Because I'm a huge geek I get a Word of the Day from Dictionary.com. Most of the time they're words that I've heard plenty of times before and thought I knew roughly what they meant only to find I had it all wrong.* And sometimes they're words that I've never heard of before, like defenestrate, which means to throw out the window. Seriously.
I like words. (Need I say, "Duh!"). I like knowing the origin of words. (Side note: a had a professor who pronounced the word origin as or-IGIN. Was that with you Rac?) I like words that sound nice or funny. Most people know that my favorite word is spatula. Not only is it a very useful tool in the kitchen it is also a great word to say. So are autumnal, rapacious, and sleuth.
I always enjoy getting my word of the day. Except this past Saturday. The word was mulct and I guarantee that if you say it out loud you will feel slightly uncomfortable, like you shouldn't say it in church or in front of your mother. It doesn't help that it's a difficult word to say (A million imaginary bonus points to the first person who can supply me with another word with "lct" in it.)
But I do like what it means - to swindle. Isn't swindle such a great word. It brings to mind a man in black, twirling a skinny mustache and holding the deed to the farm (Cue ominous music!)
*I didn't learn this one from Dictionary.com but you should look up the word moot. It does not mean what you think it means.
6 comments:
Good word! But I agree - it does sound kind of naughty.
I just looked up moot on webster.com (my dictionary of choice) and it does mean what I thought it meant. Hmmmm....
I like spatula too. Here are my other favorites. Not necessarily because I like the meaning of the word, mostly just because of the way they sound. Custard, crayon, pocket and whiskey.
"public", "epiphany", "poof", "blunder" and "snarky" are some of my favs. But Muclt does sound dismal. Almost like a multing condition for onrey geese or something. Or a Scandanavian Festival for the Dead - or something of the like.
Oh, how I love words! That's why I bought a pricey electronic dictionary to keep with me at all times.
I'll join you in the nerdy club.
In regards to the word "moot," in legal terms a moot point means one for discussion, but in in daily conversation it means of no value.
(The history behind this is legal students bring their practice cases to Moot court. There, they argue and discuss their case. But, since it's only practice, it has no actual weight and won't change the outcome of the real case. Hence, it has no value. Which is why we regular people say that something is a moot point, not worthy of discussion because it won't change anything.)
Yeah for me, 3 years of studing law to be court reporter weren't a complete waste of time!
I feel totally educated. Rachel is right Liz, it really isn't fair that you're the most insightful AND the funniest of the group.
I need to add my favorite Spanish words to the list. You will see by my choice that I am certainly not insightful. Chonies- meaning underwear in Spanish. Also, my second favorite word chanclas- a.k.a sandals. Aren't they great. Mocos is a good word too and means boogers. So, there you have it.
Rachel, I'm proud to announce that I knew the word defenestrate. My husband used to read the dictionary for fun so he is the master of all unknown and unused words. He says you usually defenestrate ideas, though I personally think defenestrating a cat would be something to write home about.
Post a Comment