Category: Word lovers

Bombilate (verb) [bom-bi-layt] This means “to buzz or hum”. So you might say “The alarm kept on bombilating.” Well, we can’t imagine anyone actually saying that, but if they did now you’d know what it means! To hear Valerie and Allison chat more about this and more on the world

Gongoozler (noun) [Gon-goo-z-lerr] This means someone who is an idle spectator. Specifically, it used to refer to someone who enjoyed watching the boats go by on canals but now has a more generic meaning. To hear Valerie and Allison chat more about this and more on the world of writing,

Grawlix (noun) [graw-licks] This refers to the typographical symbols used to represent a profane word. Like “@#$@%$&*”./. When I was little, I remember reading Asterix books and they would contain these symbols. At the time I had no idea what they meant! To hear Valerie and Allison chat more about this

Quidnunc (noun) [kwid-ˌnəŋk] This refers to someone who loves to hear the latest scandal and gossip. So you would say that the women on The Real Housewives of Sydney are all quidnuncs! To hear Valerie and Allison chat more about this and more on the world of writing, blogging and

Blatherskite [blath-er-skahyt] This is a noun that refers to someone given to voluble, empty talk. I’m sure we all know a blatherskite or two in our lives. So you might say: “I’ve stopped paying attention to him because he is such a blatherskite.” To hear Valerie and Allison chat more

Magazine (noun) [mag-uh-zeen] From The Etymologicon by Mark Forsyth: “Once upon a time there was an Arabic word khazana meaning to store up. From that they got makhzan meaning storehouse and its plural makhazin. That word sailed northwards across the Mediterranean (the middle of the earth) and become the Italian

Halcyon (adjective) [halseeuhn] It’s one of those words that many people find hard to pronounce. But once you master it, you can use it freely to mean “peaceful, gentle or carefree”. Like “Remember the halcyon days of your childhood when you lived on the farm?” To hear Valerie and Allison chat

Verisimilitude (noun) [ver-uh-si-mil-i-tood, -tyood] This suggestion for Word of the Week comes from Brooke. According to the Macquarie Dictionary, it means: “something having merely the appearance of truth.” So you might say …”Although the musical The Book of Mormon does have some verisimilitude, it does not accurately portray what really

Meretricious (adjective) [meruh’trishuhs] “I know this sounds like it has something to do with merit. But it doesn’t. Meretricious actually means ‘showy or flashy, but cheap underneath it all’. So you might refer to ‘meretricious clothing’. Or even a ‘meretricious argument’ if you want to describe one that’s possible but

Petrichor (noun) [PET-ri-kuhr] Thanks for @splitinwriter for this suggestion (and good timing this week!). According to the Macquarie Dictionary: “The term petrichor was coined in Australia in 1964 by two CSIRO scientists to describe the smell that occurs when it rains or is just about to rain. It was discovered