Category: Word of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day – Schadenfreude

  • Noun: Schadenfreude
    1.  Often capitalized: enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others
    2. Did you know? Schadenfreude is a combination of the German nouns Schaden, meaning “damage” or “harm,” and Freude, meaning “joy.” So it makes sense that schadenfreude means joy over some harm or misfortune suffered by another.
  • Synonyms:
      1.  gloat
      2. epicaricacy
      3. malicious glee
      4. ghoulish joy
      5. lulz
  • Usage:
      1. “The great Burning Man Muddening of 2023 was almost scientifically engineered to evoke schadenfreude. Wealthy, insufferable attendees? Check. Improbable details, such as the fact that the rain was causing a bunch of three-eyed fairy shrimp, which can survive as eggs in sediment for decades, to come alive? Check. The fact that climate activists, angry about private jets and single-use plastics at the event, tried to shut down the festival and were jeered at by annoyed attendees, then vindicated by mother nature? Check. A situation that was uncomfortable but not life-threatening? Check! (I should note that one person did die at the festival, but organisers have clarified that it wasn’t related to the weather.)”
  • Encountered:
      1.   An article on Guardian.com: Why all the Burning Man schadenfreude? Where do I start …

One of my brothers used this word in a group text recently.  At the time I did not know the meaning, and little ole OCD me had to look it up.  Probably because I am now aware of it, the word has popped a few times in my readings and conversations.  Are you stalking me schadenfreude?

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day – Vogue | Voguing

  • Verb: Vogue
    1. dance to music in such a way as to imitate the characteristic poses struck by a model on a catwalk.
  • Synonyms:
    1.  many synonyms for vogue, but voguing… not so much
  • Usage:
    1. “The 28-year-old professional dancer and choreographer was killed while voguing to Beyoncé’s music as his friends filled up their car on the way home from the Jersey Shore on July 29. “
  • Encountered:
    1.   An article on NPR.com: A dancer’s killing — over voguing — highlights the dangers Black LGBTQ Americans face

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day – Solastalgia

  • Noun:  Solastalgia – proposed new word
    1. unease and melancholy caused by the destruction of the natural environment;
    2. Additional Information: blend of “solace” and “nostalgia” Example: It has led to the coining of a new word, solastalgia: the distress induced by environmental change and the degradation of one’s home place. [Irish Times (online), 2 March 2020]
  • Synonyms:
    1. eco-anxiety
  • Usage:
    1. “ Solastalgia is a new concept developed to give greater meaning and clarity to environmentally induced distress. “
  • Encountered:
    1.   An article on  National Library of Medicine: Solastalgia: the distress caused by environmental change 

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day – Maudlin

  • Adjective:  Maudlin
    1. tearfully or weakly emotional; foolishly sentimental: a maudlin story of a little orphan and her lost dog.
    2. foolishly or mawkishly sentimental because of drunkenness.
  • Synonyms:
    1.  mawkish
    2. mushy
    3. sentimental
    4. weepy
    5. befuddled
    6. histrionic
    7. insipid
    8. lachrymose
    9. schmaltzy
    10. tear-jerking
  • Usage:
    1. “That’s because you were too busy being maudlin in your last post, Curmudgeon-in-Chief”
  • Encountered:
    1.    Comment from one of my 3.141592 regular readers

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day -Dox

  • Verb: Dox
    1. search for and publish private or identifying information about (a particular individual) on the internet, typically with malicious intent.
  • Synonyms:
    1. shadowbanning
    2. swatting
    3. stalking
    4. cyberbullying
  • Usage:
    1. “CNN is not naming the websites where these details are being posted, but they range from a major social media profile, to pro-Trump forums, to sites that have previously been linked to violent extremist attacks. CNN has reached out to the Fulton County sheriff’s office regarding the attempted doxxing.”
  • Encountered:
    1.   An article on CNN.com: Purported names, photos and addresses of Fulton County grand jurors circulate on far-right internet 

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day -Phub

  • Verb: Phub
    1. verb (used with object), phubbed, phubbing.
      • to ignore (a person or one’s surroundings) when in a social situation by busying oneself with a phone or other mobile device: Hey, are you phubbing me?
    2. verb (used without object),phubbed, phub·bing.
      • to ignore a person or one’s surroundings in this way.
    3. Think Phone + snub
  • Synonyms:
    • As this is a recently birthed word, no synonyms were found.  However, such words as ignore, being rude, anti-social, snubbing, etc would work fine IMHO.
  • Usage:
    1. “I thought you told me that we do not talk enough? Why are you phubbing me as I drive us to Tick Bush?”
  • Encountered:
    1.   The word was passed on to me by one the 3.141592 regular readers of the silliness that is Curmudgeon-Alley.

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day -Caitiff

  • Noun/Adjective:  Caitiff  (Archaic)
    1.  noun
      • A despicable coward; a wretch.
      • A mean villain; a despicable knave; one who is both wicked and mean.
    2. adjective
      • Despicable and cowardly.
  • Synonyms:
    1. villain
    2. brute
    3. savage
    4. monster
    5. devil
    6. wretch
    7. offender
    8. criminal
    9. knave
    10. beast
  • Usage:
    1. “I think you mean caitiff. You just misspelled it.”
  • Encountered: In the following text exchange with a superannuated golfing buddy that lives in the Magnolia State.  I had passed along the following cartoon with the comment that I had found the epitaph for my tombstone —  never mind that I want to be cremated.

To which he replied, “This is something I don’t have to worry about. Niceness is not in my vocabulary.”

I responded with, “I am a saint, myself.”

Parrying he said, “I think you mean caitiff. You just misspelled it”

With a feint and lunge, I remarked, “I see that doctorate paid off.”

In response, I received, “Told you I had no niceness in me.”

“No true,” I riposted, “You gifted me a new word!”

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day -Puissant

  • Adjective: Puissant
    1. having puissance : powerful
  • Synonyms:
    1. able
    2. capable
    3. enduring
    4. forceful
    5. hearty
    6. muscular
    7. potent
    8. robust
    9. rugged
    10. strapping
    11. substantial
    12. tough
    13. vigorous
  • Usage:
    1. “No, the 2024 Toyota Tacoma will be propelled by either a 2.4-liter turbo four-cylinder base motor or a more puissant, hybridized version of the same engine.”
  • Encountered:
    1.  While reading the article: 10 Ways The 2024 Toyota Tacoma Could Outshine The GMC Canyon

Seems like a strange word to throw at readers of automotive articles on pickup trucks…

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day -Boschian

  • Adjective: Boschian
    1. Of or relating to Hieronymus Bosch (c.1450–1516), Early Netherlandish painter known for his fantastic , detailed landscapes, and illustrations of religious concepts and narratives.
  • Synonyms:
    1. none found
  • Usage:
    1. “Consider the octopus. With eight arms, elliptical pupils, color- and texture-changing skin, and a scary beak, it is a creature that seems conjured from the most Boschian of realities.”
  • Encountered:
    1.  While reading the article: 8 Reasons Why Octopuses Are the Smartest, Pettiest Animals

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

Posted on

Word of the Day -Solipsist

  • Noun: Solipsist
    1. Philosophy The theory that the self is the only thing that can be known and verified.
    2. The view that the self is the only reality.
    3. Absorption with oneself without consideration for the needs and desires of others: a self-indulgent memoir that revealed the author’s solipsism.
  • Synonyms:
    1. egoism
    2. self-containment
    3. subjectivity
    4. egocentricity
    5. ipseity
    6. narcissism
    7. self-absorption
    8. self-reliance
    9. autonomy
    10. singularity
    11. uniqueness
  • Usage:
    1. “’EA and BA meat on the same haul as Solipsists Anonymous but those guys act like no one else is in the building.'”
  • Encountered:
    1.  This was a comment to my blog posting, Homophone Challenged. I knew the meaning of the word as an adherent of the philosophy of Solipsism. But reading the comment I wondered if it might have another definition.  Sure enough… it is a high brow way of calling someone a selfish mofo.

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day