Vocab

last updated Aug 17, 2025

This page catalogues new English words I encounter in the wild, mostly via books and news articles. Mainly for personal reference.

• tepid - lukewarm / showing little enthusiasm
• folly - foolish idea, foolishness / costly building with no practical purpose, especially a tower or mock-Gothic ruin in a large park or garden (sounds mildly specific)
• grassroots - most basic level of activity (“appeal for unity at the grassroots”) / ordinary people regarded as main body of orgs membership (“to loose touch with the grassroots of the party”)
• metastasize (of cancer) to spread to other sites in the body (?)
• beckon - make a gesture to encourage or instruct someone to approach or follow / appear attractive or inviting
• ineffable - too great or extreme to be expressed in words / not to be uttered
• languish - loose vitality, grow weak / be forced to remain in an unpleasant place or situation (“to languish in jail”)
• intermittent - occurring at irregular intervals, not continuous or steady (“intermittent rain”)
• rout - aside from the known def. also means “defeat and cause to retreat in disorder”. there is a third meaning but whatever
• swamp (verb, non-literal) - overwhelm with an excessive amount of something
• fragrance - a pleasant, sweet smell / perfume or aftershave
• faux pas - embarrassing or tactless act or remark in a social situation
• specious - superficially plausible, but actually wrong / misleading in appearance
• haphazardly - in a manner lacking any obvious principle or organisation
• eloquent - fluent or persuasive in speaking or writing / clearly expressing or indicating something (“the bus journey alone is eloquent of class inequality ☭”)
• incredulously - in a manner indicating disbelief
• sine qua non - an essential condition, something that’s absolutely necessary
• astutely - accurately assesing situations or people (astute - having or showing ability)
• suffuse - gradually spread through or over
• superfluous - unnecessary, especially through being more than enough
• simile - a figure of speech involving comparison to a thing of a different kind, to make a description more *emphatic* or vivid (“as brave as a lion”) / the use of similes (recursion, yay)
• emphatic - expressing something forcibly and clearly / (of an action or its result) definite and clear / (of a word or syllable) bearing the stress
• gregarious - (of a person) fond of company, sociable / (of animals) living in flocks or loosely organised communities
• egregious - outstandingly bad, shocking (ironically, archaic is “remarkably good”)
• ad hoc (i know you know it) - when necessary or needed / created or done for a particular purpose as necessary

• derrick - a type of crane with a stationary vertical mast and an angled boom. Also refers to some kind of structure over an oil drill?
• estuary - part of the river where stream of fresh water meets tides of seawater
• brackish water - slightly salty water from an estuary
• quay - a stone or metal platform lying alongside or projecting into the sea for loading and unloading ships. Difference from pier seems to be that a quay is fully on solid ground and doesn’t need to extend into water.
• harangue (verb, noun also exists) - lecture someone at length in a very critical, aggresive manner
• ferocious - marked by extreme and violent energy
• vehemence - an intense concentration, force, or power; a wild ferocity; display of strong feeling or passion. Seems to be mostly for negative emotions.
• desultory - lacking a definitive plan or regularity; going from on subject to another randomly, unfocused; disappointing with progress speed or quality. Also saw used as “done just to do something, not to actually fix the problem”?
• parsimonious - unwilling to spend money or resources; frugal or stingy (i.e. can be positive or negative?)
• scrimp (verb) - economize; be thrifty or parsimonious
• goad (verb) - provoke or annoy someone to stimulate some reaction or action
• onerous - a task or responsibility that is oppressively burdensome or requires enormous effort.
• saddle (alt, verb) - burden someone with an onerous task or responsibility.
• abase - behave in a way that belittles or degrades someone (noun abasement).
• bridle (alt, verb) - show resentment or hostility, especially by pulling back head and chin.
• buy/bought the farm - to die, especially in a crash or battle.
• belatedly - later than should have
• sultry (adj) - hot and humid (air or weather)… or exciting strong sexual desire? lol.
• pall - cloth spread over a coffin
• pall-bearers - those who carry the coffin during funeral service
• caprices - like in Russian, a loan word from French which means a sudden and unaccountable change of mood.

• prowess - skill or expertise in an activity or field.
• puissance - a test of a horses jump ability, but archaic for great power, influence or prowess.
• inexorable - not to be persuaded, moved or stopped.
• inexorably - in a way that is impossible to stop or prevent.
• simmer - (of water) being just below boiling point. be in a state of suppressed anger or excitement
• palimpsest - in old times, a manuscript written on reused page over erased existing text. Non-literally, something reused or altered, but bearing visible traces of initial form.
• publicizing is not same as publishing!
• underhanded - in a secret or dishonest way
• muckraking - seeking out and publicizing scandalous information about famous people in an underhanded way.
• slack - loose, not taut; showing laziness, lack of activity, negligence
• taut - stretched or pulled back, not slack. verb form tauten
• sangfroid (noun) - composure and coolness under strain or danger, sometimes excessive
• ziggurat - a massive tiered tower resembling a pyramid, built in ancient Mesopotamia. I guess could also be used to refer to something of similar form (how did this word get here???)
• beleaguered (adj) - in a very difficult situation; or archaic synonym for besieged.
• aridly (adj) - in a dry or barren manner, lacking moisture or interest
• luxuriate (verb) - enjoy oneself in a luxurious way; take self-indulgent delight
• acrimonious - angry and bitter (usually speech or debate)
• junket - an extravagant celebration or trip, especially taken by a government official at the expense of the public. The common form acts as verb too.
• leavening (noun) - a substance used in dough or batter to make it rise; or a quality or element that transforms something for the better.
• leavened (adj) - (bread) made with yeast or other leavening agent
• sluice (verb) - wash or rinse freely with a stream or shower of water; (of water) flow, pour, or shower freely.
• propitious - giving or indicating a good chance of success; favourable
• auspicious - promising success; propitious
• shrewd - having or showing sharp powers of judgement, astute; (archaic, of weather) piercingly cold
• osmosis - process of gradual, unconscious assimilation of ideas or knowledge. or, literally, process by which molecules pass through membrane from a less concentrated solution to a more concentrated one.
• slipshod - characterized by a lack of care, thought or organisation
• trepidation - a feeling of fear or anxiety about something that may happen. Similar to Russian “трепет”?
• trepidatious - (informal) apprehensive or nervous, filled with trepidation
• Archaeology is spelled with an a before eo! Makes sense, though.
• aglet - that piece of metal or plastic on the end of strings. That I keep loosing…
• muntin - bars or supports separating panes of glass in a window.
• ferrule - uhhh, these things. Examples: metal ring connecting eraser to pencil, or brush to body. Also cups at bottom of walking sticks, somehow.
• feuille morte - the colour of withered orange leaves :)
• sotto voce - (said) in a quiet tone so that only people near can hear
• peruse - read (something), typically in a thorough and careful way
• opulence - great wealth or luxuriousness
• gallivanting - going from one place to another in pursuit of pleasure
• corker - one that contains corks (duh) or is excellent or remarkable
• interlocutor - one of the people involved in a conversation (and possibly, but not necessarily representing someone else)
• lurid - shocking, causing horror or revulsion
• dross - something regarded as worthless; rubbish
• acumen - ability to make good judgements and quick decisions