By now, regular readers of Weird Words have probably figured out that I like to have a theme. We’ve done long words, short words, 10-letter words, words from a single book — and even, last week, a separate piece on dictionaries.
This is my 12th installment, but I don’t have a lot of 12-letter words on my running list; so I thought I’d just go with the two digits and finish out selections from pages 1 and 2 of my (currently) 2269-word document.
All are nouns unless otherwise noted.
Blatherskite (BLATH-ur-skite) – A person known for loud, pointless talk; also a word for what comes out of said person’s mouth (i.e., twaddle, piffle).
Boojie (BOO-jee) – A medical instrument for insertion into a body cavity; also a wax candle; or — related to both those meanings — a suppository.
Curiously, these definitions come from a couple of my standard hard-copy dictionaries; dictionary.com does not have any of that, but lists it instead as a generally offensive term (related to “bourgeois”) for people affecting too fancy a standard of living.
Costermonger (KOSS-tur-mong-ger) – Street-side seller of fish, fruit, vegetables, etc. Chiefly British, it combines “costard” (a type of apple) with “monger,” which means trader, dealer or promoter (as in “fishmonger,” famous from Act 2 of Hamlet).
Guttersnipe (GUT-ur-snipe) – Street urchin; someone belonging to, or characteristic, of the lowest social class in a city.
Hobbledehoy (HOB-ul-dee-hoy) – An awkward or clumsy young man.
Kerfuffle (kur-FUFF-ul) – A fairly well-known but still terrific word meaning commotion, disturbance or fuss; “There was a kerfuffle when the gate opened for last week’s Taylor Swift concert.”
Lucubrate (LOO-kyoo-brate, verb) – To study, work or write laboriously, especially at night; also, to write in a scholarly fashion.
Mulct (MULKT, noun & verb) – A fine or penalty; as a verb, it means to fine someone, or to swindle.
Nictitate (NIK-tuh-tate, verb) – A word for which there is only one definition, and one synonym: to wink. Best known from the term “nictitating membrane,” a third inner eyelid which some animals use for added for protection.
Pandiculation (pan-dik-yoo-LAY-shun) – The act of stretching oneself, especially right after waking up. Your cat knows this word; now you do too.
Phthisis (THIGH-siss) – Now largely unused medical term for a wasting disease — especially tuberculosis; also “phthisic.” Note that the “ph” is silent; but really, how many words do you know that begin with four consonants?
Puckfist (PUK-fist) – One of those little round fungi that spew a cloud of dust (actually spores) when squeezed. I always called these “puffballs” as a kid (that’s what Merriam-Webster’s has for a definition); but for me, they’re “puckfists” now and forevermore. MW also lists “braggart” as a synonym, no doubt because in both senses a puckfist emits unpleasant vapors.
Pussytoes (pronounced like it looks [an exact phonetic spelling is tough]) – Various species of plants with small woolly flower-heads colored white or gray. In size and texture, they really do look like a cat’s toes.
Well, I had picked out around two dozen for this week, but I’m halfway through and out of space already! We’ll finish this set next week.
Other future themes include etymology, phobias and a fascinating phenomenon called “doublets.”
If you have additional thematic suggestions, drop me a line at robbwhitefan@gmail.com.
