Wondrous Words Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Bermudaonion's Weblog where we share words that we’ve encountered in our reading. Feel free to join in the fun (please do!) Be sure to leave a link to your post over at Bermudaonion's Weblog.The three words below are from Ordinary Thunderstorms by William Boyd
"No matter, when he sat in meetings with rich and powerful men and saw them shift legs, recross their thighs and expose two inches of etiolated shank he found he immediately thought less of such people - this kind of lapse said something about them.". (p.21)
1. Etiolate (~ noun )
: to cause to become weakened or sickly; drain of color or vigor.
: to whiten or grow pale through lack of light
"By the time Bishop Yemi had said 'In the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, amen', Adam wondered if his stomach's borborygmi could be heard at the back of the hall." (p.119)
2. Borborygmi ~ noun
: a rumbling or gurgling sound caused by the movement of gas in the intestines
" 'Down the far end with the grockles,' Ivo said. 'More discreet'.." (p.310)
3. Grockles (~ noun) from the Urban Dictionary
: annoying visitor, tourist, who disrupts the lives of residents
: a holidaymaker or someone from out of town; used in the South of England meant in a derogatory way.
The following words are from Portrait in Sepia by Isabel Allende
"With another individual less hermetic than the butler, Severo would have thought he shared a kind of friendship, or at least that they liked each other, but the Englishman raised an impenetrable wall of reserve around himself." (p. 39)
4. Hermetic (~ adj.)
: not affected by outward influence or power; isolated
: hidden or protected from the outside world
"Even the Irish policemen fell victim to his charm, and while his buddies got beatings, he got out of jams with a joke or a magic trick, one of the many he preformed with his prodigious prestidigitator's hands." (p. 55)
5. Prestidigitator (~noun) from French
: nimble fingers, sleight of hand; literally ready-fingeredness; feats of juggling
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Wow, those are some words!! My favorite might be 'borborygmi' because it sounds like a fabulous tropical island! ;)
ReplyDeleteI knew the last 2 but the rest are new to me. I wish I could pronounce borborygmi without falling over my tongue - I have a feeling that word would impress people. I'll probably be a grockle when I go to the UK at the end of the month.
ReplyDeleteWonderful words, I have been a "grockle." An annoying tourist, right?:)
ReplyDeletehttp://readwithtea.blogspot.com/2011/06/wondrous-words.html
Interesting set of words. I didn't know any of them. I know I've been an obvious grockle with my camera hanging around my neck and gawking about. But I hope I haven't be too annoying.
ReplyDeleteEtoilate made me think of stars (etoile is French for star). And borborygmi is terrific - I can imagine it sounding just like that.
ReplyDeleteMy words are here.
I also knew the last two, but the others were very new to me. Thanks for sharing these with us today. I love it when I learn something new!
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