Ruche n. Frill or gathering of lace, etc, as trimming.
Ulema n. (Member of) body of Moslem doctors of sacred law and theology.
Secco n. Painting on dry plaster with pigments suspended in water.
Sound post n. Small prop between belly and back of some stringed instruments.
Numismatology n. Study of coins, coinage or related things (medals, etc).
Farthingale n. Hooped petticoat or stiff curved roll to extend woman's skirt.
Firedamp n. Miner's name for methane.
Soutane n. Cassock of RC priest.
Groyne (or Groin in US) n; vt. Timber framework or low, broad wall run out to check drifting of beach or to stop encroachment of sea; supply with groynes.
Aaron's rod n. Popular name for several tall plants, esp a mullein (Verbascum thapsus).
Buckram n; a. Coarse linen or cloth stiffened with gum or paste; stiff in manner.
Estreat n; vt. (Make) copy of court record for use in prosecution; enforcement of fine.
Flèche n. Slender spire with windows, esp. at intersection of name and transept.
Osier n. (Shoot of) species of willow, esp. Salex Niminalis, used in basket work.
Niello n. Black composition of sulphur with Pb, Ag or Cu for filling engraved lines in silver or other metal; (specimen of) such ornamental work.
Chid a; p.p. Chided.
Lustral a. Of or pertaining to purification ceremony.
Cadastral a. Of or showing extent, value and ownership, of land for taxation.
Hecatomb n. Great public sacrifice (originally of 100 oxen).
Brad n. Flat, thin, small-head nail.
Lurcher n. Cross between collie or sheep dog and greyhound.
Guerdon n. (Poet.) Award, recompense.
Cresset n. (Hist.) Metal vessel for holiday oil, coal, etc, for light, usu. mounted on pole.
Tranche n. Portion, esp. of income, or block of shares.
Words from a fortnight's Times/Sunday Times crosswords.
This is a list of words I didn't know when I came upon them (from 2004 onwards). I may have had a good guess at what they meant, but actually did not know their meaning. I will be updating this list periodically.
| lubricious | adj. 1. lewd. 2. smooth and slippery with oil or grease. COD |
| etiolated | adj. (of a plant) pale and weak due to a lack of light. COD |
| encomium | n. a speech or piece of writing expressing praise. COD |
| myrmidons | n. a hired ruffian or unscrupulous subordinate. COD |
| sybaritic:
sybarite |
adj. n. a person who is self-indulgently fond of sensuous luxury. COD |
| crepitating | crepitate v. make a crackling sound. COD |
| aegis | n. 1. the protection, backing or support of someone. 2. (in classical art and mythology) an attribute of certain gods represented as a goatskin shield. COD |
| Quislings | quisling n. a traitor collaborating with an occupying force. COD |
| crepuscular | adj. of, resembling, or relating to twilight. COD |
| mellifluous | adj. pleasingly smooth and musical to hear. COD |
| cotters | cottar (also cotter) n. (in Scotland and Ireland) a farm labourer or tenant occupying a cottage in return for labour.
(compare with cottager: n. a person living in a cottage.) COD |
| purblind | adj. 1. having impaired or defective vision. 2. dim-witted. COD |
| kipple | n. the sinister type of rubbish which simply builds up without any human intervention. Philip K Dick |
| harlican | n. no meaning? Thomas Hardy (Jude the Obscure) |
| pellucid | adj. 1. transparent or translucent. 2. extremely clear in style and meaning. COL |
| ogee dome | n. Archit. a pointed dome having a cross section in the form of a letter S. COL |
| homologated | homologate v. to approve, especially to confirm officially. D.C |
| traduced | traduce v. to speak badly or maliciously of. COL |
| soi-disant | French. adj. so-called; self-styled. COL |
| ichor | n. 1. Greek myth. the fluid said to flow in the veins of the gods. 2. Pathol. a foul-smelling watery discharge from a wound of ulcer. COL |
| hale | adj. healthy and robust (esp in "hale and hearty"). 2. v. to pull or drag. COL |
| logorrhoeic: logorrhoea |
adj. n. uncontrollable or incoherent talkativeness. COL |
| involutions | involution n. 1. the act of involving; the state of being involved. 2. intricacy; complexity. 3. something, such as a long grammatical construction, that is intricate or complex. D.C |
| peroration | n. the conclusion of a speech or discourse, in which points made previously are summed up. COL |
| lenticular | adj. 1. shaped like a biconvex lens. 2. of or concerned with a lens or lenses. 3. shaped like a lentil seed. COL |
| manquées: manqué |
French. pl. adj. unfulfilled; potential; would-be. (the manager is an actor manqué). COL |
| gamine | n. a slim and boyish girl or young woman; an elfish tomboy. COL |
| pomiary | Polish. measurements Google Translate |
| louche | adj. of questionable taste or morality; decadent. D.C |
| vernissage | n. a preview or the opening or the first day of an exhibition of paintings. COL |
| arriviste | n. a person who is unscrupulously ambitious. COL |
"aphoristic bon mots" | |
| aphorism | n. a short pithy saying expressing a general truth; maxim. |
| bon mots | n. pl. clever and fitting remarks. COL |
| fug | n. Chief Brit. a hot, stale, or suffocating atmosphere. COL |
| ineluctable | adj. (esp. of fate) incapable of being avoided; inescapable. COL |
| sui generis | adj. unique. COL |
| teleological: teleology |
adj. n. belief in or the perception of purposeful development toward an end, as in nature or history; the study or use of this. D.C |
| roué | n. a debauched or lecherous man; rake. COL |
| surtout | n. a man's overcoat resembling a frock coat, popular in the late 19th century. COL |
| uxorious | adj. excessively attached to or dependent on one's wife. COL |
| undinism | n. Med. a condition in which sexual thoughts are aroused by water, urine, and urination. CancerWEB's On-line Medical Dictionary |
| chanteuse | n. a female singer, esp. in a nightclub or cabaret. COL |
| finical | adj. finicky. D.C |
| exigent | adj. 1. urgent; pressing. 2. exacting; demanding. COL |
| denouement | n. 1. the clarification or resolution of a plot in a play or other work. 2. final outcome; solution. COL |
| equivocated: equivocate |
v. to use equivocal language, esp. to avoid speaking directly or honestly. |
| equivocal | adj. 1. capable of varying interpretations; ambiguous. 2. deliberately misleading or vague. 3. of doubtful character or sincerity. COL |
| contretemps | n. 1. an awkward or difficult situation or mishap. 2. a small disagreement that is rather embarrassing. COL |
| abstruse | adj. not easy to understand. COL |
| waldoes | waldo n. a gadget for manipulating objects by remote control. COL |
| corpulence | n. the condition of being excessively fat; obesity. COL |
| barratry | n. 1. (archaic) fraud or gross negligence on the part of a ship's master or crew at the expense of its owners or users. 2. (law) vexatious litigation or incitement to it. 3. (historical) trade in the sale of Church or state appointments. COD |
| erinaceous | adj. of the hedgehog kind or family. D.C |
| nutating nutation |
n. an act or instance of nodding one's head, esp. involuntarily or spasmodically. D.C |
| vicissitudes vicissitude |
n. a change in circumstance or fortune, typically for the worse. COD |
ontical-ontological | |
| ontic | adj. (philosophy) of or relating to entities and the facts about them. |
| ontology | n. the branch of metaphysics concerned with the nature of being. COL |
| valorisation valorise |
n. v. give or ascribe value or validity to. Artifically raise or fix the price or value of. COD |
| haptic | adj. of or relating to the sense of touch. COD |
| imbricated imbricate |
adj. v. (chiefly zoology & botany) arrange in an overlapping manner like roof tiles. COD |
| mimesis | n. 1. imitative representation of the real world in art and literature. 2. the deliberate imitation of the behaviour of one group of people by another as a factor in social change. COD |
| métier | n. 1. a trade, profession, or occupation. 2. an outstanding or advantageous characteristic. SOURCE |
COD Concise Oxford Dictionary
COL Collins Dictionary
D.C Dictionary.com
To travel home I cross the Bridge belonging to the local friars.
I ride south to the farmstead of the New people, which has a pub.
From there south west, through the farmstead of Ken's people, where they play cricket.
Past the animal's drinking hole, through the hamlets of Clap and Bal to my house on the stream next to the Toots.
The above uses the meaning of the the London place names of Farringdon, Blackfriars, Newington (commonly known as Elephant & Castle), Kennington (commonly know as Oval), Stockwell, Clapham, Balham, Tooting Bec.
Marly Bone (Marylebone)
Hoe Bun (Holborn)
To' Num Court Road (Tottenham Court Road)