Stephanie Whetstone – Princeton Writes

Word of the Week: cabal (kə-BĂL)

Stephanie Whetstone2025-09-04T14:12:13-04:00

Word of the Week: cabal (kə-BĂL) Definition (Noun) A secret or private intrigue of a sinister character formed by a small body of persons. In Context "Lodge was also unable to control Republican President Warren G. Harding, despite rumors that he had led a cabal which conspired to place Harding in the White House as a Senate puppet." Martin Folly and Niall Palmer, The A to Z of U.S. Diplomacy from World War I Through World War II, 2010.

Word of the Week: cabal (kə-BĂL)Stephanie Whetstone2025-09-04T14:12:13-04:00

Word of the Week: inchoate (ĭn-KŌ-ĭt)

Stephanie Whetstone2025-09-04T14:10:26-04:00

Word of the Week: inchoate (ĭn-KŌ-ĭt) Definition (Adjective) Just begun, incipient; in an initial or early stage; hence elementary, imperfect, undeveloped, immature. In Context “In black America, cultural conservatism takes the form of an inchoate xenophobia (e.g., against whites, Jews, and Asians), systemic sexism, and homophobia.” Cornel West, Race Matters, 1993.

Word of the Week: inchoate (ĭn-KŌ-ĭt)Stephanie Whetstone2025-09-04T14:10:26-04:00

Word of the Week: jeroboam (jĕr-ə-BŌ-əm)

Stephanie Whetstone2025-04-10T16:26:47-04:00

jeroboam (jĕr-ə-BŌ-əm) Definition (Noun) A large bowl or goblet; a very large wine-bottle. In Context "And a jeroboam of 1945 Mouton-Rothschild – from the private cellar of Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, the château's owner, no less – sold for an astounding $310,700." David Sokolin, Investing in Liquid Assets: Uncorking Profits in Today's Global Wine Market, 2008.

Word of the Week: jeroboam (jĕr-ə-BŌ-əm)Stephanie Whetstone2025-04-10T16:26:47-04:00

Word of the Week: nebulous (NĔB-yə-ləs)

Stephanie Whetstone2025-06-18T11:53:23-04:00

Word of the Week: nebulous (NĔB-yə-ləs) Definition (Adjective) Vague, indistinct, formless, ill-defined. In Context "Creativity is a rather nebulous concept encapsulating all these human characteristics and skills – seen by some as innate and by others as learned – that involve the ability to see things in a new way; to invent new ideas, concepts, and objets; and to provide new associations between existing entities." Sarah Kember and Joanna Zylinska, Life after New Media: Mediation as a Vital Process, 2012.

Word of the Week: nebulous (NĔB-yə-ləs)Stephanie Whetstone2025-06-18T11:53:23-04:00

Word of the Week: soupçon (sōōp-SÔN)

Stephanie Whetstone2025-04-03T16:37:22-04:00

Word of the Week: soupçon (sōōp-SÔN) Definition (Noun) A suspicion, a suggestion, a very small quantity or slight trace, of something. In Context "And to this he must add more than a soupçon of luck, plus a heavy seasoning of pure nerve." Ernest K. Gann, Fate Is the Hunter, 1961.

Word of the Week: soupçon (sōōp-SÔN)Stephanie Whetstone2025-04-03T16:37:22-04:00

Word of the Week: liminal (LĬM-ə-nəl)

Stephanie Whetstone2025-04-03T16:35:22-04:00

Word of the Week: liminal (LĬM-ə-nəl) Definition (Adjective) Characterized by being on a boundary or threshold, especially by being transitional or intermediate between two states, situations, etc. In Context "Biologically and culturally, for the child-apprentice it was a liminal moment as he encountered the challenges of puberty at the same time that he abandoned (and was abandoned by) his natural family in order to enter an adoptive one." Steven Laurence Kaplan, The Bakers of Paris and the Bread Question: 1700-1775, 1996.

Word of the Week: liminal (LĬM-ə-nəl)Stephanie Whetstone2025-04-03T16:35:22-04:00

pukka (PŬK-ə)

Stephanie Whetstone2024-11-20T13:48:01-05:00

Definition (Adjective) Originally South Asian or in South Asian context: sure, certain, reliable; genuine, bona fide, correct. Hence more generally: real, not sham; (of information) factually correct; (of persons) authentic, not pretended; proper or correct in behaviour, socially acceptable. In Context "He was a pukka gentleman, a really good Englishman." Zareer Masani, Indian Tales of the Raj, 1987.

pukka (PŬK-ə)Stephanie Whetstone2024-11-20T13:48:01-05:00

Word of the Week: tenebrous (ˈte-nə-brəs)

Stephanie Whetstone2024-11-20T13:43:24-05:00

tenebrous (ˈte-nə-brəs) Definition 1. shut off from the light : dark, murky 2. hard to understand : obscure 3. causing gloom In Context “By its very nature rather tenebrous, undercover intelligence gathering blurs the lines between procedure and actual process, making it a difficult area to monitor and regulate.”Sarah Vine, Radio Choice; The Times (London, UK); Sep 29, 2012.

Word of the Week: tenebrous (ˈte-nə-brəs)Stephanie Whetstone2024-11-20T13:43:24-05:00

Word of the Week: tomfoolery (tahm-FOO-luh-ree)

Stephanie Whetstone2024-12-04T12:30:24-05:00

tomfoolery (tahm-FOO-luh-ree) Definition (Noun) playful or foolish behavior In Context "Presented as an oral history in a series of conversations between the couple, the book features anecdotes, hijinks, photos, and a veritable grab bag of tomfoolery." Brandy McDonnell, NewsOK.com, 1 Oct. 2018

Word of the Week: tomfoolery (tahm-FOO-luh-ree)Stephanie Whetstone2024-12-04T12:30:24-05:00

Word of the Week: caterwaul (KAT-er-wawl)

Stephanie Whetstone2024-11-20T13:21:58-05:00

caterwaul (KAT-er-wawl) Definition (Verb) 1. to make a harsh cry 2. to protest or complain noisily In Context Between begging calls, the young birds made more practice launches, flapping their wings and jumping. Paired adults were re-forming their relationships; returning birds went in for bouts of head flicking and kissing. Neighbors were in dispute, caterwauling above the din." Tim Dee, The New York Review of Books, 11 Sept. 2018

Word of the Week: caterwaul (KAT-er-wawl)Stephanie Whetstone2024-11-20T13:21:58-05:00

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