RATE-A-WORD

mugwump: /muhg-wuhmp/

1. a Republican who refused to support the party nominee, James G. Blaine, in the presidential campaign of 1884.

2. a person who is unable to make up his or her mind on an issue, esp. in politics; a person who is neutral on a controversial issue.

this was technically yesterday's word but i'm making an exception for the sake of us having a rad R-A-W this week.

last week's results:

based on a weighted average of your votes iatrogenic is a:

4

(3.714285714 to be precise)

i'm satisfied with the result. that's all.

WORD OFF!

perpend: /pur-puhnd/

–noun

a large stone passing through the entire thickness of a wall.

–verb (used with object)

to consider.

vs.

plagiary: /ˈplā-jē-er-ē/

1 : archaic one that plagiarizes
2 : plagiarism

results from two weeks ago:

you all decided that wastrel and alacrity are equals? you all can kiss my ghostly pale irish ass.

vamoose: /va-moos/

to leave hurriedly or quickly; decamp.

how to use in casual conversation:

"that asshole vamoosed with all the beer"
"sir, i'm afraid i'm going to have to ask you to vamoose the premises"

not to be confused with:

trampoose

how it makes me feel:

as my good friend would say "sexcellent". i really like this word. why? because it sounds fun. it's a fairly dismissive term but it also has a hint of whimsy to it. it's like referring to someone you think is an asshole by calling them 'fluffy' or something like that. i.e.:

"hey fluffy, vamoose!"

also, it's origins are reportedly rooted in the spanish "vamos" (to go) and was bastardized and folded into american culture, much like a burrito or the pervasive use of ground beef, cheese and lettuce to make tacos. lastly, the '-moose' sound is pretty prevalent here which is just an extra bonus since i borrowed 'into the wild' from the library and watched it while i was home sick today (actually yesterday, it's confusing since i'm writing this today and not yesterday) and if that poor bastard had just been able to keep those maggots off that moose meat, jon krakauer would've only been known for hating mormons. or something like that.

apology:

i've been slacking. i know. it's just that when i'm at work they kind of expect me to do work now. it's weird for me too. also, i was in vegas over the weekend celebrating my homies' bachelor party. which probably explains why i was home sick yesterday. i'm catching up. i'm sorry.

RATE-A-WORD!

iatrogenic: /ahy-a-truh-jen-ik/

caused by the diagnosis, manner, or treatment of a physician.

last week's result:

soi-disant

based on a weighted average of your votes, soi-disant is a:

3

(2.8 to be precise)

i didn't like this one. first of all it came from M-W and while i have in the past stated how much M-W just plain sucks, i'm revising my opinion to say that sometimes they suck. perhaps suck isn't the right word. it would be more fair to say that they aren't really considering the individual value of their WOTDs and are perhaps instead just finding ANY WOTD regardless of it's practical value. practical value matters to me which may be why they keep pissing me off.

pellucid: /puh-loo-sid/

1. allowing the maximum passage of light, as glass
2. clear or limpid
3. clear in meaning, expression, or style

how to use in casual conversation:

"the pellucid and peaceful nature of your words was so relaxing that i couldn't help but to go right ahead and poop myself"

not to be confused with:

dilucid

how it makes me feel:

i like it. we're all familiar with the word lucid and while this one is most definitely related to lucid, pellucid just sounds better even though they seem to be interchangeable. it isn't like the relationship between penultimate and ultimate where you could ignorantly use the latter term thinking it's the former but making yourself look stupid in the process. ever played penultimate frisbee? it's just like ultimate frisbee but your team always comes in second. HA! not funny...

RATE-A-WORD!

soi-disant: /swah-dee-ZAHNG/

self-proclaimed, so-called

last week's results:

agrestic

based on a weighted average of your votes, agrestic is a:

4

(3.923076923 to be precise)

i would have given it a 3. it was good, but not great. it was like raul castro, not fidel. casey affleck instead of ben. jelly instead of preserves. latex, not sheepskin.

WORD OFF!

wastrel: /wey-struhl/

1. a wasteful person
2. chiefly british.
a. refuse
b. a waif
c. an idler or good-for-nothing.

vs.

alacrity: /uh-LAK-ruh-tee/

promptness in response

last week's word winner:

pelf


i'm pretty ok with the result here. not that it was up to me, just that i agree with the result. i'm sorry, i'm not trying to argue. i'm just saying i'm glad it turned out this way. no, i don't MEAN anything by it. it's just that sometimes i don't get why people pick the words they do and this week, i did. jesus, i don't think the world revolves around me. i'm just happy. why don't you ever want me to be happy? you're only pleased when i feel like crap. that's it. wedding is off.

empyrean: /em-puh-ree-uhn/

1. the highest heaven, supposed by the ancients to contain the pure element of fire.
2. the visible heavens

how to use in casual conversation:

"sometimes i look up to the empyrean and wonder if today will be the day the universe collapses in on itself."

not to be confused with:

papyrean

how it makes me feel:

i'm gonna go with jesusy. yes. jesusy. that's an adjective, right? a jesusy man.

jesusy: /gee-sus-ee/

of or pertaining to jesus

i never think about jesus. that's not true. i do think about jesus but in more of a "are you drinking with me jesus?" way as opposed to an "oh lord, who art in heaven..." kind of thing. i grew up in southern california and knew tons of hispanic dudes named jesus (like, 'hey-zeus') but i have never met a white guy named jesus ('gee-sus') or jesus ('hey-zeus') for that matter. but what do i know? i'm an atheist except on days when i listen to johnny cash. have i said all this before? oh well, you'll read it again anyway won't you?

p.s.:

if you feel inclined to write me an email telling me i'm going to hell, don't bother - i already know. thanks. toodles.

RATE-A-WORD!!!

agrestic: /uh-gres-tik/

1. rural; rustic.
2. unpolished; awkward

last week's results:

ne plus ultra

based on a weighted average of your votes, ne plus ultra is a:

2

(2.357142857 to be precise)

pretty sure i said all i needed to say about this last week.

speaking of agrestic:

today is april 20th. thats right, 420. which also happens to be hitler's birthday.

let me be careful and clear here - i love marijuana. i admit it. pot is, by far the best drug. BUT - it isn't the only drug, nor is it the best thing that ever happened to mankind such that it becomes advisable or acceptable to develop a one-dimensional personality based solely around the fact THAT YOU SMOKE POT!

so, today if you happen to see a bunch of scuzzy kids hanging out in a park who have nothing better to talk about besides "how rad hempfest was", remind them that there are equally as stupid people celebrating the life of a bavarian art school reject who engaged in a systematic extermination of an entire ethnic and religious group for the crime of a few of it's members not believing in his ability to paint professionally and that they aren't much better than them. ok, maybe that's a little harsh. but seriously people...don't be stupid. it’s just pot.

WORD OFF!

pelf: /pelf/

money or wealth, esp. when regarded with contempt or acquired by reprehensible means.

vs.

scour: /skow-er/

1: to move about quickly especially in search
2: to go through or range over in or as if in a search

last week's word winner:

interlard

i was actually rooting for interlard. it sounds squishy or like a centralized marketplace for the exchange and manipulation of animal fats. which i admit is an uncomfortable thought, even for an omnivore like myself but it still sounds like fun although still somewhat gross. that is, gross in a double dare kind of way not a fear factor kind of way.

bloviate: /bloh-vee-eyt/

to speak pompously.

how to use in casual conversation:

"i've had just about enough of your bloviation"
"hey jerkwad! bloviate me!

not to be confused with:

breviate

how it makes me feel:

i love this one - here's why: because it could be used comically in place of felatio (see: "how to use in casual conversation"). also, who likes pompous speakers? nobody! it's good to have a word for assholes like that. actually, i'm wrong. their are people who make their livings entirely off bloviation. whatever.

RATE-A-WORD!

ne plus ultra

1. the highest point; acme.
2. the most intense degree of a quality or state.

last week's results:

land of nod

based on a weighted average of your votes, land of nod is a:

2

(2.1428571428571428571428571428571 to be precise)

turns out 'land of nod' sucks. i probably could have told you that. actually, i think i might have in the initial post. let me check.....right. i slammed it pretty good going into the contest which i usually don't do but this was a special case. i don't know what's going on over at dictionary.com but they're falling into the old merriam-webster "we're just going to throw you some phrase and call it a WOTD" trap. at least m-w would use only latin phrases. phrases aren't words. some words can be phrases and conversely some phrases, words but i'm pretty sure that not all phrases are words. and if my memory serves (which it usually doesn't) i got a solid 'b' in critical thinking so you should totally trust, without question, everything that i write. just don't copy and paste it without doing a spell and grammar check first...

"put that in your venn diagram and smoke it!"

WORD OFF!

interlard: /in-ter-lahrd/

1. to diversify by adding or interjecting something unique, striking, or contrasting (usually fol. by with): to interlard one's speech with oaths.
2. (of things) to be intermixed in.
3. obsolete. to mix, as fat with lean meat.

vs.

inkling: /iŋ-kliŋ/

1 : a slight indication or suggestion
2 : a slight knowledge or vague notion


last week's word winner:

hugger-mugger

really?!?!

this just further proves that there's no accounting for taste.

megrim: /mee-grim/

1. low spirits
2. a whim or caprice.
3. migraine.

how to use in casual conversation:

"i know you'd like it if i was all megrim and stuff. too bad"
"on a megrim, i decided to start collecting the white hairs i periodically find in my beard"

not to be confused with:

stay grim

how it makes me feel:

this is a weird one. it gets points for obscurity which is always good but the differing definitions seem to be at odds. having low spirits and having a migraine would seem to be complementary:

"i'm megrim about this megrim" (this migraine has got me down)

nobody would look at you funny for that, right?

but throwing 'a whim' in there just makes it confusing:

"i'm megrim on a megrim" (i'm sad on a whim)

-or-

"on a megrim i gave myself a megrim" (i gave myself a skull-crushing headache because i felt like it)

if someone said that to me (and i sifted through the possible meanings to confirm they are saying what i think they're saying) the first thought that would come to mind would be something along the lines of "geez, who let the goth in?" or "cheer-up emo kid". however, using the same word twice in a sentence when it has different meanings and the same spelling would be sort of stupid to begin with so perhaps in the interest of being fair to the word i should just shut up, spell check this bad-boy and hit publish...

RATE-A-WORD!

land of nod: /nod/

the mythical land of sleep

i am just about fully prepared to call this an abysmal failure on the part of dictionary.com. first of all, it's a phrase. second of all, it's kind of some hokey-ass bull-pucky. even with those two things notched up against dictionary today, it was better than tantalize which is what m-w.com was offering. seriously - f' merriam-webster. f' them right in their stupid wernicke's areas. yeesh.

last week's result:

popinjay

according to a weighted average of your votes popinjay is a:

4

(3.625 to be precise)

i didn't really like that one too much either......

slake: /sleyk/

–verb (used with object)
1. to allay (thirst, desire, wrath, etc.) by satisfying.
2. to cool or refresh
3. to make less active, vigorous, intense, etc.
4. to cause disintegration of (lime) by treatment with water.
5. obsolete to make loose or less tense
–verb (used without object)
6. (of lime) to become slaked.
7. archaic to become less active, intense, vigorous, etc.; abate.

how to use in casual conversation:

"i don't know if it's just because i'm getting old or what, but every time i go to a punk show i have to slake my balls when i get home"
"you're never going to dissolve that body properly if you don't slake that lime"

not to be confused with:

flake

how it makes me feel:

well, i'm pretty indifferent about it. i'm pretty indifferent about everything today - even the weather. apparently we're expecting some hairy atmospheric action here in western washington tonight. they're even warning us about power outages. but here's the thing about seattle weather - it NEVER materializes the way they tell you it's going to. so, i'm going out drinking tonight. supposedly we're avoiding golden city ("skip the restaurant and just dare to walk through the red door"), because we always go to golden city but the drinks are strong and cheap and we aren't "crabbers" which means we have money and don't generally start fights so they like us. plus, they have pbr in a bottle which while slightly more expensive than it would be if it were on tap, is still my favorite pbr delivery vector. but then again, you wouldn't want to even think about sleeping with anyone you'd meet at golden city plus kings has $2 tall cans of rainier AND skeeball . though the crowd doesn't get a little 'bellevue' on the weekends!

a friendly note:

have a swell weekend worders and wordettes!

WORD OFF!

hugger-mugger: /huhg-er-muhg-er/

–noun
1. disorder or confusion
2. secrecy; reticence
–adjective
3. secret or clandestine.
4. disorderly or confused.
–verb (used with object)
5. to keep secret or concealed.
–verb (used without object)
6. to act secretly.

vs.

puerile: /pyu-r-i-l/

1: juvenile
2: childish, silly

results from two weeks ago:

magniloquent

by a 2-1 margin, magniloquent is the winner. in my opinion it isn't an interesting WOTD but it is by far one of the most elegant words i've come across. doesn't it just sound classy? magniloquent. say it with me...magniloquent...ahhhhh yeah.

for those of you who refuse to click out of reader - get over it!

bedizen: /bih-dahy-zuhn/

to dress or adorn in a showy, gaudy, or tasteless manner.

how to use in casual conversation:

"what the hell makes you think it's ok to bedizen your 12-year-old daughter in victoria secret clothing and sweats with things written across their asses?"

not to be confused with:

denizen

how it makes me feel:

i'm okay with it. it isn't exactly like 'whoa!' but it isn't bad. i'd prefer it had more syllables. i was looking for a link between denizen and bedizen but it seems like a bit of a goose chase. then both end in '-zen' however, denizen is derived from the word deinz and bedizen is derived from dizen which is weird since they're anagrams of each other but don't have origins in the same time frame and one seems to appear in old and middle english but the other doesn't.

i have no idea what any of that means.

what i do know is that if i could become a bed-denizen i'd be a happy man.

RATE-A-WORD!

popinjay: /pop-in-jey/

1. a person given to vain, pretentious displays and empty chatter; coxcomb; fop.
2. british dialect. a woodpecker, esp. the green woodpecker.
3. archaic. the figure of a parrot usually fixed on a pole and used as a target in archery and gun shooting.
4. archaic. a parrot.

last week's results:

exiguous

based on a weighted average of your votes exiguous is a :

4

(4.25 to be precise)

this could possibly be the highest result we've had in the short but exciting history of the RATE-A-WORD! feature. personally, i would have rather seen didactic score this high. but if i could read the pulse of a population of people i'd be president by now. well, 7 years from becoming president. damned constitutional age requirements....PONY FOR AMERICA! 2020!

note:

i'm screwing with the format to improve readability. also, i was reviewing old posts yesterday and noticed the staggering number of typos and spelling errors. i apologize. i swear i'm not as stupid as my use of the written word would imply. i just don't do a very good job of proofreading. thank you for your patience.

uxorial: /uk-sor-ē-l/

of, relating to, or characteristic of a wife

how to use in casual conversation:

"if i felt i needed assistance of an uxorial nature, i would have stayed married"

not to be confused with:

unction

how it makes me feel:

this one is pretty good. first of all, it's fairly esoteric. i've never heard of it and i think some of you are going to say the same thing. it's also a latin derivative which also makes me think this word is pretty ok. additionally, i was married once (i know, hard to believe) and while i'm not bitter anymore i do take every opportunity to make ex-wife jokes, because why go through the trouble of getting divorced if you can't make ex-wife jokes regardless of how accurate they are?

i.e.:

"fuck, it's cold today"
"yeah, but not as cold as my ex-wife"
"......"

that kind of thing.

i hope she doesn't read this blog.