New words
When I was in high school and even more insufferable than I am now, a friend and I started a tumblr called "sun words". The concept of this was to collect words that we discovered that were particularly succulent or mellifluous.
I have found myself learning more and more words recently. This is fun and good: I was worried for a while that my days of adapting and playing with the English language were largely behind me. I thought it would be interesting and illustrative to collect a list of the words I've learned recently alongside the sources from which I've gleaned them.
When I first started building this catalog, I expected the plurality to be from the NYT crossword 2, and the data appears to bear that out:
- manuport: a natural object that has been deliberately taken from its original environment and relocated without further modification
- parvenu: a person of obscure origin who has gained wealth, influence, or celebrity.
- asthenia: abnormal physical weakness or lack of energy
- hoosegow: a prison (via Fargo (Season 5))
- stentorian: loud (via NYT Crossword)
- ratiocination: a process of exact thinking
- limerence: a state of involuntary obsession with another person
- iatrogenic: relating to illness caused by medical examination or treatment.
- sequelae: a condition which is the consequence of a previous disease or injury.
- ostranenie: the artistic technique of presenting to audiences common things in an unfamiliar or strange way so they could gain new perspectives and see the world differently.
- lebensraum: the territory that a state or nation believes is needed for its natural development
- moksha: release from the cycle of rebirth impelled by the law of karma
- quondam: that once was; former
- lanai: a porch or veranda.
- analphabetism: illiteracy; the inability to read and write
- conurbation: an extended urban area, typically consisting of several towns merging with the suburbs of one or more cities.
- metanoia: change in one's way of life resulting from penitence or spiritual conversion
- pandiculation: the involuntary stretching of the soft tissues, which occurs in most animal species and is associated with transitions between cyclic biological behaviors, especially the sleep-wake rhythm
- rorqual: a streamlined whale
- quiddity: the inherent nature or essence of someone or something.
- katabasis: a mytheme or trope in which the hero embarks on a journey to the underworld
- axilla: the space below the shoulder through which vessels and nerves enter and leave the upper arm; a person's armpit.
- aborning: while being born or produced
- hormesis: a dose-response phenomenon characterized by low-dose stimulation and high-dose inhibition
- bezoar: a small stony concretion that may form in the stomachs of certain animals, especially ruminants, and which was once used as an antidote for various ailments.
- haruspicy: the art or practice of divination
- geodesy: the branch of mathematics dealing with the shape and area of the earth or large portions of it.
- buccal: Related to the cheek
- poteen: alcohol made illicitly, typically from potatoes.
- pentiment: an underlying image in a painting, especially one that has become visible when the top layer of paint has turned transparent with
- volvelle: a rotating paper 'wheel chart', often found in early astronomy or mathematical books
- diopter: a unit of refractive power that is equal to the reciprocal of the focal length (in meters) of a given lens.
- echolalia: meaningless repetition of another person's spoken words as a symptom of psychiatric disorder.
- amanuensis: a literary or artistic assistant, in particular one who takes dictation or copies manuscripts.
- ochlocracy: government by mob rule
- ferial: denoting an ordinary weekday, as opposed to one appointed for a festival or fast.
- baksheesh: a small sum of money given as a tip, bribe, or charitable donation
- finial: a distinctive ornament at the apex of a roof, pinnacle, canopy, or similar structure in a building.
- sockdolager: a forceful blow
- zhuzh: make more exciting, lively, or attractive.
- nychthemeron: a full period of night and day
- overmorrow: the day after tomorrow
- allopathy: the treatment of disease by conventional means, i.e., with drugs having opposite effects to the symptoms.
- hieratic: of or concerning priests
- paracosm: a detailed imaginary world, especially one created by a child
- morganatic: relating to or denoting a marriage in which neither the spouse of lower rank, nor any children, have any claim to the possessions or title of the spouse of higher rank.
- tulpa: an object or being that is created through spiritual or mental powers
- iatrogenic: relating to illness caused by medical examination or treatment.
- asthenosphere: the upper layer of the earth's mantle, below the lithosphere, in which there is relatively low resistance to plastic flow and convection is thought to occur.
- plat: a plot of land
- armillary: resembling an armlet or bracelet: consisting of rings or circles
- cabotage: the right to operate sea, air, or other transport services within a particular territory.
- clerestory: the upper part of the nave, choir, and transepts of a large church, containing a series of windows. It is clear of the roofs of the aisles and admits light to the central parts of the building.
- acedia: spiritual or mental sloth; apathy.
- anxiolytic: (chiefly of a drug) used to reduce anxiety.
- rhadamantine: rigorously strict or just
- eucatastrophe: a sudden and favorable resolution of events in a story; a happy ending.
- argot: the jargon or slang of a particular group or class.
- geas: an obligation or prohibition magically imposed on a person
- tonsure: a part of a monk's or priest's head left bare on top by shaving off the hair
- gruit: a herb mixture used for bittering and flavouring bee
- bouquiniste: a dealer in secondhand books
- anaglypta: a type of wallpaper that has a permanent raised design
- footling: trivial and irritating
- quango: a semipublic administrative body outside the civil service but receiving financial support from the government, which makes senior appointments to it
- mandinarate: a ruling class of scholars and elites
- spatulate: having a broad, rounded end.
- guerdon: a reward or recompense.
- aquarist: a person who keeps an aquarium
- moll: a gangster's female companion
- sedevacantism: a doctrinal position within traditionalist Catholicism which holds that the present occupier of the Holy See is not a valid pope due to the pope's espousal of one or more heresies
- vranyo: white lies or half-lies in Russian culture, told without the intention of (maliciously) deceiving, but as a fantasy, suppressing unpleasant parts of the truth
- integument: a tough outer protective layer, especially that of an animal or plant.
- matutinal: of or occurring in the morning.
- shufti: a look or reconnoiter, especially a quick one.
- mahout: a person who works with, rides, and tends an elephant
- hob: a flat metal shelf at the side or back of a fireplace, having its surface level with the top of the grate and used especially for heating pans.
- pied: having two or more different colors.
- mandamus: a judicial writ issued as a command to an inferior court or ordering a person to perform a public or statutory duty.
- eigengrau: the uniform dark gray background that many people report seeing in the absence of light
- hegira: an exodus or migration
- bracken: a tall fern with coarse lobed fronds, which occurs worldwide and can cover large areas.
- gastrique: caramelized sugar, deglazed with vinegar or other sour liquids, used as a sweet and sour flavoring for sauces
- mittelstand: a group of stable business enterprises in Germany, Austria and Switzerland that have proved successful in enduring economic change and turbulence
- strix: in the mythology of classical antiquity, was a bird of ill omen, the product of metamorphosis, that fed on human flesh and blood
- souq: A street market, particularly in Arabic- and Somali-speaking countries; a place where people buy and sell goods; a bazaar.
- favela: a slum or shantytown located within or on the outskirts of the country's large cities
- coracle: a small round boat made of wickerwork covered with a watertight material, propelled with a paddle
- atelic: showing an action or happening as being unfinished
- ignosticism: the philosophical position that the question of the existence of God is meaningless
- mawkish: sentimental in a feeble or sickly way
- leveret: a young hare in its first year
- orgone: a supposed sexual energy or life force distributed throughout the universe that can be collected and stored (in an orgone box) for therapeutic use
- grook: a form of short aphoristic poem or rhyming aphorism
- choreomania: an uncontrollable urge to dance, especially in a frenzied, convulsive manner
- spoor: the track or scent of an animal
- geognosis: knowledge of the world
- scaffa: a cocktail prepared at room temperature
- seigniorage: revenue or a profit taken from the minting of coins, usually the difference between the value of the bullion used and the face value of the coin.
- veridical: coinciding with reality
- dipsomania: alcoholism, specifically in a form characterized by intermittent bouts of craving for alcohol.
- nullifidian: a person having no faith or religious belief.
- ectopic: in an abnormal place or position
- banlieue: a suburb of a French city, especially Paris.
- gurn: to make a grotesque face
- apposite: apt in the circumstances or in relation to something.
- genetrix: a female parent; a mother
- ischemia: an inadequate blood supply to an organ or part of the body, especially the heart muscles
- narthex: an antechamber, porch, or distinct area at the western entrance of some early Christian churches
- parataxis: the placing of clauses or phrases one after another, without words to indicate coordination or subordination, as in Tell me, how are you?
- allograft: a tissue graft from a donor of the same species as the recipient but not genetically identical
- chrism: a mixture of oil and balsam, consecrated and used for anointing at baptism
- modiste: a fashionable milliner or dressmaker
- glasnost: the policy or practice of more open consultative government and wider dissemination of information
- jalopy: an old car in a dilapidated condition
- chiaroscuro: the treatment of light and shade in drawing and painting.
- hosanna: an expression of adoration, praise, or joy
- excursus: a detailed discussion of a particular point in a book, usually in an appendix.
- quadrille: a square dance performed typically by four couples and containing five figures, each of which is a complete dance in itself.
- apperception: the mental process by which a person makes sense of an idea by assimilating it to the body of ideas he or she already possesses.
- paternoster: an elevator consisting of a series of linked doorless compartments moving continuously on an endless belt.
- sumptuary: relating to or denoting laws that limit private expenditure on food and personal items
- catafalque: a decorated wooden framework supporting the coffin of a distinguished person during a funeral or while lying in state.
- oneiromancy: the interpretation of dreams in order to foretell the future.
- apricity: the warmth of the sun in winter
- oology: the collection and study of birds' eggs especially in relation to their shape and coloration
- terroir: the complete natural environment in which a particular wine is produced
- nephology: the study or contemplation of clouds
- txoko: a typically Basque type of closed gastronomical society where men come together to cook, experiment with new ways of cooking, eat and socialize
- yegg: a burglar or safecracker
- marotte: a prop stick or sceptre with a carved head on it
- aubade: a piece sung or played outdoors at dawn, usually as a compliment to someone
- chrestomathy: a selection of passages from an author or authors, designed to help in learning a language.
- holon: something that is simultaneously a whole in and of itself, as well as a part of a larger whole
- feve: a small trinket hidden in a king cake or similar dessert
- scopophilia: pleasure in looking; in Freudian psychoanalytic theory, an infantile instinct
- apoptosis: the death of cells which occurs as a normal and controlled part of an organism's growth or development.
- hebetude: the state of being dull or lethargic
- deixis: the function or use of deictic words, forms, or expressions.
- pycnocline: a layer in an ocean or other body of water in which water density increases rapidly with depth.
- hircinous: Of, or pertaining to goats; hircine
- bogatyr: a stock character in medieval East Slavic legends, akin to a Western European knight-errant
- antinomy: a contradiction between two beliefs or conclusions that are in themselves reasonable; a paradox.
- adipose: fat
- propinquity: the state of being close to someone or something; proximity.
- sere: (especially of vegetation) dry or withered
- anosognosia: a condition in which a person with a disability is cognitively unaware of having it due to an underlying physical condition
- arrogate: take or claim (something) without justification.
- chiton: a marine mollusk that has an oval flattened body with a shell of overlapping plates
- hapax: a word that only appears once in a work of or genus of literature or in a body of work by a particular author
- etiology: the investigation or attribution of the cause or reason for something, often expressed in terms of historical or mythical explanation.
- polysemy: the coexistence of many possible meanings for a word or phrase
- slew: to turn (something, such as a telescope or a ship's spar) about a fixed point that is usually the axis
- berm: a flat strip of land, raised bank, or terrace bordering a river or canal.
- gantry: a bridge-like overhead structure with a platform supporting equipment such as a crane, railroad signals, lights, or cameras.
- mare: large, dark, basaltic plains on Earth's Moon, formed by ancient volcanic eruptions
- latibulate: to hide oneself in a corner
- encomium: a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly.
- xerophagy: the practice of eating dry food, especially food cooked without oil
- interstice: a space that intervenes between things
- figurant: one that figures in a scene without speaking or without taking a prominent part
- demotic: denoting or relating to the kind of language used by ordinary people; popular or colloquial.
- teratogen: an agent that can disturb the development of the embryo or fetus
- fictile: capable of being molded; made of earth, clay, etc.; by a potter.
- harridan: an angry and unpleasant woman
- concupiscence: strong sexual desire; lust
- picayune: of little value or account; small; trifling
- formulary: an official list giving details of medicines that may be prescribed.
- hybristophilia: sexual interest in and attraction to those who commit crimes
- widdershins: in a direction contrary to the sun's course, considered as unlucky; counterclockwise.
- pullulate: to send forth sprouts, buds, etc.; germinate; sprout
- factotum: an employee who does all kinds of work.
- gasconade: extravagant boasting.
- muliebrity: womanly qualities; womanhood.
- callipygian: having well-shaped buttocks
- meretricious: apparently attractive but having in reality no value or integrity.
- cloche: a small translucent cover for protecting or forcing outdoor plants.
- nictitate: to blink
- battement: a movement in which one leg is moved outward from the body and in again
- dissimulation: concealment of one's thoughts, feelings, or character; pretense
- ruction: a noisy fight
- propitiation: the act of appeasing or making well-disposed a deity, thus incurring divine favor or avoiding divine retribution
- lazarette: a small compartment below the deck in the after end of a vessel, used for stores.
- lordotic: having an increased inward curving of the lumbar spine
- bafflegab: incomprehensible or pretentious language, especially bureaucratic jargon.
- tonneau: the part of an automobile, typically an open car, occupied by the back seats
- redolent: exuding fragrance; aromatic
- snee: to cut or thrust with a knife, esp when fighting
- agnate: a relative whose kinship is traceable exclusively through males
- wainscot: line (a room or wall) with wooden paneling
- ariose: characterized by melody; songlike
- sangfroid: composure or coolness, sometimes excessive, as shown in danger or under trying circumstances.
- erumpent: bursting forth or through a surface
- mell: to blend; mix; meld. to meddle; concern oneself
- thurible: censer
- aureate: denoting, made of, or having the color of gold
- transom: a strengthening crossbar, in particular one set above a window or door
- febrile: feverish
- travois: a type of sledge used to carry goods, consisting of two joined poles pulled by a horse or dog.
- agential: of, relating to, or expressive of an agent or agency
- chaparral: vegetation consisting chiefly of tangled shrubs and thorny bushes.
- gamine: a young woman with a mischievous, boyish charm
- novena: a form of worship consisting of special prayers or services on nine successive days.
- oscular: related to kissing
- alterity: the state of being other or different; otherness.
- uxorious: having or showing an excessive or submissive fondness for one's wife
- interpellate: to question (someone, such as a foreign minister) formally concerning an official action or policy or personal conduct
- oriel: a projection from the wall of a building, typically supported from the ground or by corbels
- caconym: an incorrect name for something
- perihelion: the point in the orbit of a planet, asteroid, or comet at which it is closest to the sun
- pettifogging: placing undue emphasis on petty details
- agnotology: the study of deliberate, culturally-induced ignorance or doubt, typically to sell a product or win favour
- ontogenesis: the development of an individual organism or anatomical or behavioral feature from the earliest stage to maturity
- hiatal: of, relating to, or involving a hiatus
- hamartia: a fatal flaw leading to the downfall of a tragic hero or heroine.
- salubrious: favorable to or promoting health or well-being
- canticle: a hymn or chant, typically with a biblical text, forming a regular part of a church service.
- sacristy: a room in a church where a priest prepares for a service, and where vestments and other things used in worship are kept.
- cay: a low bank or reef of coral, rock, or sand
- palooka: a stupid, clumsy, or uncouth person
- deontic: relating to duty and obligation as ethical concepts
- tatterdemalion: a person in tattered clothing; a shabby person
- pythonist: a person who professes to prophesy through some divine or esoteric inspiration
- ataraxy: a state of serene calmness
- sybarite: a person who is self-indulgent in their fondness for sensuous luxury
- snood: an ornamental hairnet or fabric bag worn over the hair at the back of a woman's head
- peripatetic: traveling from place to place, in particular working or based in various places for relatively short periods.
- antrum: a natural chamber or cavity in a bone or other anatomical structure
- aneuploidy: the presence of an abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell, for example a human cell having 45 or 47 chromosomes instead of the usual 46
- passerine: relating to or denoting birds of a large order distinguished by feet that are adapted for perching, including all songbirds.
- rill: a small stream
- gouache: a method of painting using opaque pigments ground in water and thickened with a gluelike substance.
- friable: easily crumbled
- panegyric: a public speech or published text in praise of someone or something
- efflux: something given off in as or as if in a stream
- tenebrous: dark; shadowy or obscure
- doyenne: a woman who is the most respected or prominent person in a particular field
- chiral: asymmetric in such a way that the structure and its mirror image are not superimposable
- solecism: a grammatical mistake in speech or writing
- exaptation: a trait that has been co-opted for a use other than the one for which natural selection has built it
- lustic: vigorous; jovial
- voluptuary: a person devoted to luxury and sensual pleasure
- bedizen: dress up or decorate gaudily.
- locavore: a person whose diet consists only or principally of locally grown or produced food.
- ostinato: a motif or phrase that persistently repeats in the same musical voice and/or pitch
- martinet: a strict disciplinarian, especially in the armed forces.
- attar: a fragrant essential oil, typically made from rose petals.
- apophasis: a rhetorical device wherein the speaker or writer brings up a subject by either denying it
- belletrist: a person who writes essays, particularly on literary and artistic criticism, that are composed and read primarily for their aesthetic effect
- psychosphere: the sphere or realm of human consciousness
- clowder: a group of cats
- ort: a scrap or remainder of food from a meal
- afflatus: a divine creative impulse or inspiration
- desacralize: to divest of sacred qualities or status
- apophenia: the tendency to perceive meaningful connections between seemingly unrelated things
- stertoreous: snoring; hardly breathing
- chiffonier: a tall chest of drawers, often with a mirror on top.
- recusancy: refusal to submit to established authority
- denude: strip (something) of its covering, possessions, or assets; make bare
- nudnik: a pestering, nagging, or irritating person; a bore.
- collimate: make (rays of light or particles) accurately parallel
- naphtha: a flammable oil
- threnody: a lament
- mishegaas: craziness; senseless behavior or activity
- antapex: the point of the celestial sphere from which the solar system is moving
- fissile: able to undergo nuclear fission; easily split
- dun: to nag someone about paying a debt
- quorate: having a sufficient number of members to constitute a quorum
- parimutuel: a form of betting in which those backing the first three places divide the losers' stakes
- graphomania: the compulsion to write
- pluviophile: a lover of rain
- remainderman: the person who inherits or is entitled to inherit property upon the termination of the life estate of the former owner
- fillip: something which acts as a stimulus or boost to an activity.
- unicursal: relating to or denoting a curve or surface which is closed and can be drawn or swept out in a single movement
- pikuach nefesh: the principle in Jewish law that the preservation of human life overrides virtually any other religious rule. When the life of a specific person is in danger, almost any mitzvah lo ta'aseh of the Torah becomes inapplicable
- shirr: bake an egg without its shell
- asperity: harshness of tone or manner
- gangue: the commercially valueless material in which ore is found
- pericarp: the part of the fruit formed from the wall of the ripened ovary
- pleonastic: needlessly wordy or redundant ("I heard it with my own ears")
- porphyry: a hard igneous rock containing crystals, usually of feldspar, in a fine-grained, typically reddish groundmass.
- syntony: the state of being normally responsive to and in harmony with the environment
- crypticity: the condition or state of something being cryptic
- quirt: a short-handled riding whip with a braided leather lash
- ailurophobe: someone who is irrationally afraid of cats
- votary: a person, such as a monk or nun, who has made vows of dedication to religious service
- anneal: to heat something and allow it to cool slowly, in order to remove internal stresses and toughen it.
- chanticleer: rooster
- burgess: an inhabitant of a town or borough with full rights of citizenship
- escheat: the reversion of property to the state on the owner's dying without legal heirs
- parson: a beneficed member of the clergy; a rector or a vicar
- ratiocination: the process of exact thinking
- stemwinder: an entertaining and rousing speech
- natant: swimming or afloat
- brumation: a state or condition of sluggishness, inactivity, or torpor exhibited by reptiles
- adumbrate: report or represent in outline
- dudgeon: a feeling of offense or deep resentment
- septentrional: related to the north; northern
- aileron: a hinged surface in the trailing edge of an airplane wing, used to control lateral balance
- antedating: an example or instance of a word/phrase at a date earlier than previously known
- antinomianism: any view which rejects laws or legalism and argues against moral, religious or social norms
- cotyledon: an embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants
- crenellation: the battlements of a castle or other building
- engram: a unit of cognitive information inside the brain
- fibril: a small or slender fiber
- flexion: the action of bending or the condition of being bent
- roan: denoting an animal with gray/silvery hair
- spinnaker: a sail designed specifically for sailing off the wind
- calumny: the making of false and defamatory statements about someone in order to damage their reputation; slander.
- vibratiuncle: a miniscule or slight vibration
- bollix: to bungle (ie a task)
- tonsorial: relating to hairdressing
- gravitic: of or pertaining to gravity
- susurrus: whispering, murmuring, or rustling.
- culvert: a tunnel carrying a stream or open drain under a road or railroad
- quidnunc: an inquisitive and gossipy person
- interwork: be able to connect, communicate, or exchange data
- kvell: feel happy and proud
- piolet: ice axe
- muon: an unstable subatomic particle of the same class as an electron
- plenum: an assembly of all the members of a group or committee
- rodomontade: boastful or inflated talk or behavior.
- tref: not kosher
- geometer: a specialist in geometry (i.e. for mapmaking or exploration)
- irenic: aiming at peace
- egest: to discharge, as from the body; void (opposed to ingest)
- dolorous: feeling or expressing great sorrow or distress.
- autogyro: a type of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift
- neonate: a newborn child
- neoteny: the retention of juvenile features in the adult animal
- quincunx: an arrangement of five objects with four at the corners of a square or rectangle and the fifth at its center
- neoteric: new or modern; recent
- ablation: a procedure for restoring normal heart rhythm
- clement: mild and peaceful
- oracular: hard to interpret; enigmatic
- carom: strike and rebound
- dysgenic: exerting a detrimental effect on later generations through the inheritance of undesirable characteristics
- oleaginous: rich with, covered in, or heavily producing oil or grease
- extirpate: root out and destroy completely
- suet: the hard white fat on the kidneys and loins of cattle, sheep, and other animals, used to make foods including puddings, pastry, and mincemeat
- offal: the entrails and internal organs of an animal used as food.
- syncytium: a single cell or cytoplasmic mass containing several nuclei, formed by fusion of cells or by division of nuclei
- funicular: a cable railroad, especially one on a mountainside, in which ascending and descending cars are counterbalanced.
- salvific: leading to salvation
- missal: a book containing the texts used in the Catholic Mass throughout the year
- aporia: an irresolvable internal contradiction or logical disjunction in a text, argument, or theory
- slatternly: (relating to a woman's appearance) dirty and untidy
- chthonic: concerning, belonging to, or inhabiting the underworld.
- gongoozler: a person who enjoys watching activity on the canals of the United Kingdom
- soteriology: the doctrine of salvation
- trilemma: a difficult choice from three options, each of which is (or appears) unacceptable or unfavourable
- alimentary: relating to nourishment or sustenance.
- helpmate: a helpful companion or partner, especially one's husband or wife.
- squamous: covered with or characterized by scales
- dewclaw: a rudimentary inner toe present in some dogs
- dropsy: a non-technical edema
- concomitant: naturally accompanying or associated
- weir: a low dam built across a river to raise the water level upstream
- miserablist: a person who appears to enjoy being depressed, esp a performer of or listener to gloomy music
- autarky: economic independence or self-sufficiency
- slue: turn or slide violently or uncontrollably in a particular direction.
- elucubrate: to solve, write, or compose by working studiously at all hours
- toyetic: potentially marketable as a toy or having merchandising potential
- scripturient: having a strong urge to write
- lustration: a rite of purification, especially washing
- oryx: a species of large antelopes
- glabrous: free from hair or down; smooth
- orts: table scraps
- saturnine: slow and gloomy
- cachinnate: to laugh loudly or immoderately
- loge: a small enclosure or booth in a theatre or arena
- varietist: one who varies from the norm
- sestet: the last six lines of a sonnet
- doctrinaire: seeking to impose a doctrine in all circumstances without regard to practical considerations.
- impecunious: having little or no money
- arrant: complete; utter
- goldbrick: invent excuses to avoid a task; shirk.
- cartouche: a carved tablet or drawing representing a scroll with rolled-up ends
- timpani: kettledrums, especially when played by one musician in an orchestra
- coati: a type of raccoon with a long snout and a striped tail
- amphigory: nonsense verse
- apothegm: short, witty aphorism
- besserwisser: know-it-all, wiseguy, wiseacre, smart aleck
- enchiridion: carried reference book
- eunoia: beautiful thinking
- olio: a miscellaneous collection of things
- phrontistery: a place for studying
- selcouth: strange; unfamiliar; marvelous
- piste: a ski run of compacted snow.
- autochthonous: native to the place where found (ant. allochthonous)
- polity: an organized society; a state as a political entity
- calf: a floating piece of ice detached from an iceberg.