M-W's Word of the Day
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Created by:
eamoore333 on December 7, 2010
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43 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 plangent | (adj) 1: having a loud reverberating sound 2: having an expressive and especially plaintive quality |
| ecotone | (n) a transition area between two adjacent ecological communities |
| yips | (n) a state of nervous tension affecting an athlete (as a golfer) in the performance of a crucial action |
| vociferous | (adj) marked by or given to vehement insistent outcry |
| ear candy | (n) music that is pleasing to listen to but lacks depth |
| susurrous | (adj) full of whispering sounds |
| rectrix | (n) any of the quill feathers of a bird's tail that are important in controlling flight direction |
| burke | (v) 1: to suppress quietly or indirectly 2: bypass, avoid |
| shilly-shally | (v) 1: to show hesitation or lack of decisiveness or resolution 2: dawdle |
| comity | (n) friendly civility: courtesy |
| woolgathering | (n) indulgence in idle daydreaming |
| gulosity | (n) excessive appetite: greediness |
| bogus | (adj) not genuine: counterfeit, sham |
| quincunx | (n) an arrangement of five things in a square or rectangle with one at each corner and one in the middle |
| vermicular | (adj)1: resembling a worm in form or motion 2: of, relating to, or caused by worms |
| philately | (n) the collection and study of postage and imprinted stamps : stamp collecting |
| welter | (v) 1: writhe, toss; also : wallow 2: to become deeply sunk, soaked, or involved 3: to be in turmoil |
| exemplary | (adj) 1: deserving imitation especially because of excellence : commendable 2: serving as a warning 3: serving as an example, instance, or illustration |
| ekphrasis | (n) a literary description of or commentary on a visual work of art |
| numinous | (adj) 1: supernatural, mysterious 2: filled with a sense of the presence of divinity : holy 3: appealing to the higher emotions or to the aesthetic sense : spiritual |
| supererogation | (n) the act of performing more than is required by duty, obligation, or need |
| nosegay | a small bunch of flowers |
| embarrass | to confuse or disconcert: to involve in financial difficulties: to cause to experience self-conscious distress: to hinder or impede |
| funambulism | tightrope walking: a show especially of mental agility |
| plummy | full of plums: choice, desirable: having a plum color: rich and mellow often to the point of affectation |
| mahatma | a person to be revered for high-mindedness, wisdom, and selflessness: a person of great prestige in a field of endeavor |
| meld | merge, blend |
| grandee | a man of elevated rank or station |
| flummox | confuse |
| concrete | naming a real thing or class of things: formed by coalition of particles into one solid mass: relating to or involving specific people, things, or actions rather than general ideas or qualities: relating to or made of concrete |
| netroots | the grassroots political activists who communicate via the Internet especially by blogs |
| proselytize | to induce someone to convert to one's faith: to recruit someone to join one's party, institution, or cause |
| aureate | of a golden color or brilliance: marked by grandiloquent and rhetorical style |
| dander | dandruff; specifically minute scales from hair, feathers, or skin that may be allergenic: anger, temper |
| woebegone | strongly afflicted with woe : woeful: exhibiting great woe, sorrow, or misery: being in a sorry state |
| rapscallion | rascal, ne'er-do-well |
| issuable | 1: open to contest, debate, or litigation 2: authorized for issue 3: possible as a result or consequence |
| glabrous | smooth; especially : having a surface without hairs or projections |
| plinth | 1 : the lowest part of the base of an architectural column 2 : a block used as a base (as for a statue) |
| guttural | 1: articulated in the throat 2: formed with the back of the tongue touching or near the soft palate 3: being or marked by utterance that is strange, unpleasant, or disagreeable |
| ossify | 1: to become or change into bone or bony tissue 2: to become or make hardened or set in one's ways |
| gloaming | twilight, dusk |
| snitty | disagreeably ill-tempered |
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