Word of the day

Why is "let" called a "let" in tennis?

The word ‘let’ originates from Middle English, where it was used to mean “hinder” or “stop”. This is because when a ball was hit out of bounds, the player had to “let” the point go. This then evolved into its modern usage in tennis, where it means the same thing: to hinder or stop play when a ball goes out of bounds.

In tennis, the word ‘let’ is used to indicate that a point should be replayed. This usually happens when a ball hits the net or goes out of bounds. This can be a difficult situation for players as they must decide whether or not to call a ‘let’ and replay the point. In some cases, players may call a ‘let’ even if the ball was in bounds, in order to gain an advantage.
 
Scapegrace- A mischievous or wayward person, a rascal-
especially a young person or child. The nanny was embarrassed by the
behavior of her four year old scapegrace named Glovin.

Erupt vs Irrupt- Basically one implies an outward movement, the other a movement into some area.
Erupt mean to explode outward like a volcano, or a crowd erupting in cheers.
irrupt means to enter or move suddenly into an area.
A flock geese can irrupt into a pond normally inhabited by loons.
Students might irrupt into a classroom or erupt out of the football stadium.

Mince words- means to speak indirectly, so as not to seem blunt, or cause offense.
Not to mince words- means to speak directly, frankly, bluntly.

The television sit-com father minced his words when explaining to his child where babies came from.
The store manager did not mince word when firing the person responsible for a huge financial loss.

Didactic- means intending to teach something, especially something with a moralistic message.
Aesop's fables tend to be didactic in the sense that they stress things like the values of hard work and
consequences of ones actions.
 
drake1
/dreɪk/

noun
noun: drake; plural noun: drakes
  1. a male duck.
    "a drake mallard"
Origin
Middle English: of West Germanic origin; related to Low German drake and German Enterich .



drake2
/dreɪk/

noun
noun: drake; plural noun: drakes
  1. (in fishing) a natural or artificial mayfly, especially a subadult or a gravid female.
    "green drake hatches"
Origin
46c65900a24f6f0acddad5c73ee84d9aeb5570f1b4915b4e3b6a09a06092089e.png

Old English draca, from Latin draco ‘dragon’.
 
Kakistocracy

The closest term for a "government of clowns" is kakistocracy, which means a government run by the worst, most unqualified, or most unscrupulous people. The description is also captured by the term foolocracy, a lesser-known word meaning a government of fools.
Kakistocracy
  • Origin: From the Greek words kákistos ("worst") and krátos ("rule").
  • Usage: The term is often used by critics to describe a government that they consider inept, corrupt, or both. It has seen a resurgence in use in recent years, with the Economist naming it the 2024 Word of the Year.
Foolocracy
  • Origin: A compound of the English word "fool" and the Greek suffix -cracy ("rule").
  • Usage: While less common than kakistocracy, it directly conveys the idea of a government run by fools or incompetent people.
 
Canasta is a card game of the rummy family, played with two decks of cards and jokers, where the objective is to score points by making melds of three or more cards of the same rank, especially "canastas" of seven or more cards. The first side to reach 5,000 points wins, with points earned by melding cards and completing canastas. It originated in South America in the 1940s and became popular worldwide, particularly in the 1950s, with North American versions becoming popular in later decades.
 
Novocaine (or Novocain)
(brand name for procaine) is what most people call the local anesthetic given by dentists to prevent pain.
Now, Novocaine is no longer used- mostly replaced by lidocaine. Other alternatives are
articaine, mepivacaine, and bupivacaine- each with their own particular qualities or features.

Acerbic
can mean having a sour or bitter taste, but is commonly used to refer to a style of speaking or writing
that gets to the point in a sharp, cutting manner with no tempering of language to make it more palatable.,
The comedians acerbic wit, though somewhat harsh, got directly to the heart of the matter.

Busking
(from the Spanish "buscar" meaning "to seek") is a word for street performers who may put out a box or hat to
collect donations from people who stop and watch. Busking, which may require a permit, is not the same
as begging, because you are offered entertainment in exchange for a contribution.

Insipid
means lacking flavor, uninteresting, dull, boring... and can refer to tasteless foods- insipid fruit punch, that lacked any "punch".
Though rare, one can "reverse engineer" insipid so that "sipid" can be used to mean "full of flavor"

Vapid
is a similar word to insipid, but it is more often used to mean lacking spirit or vitality.
Once their act drew large audiences, but lately they have become a vapid shadow of their former selves.
 
Pod people

I came upon a clip from the movie The Body Snatchers.
The term "pod people" has been around for a while, now, used to describe people
that did not think for themselves, but, rather, lost themselves in some larger "group think".
So, I asked AI, "What are some more recent terms for the same concept?"

modern equivalent terms for the older term "pod people".

In modern language, terms equivalent to "pod people" can range from descriptive terms for conformity and loss of individuality to more scientific terms for emotional detachment
. The best term depends on the specific nuance one wants to convey.

General terms for conformity
  • Conformist: A person who follows the behavior and values of the majority.
  • Drone: A person whose work is routine or monotonous, or one who lives off the labor of others. The term suggests a lack of independent thought.
  • Sheep: (also "sheeple") A person who is easily led or easily influenced, similar to a "follower."
  • Lemming: An unthinking follower, named for the Arctic rodents thought to rush to their own demise by following one another.
  • Automaton or Robot: A person who acts or responds in a mechanical or apathetic way.
  • The "Borg": Star Trek aliens that share one common mind.
  • Groupthink: This term, defined as a collective decision or opinion that may be foolish due to conformity, describes the mindset of the collective rather than the individuals within it.
  • Echo chamber: This describes a phenomenon on social media where a group of people only interact with and consume content from like-minded individuals, reinforcing their own beliefs and marginalizing opposing viewpoints.
  • Hive mind: A more direct evolution of "pod people," this term portrays a group as a single, unified organism with a collective consciousness, where individual identity is subsumed by the group.
  • Cultist: While a "cult following" can be used for obscure artists, the term "cultist" can be used to describe members of a group who mindlessly and devotedly follow a specific, often manipulative, leader or ideology.
OK, I guess I prefer "pod people", after all.
 
Hair of the dog
(or hair of the dog that bit you)
This phrase has come to mean that if you overindulged with some alcoholic beverage
and wake up suffering from a hangover- then the "cure" involves drinking a bit more of that same
concoction to alleviate the effect.

The concept is derived from the belief in "like cures like", an idea that has been around since ancient
Greek times, and before. It is basically a form of "Homeopathy" or "folk medicine.
The phrase itself is borrowed from the belief that if one is bitten by a mad dog, then to
prevent rabies, take the ashes of hair removed from that same dog and apply it to the wound.

Gravitas
If a person possesses gravitas, then they have a serious. solemn, dignified manner that commands
respect in such a way that they are taken seriously. It involves projecting confidence, intelligence,
and a calm presence that convinces, reassures and motivates others.
A person with gravitas, holding a government position, might be referred to as a "statesman". A politician
without that quality might be viewed as a "buffoon".

Autobiography vs Memoir
Well, an autobiography (From Greek roots self and life) is basically the story of a person's life,
written by themself, generally in chronological order, from beginning to the present point in their life.
A memoir, generally is more episodic (and shorter), exploring some meaningful remembrances, often exploring
thematic ideas.
 
Apophenia
This is a tendency for people to find "meaningful" patterns in things.
Probably the most common example is pareidolia, the tendency to see
familiar patterns in random objects- animal shapes or faces in clouds,
for example. Apophenia can manifest itself in various ways- superstitions,
choosing lottery numbers, betting on a sports team, developing a conspiracy
theory, and even in developing fixations in schizophrenia.

Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon
This is another type of cognitive bias (related to apophenia) that causes your brain to
skew the way it processes information. The less complicated explanation
is that once you become aware of something or notice something
(maybe for the first time), you tend to notice that thing
(that you probably never paid attention to before)
all over the place- sort of like if you look up a word (new to you)
in a book you are reading then you hear that word on television, in the
Connections game, on a poster and an Email from your cousin Toodie.

Well, the reason that I mentioned those terms, up above is that, the other day,
I overheard someone react to seeing "67" written on a sign as if it were meaningful,
somehow. Later on a TV show there was a discussion between the host
and some audience members about, "what is the big deal with 67?" Turns out, it
just some (meaningless) fad behavior driven by social media, but for a while my
brain was attuned to seeing 67s everywhere.

 
Turgid
Turgid means swollen, distended, congested.
Due to heavy rains, the river became turgid and began to erode the banks.
A writing style can be turgid if it is overly wordy, pompous, bombastic.
His legs became turgid with fluids due to edema.

Turbid
Turbid can be used in a similar way to turgid, but is mostly used to mean muddy,
opaque, confused- like river water after a storm- murky and unclear.
A turbid river is murky, a turgid limb is swollen, turgid prose is pompous, bloated-
turbid prose is muddled and unclear.
 
Spumoni vs Neapolitan
(ice cream)

Spumoni is a gelato dessert made in (3) layers, with
chocolate, cherry and pistachio flavors that are most often
mixed with bits of nuts and fruit.
Neapolitan is a a three colored/layered ice cream, flavored
with vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate- basically an
Americanized version of spumoni.
Gelato vs ice cream Gelato is denser, smoother, richer in flavor,
lower in fat, has less whipped-in air and is served at a lower
temperature. Also gelato tends to be artisanal and made in small batches.
Ice cream tends to be served colder, has air whipped in to make it fluffier.
Its flavors are less rich, higher in fat, and is often made in huge quantities.
 
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Thanatosis (tonic immobility) is a tendency among certain animals to "play dead"
or feign death in the presence of danger (usually from attack
by another animal). The process is essentially involuntary and is observe in a
wide range of organisms, including opossums, reptiles, fish, insects.

 
Quackery
is a term that evolves from the Dutch word "quacksalver",
that means something like "a person who quacks like a duck (boasts)
to to sell dubious remedies and salves.

Orgone
Is a pseudoscientific concept pushed by the once seemingly reputable
psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich of a "universal life force" that could cure cancer
and improve sexuality. Reich created "orgone collectors", basically a crude box
with a chair inside. A person would sit inside to absorb orgone energy.
The orgone concept was being pushed from at least the 1930s through the 1960s.

Psychomanteum
Like the orgone accumulator, above, many quack devices seem to require
an enclosed area, box or room (pyramid power requires sitting under a pyramid shape).
The psychomanteum was (is?) a cozy room with a mirror (reflecting darkness) where a person could
communicate with the spirit world and their deceased loved ones.
 
Not only do words change meanings over time,
but the pronunciations may vary as well

1. Espresso- uh-spreh-sow, not ex-press-o

2. Macabre- Ma-cawb, the Britiah say ma-cab-ra
which is closer to the French- so if you are reading
something by Charles Dickens...

3. Crepe- Krep (French- rhymes with pep)
Americans tend to say crape (rhymes with drape).


4. Sherbet- sher-buht, not sure-bert.
 
Odds and ends

Ham- So, why are amateur radio operators called "hams"?
The most likely explanation is that Morse code was skill
required in the early days of radio. Amateurs were looked
down on by pros who thought they lacked "touch" and skill
in using their hands and called them "ham-fisted". Eventually
(before computers and the "web" amateur radio people
began proudly calling themselves hams.

Nimrod- is the Biblical name of a mighty hunter. Today,
however, the word is used in an ironic, negative sense
to mean "jerk" or "idiot". The modern usage may come from
Bugs Bunny cartoons where Bugs insulted Elmer Fudd, "What
a Nimrod!"

Eschew- means to avoid using, abstain from, shun- especially
from anything considered distasteful or undesirable.
Brian decided to eschew the buying of Tesla products after
Musk got involved in questionable government manipulations.

Grimoire- A grimoire is basically a book of magical spells and incantations.
Dr. strange studied one particular grimoire to learn the technique
of time manipulation.
 
Cilantro vs coriander

In a way they are the same. In a way they are different.
At first I thought Cilantro was the Mexican term for
coriander, since it is used in lots of Mexican restaurants.
I was wrong. Cilantro is the leafy green part of the plant
that is sprinkled on your food to make it taste like soap,
coriander is the seeds.
 
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Adieu vs ado

Adieu (from French phrase meaning "to God".
Basically, it is a friendly way of saying "good bye".

Ado means "fuss" or "bother" or to get agitated about something

So, it would be incorrect to say "Now without further adieu",
because that would mean "without further good bye".

So, instead, write "Without further ado"- without further fuss and
bother".

Phobophobia

Just by looking at the word, you can assume that it means a "fear of fear".

When F D Roosevelt spoke of "The only thing we have to fear is fear, itself,"
he may have been suggesting the USA was suffering anxiety from Phobophobia-
or not
 
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Historic vs Historical

Historic means important or significant.
On this historic occasion, humans first set foot on the moon.
It was only with historic effort the bridge was completed on time.

Historical refers to any thing from some past time.
Historical records show that your assumptions are incorrect.

She was reading some historical study of European conflicts.


Cahoots - Often preceded by "in", means to conspire or plan together secretly.
The two children were in cahoots to put a laxative in their
teacher's coffee.

Nexus- from Latin roots meaning to "bind together". Nexus means
interconnections or areas of connection, between two or more things, where
they all meet together.

The railway station was a nexus serving thousands of
cities and towns across the nation.

The murder mystery involved Professor Moriarty who, through a spider-like
webwork of accomplices, was the nexus of all criminal activity in London.

In the summer time Ralph's house, with a swimming pool, became a
nexus for children's neighborhood activity.

Plexus- Just as nexus refers to a central point where various branches come together,
plexus refers, more specifically, to the network of branches, themselves- especially like
nerves or vessels in a body, and, by extension may refer to any intricate network
such as a political or international, or even computer network

Boondoggle- is a fun word to say and it means a situation where there is lots of activity
and bustling work, but nothing much is accomplished and lots of time and money is wasted.
The sprawling corporation hired an efficiency expert to sort out the boondoggle
that was costing millions of dollars per day.
 
some (sort of) related words

Ruminate- comes from a Latin word meaning "to chew the cud",
but, just as ruminants, chew cud (which requires an explanation of its own)
to ruminate means think deeply, often repetitively, dwelling on a subject.

Dwelling- means a home, a place of residence, abode, but traces back to an
Old English word, dwelian, meaning to lead astray which eventually shifted
to mean "abide" or "linger"- so if you dwell on a subject, you live with that
topic and ponder, muse, meditate, linger, ruminate, mull, reflect- and besides that it just
sounds good to say out loud,

Cud- is partly digested food regurgitated for further chewing by ruminating
animals,

Regurgitate- also means to "repeat back" information without really thinking
about it- the way cows regurgitate cud.
Wallace studied just enough so that he could regurgitate answers to the
regular Friday tests.

Redundant- comes from a Latin word meaning something like to repeat like waves.
So, it means superfluous, unnecessary because there is already a enough, and more
is not necessarily needed. "Repeat back" (part of the regurgitate definition)
is redundant because it is unnecessary to add the "back". "Repeat again" would be even
more redundant.
 
Crèche- is a word derives from French and describes a typical Christmas
scene, or tableau, depicting the birth of Jesus in a manger. A crèche can also be
any nursery where babies are cared for during the day (like day-care).

Prosody- is the the patterns of rhythms, sounds, meter and intonations
cultivated in poetry that give it it's poetic qualities and cause it to be different
than writing in ordinary prose that has no metrical structure but can also be
designed to affect the reader by varying sentence length, word choice and word sounds.

Mountebank- A mountebank is a charlatan who deceives others to take their money-
often by selling useless products or even fake medicines. The word comes from Italian
where it means to "mount a bench" (where they would hawk their products).

Canny and uncanny are not exactly antonyms. Canny means shrewd, clever, cautiously
able to deal with situations. Though he had not studied economics, he had a canny
ability to succeed at playing the stock market.
Uncanny- on the other hand, means strange, mysterious, eerie, inexplicable, possibly
supernatural. The sailor explained that he was able to survive crashing into "dead-man's
rock" because uncanny lights appeared, glowing before the ship, and leading the way.

Scathing- means scornful, severely critical, cutting, harsh, cruel, bitter, hurtful.
The Broadway play was forced to close its production soon after receiving scathing
reviews from the press.
 
Fletcherism- is a dietary "fad" from the late 1800s-early 1900s that still pops up now and then
where a person would chew each bite of food 32 times or more- till it was almost liquified,
before swallowing. It also encouraged eating only in small amounts, and only
when hungry. The word is an eponym derived from Horace Fletcher, known as
"The Great Masticator" because of his ideas his ideas on health.


Edetic-is a word we may have heard on The Big Bang Theory. Edietic refers to words and images
that the mind can remember and picture with unusual vividness. One example would be the ability
to recall information from a book page or a photograph after having only a brief look.

Synesthesia-is a neurological condition that may also relate to memory. It is where the stimulation
of one sense, like vision or smell comes to be associated with another sense. A person, for example,
may associate the days of the week with specific colors or associate numbers with smells, and so on.

Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM) or Hyperthymesia- is the ability to recall
events from ones own life with incredible accuracy- like scrolling through a film montage.
 
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Macramé is a form of textile produced using knotting (rather than weaving or knitting) techniques.

The primary knots of macramé are the square (or reef knot) and forms of "hitching": various combinations of half hitches. It was long crafted by sailors, especially in elaborate or ornamental knotting forms, to cover anything from knife handles to bottles to parts of ships.

Cavandoli macramé is one variety that is used to form geometric and free-form patterns like weaving. The Cavandoli style is done mainly in a single knot, the double half-hitch knot. Reverse half hitches are sometimes used to maintain balance when working the left and right halves of a balanced piece.

Leather or fabric belts are another accessory often created via macramé techniques. Most friendship bracelets exchanged among schoolchildren and teens are created using this method. Vendors at theme parks, malls, seasonal fairs, and other public places may sell macramé jewelry or decoration as well.

en.wikipedia.org

Macramé - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
words you will probably never use
Quiddity- Quiddity, you might say is the "whatness" or essence of something.
The artist tried to capture the quiddity of the city in his paintings of lonely streets and
lonely people.
A quiddity can also be a quirk or insignificant detail- He had the particular quiddity of
always wearing non-matching socks.
Additionally it can be a sneaky way of evading questions. When pressed for answers,
the politician resorted to quiddity to change the subject.
Haecceity- is a bit different from quiddity in that it doesn't define the the essential nature of a thing,
but rather something that makes it different and unique, The identical twin brothers are differentiated
by the haecceity of john and Jim having unique interests a and personalities.
Also Jim has a small scar on his chin from a strange candy-apple accident.
Here is some guy who tries to explain.


Caterwaul- To caterwaul is to make a shrill howling or wailing sound like a cat.
His girlfriend explained to him that his singing was more like caterwauling than actual music.
 
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Egoism vs egotism

Egoism- is basically a philosophical or psychological outlook where
the individual has determined that the best way to get along in the world is
by deciding to make decisions based on self-interest. During an economic
downturn, rather than commit to helping the poor, an egoist would think that
might be a good time to invest while prices were down.
Egotism- on the other hand has an excessive, arrogant preoccupation with one's
own self- importance. An egoist wants to be seen driving a sporty car, talking about
things that make him, or her, a center of attention, bragging about accomplishments
and so on.
 
Funambulist- There is an on-line game called Tightrope Trivia. If you have played that
game, then you know that a funambulist is a tightrope-walker.

Quisling- A quisling is a traitor who cooperates with the enemy force occupying his own country.
I suppose Benedict Arnold could be described as a quisling.

Moot- Moot is one of those words that can be used in different ways.
1. I can mean "debatable" or "a topic for discussion"
2, The most common usage is to mean "irrelevant", or not worthy of discussion because it
no longer has relevance. So, in a way it is sort of opposite of definition #1 because it would not
be worthy of discussion.

3. Moots- This is basically online "slang" for "mutual followers" which refers to a bunch of
people that tend to follow each other on some social platform (even this one- though I don't
recall anyone here using "moots".

Antimacassar- I'm sure you have seen antimacassars- especially in homes of older people.
Way back in the 1800s people (men) slicked down their hair with an oily product with the brand name
"Macassar". an antimacassar was a piece of cloth draped over the chair to prevent it
being stained. slick hair-styles come and go (1920s, 1950s...) but now, not so much. you will still find
cloth draped over chairs, and they are still called antimacassars, but they are just decorative .
 
Aspic or meat jelly is a savoury gelatin made with a meat stock or broth, set in a mold to encase other ingredients. These often include pieces of meat, seafood, vegetable, or eggs. Aspic is also sometimes referred to as aspic gelée or aspic jelly.
 
Cockatrice- A cockatrice is a mythical creature with the body of a rooster and a dragon-like tail.

I suppose people way back then were not creative enough to invent new monsters, instead they
tended to combine two or more different things into one.

Griffin- Half eagle, half lion.
Hippogriff- Half eagle, half horse.
Centaur- Half human, half horse.
Mermaid/merman- Upper part human with the tail of a fish.
Hippocampus- Front half was horse, then with a tail of a fish.
Chimera- Originally had a goat's head and a serpent's tail, but is now used as a term for any
hybrid creature made from different animal parts.
Harpy- A woman with bird wings and bird legs.
Hippalectryon- Front half of a horse with rooster wings, legs and tail.
Basilisk- A serpent-like creature with characteristics of a bat, rooster and snake- that could
supposedly kill with its gaze or its breath.
Medusa- A Gorgon (there were three) with snakes instead of hair.

There are many more combination creatures in various mythologies and folklore, those
are just a few. Add any others that you know of.

Myrmidon-
A "myrmidon" can refer to a legendary Thessalian people from Greek mythology, a loyal but unquestioning follower. In mythology, the Myrmidons were a fierce warrior race led by Achilles, said to have been transformed from ants by Zeus. This myth led to the word "myrmidon" becoming a term for a loyal subordinate, a "hired ruffian," or a nearly robotic soldier.

Ancient Greek Mythology

People: A warrior people from Thessaly, known for their loyalty to their leader, Achilles.

Origin: According to one myth, Zeus transformed ants (myrmex in Greek) into people to populate the island of Aegina, leading to the name Myrmidons.

Role in the Trojan War: They fought for the Greeks under the command of Achilles.

Figurative usage-Loyal follower: A person who executes orders without question, sometimes with a negative connotation of being unscrupulous.

"Hired ruffian": The term later came to mean a hired thug or mercenary.

Robotic soldiers: The association with unthinking, ant-like loyalty gave the word a similar meaning to "robot" in pre-industrial Europe.



Internecine- Means mutually destructive or ruinous. It could be an internecine war between two countries, for example. with
tremendous carnage and destruction on both sides.
It could be internecine clashing of members in a family business- feuding until the business goes bankrupt.

Speaking of internecine, a Pyrrhic victory is a battle that you win, but at such an expense of lives, and money that
it is virtually a loss. The word is derived from King Pyrrhus who defeated the Romans in a series of devastating
battles about which he said, "One more such victory and we will be undone."
 
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A few words/terms worth knowing

Phaneron is a word that means "all that is in any way perceived by the mind-
thoughts, sensations, feelings- used mainly in philosophy to refer to the totality of experience.

Roman a clef- is when a writer writes about things that have happened and real people
who are known, but changes names and places to disguise them. "Roman a clef" might be
translated as "novel with a key". Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar is an example.

Burgeoning means beginning to grow or increase rapidly, flourishing.
He found himself caught up in the burgeoning Labubu craze to the point that old friends now avoid him.
 
Meticulous
Meticulous means to pay extreme attention to small details, to be excessively careful
and thorough. Yes, we know that.
Oddly, (or, perhaps no so oddly) the word is derived from "metus" which is Latin for "fear".

So, I guess it makes sense that a fearful person might be extra cautious and careful.
Some people we really want to be meticulous- a surgeon or accountant, for example.
Bagumbawalla is meticulous about arranging his books by subject matter, author, height, thickness,
color and how much he likes each book to which he gives an "approval rating" between
1 and 22.
 
The "seven-year itch" is a popular belief that couples experience a period of dissatisfaction or restlessness in their relationship around the seven-year mark. While it's not scientifically proven, this concept suggests that after a few years together, boredom and unaddressed issues can lead to increased conflict, lack of intimacy, or thoughts of infidelity. The term gained widespread recognition after the 1955 film The Seven Year Itch starring Marilyn Monroe.
 
Why do we spell it knot when referring to a ship's speed
and nautical when referring to distance (nautical mile)?

Knot is a sailing term used to refer to speed.

Old sailing ships used a long rope that had knots at regular
intervals with something called a "chip" (triangular piece of wood)
at the end so it would get pulled out behind the ship.
Typically the rope had knots every 47.3 feet (sometimes 48).
They would use a special hourglass (filled with sand) and count the number of knots
that passed in 28 seconds. The number of knots counted
equaled their speed in nautical miles per hour.
Nautical (nautical mile) is used to refer to distance.

A standard mile on land was originally based on a thousand steps
by roman soldiers "double stepping"- (about 5 feet) which added up to
a mile being about 5,000 modern feet. Later that distance was
modified by converting it into British furlongs and became 5,280 feet.

A nautical mile is a simpler concept based on the circumference of the Earth.
A nautical mile equals one minute of latitude. A circle around the Earth
can be divided into 360 degrees and each degree into 6o minutes
which is about 1/21,600ths of the Earth's circumference- about 6,076 feet.

So, "knot" is derived from actual knots and is a term for speed
while "nautical" comes from an ancient Greek term for ship or sailor
and refers to distance.
 
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Kempt comes to us from an old-English word meaning "well combed" neat, and well groomed,
and it still means neat, tidy, spiffy and all that sort of thing. It is used, more often, however
in the negative sense of "unkempt" which is generally used to refer to a person who is
disheveled, unwashed- not spiffy at all.
Kempt- Helen showed up all kempt and spiffed out with a new dress and a new boyfriend.
Unkempt- Brian came to the party unkempt as if straight from changing the oil in his project-car,
an old, yellow Corvair.

"Well kempt" or "well kept" basically mean the same thing, however more people, now,
are using "well kept" as the preferred term- especially to describe things other than people.
Steve's well kept yard soon became a bit of a mess after his dog gave birth to 4 puppies.

Fideist- A fideist is a person who relies on faith rather than logic or science to comprehend
religious truths. A fidiest might, for example, credit God for creating the universe rather than something like
a "Big Bang"(but there are different degrees of fideism).

Hugger-mugger means confused and disorderly. At first glance the tailgate party seemed a
dangerous hugger-mugger of roaring pickups scrambling for a space, but eventually it settled down
into a homy, cozy, backyard kind of atmosphere.

Plutonian comes from Roman mythology where Pluto was the god of the underworld (Hades in Greek)- a realm of the dead
associated with darkness and gloom. I guess the dead souls are not all that fun to be around.

Craven means cowardly, lily-livered, chicken-hearted, faint- hearted, pusillanimous, timorous...
 
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A few more-

Restive vs restless

Restless means unable to relax, unable to settle down, tending to fidget,
move about looking for something for no particular reason, just to be busy.

Restive- Someone or something that is restive may appear restless, but the cause of the
fidgeting makes a difference. A person or an animal (for example) is restive when he, or it,
is raring to go, chomping at the bit to do something which they feel restricted from doing.
a dog wants to go out and play with the other dogs, but the owner won't open the door-
the dog becomes restive, whines, scratches, makes beckoning motions and will not stop until
he gets his way.

Heterodox- means not conforming to accepted norms or standards or beliefs. The term began
in relation to religious beliefs, but now, is used for any atypical way of thinking that often rejects
or challenges current doctrines. In fields such as science or economics, or even philosophy
people come up with heterodox theories that push the boundaries commonly accepted.
The opposite of heterodox would be ........ orthodox.

Bohemian- Refers to someone living an unconventional, free-spirited lifestyle- especially an artist.
It originated as a French word used to describe (unconventional) Gypsies who were believed to come from Bohemia.
Lately, faddishly, the word has been shortened to "boho" which is, I guess, a slangy, cutesy
way of saying the same thing. Look there, the way she dresses is just so boho, all she needs is a beret.

Bellwether- Bellwether is an indicator, a predictor of something that suggests a possible change is coming
A bellwether in politics, for example, might be a survey that shows a new voting pattern beginning, developing in
some specific region of the country.
 
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Is it a mesa or a plateau?
A mesa is sort of like a large hill or smallish mountain with the top cut off- basically
a flat top with sloping sides that sticks up from the surrounding land area.
A plateau is a much larger expanse of land (that may have been pushed up by tectonic plates)
and may not have any definite sides or steep slopes, A mesa, in fact, may have started
as a plateau that has become worn down through erosion.
A mesa tends to be broader than is is high- but if it eroded much further so that it is
higher that it is wide- well, that would be called a butte.

Bravura
Bravura is a word that cam describe a performance or display of technical brilliance as
is sometimes seen in an "over-the-top", brilliant performance
The word began with an Italian word for "brave" which turned into a French word "Bravo".
An audience might see a bravura performance from an actor or musician or juggler
and then shout "bravo".

Dragoon
A dragoon is (was from the 1600s onward) a cavalry soldier who could fight both
on horseback or on foot. They were named after the gun they used that blasted fire and smoke from the barrel
like a dragon. Later on dragoon came to mean to force or intimidate or compel someone into
doing something because that's what dragoons often did to the French Protestants.
Emily was dragooned into babysitting for her little brother an Saturdays when the parents took a break from responsibility.

Acrostic
An acrostic is a poem, word puzzle, or any composition designed so that certain letters
in each line spell something out. The following is a poem dedicated to
Ailce Pleasance Liddell (a real person) which is what the first letter of each line spells out-
reading top to bottom.

A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky​

By Lewis Carroll

A boat beneath a sunny sky,
Lingering onward dreamily
In an evening of July —

Children three that nestle near,
Eager eye and willing ear,
Pleased a simple tale to hear —

Long has paled that sunny sky:
Echoes fade and memories die:
Autumn frosts have slain July.

Still she haunts me, phantomwise,
Alice moving under skies
Never seen by waking eyes.

Children yet, the tale to hear,
Eager eye and willing ear,
Lovingly shall nestle near.

In a Wonderland they lie,
Dreaming as the days go by,
Dreaming as the summers die:

Ever drifting down the stream —
Lingering in the golden gleam —
Life, what is it but a dream?
 
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Beribboned- means decorated, adorned, or festooned with ribbons.
I have also seen it used to describe plants with ribbon-like leaves.

Risible- means provoking laughter, comical, amusing, funny- But not necessarily funny ha ha ha,
but more like ridiculous or absurd. I walked in on a risible scene where the family's parrot
was ordering their dog to sit, stay.

Provenance- means the origin of something's existence. It could be where something was originally built,
found, made, created and might refer to rare guitar or the universe, itself.

Scrim- A scrim is a type of cloth with the property when viewed with light from the viewer's side, it appears opaque.
but when the light comes from behind- it appears transparent. In theaters (for example) there is often a
spanning the entire back of the stage and by changing the lighting can be used for special effects such as
making stars and clouds suddenly appear, create an illusion of someone appearing out of nowhere, allowing rear-projection
of various images. Gauzy curtains in someone's home could be called scrims. Som furniture fabric could be scrim.
A scrim can be used to filter or soften light for photography...

Penumbra vs umbra- Both are dark, shadowy areas- the umbra is the darkest central part of a shadow (as in a lunar eclipse,
for example). Umbra comes from Latin roots that mean "shadow" and penumbra means "almost shadow".
 
Impinge- To have an effect on or impact- especially a negative one.
To encroach upon an area belonging to someone else.
The lawyer argued that the publicity would impinge on his client's right to a fair trial.

Recondite- (of some subject or special knowledge) it means something little known, obscure, abstruse,
esoteric, difficult- impossible for anyone of ordinary understanding to comprehend.
I found it impossible to have a conversation with professor Snadley as he would invariably
veer the topic in some recontite direction that required calculus and fluency in 15 dimensions.

Gnostic- is another word that has to do with a particular kind of knowledge- in this case
secret, spiritual, mystical knowledge that, once discovered, or learned, leads the way to
enlightenment or power. the other kids in school read books like Diary of a wimpy kid,
but Sheba was drawn to gnostic texts that promised knowledge hidden to ordinary folk.

So, how do you pronounce "route"?
Do you say "root" that rhymes with boot?
is is it "rout" the rhymes with "out"
On the news, the newsperson talked about a traffic jam causing drivers to choose a
new "route" (rhymes with gout) while "route 66", the song, is "root" like the part of a plant underground.
So, which is correct? In England they would rhyme it with "stout", but in the USA, it
kind of depends on the part of the country where you grew up. and either is OK.


Recapitulate- means to summarize or restate the main points of a topic, essay, speach
or whatever- mainly for the sake of clarity. In English class the teacher told her students
to begin an essay with an introduction to the main points, and to end with a recapitulation of those
very same points. In biology recapitulate is sometimes used in the sense that some
organisms recapitulate their evolutionary stages during embryonic development, as in
"ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny".

 
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Detritus- (Debt-right-us) means waste or debris, possibly gravel or sand-like left-overs of erosion
decomposing organic material (like leaves), or, by extrapolation any small fragments or
remnants of something else.
The mountain climber found it difficult to hike up the detritus of a granite dome
left over from glacial actions.
Herbert Thumby tried to pick himself up out of the detritus of his failed marriage and carry on
for the sake of his children- yes, they were detritus too.
Immolate- means to kill or offer up as a sacrifice, especially by burning, literally,
or in some cases symbolically such as to destroy ones career or valuable possessions.
In certain cultures, the wife would immolate herself upon the death of the
husband (the reasons for this vary and you could look them up.
Pataphysical- is a word coined by Dadaist Alfred Jarry (1920s?) as a kind of take-off
or parody of "metaphysics". Metaphysics deals with the nature of existence beyond
our physical perception. Pataphysics is the Dada version of metaphysics in
an "absurdist" way that explores the "reality" of existence, itself. Essentially. pataphysics
is to fiction writing what metaphysics is to ordinary life.
The word became popularized again in the 1960s when this Beatles song was published-
 
Door check or Door strap
I's the flat metal "arm" that connects the car door to the
car's body. it has a series of indentations that catch on to a rolling "pin"
and hold the door partly or completely open. I had to look it up.

Fiat
Fiat literally translates to something like "let it be done".
Fiat lux might translate to "let there be light". Most commonly,
now, fiat is an official decree ordering something to be done, or
giving authorization for it to take place. The airline executive
issued a fiat requiring each passenger to pay an extra 18 dollar
check-in fee. It is also a brand of car.

Frenetic
Frenetic means fast and energetic in a wild and uncontrolled manner.
The 1940s movie My girl Friday rushes along at a frenetic pace. The dialogue
is spoken very fast, often with no pausing, one line running into another
even as several things seem to happen all at once.

Baldric
A baldric is a belt worn over one shoulder, across the chest and down to the
opposite hip and is used for carrying a sword or, sometimes, a horn.

Pemmican
Before dehydrated foods and energy bars, if you were to take something
with you on a long, arduous journey with no refrigeration- the food of choice
might be pemmican- basically, a patty of ground meat
melted fat and possibly mixed with some kind of berry for sweetness.
Originally made by certain native Americans, a sort of pemmican was
also used by Arctic explorers.

 
Sarcophagus - I think we all know that a sarcophagus is a stone coffin (limestone)
with some decorative element. The word comes from Greek (not Egyptian)
roots that mean "flesh-eating stone". It was believed that a particular type
of limestone from Asia Minor would accelerate decomposition.

Main Character Syndrome- is a term that began to develop on social media
to describe people who act as if they are the protagonist of their own life story. Eventually
it came to refer to people who were self-absorbed ego-trippers.
It has been suggested that Ferris Bueller is a sort of archetype of that personality.
Narcissistic personality disorder is a more clinical term for a similar sort of person
who needs constant admiration and exhibits low empathy.

Archtype- The word "archetype" is used in different ways.
1- a typical example of a person or thing.
2- an original that is often imitated- as Chaplin's "little tramp" is the archetype of a
powerless person striving for a place in the world.
3. a recurring symbol or motif in literature, art of mythology- for example in
mythology there is the archetype of the "Hero's journey". The hero, often an ordinary person
(who is influenced by unseen forces) goes on a quest, often with a mentor of guide, along the way
the hero is tested and faces some major ordeal or crisis. The hero sometimes dies and returns from death,
somehow changed with new abilities to share with the world. I may have forgotten some of the steps,
but in The Lord of the Rings or Star Wars we see the basic patterns.

Imposter Syndrome- I forgot, I was going to compare this to "main character syndrome
as kind of its opposite. This is a psychological pattern the a person doubts the validity
of his or her accomplishments and feels like they came by chance or accident. This is the sort of
self doubt that can affect a gymnast, musician, tennis player, writer... and can lead to feelings of anxiety
that he/she will be found out to be a phony.

 
"Abstruse" is an adjective meaning difficult to understand, recondite, or esoteric. It is used to describe something that is hard to comprehend because of its complexity, depth, or abstract nature. The word's synonyms include obscure and arcane, while its antonyms are clear, simple, and obvious.
  • Definition: Difficult to understand; profound; obscure.
  • Synonyms: Arcane, complex, recondite, esoteric, unfathomable.
  • Antonyms: Clear, obvious, simple, uncomplicated.
  • Example: "His abstruse theories were difficult for the students to follow".
 
Arcadian- The word arcadian (originally a place in Greece) describes an idealized
rustic, country environment- bucolic and pastoral where one can live in harmony with nature,
and a shepherd or two thrown in wouldn't hurt.
on his rare vacations Reginald Pepper preferred his arcadian cabin in the Sierras rather thanthe
bustle of city life.

Gossamer- is a sort of portmanteau where two word are joined together, in this case "goose summer",
because that is the time of year that certain spiders release long thin strands of webbing
that can be seen floating in the sky. By comparison anything soft and filmy, light and gauzy
might be referred to as gossamer.
Her Academy Award red carpet dress was woven of fine gossamer silk so that on television they
had to blur out certain areas.

Poo-Bah- A poo-bah is a influential person holding a high position and, consequently, is
egotistical and self-important. The word comes from a Gilbert and Sullivan light comic opera, The Mikado (1885).
The meaning has, over the years been extended to refer to any pompous, self-important individual.
The variation, "Grand Poo-Bah" is used humorously.

Here is a short video with more information than you may need to know-

 
Malocclusion is a dental condition where the teeth of the upper and lower jaws do not align correctly, also known as a "bad bite". This can lead to problems such as crowded teeth, overbites, underbites, and open bites. While often inherited, it can also be caused by factors like thumb sucking, injuries, or abnormal tooth development.
 
Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone). They occupy the sea floors and lake beds, which usually consist of mud, sand, gravel or rocks. In coastal waters, they are found on or near the continental shelf, and in deep waters, they are found on or near the continental slope or along the continental rise. They are not generally found in the deepest waters, such as abyssal depths or on the abyssal plain, but they can be found around seamounts and islands. The word demersal comes from the Latin demergere, which means to sink.

Bluespotted ribbontail ray resting on the seafloor

Rhinogobius flumineus swim on the beds of rivers

Demersal fish are bottom feeders. They can be contrasted with pelagic fish, which live and feed away from the bottom in the open water column. Demersal fish fillets contain little fish oil (one to four per cent), whereas pelagic fish can contain up to 30 per cent.

en.wikipedia.org

Demersal fish - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
Gizzard vs Crop (or craw)
A "crop" is a pouch in the neck area of a bird that is capable of storing
an amount of foot while moistening it to improve the digestive process.
The "gizzard" is further down the digestive track. It is heavily muscled
and often filled with gravel-like stones. It is in the gizzard that the food
is churned and "ground down" before further digestion down the line.

In some old movies (mostly westerns) you might hear some crotchety
old coot say, "Dagnabbit, that just in my craw!"- meaning that some
bit of fact or information is difficult to swallow.
If someone is tricked into believing somethin, they have swallowed it "hook
line and sinker".
When I was a really young child I remember my grandmother chopping
the heads off of chickens, plucking the feathers, removing the internal
organs and keeping the gizzard, heart and liver to cook up something
special. Those various (non-skeletal meats are often termed "offal".
To the modern consumer offal might be called "trash" or sometimes
"Variety meats".

 
Petrichor is the earthy scent produced when rain falls on dry soil, a smell caused by oils from plants and a compound called geosmin secreted by soil-dwelling bacteria. The word was coined in 1964 by Australian scientists Isabel Joy Bear and Richard Thomas from the Greek words petra (stone) and ichor (the fluid that flows in the veins of the gods).
 
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