Source: https://12ptcourier.com/category/uncommon-words/
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 00:23:17+00:00

Document:
Welcome back to another edition of “Uncommon Words” featuring exciting words I find in fiction.
These articles feature words that I don’t use very often (if ever) along with their definitions and how they are used in the book. I will try to avoid any book spoilers by replacing them with dashes. I am doing this in the hope that I will start using more of these words in my writing. Let’s build our vocabulary together!
You can find other articles in this series here.
This article will feature a few words I found in “The Name of the Wind” which is book one in “The Kingkiller Chronicles” by Patrick Rothfuss.
verdigris. n. a bright bluish-green encrustation or patina formed on copper or brass by atmospheric oxidation, consisting of basic copper carbonate.
spurious. adj. not being what it purports to be; false or fake.
inveterate. adj. having a particular habit, activity, or interest that is long-established and unlikely to change.
rote. n. mechanical or habitual repetition of something to be learned.
remand. v. place (a defendant) on bail or in custody, esp. when a trail is adjourned.
mollify. v. appease the anger or anxiety of (someone).
simulacrum. n. an image or representation of someone or something. <SPECIAL USAGE> an unsatisfactory imitation or substitute.
auspicious. adj. conductive to success; favorable.
sophist. n. a paid teacher of philosophy and rhetoric in ancient Greece, associated in popular thought with moral skepticism and specious reasoning. <SPECIAL USAGE> a person who reasons with clever but fallacious arguments.
altruism. n. the belief in or practice of disinterested and selfless concern for the well-being of others.
Welcome back to another article of “Uncommon Words” featuring exciting words I find in fiction. These articles feature words that I don’t use very often (if ever) along with their definitions and how they are used in the book. I will try to avoid any book spoilers by replacing them with dashes. I am doing this in the hope that I will start using more of these words in my writing. Let’s build our vocabulary together!
This article will feature a few words I found in “The Last Colony” which is book 3 in “The Old Man’s War Trilogy” by John Scalzi. Not as many as I found in the last book, but some good ones in here.
rictus. n. fixed grimace or grin.
provisional. adj. arranged or existing for the present, possibly to be changed later.
ostensibly. adv. apparently or purportedly, but perhaps not actually.
perambulate. v. walk or travel through or around (a place or area), esp. for pleasure and in a leisurely way.
Usage in book: “Out of the corner of my eye I saw Beata Novik, his camerawoman, do her slow perambulation.
wry. adj. using or expressing dry, esp. mocking, humor.
ostentatious. adj. characterized by vulgar or pretentious display; designed to impress or attract notice.
ombudsman. n. an official appointed to investigate individuals’ complaints against maladministration, esp. that of public authorities.
apparatchik. n. Derogatory or Humorous. An official in a large organization, typically a political one.
This article is the first of a new series of articles featuring interesting and uncommon words I find in fiction.
These articles will specifically feature words that I don’t use very often (if ever) along with their definitions and how they are used in the book. I will try to avoid any spoilers by replacing them with dashes. I am doing this in the hope that I will start using more of these words in my writing. Let’s build our vocabulary together!
This article will feature a few words I found in “The Ghost Brigades” which is book 2 in “The Old Man’s War Trilogy” by John Scalzi.
You can also check out Uncommon Words Part 2.
mirthless. adj. (of a smile or laugh) lacking real amusement and typically expressing irony.
progenitor. n. a person or thing from which a person, animal, or plant is descended or originates; an ancestor or parent.
Usage in book: “If she came across —-, she would need to make a quick determination whether he was useful or if he had gone traitor like his progenitor.
attenuated. adj. unnaturally thin. <SPECIAL USAGE> weakened in force or effect.
gambol. v. run or jump about playfully.
trill. n. a quavering or vibratory sound, esp. a rapid alternation of sung or played notes. <SPECIAL USAGE> the pronunciation of a consonant esp. r, with rapid vibration of the tongue against the hard or soft palate or the uvula. or v. produce a quavering or warbling sound.
eschatology. n. the part of theology concerned with death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind.
ineffable. adj. too great or extreme to be expressed or described in words. <SPECIAL USAGE> not to be uttered.
putative. adj. generally considered or reputed to be.
acquisitive. adj. excessively interested in acquiring money or material things.
gird. v. encircle (a person or part of the body) with a belt or band. <SPECIAL USAGE> secure (a garment or sword) on the body with a belt or band. or surround; encircle.
subsume. v. (often be subsumed) include or absorb (something) in something else.
vaunt. v. boast about or praise (something), esp. excessively.
dissonance. n. lack of harmony among musical notes. <SPECIAL USAGE> a tension or clash resulting from the combination of two disharmonious or unsuitable elements.
internecine. adj. destructive to both sides in a conflict.
incredulous. adj. unwilling or unable to believe something.
tripartite. adj. consisting of three parts.
diffident. adj. modest or shy because of a lack of self-confidence.
implacable. adj. unable to be placated. <SPECIAL USEAGE> relentless; unstoppable.
gestalt. n. an organized whole that is perceived as more than the sum of its parts.
adjutant. n. a military officer who acts as an administrative assistant to a senior officer.
bolus. n. a small rounded mass of a substance, esp. of chewed food at the moment of swallowing. <SPECIAL USAGE> a type of large pill used in veterinary medicine.

References: v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v.