Word Power

[TW]

December 17, 2008

gaffe \gaf\, noun:
a blunder; faux pas

[TW]

December 18, 2008

hackneyed \HAK-need\, adjective:
1. used too often; commonplace
2. habituated; experienced

[TW]

December 19, 2008

iambic \ahy-AM-bik\, adjective:
1. of or consisting of iambic measures

noun:
1. a foot or measure in poetry consisting of two syllables, an unaccented followed by an accented or a short syllable followed by a long

[TW]

December 20, 2008

jaded \JEY-did\, adjective:
worn out; tired, weary

[TW]

December 21, 2008

kibbutz \ki-BOOTS\, noun:
an Israeli communal settlement, especially a farm co-operative

[TW]

December 22, 2008

laggard \LAG-erd\, adjective, noun:
1. a person or thing that moves too slowly or falls behind

adjective:
1. falling behind; slow

[TW]

December 23, 2008


macrobiotic \mak-roh-bahy-OT-ik\, adjective:
of or having to do with macrobiotics, a dietary system derived from Zen Buddhism and purported to prolong life

[TW]

December 24, 2008


narcissism \NAHR-suh-siz-em\, noun:
excessive love or admiration for oneself; in psychoanalysis, gratification manifested in admiration and love of oneself

[TW]

December 25, 2008


oblique \oh-BLEEK\, adjective, noun:
1. something oblique, such as a line or figure

adverb:
1. in military use, by turning 45 degrees

adjective:
1. not straight up and down or across; slanting

noun:
1. a muscle attached at an oblique angle to the structure that it controls

adjective:
1. having unequal sides; situated obliquely instead of transverse or longitudinal
2. not straightforward; indirect

[TW]

December 26, 2008


paltry \PAWL-tree\, adjective:
1. almost worthless; trifling
2. of no worth; contemptible, despicable

[TW]

December 27, 2008

qualify \KWOL-uh-fahy\, verb:
1. to make or become fit or competent
2. to give legal power; to make or become legally capable
3. to make less strong; to modify or limit the strength or meaning of
4. to characterize by attributing some quality to

[TW]

December 28, 2008


ramble \RAM-buhl\, verb, noun:
1. to wander about

noun:
1. a walk for pleasure without predetermined destination

verb:
1. to talk or write about one thing and then another without useful connection

[TW]

December 29, 2008


sacrilege \SAK-ruh-lij\, noun:
an intentional injury to anything held sacred; disrespectful treatment of something sacred

[TW]

December 30, 2008


tacit \TAS-it\, adjective:
1. implied or understood without being openly expressed
2. saying nothing; silent

[TW]

December 31, 2008


ultimate \UHL-tuh-mit\, adjective, noun:
1. last possible, final; coming at the end

noun:
1. an ultimate point, result, fact, or other extreme condition

adjective:
1. pertaining to an extremity; beyond which there is nothing or nothing greater
2. fundamental; basic; original