Yvonne
… Is a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we have encountered in our reading.
It is hosted by Kathy, over at BermudaOnion’s Weblog.
You can either stop by and leave a link to your own ‘mystery’ words of the week, or just browse the eclectic mix of words that others have discovered, there is always a great selection.
Don’t forget that Kathy and the rest of us, all love to read your comments as well, so that we can visit and share your words of the week!
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The first new to me word this week, comes from mystery/suspense story ‘Sea Of Regret’, the second of a whole raft of books gifted to me by their author, Carolyn Rose.
OBSIDIAN
Spinning her chair about and peering through the window on the far side of the living room, she spotted a car, long and wide, glinting in the sunlight like obsidian.
OBSIDIAN …
A usually black or banded, hard volcanic glass that displays shiny, curved surfaces when fractured and is formed by rapid cooling of lava.
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My next word, I came across in ‘Bohemia‘, a coming of age story, set very firmly in the ‘swinging sixties’ and written by Veronika Carnaby.
NUMINOUS
What entranced me most about him was his originality, the way he bent the meaning of words to his own liking and spoke in the most numinous of ways.
NUMINOUS …
Of or relating to a numen; supernatural.
Filled with or characterized by a sense of a supernatural presence: a numinous place.
Spiritually elevated; sublime
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I came across this word when preparing to publish a post to introduce ‘The Diabolist’ by Layton Green, the latest book from an author I have worked with several times over the last few years. I visited Layton’s site, just to see what was happening and came across a whole new page which he is soon to launch, the title of which had me completely intrigued…
LAGNIAPPE
This is my lagniappe page, where I post photos from my travels and dish on everything from the best coffee bar in Colombia (I’ll let you know soon) to the most haunted pub in York (the Golden Fleece, ‘natch). The page is just getting started so stay tuned.
LAGNIAPPE …
The word entered English from the Louisiana French, adapting a Quechua word brought in to New Orleans by the Spanish Creoles. A lagniappe is a small gift given to a customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase , or more broadly, “something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure.” The use of the word today, is largely confined to the more Southern States of the USA.
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My last word this week, comes from ‘Gifts Of the Peramangk’ by Dean Mayes. Whilst I was able to deduce what I assumed to be the meaning of the word from its similarity to another more widely used word, I hadn’t come across this particular way of expressing the sentiment before and was keen to know the exact definition.
SIMULACRUM
Completing the simulacrum was the disused handle of a feather duster, which Ruby now used as her bow.
SIMULACRUM …
Any image or representation of something
A slight, unreal, or superficial likeness or semblance.
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I am looking forward to reading all about the new words you have discovered this week.
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I knew lagniappe – although it’s not used frequently, it is used often enough here in the southern US for most people to know it. It’s a lot of fun to say! Thanks for playing along.
Hi Kathy,
‘lagniappe’ was the most difficult of my words for me to get to grips with this week, but I just couldn’t resist checking it out, as I had no idea what it meant when I visited Layton’s website.
It is often more fun to share regional words and colloquialisms in the WWW meme, as it can genuinely broaden horizons about areas of the world, which would otherwise remain anonymous and unknown to many.
Who says that fictional reading can’t be educational?
Thanks for hosting and for stopping by, your visits are always appreciated.
Obsidian is the only one that I knew today, interesting words.
http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2013/07/wondrous-words-wednesday_31.html
Hi Mary Ann,
I actually thought that Mathematics was the only subject I failed at spectacularly at school, but I was obviously mistaken. Science and Geography must have come in a close second and third!
Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate your comments.
I haven’t heard of any of these words before!
Hi Nikki,
I kind of guessed what ‘simulacrum’ might mean, but I would have assumed that ‘numinous’ would have had its roots in ‘numerical’ and have been something to do with numbers! Good job I looked that one up!
Thanks for commenting, I appreciate it.
I guess you must be due a quiet weekend after all your recent gallivanting? … LOL!
Yes, definitely planning a quiet weekend, although I might pop out to take some photos depending on the weather and my energy!
I hope you’re well.
Hi Nikki,
I have only just got to sit down ths evening, had planned on finishing a review, however it is 23:41 and I keep falling asleep at the keyboard, so I guess it’s bed for me.
Busy volunteering tomorrow and visiting the in-laws on Sunday, but it shouldn’t be too stressful a weekend.
Have a good time if you manage to get out and about with your camera, the weather doesn’t sound too bad, can’t wait to see the pictures!
Great words Yvonne, I do like the sound of numinous. Lagniappe is also interesting. Lastly, I like the imagery created in the sentence with ‘obsidian’. Happy Wednesday 🙂
Hi Naida,
I keep thinking to myself, surely there can’t be too many more unexplored words out there still waiting to be discovered, and I am constantly amazed by the examples which appear in these posts each week.
Okay, so I may know a few of them, from time to time, but the hidden little gems which I come across, more than make up for that.
Sharing more locally used words such as ‘Lagniappe’, is one of the greatest joys, with the research time only adding to the interest.
Thanks for sharing my words this week and I hope that all is well with you.
Trying to remember where I saw the word obsidian’ this week. Not a word I was familiar with, I had to look it up.
Hi Tracy,
What a coincidence that we should both come across the same word, at roughly the same time and obviously in completely different places.
My quote comes from ‘Sea Of Regret’ by Carolyn Rose, which is the next book on my review list.
I really should have taken more notice in those Science and Geography lessons at school!
We are having something of a mini heatwave here in Somerset today (Thursday), temperatures just hit 31 degrees, too hot and sticky to type much more!!