couturier (kōō-TŎŎR-ē-ər) Definition (Noun) A male dressmaker or fashion designer. In Context "The couturier, today the god of women's fashion, came into existence only in the final decades of the nineteenth century." Joan DeJean, The Essence of Style: How the French Invented High Fashion, Fine Food, Chic Cafés, Style, Sophistication, and Glamour, 2005.
prestidigitation (prĕs-tĭ-dĭj-ĭ-TĀ-shən) Definition (Noun) Sleight of hand, legerdemain; conjuring. In Context "But like a magician who focuses his audience's attention on one hand while performing feats of prestidigitation with the other, Ponzi knew that the details of the transactions were less interesting than the promised results." Mitchell Zuckoff, Ponzi's Scheme: The True Story of a Financial Legend, 2005.
Word of the Week: tomfoolery (tŏm-FŌŌ-lə-rē) Definition (Noun) The action or behavior of a tom-fool; foolish or absurd action; silly trifling. In Context “‘She’s gadding off somewhere with Diana, writing stories or practicing dialogues or some such tomfoolery, and never thinking once about the time or her duties.’” Lucy Maud Montgomery, Ann of Green Gables, 1908.
fustigate (FUSS-tuh-gayt) Definition to beat with or as if with a short heavy club : cudgel to criticize severely In Context "Ontario Court Justice Charles Vaillancourt…fustigated them all, effectively characterizing the charges against Duffy as an abuse of power. " Neil Macdonald, CBC.ca, 23 Apr. 2016
Word of the Week: rowel (ROWL) Definition (verb) 1. to goad with or as if with a pointed disk at the end of a spur 2. vex, trouble In Context "He folded the book shut, touched his hat, moved to the wagon, and roweled the horses around." Colum McCann, TransAtlantic, 2013
Word of the Week: opusculum (oh-PUSK-yuh-lum) Definition (noun) a minor work (as of literature) — usually used in plural In Context "[Maria] Artamonova offers short summaries of most of Tolkien's satellite opuscula in roughly their order of composition—The Father Christmas Letters, Roverandom, Mr. Bliss, Farmer Giles of Ham, "Leaf by Niggle," and Smith of Wootton Major." Jason Fisher, Mythlore, 22 Sept. 2016
bedizen (bih-DYE-zun) Definition (verb) to dress or adorn gaudily. In Context "Designed by architect Pierre Dené, the two-story 'rancho deluxe' bedizened itself with every California-style feature that defined its era. It had a Roman brick fireplace, terrazzo floors and big dramatic windows." Lisa Gray, The Houston Chronicle, 20 Apr. 2008
Minion (MIN-yun) Definition (Noun) 1. a servile dependent, follower, or underling 2. one highly favored : idol 3. a subordinate or petty official In Context "Smartphones make it easier for managers to change their minds at the last moment: for example, to e-mail a minion at 11pm to tell him he must fly to Pittsburgh tomorrow." The Economist, 10 Mar. 2012
Definition 1. weak, ineffective 2. worthless, irresponsible In Context "Right or wrong, plenty of Twitter’s users view Dorsey as a feckless, spineless suit unwilling to address even the most basic problems plaguing his platform." Molloy, Parker, The Verge, "Roasting Jack Dorsey’s beard may be petty, but it’s also part of a time-honored tradition," 7 Sep. 2018
afflatus (uh-FLEY-tuh s) Definition (Noun) 1. inspiration; an impelling mental force acting from within. 2. divine communication of knowledge. In Context "Then with an afflatus, words flow, whispered by my muse, into lines and stanzas." Peter E. William, Dreaming of Dreaming, 2005
