Add some whimsy to your life
Word Nerd is an on-going feature that shares and highlights unique, whimsical and sometimes forgotten or overlooked words. It’s dedicated to the logophile in us all.
Cattywampus means crooked, out of alignment, sideways, crazy, askew. Cattywampus first recorded use was in 1830-1840 and it is thought to be a combination of cata (diagonally) and wampus, which derives from the Scottish wampish (to flop around). Cattywampus is also an alternate spelling of the word catawampus (askew, awry, cater-corner). Cattywampus is very much… Continue reading Word Nerd: Cattywampus
Cordolium is heartfelt grief or sorrow of the heart. Cordolium is a Latin word that comprised of the Latin cor (heart) and dolor (pain, sorrow). Cordolium is translated into English as heartache, though cordolium has a better gravity to it - at least that's what I think. Cordolium describes that immense intensity and heaviness that… Continue reading Word Nerd: Cordolium
Redamancy is the act of loving the one that loves you. Redamancy derives from the Latin redamō (I requite love; I love back). Redamancy is quite the lovely word and it differentiates it's self from other words about love since it is one of the few that specifies reciprocity. Redamancy is about equal, giving, and… Continue reading Word Nerd: Redamancy
Lambent means having a gentle, luminous glow. Lambent also means marked by lightness or brilliance especially of expression. Lambent derives from the Latin verb lambere (to lick) and it first appeared in the English language in the 17th century. At first lambent was used to describe the way flames or light played across surface, though… Continue reading Word Nerd: Lambent
Desultory means unenthusiastically lacking in consistency, constancy or visible order. Desultory derives from the Latin desultorius which was used to refer to a circus performer called a desultor whose trick was to leap back and forth from horse to horse. Both desultor and desultorius derive from the Latin salire (to leap). While a desultor is… Continue reading Word Nerd: Desultory
Iterum means again, anew, a second time. Iterum is a Latin word that derives from the Proto-Indo-European *i-tero-, from the pronominal root *i-, whence is. It's a new day, a new year, a new president with a new term, a fresh start all around and Iterum felt like an ideal word despite it being Latin… Continue reading Word Nerd: Iterum
