Sunday 28 February 2021
Ab Vrbe Condita 2774
02/28/2021
Morcellation (noun)
The removal of something, as in surgery, by cutting it into pieces
Morcellation (noun)
The removal of something, as in surgery, by cutting it into pieces
Recent entries
Touch word to see definition.
02/21/2021: Lateritious (adjective) Having the color of a brick, reddish brown
02/14/2021: Promession (noun) Freeze-drying the dead. Technicians cool the body down to -320°F (-196°C), then vibrate it to a powder. A vacuum pump draws out the moisture. Buried, the powder vanishes completely in 6-12 months.
02/07/2021: Cultrate (adjective) Sharp-edged and pointy, such as a holly leaf
01/31/2021: Chiliad (noun) A thousand of something; a tenth of a myriad
01/24/2021: Exergual (adjective) Pertaining to a concavity on the reverse (“tails”) of a coin where an incription might appear, such as a date or motto
01/17/2021: Bistre (noun) A brownish yellow pigment [
] made from boiled chimney soot. The ideal raw material was beechwood.
01/10/2021: Resile (verb) To reverse from an agreement, to recant a previously held belief, to shrink or recoil, or to return to one’s original dimension after being stretched
01/03/2021: Fulgurous (adjective) Brilliant, dazzling, or flashing. Fulgurites, for example, are branch-shaped tubes that form when lightning strikes sand and fuses it into a glass.
12/27/2020: Rantoon (noun) Nineteenth century tricycle with a single steerable small wheel in front and two large side-by-side wheels behind
12/20/2020: Pycnostyle (adjective) The architectural quality of having columns very closely spaced — one and a half diameters between them or less (which I imagine would discourage all but the skinniest burglars)
12/13/2020: Autotomy (noun) The ability of some animals to sacrifice a body part in order to escape from a predator. Many lizards can do this; but at least one mammal, the dormouse, also has this talent.
12/06/2020: Cubane (noun) A molecule first synthesized in 1964, C8H8, consisting of a cube defined at each corner by a carbon atom and a projecting hydrogen atom. It’s a transparent solid that melts at 131°C (268°F) but boils only a few degrees warmer.
11/29/2020: Gyrovague (noun) A monk who travels from place to place seeking out spiritual novelty
11/22/2020: Florisugent (adjective) Sucking nectar from flowers. Hummingbirds, bees, and many moths and butterflies are florisugent.
11/15/2020: Tartuffery (noun) The expression of sentiments or beliefs greatly exceeding or contrary to those one actually holds. Synonyms: sanctimony, pharisaicalness, pecksniffery (from Charles Dickens)
11/08/2020: Nidor (noun) The smell of burning animal fat
11/01/2020: Mithridatize (verb) To build up an immunity to a particular poison by dosing oneself with it incrementally
10/25/2020: Stendhal syndrome (noun) A pathological attack of rapture, which may include dizziness and hallucinations, suffered by many who travel to foreign lands and take in too much beautiful religious artwork
10/18/2020: Antelucan (adjective) Pertaining to the pre-dawn hours
10/11/2020: Dactylion (noun) The tip of the middle finger
Touch word to see definition.
02/21/2021: Lateritious (adjective) Having the color of a brick, reddish brown
02/14/2021: Promession (noun) Freeze-drying the dead. Technicians cool the body down to -320°F (-196°C), then vibrate it to a powder. A vacuum pump draws out the moisture. Buried, the powder vanishes completely in 6-12 months.
02/07/2021: Cultrate (adjective) Sharp-edged and pointy, such as a holly leaf
01/31/2021: Chiliad (noun) A thousand of something; a tenth of a myriad
01/24/2021: Exergual (adjective) Pertaining to a concavity on the reverse (“tails”) of a coin where an incription might appear, such as a date or motto
01/17/2021: Bistre (noun) A brownish yellow pigment [
] made from boiled chimney soot. The ideal raw material was beechwood.
01/10/2021: Resile (verb) To reverse from an agreement, to recant a previously held belief, to shrink or recoil, or to return to one’s original dimension after being stretched
01/03/2021: Fulgurous (adjective) Brilliant, dazzling, or flashing. Fulgurites, for example, are branch-shaped tubes that form when lightning strikes sand and fuses it into a glass.
12/27/2020: Rantoon (noun) Nineteenth century tricycle with a single steerable small wheel in front and two large side-by-side wheels behind
12/20/2020: Pycnostyle (adjective) The architectural quality of having columns very closely spaced — one and a half diameters between them or less (which I imagine would discourage all but the skinniest burglars)
12/13/2020: Autotomy (noun) The ability of some animals to sacrifice a body part in order to escape from a predator. Many lizards can do this; but at least one mammal, the dormouse, also has this talent.
12/06/2020: Cubane (noun) A molecule first synthesized in 1964, C8H8, consisting of a cube defined at each corner by a carbon atom and a projecting hydrogen atom. It’s a transparent solid that melts at 131°C (268°F) but boils only a few degrees warmer.
11/29/2020: Gyrovague (noun) A monk who travels from place to place seeking out spiritual novelty
11/22/2020: Florisugent (adjective) Sucking nectar from flowers. Hummingbirds, bees, and many moths and butterflies are florisugent.
11/15/2020: Tartuffery (noun) The expression of sentiments or beliefs greatly exceeding or contrary to those one actually holds. Synonyms: sanctimony, pharisaicalness, pecksniffery (from Charles Dickens)
11/08/2020: Nidor (noun) The smell of burning animal fat
11/01/2020: Mithridatize (verb) To build up an immunity to a particular poison by dosing oneself with it incrementally
10/25/2020: Stendhal syndrome (noun) A pathological attack of rapture, which may include dizziness and hallucinations, suffered by many who travel to foreign lands and take in too much beautiful religious artwork
10/18/2020: Antelucan (adjective) Pertaining to the pre-dawn hours
10/11/2020: Dactylion (noun) The tip of the middle finger
