Many people’s minds turn to basketball during this time of year. Not mine. I think of Julius Caesar and the dire warning to “beware the Ides of March.” So March is the perfect month for #Otherworldly Words to explore the vocabulary of warnings. Each word in this group foretells something wicked this way coming. While ominous indicates a…
Tag: language
Otherworldly Words: Ominous
Many people’s minds turn to basketball during this time of year. Not mine. I think of Julius Caesar and the dire warning to “beware the Ides of March.” So March is the perfect month for #Otherworldly Words to explore the vocabulary of warnings. Each word in this group foretells something wicked this way coming. Of the words that…
Otherworldly Words: Idolater
While St. Valentine’s Day has passed, #OtherworldlyWords continues to look at four words that describe the downside of love and attraction. The final word in this month’s theme is idolater. An idolater is one who worships idols or is an “immoderate admirer.” Many of us have worshiped Hollywood Idols from time to time. When this admiration…
Otherworldly Words: Infatuate
While St. Valentine’s Day has passed, #OtherworldlyWords continues to look at four words that describe the downside of love and attraction. This week’s word is infatuate. No one likes to act a fool, but love sometimes makes us lose our head. Comically, the word is from the Latin root meaning “to gape.” So, being infatuated means to stand…
Otherworldly Words: Obsess
Ah, amore! It’s February and our minds turn to St. Valentine’s Day and longing gazes and tokens of love. But what about when love crosses the line? #OtherworldlyWords returns with a look at four words that describe the downside of love and attraction. While marketed as a good thing for cologne, obsession can have its…
Otherworldly Words: Bewitch
Ah, amore! It’s February and our minds turn to St. Valentine’s Day and longing gazes and tokens of love. But what about when love crosses the line? #OtherworldlyWords returns with a look at four words that describe the downside of love and attraction. First up is bewitch. With its origin in Old English, this word…
Tighten your #NaNoWriMo Writing
Writing is an art and a process. The best writing requires revision. So, as you finish up your #NaNoWriMo masterpiece, it’s time to think about ways you will strengthen the work that you’ve done (after a much deserved pat on the back). One easy step is to tighten your writing—or remove wordiness. Here are a…
Otherworldly Words: Will-o’-the-wisp
Perfect for Halloween Night, will-o’-the-wisp is the ghostly light in the woods that is always just in front of you. So much of nature has inspired our tales of horror as we grapple with understanding the difference between the natural world and the preternatural. I’ve long thought the much maligned full moon lit the way…
Otherworldly Words: Vex
The word vex comes from a word that means to shake or jolt. When someone truly vexes us, it does sometimes feel as we have been physically shaken due to the emotional or mental stress caused by his or her actions. I think that’a great way to think of vex: someone has troubled you to…
Otherworldly Words: Vanquish
Vanquish is one of those words that many people find interchangeable with words like decimate or annihilate. These words are a really good example of how visiting the thesaurus and hitting replace doesn’t quite do the job sometimes. As I stated in my post “The thesaurus is out to get us,” the nuances of words…
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