Hi all!
I'm sorry for my tardiness and general laziness! I shall endeavour to do a couple of words a couple of times this week to make up for it!

I have been reading 'Wicked' by Gregory Macguire and he uses some fantastic words but I seem to lose them as soon as I find them. Hiding within the pages, I keep going back to find some of the juicy words but keep being unsuccessful. I think I will have to read with a notebook next to me so as to remedy this problem! Here are a couple I managed to find though are not the best....

AMANUENSIS

noun

one employed to write from dictation or to copy manuscript


VERDIGRIS

noun

a green or greenish blue poisonous pigment resulting from the action of acetic acid on copper, consisting of one or more basic copper acetates, and formerly used in medicine 

The Rest of You are Slackers

obfuscate

verb.

1. Render obscure, unclear, or unintelligible. 

2. Bewilder (someone)

Origin: Late Middle English; from late Latin obfuscat-'darkened', from the verb obfuscare, based on Latin fuscus 'dark'

(I know nothing of Latin pronunciation, but I'm picturing obscured, or confusing cats and caring in the dark)

epistle

noun

formal or humorous 

1. A letter.

2. A poem or other literary work in the form of a letter or a series of letters.

Origin:

Old English, via Latin from Greek epistolē, from epistellein 'send news', from epi 'upon, in addition' + stellein 'send'. The word was reintroduced in Middle English from Old French

NOMNOMNOM

Dr Samuel Johnson

Hey kids,

I am researching the dictionary for my archive paper.
According to The Dictionary Makers by Anthony Burgess the first dictionary was written by Dr. Samuel Johnson in 1755. You can read some of his sweet words and definitions here.

solecism

noun

1. A grammatical mistake in speech or writing

2. A breach of good manners; a piece of incorrect behaviour.

kismet

noun

Fate; fortune; destiny

impecunious

adjective

having little or no money; penniless; poor

chyack

(or chiack)

Australian informal

1. verb to tease of banter

2. noun good humored banter

[C19: from chi-hike,  a shout or greeting]

Marc Johns

caterwaul

Verb:

(of a cat) Make a shrill howling or wailing noise: "the caterwauling of a pair of bobcats"; "a caterwauling guitar".

Noun:

A shrill howling or wailing noise.

poppysmic 

noise produced when smacking lips

forsooth

adv.

Indeed (often used ironically or to express surprise or indignation): "forsooth, there is no one I trust more". Used to give an ironic politeness to questions. bildungsroman n. A novel dealing with a person's development or spiritual education. Origin: German, from Bildung 'education' + Roman 'a novel'