WiredJC Word of the Day

[Misgal]

new       /nu, nyu/ [noo, nyoo] adjective, -er, -est, adverb, noun
–adjective
1. of recent origin, production, purchase, etc.; having but lately come or been brought into being: a new book. 
2. of a kind now existing or appearing for the first time; novel: a new concept of the universe. 
3. having but lately or but now come into knowledge: a new chemical element. 
4. unfamiliar or strange (often fol. by to): ideas new to us; to visit new lands. 
5. having but lately come to a place, position, status, etc.: a reception for our new minister. 
6. unaccustomed (usually fol. by to): people new to such work. 
7. coming or occurring afresh; further; additional: new gains. 
8. fresh or unused: to start a new sheet of paper. 
9. (of physical or moral qualities) different and better: The vacation made a new man of him. 
10. other than the former or the old: a new era; in the New World. 
11. being the later or latest of two or more things of the same kind: the New Testament; a new edition of Shakespeare. 
12. (initial capital letter) (of a language) in its latest known period, esp. as a living language at the present time: New High German. 
–adverb 13. recently or lately (usually used in combination): The valley was green with new-planted crops. 
14. freshly; anew or afresh (often used in combination): roses new washed with dew; new-mown hay. 
–noun 15. something that is new; a new object, quality, condition, etc.: Ring out the old, ring in the new. 


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[Origin: bef. 900; ME newe (adj., adv., and n.), OE néowe, nīewe, nīwe (adj. and adv.); c. D nieuw, G neu, ON nȳr, Goth niujis, OIr núe, Welsh newydd, Gk neǐos; akin to L novus, OCS novŭ, Gk néos, Skt navas]

[Case]

Oxford Word Of The Year: Locavore

It’s that time of the year again. It is finally starting to get cold (if you are worried about the global warming maybe you should become carbon-neutral) and the New Oxford American Dictionary is preparing for the holidays by making its biggest announcement of the year. The 2007 Word of the Year is (drum-roll please) locavore.

The past year saw the popularization of a trend in using locally grown ingredients, taking advantage of seasonally available foodstuffs that can be bought and prepared without the need for extra preservatives.

The “locavore” movement encourages consumers to buy from farmers’ markets or even to grow or pick their own food, arguing that fresh, local products are more nutritious and taste better. Locavores also shun supermarket offerings as an environmentally friendly measure, since shipping food over long distances often requires more fuel for transportation.

“The word ‘locavore’ shows how food-lovers can enjoy what they eat while still appreciating the impact they have on the environment,” said Ben Zimmer, editor for American dictionaries at Oxford University Press. “It’s significant in that it brings together eating and ecology in a new way.”

“Locavore” was coined two years ago by a group of four women in San Francisco who proposed that local residents should try to eat only food grown or produced within a 100-mile radius. Other regional movements have emerged since then, though some groups refer to themselves as “localvores” rather than “locavores.” However it’s spelled, it’s a word to watch.

[mouse]

headless

1 a: having no head
   b: having the head cut off : beheaded
2: having no chief
3: lacking good sense or prudence : foolish

— head·less·ness noun

In software, headless refers to computer programs that use textual input/output to interact with users, instead of using graphics or graphical user interfaces (GUIs).

In computer hardware, headless refers to a server with no monitor, graphics card, or keyboard attached. Interaction with it depends on the use of a network connection, serial communications, or the use of a "crash cart."

A headless is also a type of foe encountered in the role-playing universe of Ultima. They are naked humans, without a head.
The Headless are also NPC's found in the first low level Exile hideout in the role-playing universe of The Matrix Online. These are clothed, human looking programs with no heads.

headless dick (from Urban Dicktionary)

A hot dog, sausage, weiner, weiner-dog, or other cylindrically-shaped meat based food product. So named for its resemblance in size and shape to the male penis, minus the mushroom "head" or glans-like bulbous anatomical feature at one end. Also can be abbreviated to "H.D." or "HD's" (plural) for added trendiness & urban hotness, or when uttered in public places or among mixed company.

"Are you hungry? 'Cause I'm gonna fry up some headless dicks here for us." Or, "Chet's gonna make his famous Headless Dick Fricassee for dinner tonight!" And "Can we go to Albertson's? I need to get some milk, butter, and HDs!"

[Woodsy]

Detest

Main Entry: de·test 
Pronunciation: \di-ˈtest, dē-\
Function: transitive verb
Etymology: Middle French detester or Latin detestari; Middle French detester, from Latin detestari, literally, to curse while calling a deity to witness, from de- + testari to call to witness — more at testament
Date: circa 1535
1: to feel intense and often violent antipathy toward : loathe
2obsolete : curse, denounce
synonyms: see hate
— de·test·er noun

[Hurtle]

a1b      /ælb/
–noun Ecclesiastical. a linen vestment with narrow sleaves, worn chiefly by priests, now invariably white in the Western Church but any color in the Eastern Church. 


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[Origin: bef. 1100; ME albe, (h)aube (< MF), OE albe < L alba (vestis) white (garment); cf. D albe, OHG alba (G Albe)]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

[fasteddie]

toiletry

noun
artifacts used in making your toilet (washing and taking care of your body)

[Woodsy]

Drivel

Main Entry 1: driv·el
Pronunciation: 'dri-v&l
Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s): -eled or -elled; -el·ing or driv·el·ling  /-v(&-)li[ng]/
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English dreflian; perhaps akin to Old Norse draf malt dregs
1 : to let saliva dribble from the mouth : SLAVER
2 : to talk stupidly and carelessly
- driv·el·er  /-v(&-)l&r/ noun

Main Entry 2: drivel
Function: noun
1 archaic : DROOL 1
2 : NONSENSE

[BRJC]

Cackle \Cac"kle\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Cackled (-k'ld); p. pr.
   & vb. n. Cackling.] [OE. cakelen; cf. LG. kakeln, D.
   kakelen, G. gackeln, gackern; all of imitative origin. Cf.
   Gagle, Cake to cackle.]
   1. To make a sharp, broken noise or cry, as a hen or goose
      does.

            When every goose is cackling.

   2. To laugh with a broken noise, like the cackling of a hen
      or a goose; to giggle.

   3. To talk in a silly manner; to prattle.

When we flashed the lantern in their eyes, the hens set up a great cackling and flew about clumsily, scattering down-feathers.

My Antonia by Willa Cather

Still clad as he was in the mantle and wimple of an old woman, Til did not, at first, recognize him, and when he spoke she burst into a nervous, cackling laugh, as one caught in the perpetration of some questionable act, nor did her manner escape the shrewd notice of the wily master of fence.

The Outlaw of Torn by Edgar Rice Burroughs

"Long time you fella Tiha no sit 'm along canoe," Aora bawled to the victim and set Bashti cackling again.

Jerry of the Islands by Jack London

[Woodsy]

Plethora

Main Entry: pleth·o·ra 
Pronunciation: \ˈple-thə-rə\
Function: noun
Etymology: Medieval Latin, from Greek plēthōra, literally, fullness, from plēthein to be full — more at full
Date: 1541
1: a bodily condition characterized by an excess of blood and marked by turgescence and a florid complexion
2: excess, superfluity; also : profusion, abundance
— ple·tho·ric  \plə-ˈthȯr-ik, ple-, -ˈthär-; ˈple-thə-rik\ adjective

[Woodsy]

Fetid

Main Entry: fet·id 
Pronunciation: \ˈfe-təd, especially British ˈfē-tid\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin foetidus, from foetēre to stink
Date: 15th century
: having a heavy offensive smell <a fetid swamp>
synonyms: see malodorous
— fet·id·ly adverb
— fet·id·ness noun

[duke_of_earl]

fappable

Something that is sexually desirable, or deemed high enough quality that it can be used for masturbation purposes.

Man, that picture is really fappable.

[elgoodo]

buck-wild (adjective)
1.   insane, intense,  crazy; extreme, intense, desperate
1.   without inhibitions
2.   uncontrollable, uncivilized

[Bobblehead]

tonsillolith

A tonsillolith (also called tonsil stone or calculus of the tonsil) is a piece (or more commonly, a cluster) of calcareous matter which forms in the rear of the mouth, in the crevasses (called crypts) of the palatine tonsils (which are what most people commonly refer to as simply tonsils). Euphemisms include: "bad breath balls," "cauliflowers," "lung butters," and "throat candies."

 

(from Wikipedia)

[Woodsy]

Epiphany

Main Entry: epiph·a·ny
Pronunciation: i-'pi-f&-nE
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -nies
Etymology: Middle English epiphanie, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin epiphania, from Late Greek, plural, probably alteration of Greek epiphaneia appearance, manifestation, from epiphainein to manifest, from epi- + phainein to show -- more at FANCY
1 capitalized : January 6 observed as a church festival in commemoration of the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles or in the Eastern Church in commemoration of the baptism of Christ
2 : an appearance or manifestation especially of a divine being
3 a (1) : a usually sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something (2) : an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usually simple and striking (3) : an illuminating discovery, realization, or disclosure b : a revealing scene or moment

[fasteddie]

pro·bi·ty      [proh-bi-tee, prob-i-]

–noun
integrity and uprightness; honesty.
[Origin: 1505–15; < L probitas uprightness, equiv. to prob(us) upright + -itas -ity]

So, why does it sound dirty?

[MCA™]

pro·bi·ty      [proh-bi-tee, prob-i-]

–noun
integrity and uprightness; honesty.
[Origin: 1505–15; < L probitas uprightness, equiv. to prob(us) upright + -itas -ity]

[MCA™]

vi·cious      [vish-uhs]

–adjective
1.   addicted to or characterized by vice; grossly immoral; depraved; profligate: a vicious life.
2.   given or readily disposed to evil: a vicious criminal.
3.   reprehensible; blameworthy; wrong: a vicious deception.
4.   spiteful; malicious: vicious gossip; a vicious attack.
5.   unpleasantly severe: a vicious headache.
6.   characterized or marred by faults or defects; faulty; unsound: vicious reasoning.
7.   savage; ferocious: They all feared his vicious temper.
8.   (of an animal) having bad habits or a cruel or fierce disposition: a vicious bull.
9.   Archaic. morbid, foul, or noxious.
[Origin: 1300–50; ME (< AF) < L vitiosus, equiv. to viti(um) fault, vice + -osus -ous]
[Often misspelled as viscious]

[Hurtle]

Per Hurtle's portentious post in missa's thread:

portentous

adjective
1.  of momentous or ominous significance; "such a portentous...monster raised all my curiosity"- Herman Melville; "a prodigious vision" 
2.  ominously prophetic [syn: fateful] 
3.  puffed up with vanity; "a grandiloquent and boastful manner"; "overblown oratory"; "a pompous speech"; "pseudo-scientific gobbledygook and pontifical hooey"- Newsweek [syn: grandiloquent] 

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.

[Woodsy]

Corpulent

Main Entry: cor·pu·lent
Pronunciation: -l&nt
Function: adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin corpulentus, from corpus
: having a large bulky body : OBESE
- cor·pu·lent·ly adverb

[Woodsy]

Sublime

Pronunciation: s&-'blIm

1) Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): sub·limed; sub·lim·ing
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French sublimer, from Medieval Latin sublimare to refine, sublime, from Latin, to elevate, from sublimis
transitive verb
1 : to cause to pass directly from the solid to the vapor state and condense back to solid form
2 [French sublimer, from Latin sublimare] a (1) : to elevate or exalt especially in dignity or honor (2) : to render finer (as in purity or excellence) b : to convert (something inferior) into something of higher worth
intransitive verb : to pass directly from the solid to the vapor state
- sub·lim·able  /-'blI-m&-b&l/ adjective
- sub·lim·er noun

2) Function: adjective
Inflected Form(s): sub·lim·er; -est
Etymology: Latin sublimis, literally, high, elevated
1 a : lofty, grand, or exalted in thought, expression, or manner b : of outstanding spiritual, intellectual, or moral worth c : tending to inspire awe usually because of elevated quality (as of beauty, nobility, or grandeur) or transcendent excellence
2 a archaic : high in place b obsolete : lofty of mien : HAUGHTY c capitalized : SUPREME -- used in a style of address d : COMPLETE, UTTER <sublime ignorance>
synonym see SPLENDID
- sub·lime·ly adverb
- sub·lime·ness noun

[Woodsy]

Schmuck

Main Entry: schmuck
Pronunciation: 'shm&k
Function: noun
Etymology: Yiddish shmok

The word schmuck refers to the foreskin of the head of a penis and has become common in American English meaning a detestable person, or a jerk. The word also means a stupid or idiotic person. In these senses, schmuck entered English as a borrowed word from the Yiddish slang for foreskin, (Yiddish: שמאָק, shmok), where it is an obscene term and an insult. In his famous cultural lexicon, The Joys of Yiddish, Leo Rosten lists the Yiddish schmuck as related to the Slovene word, šmok, meaning "a fool, an innocent, a gullible dolt."

[NON]

Per Hurtle's portentious post in missa's thread:

mul·lion
/ˈmʌlyən/
–noun
1.   a vertical member, as of stone or wood, between the lights of a window, the panels in wainscoting, or the like.
2.   one of the radiating bars of a rose window or the like.
–verb (used with object)
3.   to furnish with, or to form into divisions by the use of, mullions.

[Origin: 1560–70; metathetic var. of monial]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

[MCA™]

trencherman  [TREN-chuhr-muhn]

-noun
A hearty eater.
[Origin: Trencherman is from trencher, "a wooden board or platter on which food is served or carved" (from Medieval French trencheoir, from Old French trenchier, "to cut," from Latin truncare, "to lop off, to shorten by cutting") + man. It is related to trench, "a hole cut into the ground."

[NON]

break·fast [brek-fuhst]
–noun
1.   the first meal of the day; morning meal: A hearty breakfast was served at 7 a.m.
2.   the food eaten at the first meal of the day: a breakfast of bacon and eggs.
–verb (used without object)
3.   to eat breakfast: He breakfasted on bacon and eggs.
–verb (used with object)
4.   to supply with breakfast: We breakfasted the author in the finest restaurant.
[Origin: 1425–75; late ME brekfast. See break, fast2]

—Related forms
break·fast·er, noun
break·fast·less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

men·u [men-yoo, mey-nyoo]
–noun
1.   a list of the dishes served at a meal; bill of fare: Ask the waiter for a menu.
2.   the dishes served.
3.   any list or set of items, activities, etc., from which to choose: What's on the menu this weekend—golf, tennis, swimming?
4.   Computers. a list of options available to a user, as displayed on a CRT or other type of screen.
[Origin: 1650–60; < F: detailed list, n. use of menu small, detailed < L minūtus minute2]
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

[Hurtle]

Main Entry: glans
Pronunciation: 'glanz
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural glan·des /'glan-"dEz/
1 : a conical vascular body forming the extremity of the penis
2 : a conical vascular body that forms the extremity of the clitoris and is similar to the glans penis

Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.