word that reached the height of its popularity in 1940 according to Google Books Ngrams. It is a lovely lexical...
- Mon Mar 04, 2024 6:12 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Fruition
- Replies: 0
- Views: 745
Fruition
• fruition • Pronunciation: fru- i -shên • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun, mass Meaning: 1. Successful completion, fulfillment, materialization, intended results. 2. Enjoyment of something possessed. 3. The action of bearing fruit. Notes: Today's word and fruit are other examples of the English habi...
- Sun Mar 03, 2024 11:24 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Gargantuan
- Replies: 3
- Views: 826
Gargantuan
• gargantuan • Pronunciation: gahr- gæn -chu-ên • Hear it! Part of Speech: Adjective Meaning: Huge, colossal, gigantic. Notes: Today we have a large word referring to extra large objects. It is the adjective made from an archaic word, Gargantua "a giant". A gargantuist at one time referre...
- Sat Mar 02, 2024 11:32 pm
- Forum: Good Word Discussion
- Topic: Hyperbole
- Replies: 1
- Views: 184
Hyperbole
• hyperbole • Pronunciation: hai- pêr -bê-lee • Hear it! Part of Speech: Noun Meaning: A figure of speech that exaggerates for emphasis, metaphoric overstatement. Notes: Today's Good Word belongs to a large and widespread family. The use of hyperboles is hyperbolism, which you get when you hyperbol...