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Last week’s Word of the Week (WOW) was aegis. There are 3 definitions for it at Merriam-Webster Online and I have a sneaky suspicion that the first one is largely archaic, but thanks to a resurgent interest in mythology cinematically, maybe it’s getting a little more usage these days. Here’s what m-w.com had to say on the subject: 1) a shield or breastplate emblematic of majesty that was associated with Zeus and Athena 2) protection or controlling or conditioning influence and 3) auspices, control or guidance especially by an individual, group, or system. When I think about those last 2 definitions, I do believe I have heard this word in actual usage, but if it means auspices, why not just use the much more popular auspices???

Way too serious for a Monday? Okay…On to the WOW for this week, which is roseate. Here are my definition guesses for roseate:

roseate: (ˈrō-zē-ət) 1. when the dog eats your roses (a very real possibility at my house…sigh) 2. Ross’ seat in  le France 3. the lunch Rosie the Riveter had while working at the factory in WWII. You’re welcome for the bonus history lesson today.

So, what are your guesses for roseate??? Leave a comment below regarding your guess (or just the fact that my guesses are under the aegis of insanity)

Tomorrow’s Post: What act of kindness did you do for a selfless teacher?

You might also like: Word of the Week: aegis; Word of the Week: meretricious; Word of the Week: sangfroid; Word of the Week: eurytopic; Word of the Week: balneology

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Last week’s word was meretricious. According to Merriam-Webster online, meretricious has several meanings and the first two may not be suitable for audiences under the age of 60: 1. of or relating to a prostitute : having the nature of prostitution 2. tawdrily and falsely attractive. The last one I like a whole lot better for my “rated G” audience: superficially significant.

I seldom comment on politics here, but I think we can safely say our “do-nothing” Congress is definition # 3 right now. Do you agree??? 🙂

This week’s word is:  aegis. Here are my definition attempts for it:

aegis (ˈē-jəs) 1. what a hillbilly thinks is a very, very long time. 2. the birth name of a Scot who was named after some really nasty food 3. when Regis Philbin isn’t behaving

What’s your guess?

Tomorrow’s Post: What was your act of kindness for the week?

You might also like: Word of the Week: meretricious; Word of the Week: sangfroid; Word of the Week: eurytopic; and Word of the Week: balneology

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Howdy, Word Lovers! Last week’s Word of the Week was sangfroid. According to Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary, sangfroid means: the ability to stay calm in difficult or dangerous situations. I seem to panic when the situation is a mere trifle, but generally am rather sangfroid when the danger is real. Perhaps sangfroid is just another word for being in shock???

Today’s word is meretricious and here’s my guess:

meretricious: (mer-ə-ˈtri-shəs) 1. vicious merit 2. a rather run-of-the-mill trick 3. looking delicious in the mirror

What’s your guess? Submit a comment now!

Tomorrow’s Post: What act of kindness did you do for Lauren Rousseau?

You might also like: Word of the Week: sangfroid; Word of the Week: eurytopic; Word of the Week: balneology; and Word of the Week: nascent

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Good morning, dear readers! (Okay, so it’s morning for me…many of you don’t read this until nighttime.  Deal with it, night owls!) Yes, Word of the Week is back! Are you excited? If so, we really must get you better entertainment.

Way back in June the last word we tried to collectively conquer (I love alliteration!) was flehmen. Here’s the Merriam-Webster definition of flehmen: a mammalian behavior (as of horses or cats) in which the animal inhales with the mouth open and upper lip curled to facilitate exposure of the vomeronasal organ to a scent or pheromone. This would probably explain why I’m ridiculously allergic to horses and cats.

Today’s word is balneology. For the newer readers of MIP here are the “rules” for Word of the Week. I will attempt several definitions for the selected word and then you are free to submit definitions of your own in the comment box below. NO ONE, myself included, is allowed to consult a dictionary to get the proper definition–you must guess! “Points” for creativity and humor in your definition guesses! And even more points if you guess correctly or already know the definition. What do the points get you? Absolutely nothing other than my admiration. Hopefully we will all learn some new words and broaden our use of them.

After I have attempted my guesses, then I look up the word online and get you the pronunciation, so my definitions may be way off if I have been mispronouncing the word in my head as I guess! It seems to be nearly impossible to ignore the true definition when getting the pronunciation, so there’s your proof that I also avoid the dictionary when guessing.

balneology: (bal-nē-ˈä-lə-jē) 1. the study of new bowels 2. the study of new Ranger baseballs (That was just for you, DSL!) 3. the study of the ball joint of a knee (That was really reaching…wasn’t it?!)

What do you think balneology means?

Tomorrow’s Post: Have you done your act of kindness this week?

You might also like: Word of the Week: flehmen; Word of the Week: nascent; Word of the Week: canorous;  and Word of the Week: carminative

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Last week’s Word of the Week was carminative. the DFIL (Darling Father-in-Law) is guessing it has something to do with the color carmine. Good thought, but unfortunately, wrong. But he’s in good company (if he considers me good company!). According to Merriam-Webster carminative means: expelling gas from the stomach or intestines so as to relieve flatulence or abdominal pain or distension. Uh-hunh. I’m so very glad I chose to use this word last week. Hmmm…so this means, once again, that my guesses were full of “hot air,” right???

This week’s word is canorous. Here are my guesses for canorous:

canorous: 1. the title of a store where you can buy canned goods 2. the ability to get things done (Obviously, this word would never apply to our federal government.) 3. someone having the abilities/talents of a canter

So, what’s your guess for canorous?

Tomorrow’s Post: Big jump in the total of MIP Acts of Kindness!

You might also like: Word of the Week: carminative, Word of the Week: fuliginous, Word of the Week: thimblerig, Word of the Week: bosky, Word of the Week: nepenthe 

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Last week’s Word of the Week was fuliginous. According to Merriam-Webster online fuliginous means sooty or obscure and murky. It could also mean having a dark or musky color. I think all those definitions probably symbolize the murky nature of my mind while attempting to guess at the definition for fuliginous.

Today’s word is carminative. Here’s my fuliginous definition guesses for carminative:

carminative: (kär-ˈmi-nə-tiv) 1. the matchbox cars my son left on the living room for me to stub my bare foot on at night (But they were all perfectly parked, so at least he was organized about injuring his mother???) 2. Anything related to the opera “Carmen” 3. anything related to a boxcar on a train (Sorry…I can’t make this humorous no matter how hard I try…it’s Monday…give me a break.)

What’s your guess? Submit it here!

Tomorrow’s Post: What did you do for your act of kindness this week?

You might also like: Word of the Week: fuliginous, Word of the Week: thimblerig, Word of the Week: bosky, Word of the Week: nepenthe

The Word of the Week for last week was realia. Merriam-Webster Online says that realia are: objects or activities used to relate classroom teaching to real life, especially of peoples studied. So, since I know a fair number of educators and worked in the College of Education at our town’s university, I’m hoping a few of my readers already knew the real meaning of realia. However, it’s a word I did not encounter as an employee there. Now, pedagogy? That’s a word I learned there. We’ll discuss pedagogy some other day.

This week’s Word of the Week is scumble. I love this word. It just sounds fun. And once I learn the real definition, it may have to find its way into my posts as often as plethora. (You’re welcome, DD.)

So, what’s your guess for scumble? Submit a comment below and let me know! Here are my mere attempts:

scumble (skəm-bəl): 1. When a scumbag finally becomes humble, which roughly occurs around the same time as the freezing of Hades. 2. When gang members scatter after a “rumble” 3. When Scots take a tumble from their “highlands”

No fair peeking in the dictionary!

Tomorrow’s Post: Did you read a book this week? Dylan would have. 🙂

Last week’s Word of the Week was kanban. Kanban means “just-in-time.” So, if the kangaroo convention gets canned veggies before its opening, I suppose that will  be kanban. In other words…I wasn’t even close with my definition guesses!

This week’s word is realia. As usual, no fair looking up words online or in an honest-to-goodness dictionary. Just submit your definition below in the comment section and we’ll see who gets closest.

realia (rē-ˈa-lē-ə): 1. The mania that ensues when things get too real. (Can you tell that the master’s in counseling regularly “leaks” into my definition guesses???) 2. regalia that is slightly less regal. 3. the trash that gets deposited on your real estate after a party on Saturday night, even when you weren’t the hosts of the party. (Can you tell that we have some experience with this at our “real estate”?)

So, what is your guess? Make sure you submit it kanban. 🙂

Tomorrow’s Post: What did you do for the Birthday Girl?

Last week we were deciding on the meaning of campestral. The LSH gave his thoughts: “Is that the cholesterol you get when you eat s’mores around a campfire? He’s actually not too far off, literally. Campestral means rural or of the fields or open country. This means we could use it to refer to the LSH, since he’s pretty fond of all things “country.” This has been a small bone of humorous contention throughout our marriage, since I’m most decidedly a suburban mall rat by upbringing. And we could use it to refer to our little town in Texas, although if you saw us play football at our local high school, you might think otherwise.

Today’s Word of the Week is heliacal. So here’s my attempt at a definition:

heliacal: (hi-ˈlī-ə-kəl) 1. of, or related to, a helix. 2. the mania that results from inhaling too much helium 3. the stress disorder common to flight attendants that greet too many airliner passengers

What’s your guess for heliacal? Submit it below (Some day I’m going to have to come up with a prize for correct definitions!) in the comment box.

Tomorrow’s Post: What did you do to honor Rachel D’Avino?

The Word of the Week last Monday was: baba. A lot of you wondered if baba was a term of endearment from another language, such as the word for grandmother. Many of you thought it might be Russian or Dutch. MIP readers are sooo smart–baba is a French and Polish word and originally referred to an elderly woman! But, today baba is a rich cake soaked in a rum and sugar syrup. Sounds like something I should refrain from having if I ever want to see some weight loss. *sigh*

This week’s word is: campestral. As usual, submit your guess below and no using a dictionary! If you use a dictionary, I will be forced to hit you with a baba. (I suppose there are worse punishments.) Here are my guesses for campestral:

campestral (kam-ˈpes-trəl) 1. That which pertains to a camping situation. 2. Describing the temporary abode of an extraterrestrial. 3. Where Hilary sends Bill during a Presidential campaign.

Tomorrow’s Post: What did you do for your Act of Kindness this week?