As regular readers of “Weird Words” know, your local lexicographer keeps a massive running-list of oddball vocab. Laid out in space-saving, three-column format, it currently totals nearly 3,200 terrific terms.

For April — since it is of course the year’s fourth month — I simply flipped to page four and selected a dozen:

Bindi (BIN-dee, noun) – This is what you call that red dot worn on the forehead by Hindi women — though according to Merriam-Webster, the term also includes jewelry displayed in the same locale.

It has a religious and not merely decorative significance — but you can look that up yourself, lest I reveal my profound ignorance of Far Eastern culture.

(I’d be happy to run an explanation in some future column if any knowledgeable readers care to write in: robbwhitefan@gmail.com.)

Bissextus (buh-SEX-tuss, noun) – Feb. 29 — that day added to our calendar once every four years to compensate for the fact that an actual solar year is six hours longer than 365 standard days. The term’s insanely complicated etymology does include the Latin bi — for two, as in “double day”; but the rest is beyond me.

Cairngorm (CAIRN-gorm [first syllable like care], noun) – Milky quartz — named for the Scottish mountain range where it’s found (cairn means “pile of stones”). According to Wikipedia, it ranges in color from “brown or smoky gray to a nearly opaque black.” (Wiki’s accompanying photo is actually kinda gorgeous.)

Faunalturbation – This is such a rare word that I can’t provide a definite pronunciation — and I had to go to A-I for the meaning. Related to the well-known term fauna — and also using the Latin base turb (as in “disturb”) — this is “the process of soil mixing and bioturbation caused by burrowing animals, such as rodents, worms, and ants.”

Jimjams (JIM-jamz, noun) – Excessive nervousness; “the jitters.” In the past, this could also refer to delirium tremens (“the DT’s” — induced by too much alcohol). This word’s origin is uncertain, though Merriam-Webster points out that some synonyms — like heebie-jeebies and whim-whams — also use a sort of comic repetition.

Malihini (mah-luh-HEE-nee, noun) – Hawaiian word for a newcomer or stranger to those islands.

Pelmet (PELL-mit, noun) – An ornamental drape or board at the top of a window, used to conceal the curtain rod. As a male who pays little attention to interior decor (except for making sure there are plenty of books lying about everywhere), I must admit that we’ve got one of these, but I never knew what it was called — or, for that matter, why we needed it.

But then, my wife feels the same way about those books.

Pourparler (poor-par-LAY, noun) – Discussion or conversation preliminary to negotiation. A French term related to the well-known parler, “to talk.” (This is also where we get the word parlor — originally, a place to chat.)

Sitatunga (sit-uh-TOONG-uh, noun) – A medium-sized antelope of Central Africa, with splayed hooves suited to its swampy and aquatic habitats (American Heritage). A Bantu word, it can also be spelled situtunga.

Tarradiddle (TEAR-uh-did-ul, noun) – Nonsense or idle talk; also a lie or fib (Microsoft Encarta Dictionary). Alternate spelling: taradiddle.

Ukase (you-KACE, noun) – A Russian word meaning an edict or order having the force of law (Random House Collegiate).

Wafflestompers (WAH-full-stom-perz, noun) – “Ankle boots with ridged soles, used especially for hiking” (Dictionary.com). Named for the pattern on the bottom, of course.

I notice now that this week’s list is all nouns. There sure are a lot of weird things in this world; luckily, we’ve got names for most of them.