Word Of The Day Flashcards
Tickety-boo
[ tik-i-tee-boo ]
adjective
fine; OK.
Tickety-boo, an informal adjective meaning “fine, OK,” is a British colloquialism of uncertain etymology. It may be an expressive alteration of “that’s the ticket,” ticket here having its informal sense “the proper thing, advisable thing.” Or tickety-boo may be a holdover from the Raj, from Hindi ṭhīk hai “It’s all right,” or ṭhīk hai, bābū “It’s all right, Sir.” Tickety-boo entered English in the first half of the 20th century.
“I spent a couple of Saturdays gathering all of my bank statements and other documents, making post-closing general journal entries, and printing out financial statements to deliver to my C.P.A. for both our corporate and personal income tax returns. As my Canadian father would say, my books are now tickety-boo (translation: in perfect working order).
BARBARA TAYLOR, “FINDING SOMETHING TO LIKE ABOUT APRIL 15,” NEW YORK TIMES, MARCH 1, 2010
I broke one of the six required ramekins before I even started, and the ovenproof dish I used was too small at 22 centimeters (8.7 inches) by 15 cms. … Oh, and I also managed to burn the souffles, but only a little bit. Apart from all that, it was all tickety-boo.
RICHARD VINES, “MARY BERRY’S SIMPLE RECIPE FOR DOUBLE-BAKED MUSHROOM SOUFFLES,” BLOOMBERG, OCTOBER 17, 2020
prothalamion
[ proh-thuh-LEY-mee-on, -uhn ]
noun
a song or poem written to celebrate a marriage.
Prothalamion, “a song or poem written to celebrate a marriage,” is modeled on epithalamion “a song or poem in honor of a bride and bridegroom.” Epithalamion is the neuter singular of the Greek adjective epithalámios “bridal, nuptial,” literally “at the thalamus,” i.e., the inner chamber at the rear of a house, woman’s room, bedroom, storeroom. Epithalamia (plural of epithalamion) were traditional features in Greek weddings and were therefore a very ancient custom. The epithalamia of the Lesbian lyric poet Sappho, the Athenian comic playwright Aristophanes, and the tragedian Euripides were famous. Edmund Spenser coined prothalamion in 1597, apparently intending his coinage to mean “a song or poem celebrating an upcoming wedding,” the Greek prefix pro– here meaning “before in time,” not “before in space.”
“He struck a formal pose with the shotgun cradled in his arms and commenced a rawk-voiced prothalamion. It vaguely took the form of song, modal and dark, and the dire jig of its tune grated on the ear.
CHARLES FRAZIER, COLD MOUNTAIN, 1997
Every wolf in the world now howled a prothalamion outside the window as she freely gave the kiss she owed him.
ANGELA CARTER, “THE COMPANY OF WOLVES,” THE BLOODY CHAMBER AND OTHER STORIES, 1979
manavelins
[ muh-NAV-uh-linz ]
plural noun
miscellaneous scraps or small items, especially of food or gear.
Manavelins, “miscellaneous pieces of gear and material; odds and ends; leftovers or scraps (of food),” is originally sailors’ slang. Like many slang terms, manavelins has no reliable etymology, which helps explain the many variant spellings, such as manavalins, manarvelins, malhavelins. There is a likely connection between manavelins and the verb manarvel, manavel “to pilfer from a ship’s stores,” another item of nautical slang of unknown origin. Herman Melville was by far the most distinguished author to use manavalins (White-jacket, 1850): “Various sea-rolls, made dishes, and Mediterranean pies…all of which come under the general denomination of Manavalins.” Melville had served as a common sailor on the frigate USS United States in 1843; his publishers, Harper & Bros., sent copies of White-jacket to every member of Congress in order to show the brutality and arbitrariness of flogging. Congress outlawed flogging in 1850. Manavelins entered English in the first half of the 19th century.
“The sailors, however, became his friends. Though he seldom came into contact with them, when he did it was to pass into the forecastle a plate of manavelins–an unconsumed pudding or some such dainty from the cabin table–instead of throwing it overboard, as most deep-water stewards do from sheer laziness.
MORGAN ROBERTSON, “THE STEWARD,” COSMOPOLITAN, NOVEMBER, 1910
All around him there was noise—traders calling wares, seamen slinging shanties as they hauled at cables, gulls cawing as they swooped for manavilins of fish ….
RORY CLEMENTS, TRAITOR, 2012
dissilient
[ dih-SIL-ee-uhnt ]
adjective
bursting apart; bursting open.
Dissilient, “bursting apart or open,” is primarily a botanical term referring to ripe pods or capsules of some plants bursting apart. Dissilient comes from Latin dissiliēns (inflectional stem dissilient-), the present participle of dissilīre, “to leap apart,” a compound of the prefix dis– “apart, asunder, away” and –silīre, a derivative of the simple verb salīre “to leap, jump, spurt.” Dissilient entered English in the second half of the 17th century.
“Dissilient as milkweed, deprived of cohesion, I am a blown surface.
JOAN HOULIHAN, “YOU WOULD BE WARM,” THE MENDING WORM: POEMS, 2006
The court was dissilient, generationally fractured, mannered (as it were) by an increasingly impatient and acquisitive nobility.
ERIC S. MALLIN, INSCRIBING THE TIME: SHAKESPEARE AND THE END OF ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND, 1995
picaresque
[pik-uh-RESK]
adjective
of, relating to, or resembling rogues.
The English adjective picaresque, “pertaining to or resembling rogues,” is modeled on Spanish picaresco “pertaining to or resembling a pícaro” (i.e., a rogue or vagabond), which first appears in print in Spanish in 1569. Picaresque in the sense “pertaining to a kind of narrative fiction” first appears in print in English in 1810; Spanish picaresco in the same sense appears in 1836. The etymology of pícaro is contested: it may come from the verb picar “to prick, pierce,” from Vulgar Latin piccāre, and be related to Latin pīcus “woodpecker.” Pícaro first appears in print in Spanish in the first half of the 16th century in the phrase pícaro de cozina “kitchen knave”; it was not a literary term. Pícaro in the sense “hero of a genre of novel” first appears in English in the first half of the 17th century.
“Ronnie Cornwell was a picaresque, forceful, charming, world-class con man, and he is the obsession of his famous son to this day.
TIMOTHY GARTON ASH, “THE REAL LE CARRÉ,” THE NEW YORKER, MARCH 15, 1999
The author … has composed meticulous biographies of each of the complete Gutenberg Bibles that have come down to us. Many have led picaresque lives. Harvard’s copy was briefly stolen, in 1969, by a troubled young man who smashed its glass encasement, took the book, climbed out a window, and knocked himself unconscious when he fell to the ground.
CULLEN MURPHY, “OUR PREDICTIONS ABOUT THE INTERNET ARE PROBABLY WRONG,” THE ATLANTIC, JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020
ravelment
[RAV-uhl-muhnt ]
noun
entanglement; confusion.
Ravelment, “entanglement; confusion,” is a compound of the verb ravel “to tangle, entangle” and the noun suffix –ment, here denoting a resulting state. Ravel most likely comes from Dutch ravelen “to become entangled or confused, (of fabric or thread) to fray.” Ravelment entered English in the first half of the 19th century.
“We are prone to seek out one cause as the single cause, which by itself determines all later events in a chain of events. But historical causes are a ravelment and there can be no single turning point from which all events flow.
GARY SAUL MORSON, HIDDEN IN PLAIN VIEW, 1987
This jagged shard of American history has become a ravelment of an election, a tangle of confusion and complexity.
FRANCIS X. CLINES, “THE LATEST STOP ON A WILD RIDE: THE BALLOT BOX, AGAIN,” NEW YORK TIMES, DECEMBER 10, 2000
farraginous
[ fuh-RAJ-uh-nuhs ]
adjective
heterogeneous; mixed.
The adjective farraginous “heterogeneous; mixed” ultimately comes from the Latin noun farrāgō (inflectional stem farrāgin-) “mixed grains” (used for animal feed). Farrāgo is a compound of far (inflectional stem farr-) “husked wheat, emmer” and the noun-forming suffix –āgō (stem āgin-). Other derivatives of far include farīna “meal, flour” (English farina) and its adjective farīnāceus (English farinaceous). Far comes from the Proto-Indo-European root bhers– or bhares– “barley,” source of Old Icelandic barr “grain, barley” and Old English bere, which forms the first syllable of modern English barley. Farraginous entered English in the first half of the 17th century.
“In general we suspect that the simpler the pasta dish, the more successful it is likely to be. … But fancier linguine alla grana (whole wheat pasta) was a disaster, a farraginous mound with bits of filet mignon and mushrooms in a fatty brown sauce.
M. H. REED, “WHERE THE APPETIZERS TAKE CENTER STAGE,” NEW YORK TIMES, NOVEMBER 5, 1995
For being a confusion of knaves and fools, and a farraginous concurrence of all conditions, tempers, sexes, and ages, it is but natural if their determinations be monstrous and many ways inconsistent with truth.
SIR THOMAS BROWNE, VULGAR ERRORS, 1646
estivate
[ ES-tuh-veyt ]
verb (used without object)
to spend the summer, as at a specific place or in a certain activity.
Estivate has two main senses: “to spend the summer at a specific place or in a certain activity” (as at the beach or in the mountains), and a zoological sense, “to spend a season in a dormant state, as certain reptiles and small mammals” (the “opposite,” as it were, of hibernate). Estivate comes from Latin aestīvātus, the past participle of aestīvāre “to reside during the summer.” Aestīvāre is a derivative of the adjective aestīvus “of or relating to summer; summery,” itself a derivative of the noun aestās “summer.” The Proto-Indo-European root behind the Latin words is ai– “to burn,” which is also the source of Latin aestus “heat, hot weather, hot season,” aedēs “dwelling place, abode, home” (because it was heated), and aedificium “a building” (English edifice). Two other derivatives, aedificāre “to erect a building,” and aedificātiō “the act or process of erecting a building; the building itself,” in Christian Latin developed the senses “to develop spiritually, improve the soul” (and “spiritual growth” for the noun), in current English edify and edification, which nowadays have nothing at all to do with the building trades. Estivate entered English in the first half of the 17th century.
“The curious thing is that Long Island, even for those who estivate there, does not have the glamour of a goingaway place. When I ask friends what they are going to do for the summer, some say that they are going to the mountains, or to the country, or to New England. But there is a certain hesitancy about describing the Island.
RICHARD F. SHEPARD, “ABOUT LONG ISLAND,” NEW YORK TIMES, MAY 30, 1976
There are three theories which serve partially—only partially—to explain the remoteness of Dulles International Airport. … The second is that the Kennedy clan, who estivate in or near Middleburg, Va., can come galloping more conveniently over the hills with Caroline to see relatives off.
DAN HOWE, “DULLES AIRPORT IS ‘WAY OUT’,” SARASOTA JOURNAL, FEBRUARY 26, 1963
vermilion
[ ver-MIL-yuhn ]
noun
a brilliant scarlet red.
Vermilion “brilliant scarlet red (color; pigment),” comes from Middle English vermil(i)oun, vermilion(e) (there are nearly 20 spelling variants) “cinnabar, red dye,” from Anglo-French vermeilloun, vermiloun, from Old French verm(e)illon, vermillon “red lead, rouge, cinnabar.” The Old French forms are derivatives of vermeil, vermail, from Late Latin vermiculus “grub, scarlet worm (a cochineal insect that is the source of red dye), scarlet color,” a diminutive of vermis “worm.” Vermilion entered English in the late 13th century.
“They were standing, facing each other, beneath the spreading branches of the lovely flamboyant. The rays of the silver moon shone down upon them through the sea of green and vermilion, and revealed the handsome face of the girl upturned to Carl.
ROBERT ARCHER TRACY, THE SWORD OF NEMESIS, 1919
The biggest seller is the Southern red velvet cake, which, underneath its creamy, demurely white icing, holds three layers of cake that’s rightfully (if alarmingly) vermilion with a lofty, delicate texture.
STEPHANIE ROSENBAUM, “CAKE MAN RAVEN CONFECTIONARY,” NEW YORK MAGAZINE, 2005
banausic
[ buh-NAW-sik, -zik ]
adjective
serving utilitarian purposes only; mechanical; practical.
There has always been more than a hint of snobbery about banausic, “serving utilitarian purposes only; mechanical; practical.” The word comes from the Greek adjective banausikós, “pertaining to or for artisans,” which is related to the noun bausanía “handicraft; the habits of a mere artisan, bad taste, vulgarity.” Banausikós and bausanía are derivatives of baûnos (also baunós), “furnace, forge,” a pre-Greek word with no known etymology. In modern German Banause “uncouth person” is the exact equivalent of English Philistine. Banausic entered English in the first half of the 19th century.
“Nor should we underestimate the counterinstinct, most prevalent among aristocrats and intellectuals, that looked down in contempt on all mundane and banausic occupations from the vantage point of inherited capital or estate income.
PETER GREEN, ALEXANDER TO ACTIUM: THE HISTORICAL EVOLUTION OF THE HELLENISTIC AGE, 1990
The modern undergraduates are what we should have called “banausic,” with a strict utilitarian outlook. For their virtues: they are more temperate and frugal than we were, less snobbish about athletics, more industrious, better sons to their parents and, I am inclined to think, better mannered.
JOHN BUCHAN, MEMORY HOLD-THE-DOOR, 1940
Fribble
\FRIB-uhl\, verb:
- to act in a foolish or frivolous manner; trifle.
- to waste foolishly (often followed by away): He fribbled away one opportunity after another.
noun:
- a foolish or frivolous person; trifler.
- anything trifling or frivolous.
- frivolousness.
adjective:
1. frivolous; foolish; trifling.
When a little recovered, he fribbled with his waistcoat buttons, as if he had been telling his beads.
– Samuel Richardson, Clarrisa, 1748
He fribbled away his time collecting bric-a-brac and drinking tea with old ladies; yet wrote the best letter; in the language in the midst of the chatter; knew everyone; went everywhere; and, as he said, “lived post.”
– Virginia Woolf, The Death of the Moth and Other Essays, 1942
Fribble is most likely a variant of the more common word frivol meaning “to behave frivolously.”
Rifacimento
ri-fah-chi-MEN-toh; It. ree-fah-chee-MEN-taw\, noun:
a recast or adaptation, as of a literary or musical work.
It is not a rifacimento of compliments; such is not the style with which I am saluted by the Duke of Doze and the Earl of Leatherdale!
– Benjamin Disraeli, Vivian Grey, 1906
Nevertheless, he shared the impression of unlikeness that certain parts of the play had left on many minds, and thought them best explained by the hypothesis of intermediate work, Shakespeare’s rifacimento of which was not so thorough but that he accepted much structure and a good deal of actual verse from its author…
– William Shakespeare, with introduction by Brian Morris, The Taming of the Shrew, 1981
Rifacimento entered English in the late 1700s from the Italian word rifare meaning “to make over.”
Irrefragable
[ ih-ref-ruh-guh-buhl ]
adjective
not to be disputed or contested.
Irrefragable, “not to be disputed or contested,” comes from Late Latin irrefragābilis, literally “unable to be broken back,” and an easy word to break down into its components. The prefix ir– is the variant that the Latin negative prefix in– (from the same Proto-Indo-European source as English un-) takes before r-. The element re– means “back, back again,” thoroughly naturalized in English; here re– forms part of the verb refragārī “to oppose (a candidate); resist; militate against” (fragārī is possibly a variant of frangere “to break”; refragārī means “to break back”). The suffix –ābilis is formed from the connecting vowel –ā– and the adjective suffix –bilis, which shows capability or ability, and is the source of English –able. Irrefragable entered English in the first half of the 16th century.
“The court often assumes that a federal agency acted properly unless an employee offers “irrefragable proof to the contrary.”
The Senate committee cited this as one of many issues on which the court had misinterpreted the law and the intent of Congress. “By definition,” it said, “irrefragable means impossible to refute. This imposes an impossible burden on whistleblowers.”
ROBERT PEAR, “CONGRESS MOVES TO PROTECT FEDERAL WHISTLEBLOWERS,” NEW YORK TIMES, OCTOBER 3, 2004
Physical science magnifies physical things. The universe of matter with its irrefragable laws looms upon our mental horizon larger than ever before, to some minds blotting out the very heavens.
JOHN BURROUGHS, “IN THE NOON OF SCIENCE,” THE ATLANTIC, SEPTEMBER 1912
penetralia
[pen-i-trey-lee-uh ]
plural noun
the innermost parts or recesses of a place or thing.
Penetralia, “the innermost parts or recesses of a place or thing,” comes straight from Latin penetrālia, the (neuter plural) noun use of the adjective penetrālis “inner, innermost, interior,” a derivative of the verb penetrāre “to penetrate, gain entrance, cross.” The Latin words are related to the preposition penes “under the control of, in the possession of,” the adverb penitus “from within, from inside,” and the plural noun Penātēs “the guardian deities of the Roman larder or pantry” (deep inside the house), who were regarded as controlling the destiny of the household. Penetralia entered English in the second half of the 17th century.
“He wished to be what he called “safe” with all those whom he had admitted to the penetralia of his house and heart.
ANTHONY TROLLOPE, BARCHESTER TOWERS, 1857
Lounge chairs have sprouted up in yards and driveways like propagating agave, and many of us have migrated from the penetralia of our backyards to porches and lawns.
MARIA NEUMAN, “WHY AMERICA IS REDISCOVERING THE SOCIAL FRONT YARD,” WALL STREET JOURNAL, JUNE 6, 2020
satori
[suh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee ]
noun
sudden enlightenment.
In Zen Buddhism, satori means “sudden spiritual enlightenment.” The Zen sense of satori is a more specific sense of the noun satori “comprehension, understanding,” a derivative of the verb satoru “to perceive, comprehend, awaken (spiritually).” Satori entered English in the first half of the 18th century.
“Perhaps Adams reached satori, emptied his mind of all thought, and then didn’t know what to think about it.
P. J. O’ROURKE, “THIRD PERSON SINGULAR,” THE ATLANTIC, DECEMBER 2002
Satori is the sudden flashing into consciousness of a new truth hitherto undreamed of. It is a sort of mental catastrophe taking place all at once, after much piling up of matters intellectual and demonstrative. The piling has reached a limit of stability and the whole edifice has come tumbling to the ground, when, behold, a new heaven is open to full survey.
D. T. SUZUKI, AN INTRODUCTION TO ZEN BUDDHISM, 1934
