February 2010
24 February 2010
Tenebrous is a poetic/literaryadjective meaning gloomy, shadowy or dark. It comes form Latin origins.
The reason it is this week's word is because I was reading a story over the holiday by Joseph Conrad called "Typhoon". The word "tenebrous" appeared and I looked it up. "Typhoon" has been described by one critic as "The greatest story about a storm at sea ever written." It is worth a read, to marvel at the power and ferocity of the sea, the courage of the mariners, and for Conrad's hold on the reader. (The ending has a neat twist!)
(Mind you, anything by Conrad is worth reading: he is a master story teller).
09 February 2010
Slightly different this week! As you know, many words in English have come from other languages. Some have come a long way: "coffee" from Turkish, "robot" from Czech, "palaver" from Portugese; however, some words have come from much closer to home. The following words (in bold italics) all come from Scottish Gaelic:
'"Toss the caber from the glen over the loch" is an absurd slogan if all you want to do is sell plaid trousers to tourists.'
(Nicely put in a sentence by Ben Schott!)
02 February 2010
Laudable (adjective): deserving praise.
Laudable derives from the Latin "laud" meaning "praise."