Seldom Used Words (Cont'd)

[AllardChardon]

Carlus, yes, we also have people who travel to Mt. Shasta and die trying to climb the mountain in the wrong weather and we have an avalanche awareness group in the area to instruct newbies how to take care.

Nestor - noun 1. an aged and wise counselor of the Greeks during the Trojan War 2. often not cap one who is a patriarch or leader in his field

 

[oggbashan]

..

Nestor - noun 1. an aged and wise counselor of the Greeks during the Trojan War 2. often not cap one who is a patriarch or leader in his field

Historical Slang:

nestor - An undersized boy: Winchester College from ca 1860 obsolete. From wizened, shrunken Nestor, who in allusive SE English is 'an old man'.

 

[BurningMonkey]

enamor - transitive verb

To infuse with love.

 

[AllardChardon]

Welcome, BurningMonkey, from the OP of this thread, even though it says Weird Harold. Nice word, thanks for adding it.

Og, how an undersized boy came from a wizened old man just shows the evolution of our language, for better or worse.

This one does not appear to be related to my previous entry;

Nestorian - adj 1. of or relating to the doctrine ascribed to Nestorius and ecclesiastically condemned in 431 that divine and human persons remained separate in the incarnate Christ 2. of or relating to a church separating from Byzantine Christianity after 431, centering in Persia, and surviving among Assyrians

 

[oggbashan]

I recently won a Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on eBay, which is TWO volumes.

The seller, a secondhand bookshop, sent only Volume Two. When I protested, they refunded my PayPal payment including the postage cost.

They've LOST Volume One!!!

Not in transit - it's somewhere in their warehouse.

So now I have a 1930s Shorter Oxford (which was just one volume) and Volume 2 (which includes the Addendum) of the 1970s Shorter, and only Volume 1 of 4 of the Oxford Dictionary of American English on Historical Principals.

I have ordered another 2 Volume set of the 1970s Shorter, but the four volumes of American English would cost me over £100 plus about £25 postage. American English will have to wait...

Update: The next copy of the Shorter arrived this morning. It is only Volume 2 AGAIN.

It was from a different supplier, one I have used many times in the past. They too say that they have LOST Volume 2, but they have SEVEN sets still listed on eBay.

Am I fated never to get Volume 1?

 

[CarlusMagnus]

Update: The next copy of the Shorter arrived this morning. It is only Volume 2 AGAIN.

It was from a different supplier, one I have used many times in the past. They too say that they have LOST Volume 2, but they have SEVEN sets still listed on eBay.

Am I fated never to get Volume 1?

Of course they've lost Volume 2—they sent it to you, thinking it was Volume 1.

Sorry... Couldn't help it!

 

[BurningMonkey]

(Thanks, Allard. Nice to be here!)

coruscate - intransitive verb

To give off bright beams of light or sparks

 

[AllardChardon]

BurningMonkey, I forgot to mention we are going through the dictionary backwards, the Ns now, and the Ms soon, but you can post any word that lights your fancy, of course.

Og, how frustrating. I sympathize with you completely. I bought a hat on eBay, seller location was Hawaii, and it took over a month to reach me. The seller refunded my money after three weeks, but once I received the hat in good condition, I paid for it, anyway. That is way beyond "snail mail", even for our challenged postal system.

This next word was too good not to post;

Nessus - noun a centaur shot by Hercules with a poisoned arrow for attempting to carry away his wife

 

[oggbashan]

Of course they've lost Volume 2—they sent it to you, thinking it was Volume 1.

Sorry... Couldn't help it!

Thanks. I think.

I still want a complete dictionary. I have two Volumes 2 of the Oxford and Vol 1 A-Cornpatch of the American Dictionary.

 

[Handley_Page]

Thanks. I think.

I still want a complete dictionary. I have two Volumes 2 of the Oxford and Vol 1 A-Cornpatch of the American Dictionary.

E-Bay has something of Historical Principle (WFT? Eh?) in as I write now!

 

[oggbashan]

E-Bay has something of Historical Principle (WFT? Eh?) in as I write now!

That is what is really annoying me. They send me an odd volume and they're advertising seven more SETS of 2!

 

[AllardChardon]

Good day, everyone. It is Abraham Lincoln's birthday today and in the days of my youth, we used to get the day off from school, but not anymore. Now, they combine Lincoln's and Washington's birthdays (Feb. 22) into a three day weekend that rarely falls on either of their actual birthdays. I guess, that's progress.

Nesselrode - noun a mixture of candied fruits, nuts, and maraschino used in puddings, pies, and ice cream

 

[AllardChardon]

Hello, posters. Here is a little word that I almost overlooked;

ness - noun CAPE, PROMONTORY

Does Lock Ness have a cape?

 

[oggbashan]

...

Does Lock Ness have a cape?

No. Because it is a Loch, not a Lock. And it is fresh water, not salt.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loch_Ness

But there is a Cape Wrath:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Wrath

 

[AllardChardon]

Og, my mistake, I actually knew it was Loch and not Lock, but my memory failed me this morning. Thanks for clarifying, and posting the information on Cape Wrath.

nescience - noun lack of knowledge or awareness: IGNORANCE

 

[matriarch]

nidifice noun

a nest (example: The lizard climbed into the nidifice, only to be eaten by the mother eagle.)

 

[ishtat]

Hello, posters. Here is a little word that I almost overlooked;

ness - noun CAPE, PROMONTORY

Does Lock Ness have a cape?

Ness derived from Nese, the Middle English word for nose (and used in Scots dialect rather later). However the river which drains Loch Ness through the town of Inverness is called the River Ness.

So was the river named after the Loch or t'other way round?

 

[AllardChardon]

Happy Valentines Day, everyone.

Good question Ishtat, but I don't know the answer. Maybe, one of the scholarly posters can help us out.

Welcome, matriarch, that is a nice word.

nervous Nellie - noun a timid or ineffectual person

 

[oggbashan]

Ness derived from Nese, the Middle English word for nose (and used in Scots dialect rather later). However the river which drains Loch Ness through the town of Inverness is called the River Ness.

So was the river named after the Loch or t'other way round?

I'm not sure which came first, but the River Ness, Loch Ness and Inverness are all derived from the Gaelic Nis, not the Germanic Nese for promontory e.g Dungeness. Inverness is named after the river.

Inverness and the surrounding area were part of an enclave of Gaelic speakers and retaining Gaelic place names when many places in Scotland were renamed in English.

 

[AllardChardon]

Thank you, Og, for answering the Ness question as best you can. The evolution of words is something that I find very interesting and you are very instructive in that field, which I appreciate greatly.

How about this one;

nerts - noun pl slang NUTS

 

[McKenna]

finifugal:

adj.
\fi-ni-‘fU-gal\

hating endings; someone who tries to avoid or prolong the final moments of a story, relationship, or some other journey.

 

[matriarch]

finifugal:

adj.
\fi-ni-‘fU-gal\

hating endings; someone who tries to avoid or prolong the final moments of a story, relationship, or some other journey.

incipient

Beginning, in an early stage.

 

[McKenna]

incipient

Beginning, in an early stage.

You are a wise and precious gem.

 

[oggbashan]

...

How about this one;

nerts - noun pl slang NUTS

Historical Slang, again:

Nut

1. Head 1858, hence
2. Brains, intelligence.
3. A person 1887 'He is a close old nut'.
4. A tough youth - Australian 1882 'He is a bully, a low, coarse, blasphemous blackguard - what is termed a regular Colonial nut.'
5. A dare-devil especially as 'The Nut'.
6. A dandy, especially in a cheap way from 1903 later Knut.
7. A drink, especially of liquor.
8. A present, or an action designed to please.

Crack a nut to drink a coconut shell full of claret. Scots 1820-80

Work one's nut To think hard, to scheme, originally up to 1902, later 1905 on, Australian slang.

To be a nut - to be extremely good at e.g. a game, or sport from 1900

 

[Handley_Page]

Have we mentioned that Nuts also refers to his Testes ?

"He was Kicked the nuts".
A painful blow which can bring a sympathetic tear to the eye of the male reader.