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Based on the Wiktionary Word of the Day Archive. Some editing of the list to remove ones that would be too easy in question form, and some editing of the descriptions to make them shorter or fit the questions better.
Usually made of marble or glass. Should be capitalized for the first inhabitants of Australia Especially as a symptom of mental illness. Frequently spelled abulia. From Latin-later Shakespeare included it to refer to moderation in sex (Tempest) From the Irish: Ãcuisle - O pulse (of my heart) As in the lemon of a used car you bought To facilitate its passing through eyelet holes. Especially between the protagonist and antagonist in a literary work Masculine personification of Nemesis. Frequently evoked in Greek tragedy Composed of a silicate of alumina and soda. It is a common constituent of granite and of various igneous rocks. An early chemical apparatus, consisting of two retorts connected by a tube, used to purify substances by distillation. A retort is a glassware device used for distillation or dry distillation of substances. It consists of a spherical vessel with a long downward-pointing neck. Especially snow covered mountains To heal or solve a problem Accompanied by excommunication Pertaining to snakes or serpents. Synonym: ophidian. ... though in fact diametric and opposite mean the same thing. This often used expression literally means oppositely opposite (which is redundant) In the absence of motor or sensory impairment As in a US President arrogating the power of Congress to declare war Greediness after wealth; covetousness; cupidity. "Yet until middle age and avoirdupois overtook her, Mary was no slouch."-John Updike; From the French words: Avoir - to have, Du - "some" when preceded by a verb, Poids - pounds One of the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Festival of Bacchus; Referring to the Roman God Bacchus, the god of wine Described in Job 40:15-24, used to illustrate God's mightiness. Also used as a transitive verb. From the Latin 'bellum' meaning war. More efficacious than "to brandish" To divulge inconsiderately, to utter suddenly and unadvisedly. A pointless activity; work of little or no value done merely to look busy Reading direction changes from right-to-left to left-to-right each line. After Brobdingnag, a country in Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, where everything was enormous Not quite as much as a ruckus. E.g. The Callipygian Venus Also called vilification, slander or libel. A falsification or misrepresentation intended to disparage or discredit another Or as an adverb: in a diagonal position. As of monks or uni-cellular organisms Usually made from flowers. By quibbling or sophistry A portmanteau word from Lewis Caroll's poem "Jabberwocky". It is made from the words "chuckle" and "snort". Often referring to the gods of the underworld Or - unbelievable audacity. From the Yiddish "khutspe". Sometimes to conceal an illicit or improper purpose. Surcharged with liquor; alcoholism; drunk; given to excesses Following the direction of the sun's movement Medical jargon. From the Latin Decalvare - to make bald The word comes from the Latin de ("from; out of") and fenestra ("window"). Or bush or any plant, really. Also can be used as an adjective. Obviously different from "defuse" To deny responsibility for, approbation of, and the like; to disclaim; to disown In classical literature, a poem featuring rural themes and structured as a dialogue among shepherds. However, in Astronomy, it means one billion years. Which only seems like an eternity. Especially the activation and deactivation of genes As in, "alone, alone, all alone, alone on a wide wide sea" -- Coleridge As in a tribe, place, crater, law that is named after a person etc. A person, real or imaginary, from whom something e.g. a tribe, a nation or a place takes its name. Brut, the supposed grandson of Aeneas, is the eponym of the Britons A highly contagious disease of horses, mules, and donkeys -- caused by the bacterium Actinobacillus mallei. Also the notation of such a prolongation, usually represented as a dot with a semi-circle above it, written above the clef. E.g. Tabasco onions sprinkled on top, were an added fillip. Such as a good meal, a good book, etc To overwhelm with wonder; to stun or amaze. "He was flabbergasted to find that his work had been done for him before he began." synonyms: astound, astonish Flok-sih-noh-see-Nee-hee-lee-Pee-lih-fih-Kay-shun Also refers to vagrant populations. Not necessarily fortunate As opposed to eggs which are fryable Not to be confused with ganglion, which are not really that tall. From French, literally, with his mouth open swallowing flies Floating in the air or caught on bushes etc. Usually identified with the kingfisher, and derived from the Greek myth of Alcyone. Literally translated as "belly cut". Hara-kiri is a informal term for seppuku. Can be either a verb or a noun - you can harangue someone, or you can deliver a harangue. As a beard on a woman or large breasts on a man One who adheres to the doctrine of iconoclasm Having the quality of being difficult to remove, wash away, blot out, or efface As in to make stubborn, insensitive or callous Careless, indifferent, unconcerned. Most often applied to warfare Unreasonable; irreconcilable; stubborn. Bothersome; annoying; irritating; wearisome; tedious. E.g a coin or on a thumbscrew as an aid in gripping. Sad, pertaining to tears, weeping, causing tears or crying Characterized by lewdness; sensual; lascivious. Comes from the diminutive inhabitants featured in "Gulliver's Travels" In Medieval times, a play or poem using both Latin and vernacular languages. To babble, prattle, or ramble. As in a mellifluous voice Refers to the verse "They hae slain the Earl Amurray and laid him on the green". Inferior pole of the horizon; point of the celestial sphere directly under the place where we stand. After the satirical poem 'Namby Pamby' written by Henry Carey in 1725. Generally within the thickness of a wall, for a statue, bust, or other erect ornament. Discovered by Lord Rutherford. From the Latin for little nut, or kernel. Esp. in the seraglio of the Sultan of Turkey (now hist.). In extended use: an exotic, sexually attractive woman; a representation of a sexually attractive figure in art. Eg. a dyslexic english teacher As formerly used in eastern Asia Especially on foot; hence, to sojourn in foreign countries. As in pidgin English; a linguistic effort to bridge the gap between peoples with no common language Used by mountain climbers Originally a pathological condition meaning excessive blood or other bodily fluids Also can be used as an adjective. A term from Gilbert and Sullivan's The Mikado. In this operetta, the haughty character Pooh-Bah holds numerous exalted offices, including Lord Chief Justice, Master of the Buckhounds, Lord High Auditor, Groom of the Back Stairs, and Lord High Everything Else. The name has come to be used as a mocking title for someone self-important or high-ranking and who exhibits an inflated self-regard. Also 'Grand Poobah'. Either physically or figuratively Making every situation fit a prescribed formula. This is the fourth item in the sequence that begins primary, secondary and tertiary. These are followed by quinary, senary, septenary, octonary, nonary, and denary. Twelfth order is duodenary, and twentieth order is vigenary.
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