November 2015 – WOTDs

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30 November 2015

zenzizenzizenic

[zen-zee-zen-zee-zen-zik]

noun

– obsolete form of mathematical notation representing the eighth power of a number (that is, the zenzizenzizenzic of a number x is the power x8), dating from a time when powers were written out in words rather than as superscript numbers.

Origin

This term was suggested by Robert Recorde, a 16th-century Welsh writer of popular mathematics textbooks, in his 1557 work The Whetstone of Witte (although his spelling was zenzizenzizenzike); he wrote that it “doeth represent the square of squares squaredly”. At the time Recorde proposed this notation, there was no easy way of denoting the powers of numbers other than squares and cubes. The root word for Recorde’s notation is zenzic, which is a German spelling of the medieval Italian word censo, meaning “squared”. Since the square of a square of a number is its fourth power, Recorde used the word zenzizenzic (spelled by him as zenzizenzike) to express it. Some of the terms had prior use in Latin “zenzicubicus”, “zensizensicus” and “zensizenzum”. This is a condensed form of the Italian censo di censo, used by Leonardo of Pisa in his famous book Liber Abaci of 1202. Similarly, as the sixth power of a number is equal to the square of its cube, Recorde used the word zenzicubike to express it; a more modern spelling, zenzicube, is found in Samuel Jeake’s Logisticelogia. Finally, the word zenzizenzizenzic denotes the square of the square of a number’s square, which is its eighth power. In modern notation it reads:

zenzizenzizenic

As a linguistic oddity, zenzizenzizenic has more Zs than any other word in the Oxford English Dictionary.

Source: wikipedia

29 November 2015

basorexia

[bas-oh-rek-see-uh]

noun

– strong desire to neck or kiss

Example

Her basorexia was both masked by and unleashed under the mistletoe.

Anagram

arabise ox
asia boxer
aria boxes

28 November 2015

autolatry

[aw-tuh-luh-tree]

n.

self-worship,

Origin:

1620s (in Latinate form autolatria), from auto- + -latry.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Example:

Highly critical of religious idolatry, he didn’t understand that his ego and overly developed self-confidence was just autolatry.

Anagram

royal taut
outlay rat

27 November 2015

hydroxyzine

[hahy-drok-suh-zeen]

noun, Pharmacology.

1. an antihistaminic compound, C 21 H 27 ClN 2 O 2, used in the treatment of allergy, nausea, and anxiety.

(Only word in the English language with the letters ‘x,y,z’ in order.

Origin of hydroxyzine

1955-1960; hydroxy- + (pipera)zine

Dictionary.com

hydroxyzine in Medicine

hydroxyzine hy·drox·y·zine (hī-drŏk’sĭ-zēn’)
n. A mild sedative and minor tranquilizer used in the treatment of psychological neuroses.

The American Heritage® Stedman’s Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.

26 November 2015

alphamegamia

[al-fuh-meh-gey-mee-uh]

noun

1. marriage between a younger person and a much older person. Significant age disparity in a relationship.

Example

– The TV show loved stories of alphamegamia and often featured stories about younger men or women marrying much older partners.

Anagram

hip mama algae
age ham impala

25 November 2015

Thermidorian

or Thermidorean

[thur-mi-dawr-ee-uh n, -dohr-]

noun

1. a member of the French moderate group who participated in the downfall of Robespierre and his followers on the 9th Thermidor (July 27th), 1794.
2. a supporter of the reactionary movement following this coup d’état.

Origin of Thermidorian

French

1820-1830; < French thermidorien. See Thermidor, -ian

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for Thermidorian

Historical Examples

Thermidorian Talliens, and mere foes of Terror, rule in this Convention, and out of it.
The French Revolution
Thomas Carlyle

During the Thermidorian reaction he was one of the first to be accused of complicity with the fallen leader, but was acquitted.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 6, Slice 6
Various

During the Thermidorian reaction, in spite of his incontestable honesty, he was accused by the anti-revolutionists.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 3
Various

Cambon soon had reason to repent of that event, for he became one of those most violently attacked by the Thermidorian reaction.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 1
Various

Surprised and menaced by the Thermidorian reaction, he denounced its partisans to the Jacobin club.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7
Various

The Thermidorian government also endeavoured to pacify the rebels of the west.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 2
Various

When the Thermidorian reaction came, all the atrocities of the Reign of Terror were imputed to him.
The Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches of Lord Macaulay, Vol. 3. (of 4)
Thomas Babington Macaulay

Anagram

handier Timor
interim hoard
hit on married

24 November 2015

Jacobin

[jak-uh-bin]

noun

1. (in the French Revolution) a member of a radical society or club of revolutionaries that promoted the Reign of Terror and other extreme measures, active chiefly from 1789 to 1794: so called from the Dominican convent in Paris, where they originally met.
2. an extreme radical, especially in politics.
3. a Dominican friar.
4. (lowercase) one of a fancy breed of domestic pigeons having neck feathers that hang over the head like a hood.

Origin of Jacobin

Middle English, Old French, Medieval Latin

1275-1325; Middle English Jacobin < Old French (frere) jacobin < Medieval Latin (frater) Jacōbinus. See Jacob, -in1

Related forms

Jacobinic, Jacobinical, adjective
Jacobinism, noun

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for Jacobin

Contemporary Examples

On Park Avenue, beards are about as rare as readers of Jacobin.
Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein Goes Hipster With Davos Beard
Daniel Gross
January 24, 2013

The Turkish history of imposed Jacobin Secularism ended up creating virtual segregation against observant Muslims.
Turkey’s Struggle for Checks and Balances
Husain Haqqani
January 2, 2014

There was a chance that he could have been arrested as well for his Jacobin tendencies.
Napoleon Was a Dynamite Dictator
J.P. O’Malley
November 6, 2014

The Jacobin leaders were beset on many sides by enemies, both open and covert. But in the end the most dangerous and unforgiving enemies they faced were themselves. In choosing terror, they chose a path that led to self-destruction.
Choosing Terror: Virtue, Friendship, and Authenticity in the French Revolution
Marisa Linton

Anagram

icon jab
I can job

23 November 2015

flux

[fluhks]

noun

1. a flowing or flow.
2. the flowing in of the tide.
3. continuous change, passage, or movement:
His political views are in a state of flux.
4. Physics.
the rate of flow of fluid, particles, or energy.
a quantity expressing the strength of a field of force in a given area.
5. Chemistry, Metallurgy.
a substance used to refine metals by combining with impurities to form a molten mixture that can be readily removed.
a substance used to remove oxides from and prevent further oxidation of fused metal, as in soldering or hot-dip coating.
(in the refining of scrap or other metal) a salt or mixture of salts that combines with nonmetallic impurities, causing them to float or coagulate.
6. fusion.
verb (used with object)
7. to melt; make fluid.
8. to fuse by the use of flux.
9. Obsolete. to purge.
verb (used without object)
10. to flow.

Origin of flux
Middle English, Latin
1350-1400; Middle English < Latin fluxus a flowing, equivalent to fluc-, variant stem of fluere to flow + -tus suffix of v. action, with ct > x

Related forms

nonflux, noun
superflux, noun
transflux, noun
Synonyms

1. course, current, flood, stream.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for flux

Contemporary Examples

Rome is graceful, outlandish, grand, cold, eternal, in flux, and full of olive-rich contradictions.
The New Fellini: Paolo Sorrentino’s ‘The Great Beauty’
Jimmy So
November 17, 2013

“He is at the core of all the other flux and fluff,” Lawrence warns.
The Quintessential American
James Carroll
December 2, 2009

On Wednesday Beijing began its leadership change even as the political transition process itself remains in flux.
Is Political Change Coming to China?
Melinda Liu
November 7, 2012

22 November 2015

dogma

[dawg-muh, dog-]

noun, plural dogmas or (Rare) dogmata [dawg-muh-tuh] (Show IPA)

1. an official system of principles or tenets concerning faith, morals, behavior, etc., as of a church.
Synonyms: doctrine, teachings, set of beliefs, philosophy.
2. a specific tenet or doctrine authoritatively laid down, as by a church: the dogma of the Assumption;
the recently defined dogma of papal infallibility.
Synonyms: tenet, canon, law.
3. prescribed doctrine proclaimed as unquestionably true by a particular group:
the difficulty of resisting political dogma.
4. a settled or established opinion, belief, or principle:
the classic dogma of objectivity in scientific observation.

Synonyms: conviction, certainty.

Origin of dogma

Latin

1590-1600; < Latin < Greek, equivalent to dok (eîn) to seem, think, seem good + -ma noun suffix

Word story
At the turn of the 17th century, dogma entered English from the Latin term meaning “philosophical tenet.” The Greek word from which it is borrowed means “that which one thinks is true,” and comes ultimately from the Greek dokeîn, which means “to seem good” or “think.”
The origin of the word dogma acts as a reminder to English speakers that now established principles and doctrines were once simply thoughts and opinions of ordinary people that gained popularity and eventually found their way into the universal consciousness of society. Twentieth-century American academic and aphorist Mason Cooley concisely observed that “Under attack, sentiments harden into dogma,” suggesting that dogma is spawned as a defensive act. This idea implies that for every dogma that exists, there is a counter dogma. With so many “truths” out there, there is sure to be a dogma to conveniently fit every set of beliefs.

Popular references

— Dogma: A film written and directed by Kevin Smith, released in 1999.
—Dogma 95: A movement in cinema started by Danish director Lars von Trier in 1995, which established filmmaking constraints such as no use of special effects.
Related Quotations Expand
“Let it be understood once for all that Catholic dogma does not fix a limit to the operations of reason in dealing with divine truth.“
—A. N. Littlejohn, “Catholic Dogma: Its Nature and Obligations“ Catholic Dogma (1892)
“Since the time of Moses Mendelssohn (1728–1786), the chief Jewish dogma has been that Judaism has no dogmas.“
—Israel Abrahams, Judaism (1907)
“To me there was no question so important as the emancipation of women from the dogmas of the past, political, religious, and social.“
—Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Eighty years and more: Reminiscences 1815-1897 (1898)
“Don’t be trapped by dogma—which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.“
—Steve Jobs, “Commencement Address at Stanford University“ American Rhetoric (delivered June 12, 2005)

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for dogma

Contemporary Examples

The fact that those who utter the dogma still support groups that oppose it matters little.
Bad Faith on Two States
Shaul Magid
June 3, 2012

Had Herx said “this dogma is sexist,” that would be well beyond the reach of the courts.
Catholic Church: Religious Freedom Trumps Civil Rights
Jay Michaelson
November 22, 2014

Anagram

go mad

21 November 2015

genteel

[jen-teel]

adjective

1. belonging or suited to polite society.
2. well-bred or refined; polite; elegant; stylish.
3. affectedly or pretentiously polite, delicate, etc.

Origin of genteel

French

1590-1600; < French gentil; see gentle

Related forms

genteelly, adverb
genteelness, noun
pseudogenteel, adjective
quasi-genteel, adjective
quasi-genteelly, adverb

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for genteel

Contemporary Examples

The rolling hills of Oxfordshire, a genteel county in southeastern England, make for ideal riding country.
How Close Is Prime Minister David Cameron to Former Murdoch Deputy Rebekah Brooks?
Mike Giglio
March 13, 2012

Where Richter took moments in the news and gave them a genteel blur, Fabian Marcaccio goes for gross-out goop instead.
A Deity, Doubted
Blake Gopnik
June 3, 2012

Mischievous, more bite than bark in the sense that it was mordant with minimal rhetoric, Heaney was not genteel.
Robert Pinsky: The Comedy of Seamus Heaney
Robert Pinsky
September 30, 2013

Anagram

glee net

18 November 2015

chagrin

[shuh-grin]

noun

1. a feeling of vexation, marked by disappointment or humiliation.
verb (used with object), chagrined or chagrinned, chagrining or chagrinning.
2. to vex by disappointment or humiliation:
The rejection of his proposal chagrined him deeply.
3. Obsolete. shagreen (def 1).

Origin of chagrin

French

1650-1660; < French < ?

Related forms

unchagrined, adjective

Synonyms

1. See shame.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for chagrin

Contemporary Examples

Ari joins the boys, much to the chagrin of his devoted assistant, Lloyd (Rex Lee) and wife, Mrs. Ari (Perrey Reeves).
The Best ‘Entourage’ Cameos
Marlow Stern
July 23, 2011

For now Dondi spends his days wandering the city and getting high, much to the chagrin of his mother, Karen.
This Week’s Hot Reads: Jan. 7, 2013
Mythili Rao
January 6, 2013

He has burrowed so deeply into his work that he hasn’t even bothered to get a tan—much to New York’s chagrin.
Mad Men’s Dramatic Déjà Vu: ‘Time Zones’ Feels Redundant
Andrew Romano
April 13, 2014

Anagram

arching
car nigh

16 November 2015

strepitous or strepitant

[strep-i-tuh s]

adjective

1. boisterous; noisy.

Origin of strepitous

Latin

1675-1685; < Latin strepit (us) noise + -ous

Related forms

unstrepitous, adjective

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for strepitous

Historical Examples

An almost too vivacious rendering of the Venusberg music brought the scheme to a strepitous conclusion.
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 159, October 6, 1920
Various

Anagram

pier stouts
stripes out

15 November 2015

milieu

[mil-yoo , meel-; French mee-lyœ]

noun, plural milieus French, milieux [mee-lyœ]

1. surroundings, especially of a social or cultural nature:
a snobbish milieu.

Origin of milieu

1795-1805; < French, equivalent to mi (< Latin medius middle; see medium ) + lieu lieu

Synonyms

background, sphere, setting. See environment.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for milieu

Contemporary Examples

Packer writes about these people and their milieus beautifully and precisely; respectfully and, when warranted, critically.
Individual Lives in an Unforgiving America
Michael Tomasky
May 21, 2013

Historical Examples

It will be a strange change of milieu for the child, but I have, I think, made her independent of milieus.
Tante
Anne Douglas Sedgwick

14 November 2015

pillion

[pil-yuh n]

noun

1. a pad or cushion attached behind a saddle, especially as a seat for a woman.
2. a pad, cushion, saddle, or the like, used as a passenger seat on a bicycle, motor scooter, etc.
3. a passenger’s saddle or seat behind the driver’s seat on a motorcycle.

Origin of pillion

Scots Gaelic, Irish, Latin

1495-15051495-1505; < Scots Gaelic pillinn or Irish pillín, diminutive of peall skin, rug blanket, MIr pell < Latin pellis skin

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for pillion

Historical Examples

There I sat sideways on a cloth, like a lady of old time on a pillion.
The Flight of the Shadow
George MacDonald

Amphillis sat on the pillion, and meditated on her information as they journeyed on.
The White Lady of Hazelwood
Emily Sarah Holt

Putting on these disguises, Harry mounted his horse, with Jacob seated behind him on a pillion, while Mike rode by his side.
Friends, though divided
G. A. Henty

Anagram

loin lip
ion pill

13 November 2015

Uberous

U´ber`ous

a. 1. Fruitful; copious; abundant; plentiful.

Example:

The uberous presence of private drivers willing to use their own cars as taxis to avoid exorbitant taxi registration fees, was leading to legitimate taxi drivers taking the law into their own hands.

Anagram

euro bus

 

12 November 2015

barghest or barguest

[bahr-gest]

Noun
1. a legendary doglike goblin believed to portend death or misfortune.

Origin of barghest

Old English

1725-1735; apparently bar(row)2+ ghest, Old English gæst, variant of gāst ghost

Dictionary.com Unabridged

Examples from the Web for barghest Expand

Historical Examples

The barghest has a kinsman in the Rongeur d’Os of Norman folklore.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 3
Various

The barghest was essentially a nocturnal spectre, and its appearance was regarded as a portent of death.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition.

11 November 2015

skol

/skɒl/

sentence substitute

1. good health! (a drinking toast)
verb (transitive) skols, skolling, skolled
2. (Austral, informal) to down (an alcoholic drink) in one go

Word Origin

C16: from Danish skaal bowl, from Old Norse skal; see scale ²

Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Examples from the Web for skol Expand

Historical Examples

Scolytus, skol ′i-tus, n. typical genus of Scolyt′id, a family of bark beetles.
Chambers’s Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)
Various

One monster witch is the mother of many sons in the form of wolves, two of which are skol and Hate.
Sketch of the Mythology of the North American Indians
John Wesley Powell

The one hight skol, he runs after her; she fears him and he will one day overtake her.
The Younger Edda
Snorre

10 November 2015

tendentious

[ten-den-shuh s]

adjective

1. having or showing a definite tendency, bias, or purpose:
a tendentious novel.

Also, tendencious, tendential [ten-den-shuh l] (Show IPA).

Origin of tendentious

Medieval Latin
1895-1900; < Medieval Latin tendenti (a) tendency + -ous

Related forms

tendentiously, adverb
tendentiousness, noun

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for tendentious

Contemporary Examples

Again and again, they delivered bloviating, tendentious monologues and then cut Hagel off when he tried to reply.
Hagel Backs Down
Peter Beinart
January 31, 2013

Oh, at this distance almost any answer is likely to be tendentious.
The Stacks: How The Berlin Wall Inspired John le Carré’s First Masterpiece
John le Carré
November 7, 2014

Bereft of serious arguments, anti-Obama types resort to tendentious claims about symbolic slights.
Of Obama and Bagels
Raphael Magarik
July 24, 2012

Historical examples

The fundamental cause of this divergence of indices lies in the fact that Soviet industry has created a series of new branches unknown to tzarist Russia, but a supplementary cause is to be found in the tendentious manipulation of statistics.
Leon Trotsky
The Revolution Betrayed.
1937

Anagram

detention us
duties tonne
denote units
unite stoned

9 November 2015

traceur

/træˈsɜː/

noun

1. a participant in the sport or activity of parkour

Word Origin

C20: French,literally: one who traces

Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Anagram

art cure
true car

8 November 2015

indubitable

[in-doo-bi-tuh-buh l, -dyoo-]

adjective

1. that cannot be doubted; patently evident or certain; unquestionable.

Origin of indubitable

Latin
1615-1625; < Latin indubitābilis. See in-3, dubitable

Related forms

indubitability, indubitableness, noun
indubitably, adverb

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for indubitable

Contemporary Examples

After his shaky hosting—sorry gays—Hugh Jackman is indubitably straight.
Hugh Jackman’s Tony Jumping Fail, Plus the Winners and Standout Moments of Broadway’s Biggest Night
Tim Teeman
June 8, 2014

He must indubitably ascend to The New Yorker and begin teaching at an Ivy League school.
James Wood Gets Personal
Jimmy So
December 20, 2012

And Prince Harry may be a Windsor, but in coloration and temperament he is indubitably a flaming-red Spencer.
Notes From a Royal Wedding
Tina Brown
April 30, 2011

Historical Examples

Ellen turned so indubitably curious a look upon her at this that Miss Sophia half laughed and went on.
The Wide, Wide World
Susan Warner

Yet in their racial and national relationships they are indubitably American.
The American Mind
Bliss Perry

The defence, which would be inadequate if it was true, is indubitably incorrect.
The Works of Alexander Pope, Volume 1
Alexander Pope

indubitably, it would be more likely that a jury would convict Perry.
The Winning Clue
James Hay, Jr.

For indubitably the much-married may plume themselves upon being also the widely sought.
Tiverton Tales
Alice Brown

The time had been discreetly chosen—the coast was indubitably clear.
The Convert
Elizabeth Robins

Yet even a petty supremacy awes the petty, and the sly Welsh girl was indubitably awed.
A Lost Cause
Cyril Arthur Edward Ranger Gull

Anagram

albeit unbid
babied until
audit nibble

7 November 2015

muzhik or moujik, mujik, muzjik

[moo-zhik, moo-zhik]

noun

1. a Russian peasant.

Origin of muzhik

1560-1570; < Russian muzhík, equivalent to muzh husband, man (OCS mǫžĭ, akin to man1) + -ik diminutive suffix

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for muzhik

Historical Examples

The muzhik in the doorway of the hut stood bowing to the ground.
The Strand Magazine, Volume XVII, February 1899, No. 98.
Various

It is the country where a muzhik is as good as a prince of the blood!
Short Stories of the New America
Various

In other respects they resemble very closely the ordinary peasant, or muzhik.
Tramping with Tramps
Josiah Flynt

6 November 2015 

mawkish

[maw-kish]

adjective

1. characterized by sickly sentimentality; weakly emotional; maudlin.
2. having a mildly sickening flavor; slightly nauseating.

Origin of mawkish

late Middle English Old Norse

1660-1670; obsolete mawk maggot ( late Middle English < Old Norse mathkr maggot) + -ish1. See maggot

Related forms

mawkishly, adverb
mawkishness, noun

Synonyms

1. sentimental, teary.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for mawkish

Contemporary Examples

The jibe is off-key too because Wilde himself was hardly immune to the sentimental and even the mawkish.
Charles Dickens’ Enduring Insights on Human Loss and Suffering
David Frum
February 17, 2013

Historical Examples

mawkish and over-mellow becometh the fruit in their hands: unsteady, and withered at the top, doth their look make the fruit-tree.
Thus Spake Zarathustra
Friedrich Nietzsche

For mawkish, sentimental religion the Count had an honest contempt.
History of the Moravian Church
J. E. Hutton

Anagram

ski wham
ask whim

;
5 November 2015

blithe

[blahyth, blahyth]

adjective, blither, blithest.

1. joyous, merry, or gay in disposition; glad; cheerful:
Everyone loved her for her blithe spirit.
2. without thought or regard; carefree; heedless:
a blithe indifference to anyone’s feelings.

Origin of blithe

Middle English, Old English
1000, before 1000; Middle English; Old English blīthe; cognate with Old Norse blīthr, Old High German blīdi, Gothic bleiths

Related forms

blitheful, adjective
blithefully, adverb
blithely, adverb
blitheness, noun
overblithe, adjective

Synonyms

1. happy, mirthful, sprightly, light-hearted, buoyant, joyful, blithesome.

Antonyms

1. joyless.

Blithe

[blahyth, blahyth]

noun

1. a female given name.

Blythe or Blithe

[blahyth, blahyth]

noun
1. a female given name.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for blithe

Contemporary Examples

Flashing a smug grin while throwing up your collective shoulders in blithe befuddlement should convince absolutely no one.
It’s Time to Rip the Money Out of the NCAA
Robert Silverman
March 31, 2014

I missed Don’s chiseled mug and Roger’s blithe wisecracks and Peggy’s prickly chutzpah.
Mad Men’s Dramatic Déjà Vu: ‘Time Zones’ Feels Redundant
Andrew Romano
April 13, 2014

Sadly, Republicans—who have repeatedly slammed Obama for this kind of blithe incoherence—are not immune to the same disorder.
Lobbyist Derangement Syndrome Sweeps DC
James Poulos
August 7, 2014

Anagram

be hilt

4 November 2015

perspicacious

[pur-spi-key-shuh s]

adjective

1. having keen mental perception and understanding; discerning:
to exhibit perspicacious judgment.
2. Archaic. having keen vision.

Origin of perspicacious

1610-1620; perspicaci(ty) + -ous

Related forms

perspicaciously, adverb
perspicaciousness, noun

Can be confused

perspicacious, perspicuous.

Synonyms

1. perceptive, acute, shrewd, penetrating.

Antonyms

1. dull, stupid.

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for perspicacious

Historical Examples

But no matter how perspicacious one may be, one will never be able to decide anything to his disadvantage.
Letters to an Unknown
Prosper Mrime

Such a policy was, of course, indicative of a shrewd and perspicacious mind.
Catherine de’ Medici
Honore de Balzac

He knew him to be nervous, on the one hand, and perspicacious on the other.
Cosmopolis, Complete
Paul Bourget

Anagram

occupies pairs
is soup caprice
icecaps pi ours

3 November 2015

Sisyphean

[sis-uh-fee-uh n]

adjective

1. of or relating to Sisyphus.
2. endless and unavailing, as labor or a task.

Origin of Sisyphean

Greek
1625-1635; < Greek Sīsýphe (ios) ( Sī́syph (os) Sisyphus + -eios adj. suffix) + -an

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for Sisyphean

Contemporary Examples

Graduating into the Great Recession only added to the sense of Sisyphean striving.
Slackers Cheer Health Reform
Samuel P. Jacobs
March 22, 2010

Chrysler nearly escaped its Sisyphean fate, with a hastily arranged “merger of equals” a decade ago, to Daimler-Benz.
The Forgotten Lessons of Lee Iacocca
Paul A. Eisenstein
March 30, 2009

Perhaps even more problematic is that legal enforcement of the policy itself is a Sisyphean task; there is no way it can be done.
The University Of New Orleans’ Cigarette Ban Is Total BS
Chloé Valdary
October 20, 2014

A genuine left wing party of the working class in Australia has not yet developed. Until it does we will remain in the Sisyphean oscillations between neoliberal Labor and pro-austerity Liberal governments.
Is Anthony Albanese too left wing to lead the Labor Party to an election win?
John Passant
En Passant
1 November 2015

2 November 2015

perdition

[per-dish-uh n]

noun

1. a state of final spiritual ruin; loss of the soul; damnation.
2. the future state of the wicked.
3. hell (def 1).
4. utter destruction or ruin.
5. Obsolete, loss.

Origin of perdition

Latin

1300-1350; < Latin perditiōn- (stem of perditiō) destruction, equivalent to perdit (us) (past participle of perdere to do in, ruin, lose, equivalent to per- per- + di-, combining form of dare to give + -tus past participle suffix) + -iōn -ion; replacing Middle English perdiciun < Old French < Latin, as above

Dictionary.com

Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2015.

Examples from the Web for perdition

Historical Examples

Then he looked back to the judgment-seat and cried, “With this blood, Appius, I devote thee and thy life to perdition.”
Stories From Livy
Alfred Church

To perdition with the professional man who gabs to his wife!
The Return of Peter Grimm
David Belasco

Is it true, that the heathen world are sinking to perdition?
Thoughts on Missions
Sheldon Dibble
Anagram

no riptide
into pride

1 November 2015

nexus

[nek-suh s]

noun, plural nexuses, nexus.

1. a means of connection; tie; link.
2. a connected series or group.
3. the core or center, as of a matter or situation.
4. Cell Biology. a specialized area of the cell membrane involved in intercellular communication and adhesion.

Origin of nexus

Latin

1655-1665; < Latin nexus a binding, joining, fastening, equivalent to nect (ere) to bind, fasten, tie + -tus suffix of v. action, with tt > s

Dictionary.com

Examples from the Web for nexus

Contemporary Examples

A restaurant menu is the nexus of a diner, a dinner, a chef and the suitably hospitable environment in which a meal is served.
Vintage American Menus
David Lincoln Ross
September 9, 2011

But if the nexus of social and traditional media can inspire as we saw last year in Tahrir Square, it can also inflame.
Is Egypt an Ally of the U.S.?
P.J. Crowley
September 15, 2012

That nexus may be disturbing, but it is part of our current system.
Carlyle Comes Out of the Shadows
Zachary Karabell
September 5, 2011

Anagram

ex sun

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