21 January 2009

Five words that I've had to look up recently

Quincunx

Chthonic

Usufruct

Liminal

Punctilious

It's not that I didn't know "punctilious", it's that some news commenter made a comment yesterday about Obama's parade running late, and said he wasn't as punctilious as Bush. I looked it up to confirm that, in fact, punctilious is NOT a synonym for punctual. Damn newscasters, using four syllable words incorrectly, when three syllables will do.

Anyway, here's a contest. Best paragraph, of less than 50 words, to use all five of the above words, gets a copy of The Mammoth Cheese. Have at it!

20 comments:

  1. I'm not even attempting. If you hadn't already looked them up, I'd doubt one or two of them were even words. LOL.

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  2. (i have to look up every word. and here's the best part, i'm too lazy to. gah!)

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  3. Seriously? Where did you come up with these words?

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  4. Those first three do not look like bonified words. But I sure am curious about Quincunx.

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  5. It was way better at 67 words.

    She was stuck in a liminal stage, neither chthonic nor rooted in Earth; she worked to create the quincunx, its form testament to her punctilious nature. Her search for understanding was not limited by her creation disobeying a mandate to operate in a usufruct manner—the end justified the means.

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  6. If you haven't already read it, you really should take a look at The Quincunx by Charles Palliser -- an absolutely brilliant Dickens pastiche and one of my favorite books ever.

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  7. Anonymous5:34 AM

    *ashamed* can I tell you that though I know none of the words up there, could barely pronounce them.... I'm still too lazy to go check... *head still down*

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  8. I've never even seen the first three words. Ever. And I consider myself, you know, *erudite*.

    What have you been reading?

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  9. I don't think I can do it. But I am going to look up three of those and toss them around today.

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  10. I looked up each word and yet this still sounds like total gobbledygook.


    *In an unauthorized case of household usufruct, Violet constructed a beautiful quincunx of heirloom knick knacks. She was punctilious about her chthonic work, leaving her mother to flounder in the liminal of concern and awe.

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  11. I love the word liminal. It's where I live.

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  12. I'll have a go at it, but I don't know if I can top the first two entries...

    Meanwhile, I dig your blog and the contributions you make to Blogopolis, so I gave you an award over at my blog - come and get it!

    Shade and Sweetwater,
    K

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  13. I have never won in Scrabble using the words: Quincunx, Chthonic, Usufruct, Liminal or Punctilious.
    ;-)

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  14. I want to know how you came across these words in the first place!

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  15. The ferryman, who only had usufruct in the boat he was so punctilious in steering, took the newly minted quincunx from his doomed passenger before leaving the liminal chthonic shore.

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  16. i don't know what any of those words mean and i'm too lazy to look the up. :)

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  17. Quincunx ran out the door trailing crumbs and usufruct from breakfast, buttoning her coat. Luckily, the liminal was late; she was cthonic as she straightened her scarf punctiliously, then stepped to the curb.

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  18. Doesn't "punctilious" mean "obsessed with running things right to a schedule"? I think Bush WAS punctilious.
    I'm impressed that I know that. Go, me.

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  19. Okay, boys and girls. I know you're only five, but here are our spelling words for the day. Quincunx, CHthonic, Usufruct, Liminal and Punctilious. What was that Anthony? Well, yeah, we had these words last week, but no one passed the test. We're trying them again.

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  20. Don't newscasters drive you nuts sometimes? And now everyone (except you!) who watched him is going to think that is the correct usage!

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