ephemeron \ih-FEM-uh-ron\ (noun) plural ephemera \ih-FEM-uh-ruh\ - 1 : Something short-lived or of no lasting significance. 2 : ephemera: Items, especially printed matter (as posters, broadsides, pamphlets, etc.), intended to be of use or importance for only a short time but preserved by collectors.

"She had seen that the finger of Death was ...Read more

desultory \DES-uhl-tor-ee\ (adjective) - 1 : Jumping or passing from one thing or subject to another without order or rational connection; disconnected; aimless. 2 : By the way; as a digression; not connected with the subject. 3 : Coming disconnectedly or occurring haphazardly; random. 4 : Disappointing in performance or progress.

"He felt as ...Read more

provender \PROV-uhn-duhr\ (noun) - 1 : Dry food for domestic animals, such as hay, straw, corn, oats, or a mixture of ground grain; feed. 2 : Food or provisions.

"It may be long ere we find any other provender now that we are leaving the auspices of the Tree Dwellers." -- Cecelia Dart-Thornton, 'The Battle of Evernight'

Provender comes from ...Read more

inhere \in-HIR\ (intransitive verb) - To be inherent; to belong, as attributes or qualities.

"The foundations of the palace, like those of the prison, inhere in the fine quality of the stone, in marble stairways, in real gold, in carvings, the rarest in the realm, the absolute power of their hosts." -- Jean Genet, 'The Thief's Journal'

Inhere ...Read more

parvenu \PAR-vuh-noo; -nyoo\ (noun) - 1 : One that has recently or suddenly risen to a higher social or economic class but has not gained social acceptance of others in that class; an upstart.

(adjective) - 1 : Being a parvenu; also, like or having the characteristics of a parvenu.

"That was the luxury that Goirot's daughter had loved too well...Read more

esurient \ih-SUR-ee-uhnt; -ZUR-\ (adjective) - Hungry; voracious; greedy.

"Paul, whose stomach suffered no pangs, regarded the fellow with esurient eyes, the eyes of an avid curiosity." -- Carl Van Vechten, 'Firecrackers'

Esurient comes from the present participle of Latin esurire, "to be hungry, to desire eagerly," from edere, "to eat."

tutelage \TOO-tuhl-ij; TYOO-\ (noun) - 1 : The act of guarding or protecting; guardianship; protection. 2 : The state of being under a guardian or tutor. 3 : Instruction, especially individual instruction accompanied by close attention and guidance.

"Thomas began his formal instruction by his father at the age of twelve and was released from ...Read more

exegete \EK-suh-jeet\ (noun) - A person who explains or interprets difficult parts of written works.

"Haunted by the mystery of my patron saint, I stumbled for a long time over an enigma which no exegete has yet cleared up." -- Michel Tournier, 'Gemini'

Exegete is from Greek exegetes, from the verb exegeisthai, "to interpret," and is related ...Read more

pugnacious \puhg-NAY-shuhs\ (adjective) - Inclined to fight; combative; quarrelsome.

"After tolerating Patrick's pugnacious daughter, Kane would be ready to swear off women for the rest of his life." -- Carol Finch, 'Moonlight Enchantress'

Pugnacious comes from Latin pugnare, "to fight," from pugnus, "fist."

plenary \PLEE-nuh-ree; PLEN-uh-ree\ (adjective) - 1 : Full in all respects; complete; absolute; as, plenary authority. 2 : Fully attended by all qualified members.

"The first plenary session held at the conference was organized to define its theme. Two important papers presented at this plenary helped set its tone." -- Lalithambika Antherjanam...Read more

expropriate \ek-SPROH-pree-ayt\ (transitive verb) - 1 : To deprive of possession. 2 : To transfer (the property of another) to oneself.

"You never know when some tinhorn general's going to expropriate your property as national patrimony." -- Douglas Preston, 'The Codex'

Expropriate comes from Medieval Latin expropriatus, past participle of ...Read more

nuptial \NUHP-shuhl; -chuhl\ (adjective) - 1 : Of or pertaining to marriage; done or used at a wedding; as, "nuptial rites and ceremonies." 2 : Of, pertaining to, or occurring in the mating season.

(noun) - Marriage; wedding; nuptial ceremony; -- usually used in the plural.

"...On the one day of their triumph when, like Kitty, they had stood ...Read more

imbue \im-BYOO\, transitive verb: 1. To tinge or dye deeply; to cause to absorb thoroughly; as, "clothes thoroughly imbued with black." 2. To instill profoundly; to cause to become impressed or penetrated.

"Thus, therefore, the floor of our familiar room has become a neutral territory, somewhere between the real world and fairy-land, where the ...Read more

denizen \DEN-uh-zuhn\ (noun) - 1 : A dweller; an inhabitant. 2 : One that frequents a particular place. 3 : [Chiefly British] An alien granted certain rights of citizenship. 4 : An animal, plant, etc. that has become naturalized.

"She should cross now, she knew, but a daredevil curiosity gripped her and kept her there -- the urge to see, albeit...Read more

turgid \TUR-jid\ (adjective) - 1 : Swollen, bloated, puffed up; as, "a turgid limb." 2 : Swelling in style or language; bombastic, pompous; as, "a turgid style of speaking."

"George Lane had left the turgid discussion that had been the Naval Armament committee meeting and was relaxing back in his office in the House." -- Colin Peck, ' Enrico ...Read more

paragon \PAIR-uh-gon; -guhn\ (noun) - A model of excellence or perfection; as, "a paragon of beauty; a paragon of eloquence."

"Old Roland, that paragon of acceptable standards, viewed the world with a thoroughly jaundiced, nearly blind eye." -- Samara Al-Darraji , 'Eclipse'

Paragon comes from Middle French, from Old Italian paragone, literally...Read more

cerebration \ser-uh-BRAY-shuhn\ (noun) - The act or product of thinking; the use of the power of reason; mental activity; thought.

"He neglected his family; his existence was taken up more with cerebration and preoccupied with the following, as he called them, philosophical questions." -- by Nikolaĭ Vasil'evich Gogol', 'Dead Souls'

...Read more

bedaub \bih-DOB\ (transitive verb) - 1 : To smudge over; to besmear or soil with anything thick and dirty. 2 : To overdecorate; to ornament showily or excessively.

"Am I, your kinsman and benefactor, a fit person to be juggled out of my commendation and eulogy, and brought to bedaub such a whitened sepulchre as the sophist Milton?" -- Sir ...Read more

impassible \im-PASS-uh-buhl\ (adjective) - 1 : Incapable of suffering; not subject to harm or pain. 2 : Unfeeling or not showing feeling.

"After we discovered this, we never went into ecstacies any more -- we never admired any thing -- we never showed any but impassible faces and stupid indifference in the presence of the sublimest wonders a ...Read more

People in dangerous, high-pressure jobs sometimes relieve tension with proprietary humor. Nowhere is this more true than in the airline industry. Consider this deadpan conversation among an air traffic controller and two airline pilots:

Tower: "Delta 702, cleared for takeoff, contact departure on 124.7."

Delta 702: "Switching to departure .....Read more