February 2018 – WOTDs

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February 2018 – WOTDs

28 February 2018

Foozle

noun

You’d probably hear this one coming out of the home of an old married couple. “Ye olde foozle, ye forgot to lock the door again!” The word foozle means “a conservative, out-of-date person, especially an old man; dodo, fogy.” Fair enough. You can also use this word to imply a bungled effort on someone’s part. Say your first shot off the 18th tee landed in the lake. Well, ya foozled that one.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

elf zoo

26 February 2018

Smell-Feast

noun

Say you’ve laid out a big dinner for some invited guests. Knock knock, someone at the door. Oh, look. It’s an uninvited guest, and they’re expecting to have a slice or two of that fine roast beast on the table. This freeloader is known as a smell-feast. They probably didn’t bring a bottle of wine, either.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

melts fleas
males lefts

25 February 2018

Raggabrash

noun

Do you know someone who is absolutely, completely disorganized or really, disgustingly grubby? That’s raggabrash. Example: “That boy is a total raggabrash!” Think of it as a nicer way of saying “nope, not for me,” since most folks will be left scratching their heads on this one. But you won’t, since you just read this.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

grab rags has

24 February 2018

Cumberworld

noun

While this sounds somewhat like the name of a theme park, or perhaps actor Benedict Cumberbatch’s home, cumberworld was a term used to denote a person that was totally useless (just like fopdoodle). They’re taking up your space and they’re breathing your air. Be off with you.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

crowd rumble
red owl crumb

23 February 2018

Klazomaniac

noun

This would be a person WHO CAN ONLY SPEAK BY SHOUTING. That’s all we’re going to say ABOUT THAT!

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

I lack Amazon
am zinc koala

22 February 2018

roseate

[roh-zee-it, -eyt]

adjective

1. tinged with rose; rosy:
a roseate dawn.
2. bright or promising:
a roseate future.
3. incautiously optimistic:
a roseate forecast for holiday sales.

Anagram

to erase
or tease
rose tea

21 February 2018

Bedswerver

noun

Shakespeare coined this one to describe an adulterer. BBC America thinks this would make a great band name, and they are totally on the mark. You’re at the show, the lights go down, and suddenly through the swirling fog and darkness you hear “Good evening Cincinnati, how ya doing? We are . . . Bedswerver!”

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

served brew
rewed verbs

20 February 2018

Zounderkite

noun

This is a Victorian word meaning “idiot.” An appropriate example with a contemporary angle (spoken with some irritation while driving on the highway): “That zounderkite just cut me off!”

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

our zit kneed
irked zen out
it nuked zero
doze rune kit

19 February 2018

Zooterkins

noun

The website Matador Network says this is “a 17th-century variant of zounds, which was an expression of surprise or indignation.” It’s less of an insult and more of something to yell after someone has insulted you. And, of course, to really pour salt on the wound, you can follow up with some other great words from this list.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

snooker zit
ozone skirt
rent ski zoo

18 February 2018

zounds

[zoundz]

interjection, Archaic.

1. (used as a mild oath.)

Origin of zounds

1590-1600 First recorded in 1590-1600; variant of ‘swounds

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for zounds

Historical Examples

zounds, Hogan, do you mean that Joseph Ashburn was betraying me into this man’s hands?
The Tavern Knight
Rafael Sabatini

Why, zounds, his wife and children were not with him on the pavement.
The Confessions of Harry Lorrequer, Complete
Charles James Lever (1806-1872)

zounds, says the Surgeon in a surprize, what, my Wife dine at your House!
The Tricks of the Town: or, Ways and Means of getting Money
John Thomson

17 February 2018

Whiffle-Whaffle

noun

This is someone who wastes a lot of time. You could easily make the case that a scobberlotcher is also a whiffle-whaffle, correct? And, you most definitely don’t want to work with either of them.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

we whiff half elf

16 February 2018

Scobberlotcher

noun

Mental Floss notes this word is “probably derived from scopperloit, an old English dialect word for ‘a vacation or a break from work’.” A scobberlotcher is someone who avoids hard work . . . like it’s their job. The next time you catch someone dozing off at their desk, hit ’em with this one, even if it is just under your breath.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

cobbler torches
hobbles correct
crocheters blob
rebel scotch bro

15 February 2018

Stampcrab

noun

Someone who’s clumsy and heavy of foot would be considered a stampcrab. Make way for the office stampcrab, especially if you just poured yourself some coffee.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

brats camp

14 February 2018

Snoutband

noun

A snoutband is someone who always interrupts a conversation to correct or contradict the person speaking. Every social group has a snoutband, who thinks they know everything. They probably don’t know the meaning of this word, though. At least, not yet.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

nab donuts
ban donuts
suntan bod
to bad nuns

13 February 2018

Gnashnab

noun

Gnashnab is an 18th century northern English word, meaning “someone who [just] complains all the time.” Contemporary synonyms include nitpicker, moaner, and grumbler. It’s just as true now as it was back then—no one likes a gnashnab.

Anagram

ban gnash

12 February 2018

Gobermouch

noun

An old Irish term for someone who likes to meddle in other people’s business. Everyone knows a busybody, right? Don’t let your gobermouch-in-law or next-door gobermouch have any more control over you than they already do. Shut the blinds and privatize the social media.

www.dictionary.com

Anagram

bug moocher
crumb hoe go

11 February 2018

cullion

[kuhl-yuh n]

noun, Archaic.

1. a base or vile fellow.
Example: He was a cullion whom no-one trusted.

Origin of cullion

Middle English, Middle French, Latin

1350-1400; Middle English culyon, coil(i)on < Anglo-French, Middle French coillon worthless fellow, literally, testicle < Vulgar Latin *cōleōnem, accusative of *cōleō, for Latin cōleī (plural) testicles, scrotum

Dictionary.com

Anagram

I cull no

10 February 2018

hellkite

[hel-kahyt]

noun, Archaic.

1. a fiendishly cruel and wicked person.

Origin of hellkite

1595-1605 First recorded in 1595-1605; hell + kite1

Dictionary.com

Anagram

kilt heel
hike tell

8 February 2018

losel

[loh-zuh l, loo-, loz-uh l] Archaic.

noun

1. a worthless person; scoundrel.
adjective
2. worthless or useless.

Origin of losel

1325-1375; Middle English: literally, one who is lost, equivalent to los- (past participle stem of lose ) + -el -le

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for losel

Contemporary Examples

Yauch is survived by his wife Dechen Wengdu and their daughter, losel.
Adam Yauch, a.k.a. MCA, the Beastie Boy Who Transcended Rap, Dead at 47
Chris Lee
May 4, 2012

Historical Examples

What more could you do, had he bestowed her upon a churl, a losel or a slave?
The Decameron of Giovanni Boccaccio
Giovanni Boccaccio

The ‘ losel,’ the moral outcast, keeps his own conceit of truth though through a maze of lies.
A Handbook to the Works of Browning (6th ed.)
Mrs. Sutherland Orr

8 February 2018

lickspittle

[lik-spit-l]

noun

1. a contemptible, fawning person; a servile flatterer or toady.

Also, Archaic, lickspit [lik-spit]

Origin of lickspittle

1620-1630 First recorded in 1620-30; lick + spittle

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for lickspittle

Historical Examples

You get up right after midnight to practice being a lickspittle and a trimmer!
Such is Life
Frank Wedekind

Anagram

tilt pickles
ticket spill
let lipstick

6 February 2018

prolix

[proh-liks, proh-liks]

adjective

1. extended to great, unnecessary, or tedious length; long and wordy.
2. (of a person) given to speaking or writing at great or tedious length

Origin of prolix

late Middle English Latin

1375-1425; late Middle English < Latin prōlixus extended, long, equivalent to prō- pro-1+ -lixus, akin to līquī to flow; see liquor

Related forms

prolixity [proh-lik-si-tee], prolixness, noun
prolixly, adverb
nonprolix, adjective
nonprolixly, adverb
nonprolixness, noun

Synonyms

1. prolonged, protracted. See wordy. 1, 2. verbose.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for prolix

Contemporary Examples

Wordplay Bradlee could be prolix or pithy, as suited his ends.
Dear Asshole: The Letters of Ben Bradlee From New Biography
Matthew DeLuca
May 12, 2012

Historical Examples

Forgive, most kind reader, the prolix fondness with which I linger on this theme.
Confessions Of Con Cregan
Charles James Lever

To those who do not, I have been prolix without being profitable.
Confessions Of Con Cregan
Charles James Lever

5 February 2018

adipose

[ad-uh-pohs]

adjective

1. fatty; consisting of, resembling, or relating to fat.
noun
2. animal fat stored in the fatty tissue of the body.

Origin of adipose

Latin

1735-1745; < Latin adip-, s of adeps fat, lard + -ose1

Related forms

adiposeness, adiposity [ad-uh-pos-i-tee], adiposis, noun
hyperadipose, adjective
hyperadiposity, noun

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for adipose

Historical Examples

This was an office lined with adipose, with no work to speak of.
Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great, Volume 7
Elbert Hubbard

Fit as a fiddle only he has a lot of adipose tissue concealed about his person.
Ulysses
James Joyce

There are also three beautiful red spots on the adipose fin.
Fly Fishing in Wonderland
Klahowya

He sat, an adipose mass, breathing heavily, and sucking at his cigar.
The Man in the Twilight
Ridgwell Cullum

He works his oxen hard, gives them enough to eat to keep them in full health and vigor, but nothing for adipose.
The Natural Cure of Consumption, Constipation, Bright’s Disease, Neuralgia, Rheumatism,
Charles Edward Page

His bulging eyes grew more and more prominent, and his adipose jaw dropped.
The Sins of Sverac Bablon
Sax Rohmer

She is adipose to a degree that makes her circumference problematical, and her weight a mere matter of conjecture.
The Witches of New York
Q. K. Philander Doesticks

But once they had begun with the meagre child, the adipose old man, the lean or flabby youth, they went on through thick and thin.
Thoughts on Art and Autobiographical Memoirs of Giovanni Dupr
Giovanni Dupr

The acini are imbedded in a mass of adipose tissue which contains the vessels and nerves.
A System of Practical Medicine By American Authors, Vol. II
Various

He perched hesitatingly on the arm of an adipose easy chair, not having been specifically invited to sit.
Winnie Childs
C. N. Williamson

Anagram

sop idea
aide ops
peso aid
soda pie

4 February 2018

aggrieve

[uh-greev]

verb (used with object), aggrieved, aggrieving.

1. to oppress or wrong grievously; injure by injustice.
2. to afflict with pain, anxiety, etc.

Origin of aggrieve

Middle English, Middle French, Latin

1250-1300; Middle English agreven < Middle French agrever < Latin aggravāre to make heavy, worsen, equivalent to ag- ag- + grav- (see grave2) + -āre infinitive suffix; cf. aggravate

Related forms

aggrievement, noun
Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for aggrieve

Historical Examples

No natives know so well how to aggrieve and be unpleasant to travellers.
In Darkest Africa, Vol. 2; or, The quest, rescue and retreat of Emin, governor of Equatoria
Henry Morton Stanley

The mighty mother cannot find it in her heart to pronounce a decision which must aggrieve one of such a devoted pair.
Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 58, Number 358, August 1845
Various

Everything that can most aggrieve the heart of man has befallen me here under his eyes.
A Thorny Path [Per Aspera], Complete
Georg Ebers

Anagram

age giver
give gear
I rave egg

3 February 2018

noddle

[nod-l]

noun, Older Slang.

1. the head or brain.

Origin of noddle

late Middle English

1375-1425; late Middle English nodel

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for noddle

Historical Examples

I remember him because it took some explainin’ to get the bet through his noddle.
Thoroughbreds
W. A. Fraser

Don’t you see that I may have become a rather desirable match for a noddle ?
Little Dorrit
Charles Dickens

And now the sun declines between the noddle Fell and Bleaberry.
The Shadow of a Crime
Hall Caine

Anagram

old den
do lend

2 February 2018

shindig

[shin-dig]

noun, Informal.

1. an elaborate or large dance, party, or other celebration.

Origin of shindig

1855-1860, Americanism; shin1+ dig1; compare slang shinscraper dance

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for shindig

Contemporary Examples

Also at the shindig were Jemma and Jodie Kidd, Pixie Lott, Anna, Hamish and the rest.
Beckham at Belstaff Party on Bond Street: “I’ll Have a Becks, Please.”
Tom Sykes
September 15, 2013

Historical Examples

“It’s no Pike County shindig,” had responded the floor-manager, cheerfully.
Mrs. Skaggs’s Husbands and Other Stories
Bret Harte

Why, we got this shindig up, he noted irreverently, just so Miss Lane could sing at it.
The Girl From His Town
Marie Van Vorst

Anagram

dishing
hidings
hid sign

1 February 2018

organdy or organdie

[awr-guh n-dee]

noun, plural organdies.

1. a fine, thin cotton fabric usually having a durable crisp finish, white, dyed, or printed: used for blouses, dresses, curtains, trimmings, etc.

Origin of organdy

French

1825-1835 First recorded in 1825-35, organdy is from the French word organdi, of obscure origin

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for organdy

Historical Examples

The costumes of organdy and sateen were quite as pretty as the model of silk and satin.
Two Little Women
Carolyn Wells

Molly flushed as she glanced hastily down at her two-year-old organdy.
Molly Brown’s Sophomore Days
Nell Speed

I ought to be sending her in a picture hat with an organdy dress and blue sash to meet Minga.
Under the Law
Edwina Stanton Babcock

organdy ‘s the most unserviceable stuff in the world anyhow, and I told Matthew so when he got it.
Anne Of Green Gables
Lucy Maud Montgomery

Min was wearing an organdy plainly showing signs of service, while Landis was arrayed in a handsome gown of soft blue silk.
Elizabeth Hobart at Exeter Hall
Jean K. Baird

The organdy sash and flounced peplum are designed particularly for her.
Appropriate Clothes for the High School Girl
Virginia M. Alexander

I feel that organdy leads all other materials as desirable for the graduation dress.
Appropriate Clothes for the High School Girl
Virginia M. Alexander

She was as proud in cambric and calico and nankeen as Harriet is to-day in white tulle and organdy.
Around The Tea-Table
T. De Witt Talmage

Judy, ever visualizing, pictured herself in black with organdy collar and cuffs and a mournful, patient look.
Molly Brown of Kentucky
Nell Speed

Word Origin and History for organdy

n.

“fine transparent muslin,” 1829, from French organdi “sorte de Mousseline ou toile de coton” (1725), of unknown origin. Barnhart suggests it is an alteration of Organzi, from medieval form of Urgench, city in Uzbekistan that was a cotton textile center.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Anagram

angry do
God yarn

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