New Words Feb 2018

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Bête noire (noun)

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a person or thing that one particularly dislikes."great-uncle Edward was my father's bête noire"

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chore (noun)

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A chore is a duty or task you’re obligated to perform, often one that is unpleasant but necessary. Washing the dishes is a chore, and so is completing a homework assignment you aren’t excited about.

noun. a specific piece of work required to be done as a duty or for a specific fee

syn. job, task

How many hours does he spend on household chores?

Their children help with daily chores like checking on the nearly 2,500 hogs in their barn.

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Conundrum

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tbda confusing and difficult problem or question."one of the most difficult conundrums for the experts"synonyms: problem, difficult question, vexed question, difficulty, quandary, dilemma; Morea question asked for amusement, typically one with a pun in its answer; a riddle.synonyms: riddle, puzzle, word game, anagram; More

The conundrum is embodied in the EU’s rapid response plan, which Brussels says would be legal but some Europeans fear would enter uncharted territory by leveling retaliatory duties without a WTO ruling.

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gnarly

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gnarlyˈnɑːli/Submitadjective1.gnarled.2.NORTH AMERICANinformaldifficult, dangerous, or challenging."he'd taken a fall during a particularly gnarly practice session"

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chauffeur

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noun1. a person employed to drive a private or hired car."a chauffeur-driven limousine"verb1. drive (a car or a passenger in a car), typically as part ofone's job.

"she insisted on being chauffeured around"

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lecherous

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having or showing excessive or offensive sexual desire."she ignored his lecherous gaze"synonyms: lustful, licentious, lascivious, libidinous, prurient,

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malign

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malignməˈlʌɪn/Submitverbgerund or present participle: maligningspeak about (someone) in a spitefully critical manner."don't you dare malign her in my presence"synonyms: defame, slander, libel, blacken someone's name/character, smear, run a smear campaign against, vilify, speak ill of, spread lies about, accuse falsely, cast aspersions on, run down, misrepresent, calumniate, traduce, denigrate, disparage, slur, derogate, abuse, revile; More

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nitty gritty

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the most important aspects or practical details of a subject or situation."let's get down to the nitty-gritty of finding a job"synonyms: basics, essentials, essence, essential part

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myriad

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a countless or extremely great number of people or things."myriads of insects danced around the light above my head"

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Catastrophe

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A catastrophe is a disaster. If a wedding reception is disrupted by a fistfight between the bride and her new mother-in-law, you could call the occasion a catastrophe.

Nowadays, catastrophe can be used to refer to very tragic events as well as more minor ones. A hurricane destroying hundreds of homes is certainly a catastrophe; baking a birthday cake without following a recipe might also result in catastrophe, if you don't know anything about cooking.

“Could’ve been a catastrophe, couldn’t it? But he took a risk and it paid off.”

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tranquillity (noun)

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the quality or state of being tranquil; calm."passing cars are the only noise that disturbs the tranquillity of rural life"synonyms: peace, peacefulness, restfulness, repose, reposefulness, calm, calmness, quiet

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Insatiable (adj)

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If someone can't be satisfied, she is insatiable. After being lost in the woods eating only berries for a few days, you'll find your hunger is insatiable once you finally get to the table.

Our demand for sand appears ever more insatiable

In Fenoglio's eyes Meggie saw the same insatiable hunger for a good new story that overcame her at the sight of any new and exciting book

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resemble

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have a similar appearance to or qualities in common with (someone or something); look or seem like."some people resemble their dogs"

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Reminiscent

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If your uncle tells you that your outfit is reminiscent of the way your mother dressed when she was young, it means your clothes remind him of your mother. Hopefully that doesn't mean your mother is still dressing you.

Reminiscent traces back to the Latin for "remember." If a house is reminiscent of your childhood home, it makes you remember your childhood home. Reminiscent can have a good or bad implication. If you tell someone that her paintings are reminiscent of a chimp's finger paintings, obviously that's not so good. But if you tell her that they're reminiscent of Dali, well that might be better

(adj) serving to bring to mind

“His tactics are reminiscent of another president who abused his office to settle scores and punish critics"

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Feud

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feud is a long-standing fight, often between two families. In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare describes the lovers' long-feuding families, the Capulets and the Montagues.

Feuds do not have to be violent—what characterizes them is long-standing hostility. Ethnic groups can sometimes be said to be feuding. Kids in school who refuse to sit at the same lunch table over a period of years could describe their relationship as a feud.

Here are five key moments that marked a sharp political and personal feud

At once the children turned back to one another, their feud abandoned in the face of her grief.

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Deteriorate (verb)

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When something gets worse due to neglect or an unfortunate health problem, stuff starts to deteriorate — or fall apart.

The word deteriorate describes anytime something gets worse. Due to neglect, a relationship can deteriorate but so can the American highway system. Sadly, there seems to be no end to applications for the word deteriorate. And, the truth is at a certain age we all start deteriorating too.

Water quality is also deteriorating, the scientist fears, because trees filter pollutants and sediment from waterways

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WAG(verb)

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wag1waɡ/Submitverbgerund or present participle: wagging(especially with reference to an animal's tail) move or cause to move rapidly to and fro."his tail began to wag"synonyms: swing, sway, shake, move to and fro, swish, switch, quiver, twitch, flutter, waver, whip; Moremove (an upwards-pointing finger) from side to side to signify disapproval."she wagged a finger at Elinor"synonyms: shake, wave, waggle, wiggle, wobble, flourish, brandish, raise"he shouted and wagged his finger"

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Protagonist (n)

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the leading character or one of the major characters in a play, film, novel, etc."the novel's main protagonist is an American intelligence officer"

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perish verb

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perish/ˈpɛrɪʃ/Submitverb1.LITERARYdie, especially in a violent or sudden way."a great part of his army perished of hunger and disease"synonyms: die, lose one's life, be killed, fall, expire, meet one's death, be lost, lay down one's life, breathe one's last,

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resilience noun

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resilience/rɪˈzɪlɪəns/Submitnoun1.the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness."the often remarkable resilience of so many British institutions"2.the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity."nylon is excellent in wearability, abrasion resistance and resilience"synonyms: flexibility, pliability, suppleness, plasticity,

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epiphany

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epiphanyUK US a moment when you suddenly feel that you understand, or suddenly become conscious of, something that is very important to you

That was an eye-opening moment for me, an epiphany for me.

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ecstatic adj

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feeling or expressing overwhelming happiness or joyful excitement."ecstatic fans filled the stadium"synonyms:enraptured, elated, transported, in transports, in raptures, euphoric;

We were ecstatic when our son Mark was born.

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truce/truːs/Submitnoun

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an agreement between enemies or opponents to stop fighting or arguing for a certain time."the guerrillas called a three-day truce"synonyms: ceasefire, armistice, suspension of hostilities, cessation of hostilities, peace;

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infer/ɪnˈfəː/Submitverb

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infer/ɪnˈfəː/Submitverbpast tense: inferred; past participle: inferreddeduce or conclude (something) from evidence and reasoning rather than from explicit statements."from these facts we can infer that crime has been increasing"synonyms: deduce, reason, work out, conclude, come to the conclusion, draw the inference, conjecture, surmise,

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prodigy/ˈprɒdɪdʒi/Submitnoun

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prodigy/ˈprɒdɪdʒi/Submitnouna young person with exceptional qualities or abilities."a Russian pianist who was a child prodigy in his day"synonyms: child genius, genius, wonder child, mastermind, virtuoso; Morean outstanding example of a particular quality."Germany seemed a prodigy of industrial discipline"synonyms: model, classic example, paragon, paradigm, epitome, exemplar, ideal, prototype, archetype, type"Germany seemed a prodigy of industrial discipline"an amazing or unusual thing, especially one out of the ordinary course of nature."omens and prodigies abound in Livy's work"

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perish/ˈpɛrɪʃ/Submitverb

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perish/ˈpɛrɪʃ/Submitverb1.LITERARYdie, especially in a violent or sudden way."a great part of his army perished of hunger and disease"synonyms: die, lose one's life, be killed, fall, expire, meet one's death, be lost, lay down one's life, breathe one's last, draw one's last breath, pass away, go the way of all flesh, give up the ghost, go to glory, meet one's maker, go to one's last resting place, cross the great divide; More

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ardent/ˈɑːd(ə)nt/Submitadjective

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ardent/ˈɑːd(ə)nt/Submitadjective1.very enthusiastic or passionate."an ardent supporter of the conservative cause"synonyms: passionate, avid, impassioned

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flaunt verb

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flaunt/flɔːnt/Submitverbdisplay (something) ostentatiously, especially in order to provoke envy or admiration or to show defiance."newly rich consumers eager to flaunt their prosperity"synonyms: show off, display ostentatiously, draw attention to, make a (great) show of, put on show,

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lethargy (noun)

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lethargy/ˈlɛθədʒi/Submitnouna lack of energy and enthusiasm."there was an air of lethargy about him"synonyms: sluggishness, inertia, inactivity, inaction, slowness, torpor, torpidity, lifelessness, dullness, listlessness, languor, languidness, stagnation, laziness, idleness, indolence, shiftlessness, sloth, phlegm, apathy, passivity, ennui, weariness, tiredness, lassitude, fatigue, sleepiness, drowsiness, enervation, somnolence, narcosis; rarehebetude"with an effort, Miles shook off the lethargy that had been creeping over him since his wife's death"

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spurious adj

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spurious/ˈspjʊərɪəs/Submitadjectivenot being what it purports to be; false or fake."separating authentic and spurious claims"synonyms: bogus, fake, not genuine, specious, false, factitious, counterfeit, fraudulent, trumped-up, sham, mock, feigned, pretended, contrived, fabricated, manufactured, fictitious, make-believe, invalid, fallacious, meretricious; More(of a line of reasoning) apparently but not actually valid."this spurious reasoning results in nonsense"

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Engrossed

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/ɪnˈɡrəʊs,ɛnˈɡrəʊs/Submit Learn to pronounceverbpast tense: engrossed; past participle: engrossed1.absorb all the attention or interest of."they seemed to be engrossed in conversation"synonyms:preoccupy, absorb, engage

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suave (adj)

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suave/swɑːv/Submit Learn to pronounceadjective(especially of a man) charming, confident, and elegant."all the waiters were suave and deferential"synonyms: charming, sophisticated

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binge watching (noun)

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binge watchingnounthe practice of watching multiple episodes of a televisionprogramme in rapid succession, typically by means of DVDs ordigital streaming."people who watch television online say they regularly indulge inbinge watching"

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exhilarated (adjective)

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exhilarated/ɪɡˈzɪləreɪtɪd/ Learn to pronounceadjectivevery happy, animated, or elated."all this hustle and bustle makes me feel exhilarated"