hinterland \HIN-tur-land\ (noun) - 1 : A region situated inland from a coast. 2 : A region remote from urban areas; backcountry. 3 : A region situated beyond the major metropolitan or cultural centers.

"After the plains, I could see in my mind's eye the mountains of Bosnia emerging abruptly, shrouded by mist or haze. Clouds on rocks. Birds ...Read more

exegesis \ek-suh-JEE-sis\ (noun) plural exegeses \-seez\ - Exposition; explanation; especially, a critical explanation of a text.

"No variety of love is too trivial for exegesis. No aspect of love is so ridiculous that it hasn't been exhaustively reviewed by the great thinkers, the great artists, and the great hosts of daytime talk shows." -- P...Read more

nascent \NAS-uhnt; NAY-suhnt\ (adjective) - Beginning to exist or having recently come into existence; coming into being.

"This surprising success prompted several other companies to enter this nascent market." -- Ted Gioia, The History of Jazz

Nascent comes from Latin nascens, "being born," present participle of nasci, "to be born."

turbid \TUR-bid\ (adjective) - 1 : Muddy; thick with or as if with roiled sediment; not clear; -- used of liquids of any kind. 2 : Thick; dense; dark; -- used of clouds, air, fog, smoke, etc. 3 : Disturbed; confused; disordered.

"Wesley's mind seems at this time to have been in a turbid and restless state." -- W. B. Stonehouse, 'The History and...Read more

sagacious \suh-GAY-shus\ (adjective) - Having or showing keen discernment, sound judgment, and farsightedness.

"Others worked up sagacious-sounding comments about the French author that would serve until they could read some of his books themselves, or until the current interest fades." -- Maureen Dowd, 'Nobel Panel's Pick Keeps Cognoscenti ...Read more

denouement \day-noo-MAWN\ (noun) - 1 : The final resolution of the main complication of a literary or dramatic work. 2 : The outcome of a complex sequence of events.

"Of course, the crusaders were losers in the short run, but Europe's storytellers have traditionally awarded them the righteous victory and not dwelt on the embarrassing denouement...Read more

contretemps \KAHN-truh-tahn\ (noun) plural contretemps \-tahnz\ - An inopportune or embarrassing situation or event; a hitch.

"Nathan was a fiercely ambitious and competitive man, as quick to take offenceas to give it in his business dealings, and it is not difficult to imagine him responding impetuously to such a contretemps." -- Niall ...Read more

intrepid \in-TREP-id\ (adjective) - Fearless; bold; brave; undaunted; courageous; as, an intrepid soldier; intrepid spirit.

"But the stubborn descendants of the twenty-one intrepid people who plowed through the mountains in search of the sea to the west avoided the reefs of the melodic mixup and dancing went on until dawn." -- Gabriel Garcia ...Read more

heliolatry \hee-lee-OL-uh-tree\ (noun) - Worship of the sun.

"I am certain that if our preparations for greeting the returning sun were seen by other people, either civilised or savage, we would be thought disciples of heliolatry." -- Frederick Albert Cook, Through the first Antarctic night

Heliolatry stems from the Greek helio-, "sun," and -...Read more

bromide \BROH-myd\ (noun) - 1 : A compound of bromine and another element or a positive organic radical. 2 : A dose of potassium bromide taken as a sedative. 3 : A dull person with conventional thoughts. 4 : A commonplace or conventional saying.

"Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon 'em. The words are...Read more

interregnum \in-tuhr-REG-nuhm\ (noun) plural interregnums \-nuhmz\ or interregna \-nuh\ - 1 : The interval between two reigns; any period when a state is left without a ruler. 2 : A period of freedom from authority or during which government functions are suspended. 3 : Any breach of continuity in an order; a lapse or interval in a continuity.

...Read more

cudgel \KUH-juhl\ (noun) - A short heavy stick used as a weapon; a club.

(transitive verb) - To beat with or as if with a cudgel.

"Whatever had been making her dogs uneasy, she'd have to handle it on her own. Rosie Bowe took a heavy piece of firewood as a cudgel and followed them." -- Jim Crace, 'Signals of Distress'

Cudgel derives from Old ...Read more

incarnadine \in-KAR-nuh-dyn\ (adjective, verb) - 1 : Having a fleshy pink color. 2 : Red; blood-red.

(transitive verb) - To make red or crimson.

"Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood
Clean from my hand? No, this my hand will rather
The multitudinous seas incarnadine,
Making the green one red." -- William Shakespeare...Read more

extemporaneous \ek-stem-puh-RAY-nee-us\ (adjective) - 1 : Composed, performed, or uttered on the spur of the moment, or without previous study; unpremeditated; impromptu. 2: Prepared beforehand but delivered without notes or text. 3 : Skilled at or given to extemporaneous speech. 4 : Provided, made, or put to use as an expedient; makeshift.

"In...Read more

foofaraw \FOO-fuh-raw\ (noun) - 1 : Excessive or flashy ornamentation or decoration. 2 : A fuss over a matter of little importance.

"As usual, with all cooperation with Tom Lea, Art becomes a 'taking away' process rather than the adding of ornaments, rules, and other foofaraw." -- David R. Farmer, 'Stanley Marcus: A Life With Books'

pettifogger \PET-ee-fog-ur\ (noun) - 1 : A petty, unscrupulous lawyer; a shyster. 2 : A person who quibbles over trivia.

"A more respectable-looking individual was never seen; he really looked what he was, a gentleman of the law -- there was nothing of the pettifogger about him." -- George Borrow, 'Lavengro'

Pettifogger is probably from petty ...Read more

foofaraw \FOO-fuh-raw\ (noun) - 1 : Excessive or flashy ornamentation or decoration. 2 : A fuss over a matter of little importance.

"A somber, muted descending motif opens and closes the work, which is brief but effective. It provided much needed relief from the fanfares and foofaraw in which brass-going composers so often indulge." -- Philip ...Read more

coxcomb \KOKS-kohm\ (noun) - 1 : obsolete. A cap worn by court jesters; adorned with a strip of red. (Now cockscomb). 2 : archaic. The top of the head, or the head itself. 3 : Obsolete. A fool. 4 : A vain, showy fellow; a conceited, silly man, fond of display; a superficial pretender to knowledge or accomplishments; a dandy; a fop.

"If thou ...Read more

uxorious \uk-SOR-ee-us; ug-ZOR-\ (adjective) - Excessively fond of or submissive to a wife.

"Flagler seems to have been an uxorious, domestic man, who liked the comfort and companionship of a wife at his side." -- Michael Browning, 'Whitehall at 100'

Uxorious is from Latin uxorius, from uxor, wife.

Stuff your stockings this holiday season with these lively new books about language.

Jess Zafarris reveals the delightful backstories of hundreds of words in "Useless Etymology: Offbeat Word Origins for Curious Minds" (Chambers, $19.99). We learn that "sinister" once meant "left-handed" and that "factoid" originally denoted a falsehood ...Read more