palindrome \PAL-in-drohm\ (noun) - A word, phrase, sentence, or verse that reads the same backward or forward.

"'The palindrome should have been a clue,' Pete Sullivan interrupted, making a chopping gesture at Mavranos. 'The Valorie personality gave Chchran one line of that, at the ruins, and we knew that palindromes were good for nothing but ...Read more

bouleversement \bool-vair-suh-MAWN\ (noun) - Complete overthrow; a reversal; a turning upside down.

"For the second time in his life Amory had had a complete bouleversement and was hurrying into line with his generation." -- F. Scott Fitzgerald, 'This Side of Paradise'

Bouleversement comes from French, from Old French bouleverser, "to overturn...Read more

impassive \im-PASS-iv\ (adjective) - 1 : Devoid of or unsusceptible to emotion. 2 : Showing no sign of emotion or feeling; expressionless.

"Don Corleone listened like a priest in the confessional, gazing away into the distance, impassive, remote." --Mario Puzo, 'The Godfather'

Impassive is derived from Latin in-, "not" + passivus, "subject to ...Read more

algorithm \AL-guh-RITH-uhm\ (noun) - A step-by-step procedure for solving a problem in a finite number of steps that often involves repetition of an operation.

"The plan was for Congress to pass legislation that made the new algorithm the nation's standard, thus alleviating the incompatibilities now suffered by corporations that used different ...Read more

parley \PAR-lee\ (noun) - A conference or discussion, especially with an enemy, as with regard to a truce or other matters.

"When Diabolus had thus done, he commanded that his drummer should every night approach the walls of the town of Mansoul, and so to beat a parley; the command was for him to do it at nights, for in the daytime they annoyed...Read more

pantheon \PAN-thee-on; -uhn\ (noun) - 1 : A temple dedicated to all the gods; especially (capitalized), the building so called at Rome. 2 : The collective gods of a people; as, a goddess of the Greek pantheon. 3 : A public building commemorating and dedicated to the famous dead of a nation. 4 : A group of highly esteemed persons.

"Unfortunately...Read more

prink \PRINGK\ (transitive verb) - To dress up; to deck for show.

(intransitive verb) - To dress or arrange oneself for show; to primp.

"To prink and preen he'd ask no urging,
But spend three hours before the glass,
Till from his dressing-room he'd pass,
Like Venus' very self emerging..." -- Aleksandr Sergeevich Pushkin, '...Read more

putsch \PUCH ('u' as in 'push')\ (noun) - (Sometimes capitalized) A secretly planned and suddenly executed attempt to overthrow a government.

"A 'putsch' is like a... It's like a coup... an insurrection. The Nazis tried to take over Munich. It was unsuccessful. They threw Hitler into jail." -- Faye Kellerman, 'Street Dreams'

Putsch comes from ...Read more

remunerate \rih-MYOO-nuh-rate\ (transitive verb) - 1 : To pay an equivalent to for any service, loss, or expense; to recompense. 2 : To compensate for; to make payment for.

"She would remunerate me handsomely; since yesterday's pay scales seem quaint today, and today's are likely to seem quaint tomorrow, I'll put my remuneration in terms of ...Read more

bilious \BIL-yuhs\ (adjective) - 1 : Of or pertaining to bile. 2 : Marked by an excess secretion of bile. 3 : Pertaining to, characterized by, or affected by gastric distress caused by a disorder of the liver. 4 : Appearing as if affected by such a disorder. 5 : Resembling bile, especially in color. 6 : Of a peevish disposition; ill-tempered.

"...Read more

conflate \kuhn-FLAYT\ (transitive verb) - 1 : To bring together; to fuse together; to join or meld. 2 : To combine (as two readings of a text) into one whole.

"Sissy does conflate everything; it's a mark of her character and disposition, one that she will not rid herself of in all her lifetime. Gypsies and and ghosts, her mother and Vicki. What...Read more

Did you know there's a donkey behind "easel"? This word for a frame supporting an artist's canvas comes from the Dutch word "ezel," meaning "an ass or donkey."

The Dutch called the easel a "donkey" because, like a beast of burden, it lugged the artist's canvas from one spot to another. (I can't help wondering whether Dutch donkeys sometimes ...Read more

fealty \FEE-uhl-tee\ (noun) - 1 : Fidelity to one's lord; the feudal obligation by which the tenant or vassal was bound to be faithful to his lord. 2 : The oath by which this obligation was assumed. 3 : Fidelity; allegiance; faithfulness.

"Then came in the Red Knight, with three score knights with him, and did to Sir Gareth homage and fealty, ...Read more

beneficenc \buh-NEFF-i-suhns\ (noun) - 1 : The practice of doing good; active goodness, kindness, or charity. 2 : A charitable gift or act.

"He was one day engaged with Mr. Allworthy in a discourse on charity: in which the captain, with great learning, proved to Mr. Allworthy that the word charity in Scripture nowhere means beneficence or ...Read more

bouleversement \bool-vair-suh-MAWN\ (noun) - Complete overthrow; a reversal; a turning upside down.

"For the second time in his life Amory had had a complete bouleversement and was hurrying into line with his generation." -- F. Scott Fitzgerald, 'This Side of Paradise'

Bouleversement comes from French, from Old French bouleverser, "to overturn...Read more

matutinal \muh-TOOT-n-uhl\ (adjective) - Relating to or occurring in the morning; early.

"Some boar pates and other matutinal delicacies were brought and some essence of fennel was poured into Venetian crystal goblets." -- Raymond Queneau, 'The Blue Flowers'

Matutinal is from Late Latin matutinalis, from Latin matutinus, "early in the morning;...Read more

encumbrance \en-KUHM-brun(t)s\ (noun) - 1 : A burden, impediment, or hindrance. 2 : A lien, mortgage, or other financial claim against a property.

"Miss Twinkleton, madam, I have had a most satisfactory conversation with my ward, and I will now release you from the encumbrance of my presence." -- Charles Dickens, 'The Mystery of Edwin Drood'

...Read more

hale \HAYL\ (adjective) - Free from disease and weakening conditions; healthy.

"The person whom the traveller had so abruptly encountered was of this kind: bluff, hale, hearty, and in a green old age: at peace with himself, and evidently disposed to be so with all the world." -- Charles Dickens, 'Barnaby Rudge'

Hale comes from Middle English ...Read more

concomitant \kuhn-KOM-uh-tuhnt\ (adjective) - Accompanying; attendant; occurring or existing concurrently.

(noun) - Something that accompanies or is collaterally connected with something else; an accompaniment.

"She began also to understand what it was that had brought about her son's love, and to feel that but for certain unfortunate ...Read more

quandary \KWAHN-duh-ree; -dree\ (noun) - A state of difficulty, perplexity, doubt, or uncertainty.

"Now, he hesitated, facing a quandary. The quandary was not whether to kill the Ye-tai. That was no quandary at all." -- Eric Flint, 'In the Heart of Darkness'

Quandary is of unknown origin.