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A-E | F-M | N-R | S-Z | Index
namelings | npl | 1706 -1706
persons bearing the same name
The namelings Martin Luther and Dr. King shared a concern with political reform.
nepheliad | n | 1818 -1821
cloud-nymph
Like a nepheliad, the skydiver dove gracefully through the clouds.
nequient | adj | 1656 -1656
not being able
While the other students understand algebra, you are still nequient in this simple art.
nerterology | n | 1800 -1800
learning relating to the dead or the underworld
Her inquiries into nerterology were inspired by a youthful visit to a medieval crypt.
nidifice | n | 1656 -1656
a nest
The lizard climbed into the nidifice, only to be eaten by the mother eagle.
noscible | adj | 1654 -1654
knowable; well-known
It is noscible that no amount of training can make up for experience in the field.
novaturient | adj | 1679 -1679
desiring changes or alterations
The novel's author rightly rejected the novaturient wishes of the screenwriters
nubivagant | adj | 1656 -1656
moving throughout or among clouds
The glider flew like a nubivagant bird before emerging out of the clouds and into view.
obacerate | v | 1656 -1658
to stop one's mouth
When he swore onstage, several audience members obacerated themselves.
obarmate | v | 1623 -1658
to arm against
Let us obarmate ourselves for the upcoming battle against the Mongols!
obrumpent | adj | 1656 -1656
breaking; bursting
The guests were startled to attention by the sound of obrumpent balloons.
obstrigillate | v | 1623 -1656
to oppose; to resist
I will not obstrigillate the efforts of my opponent to besmirch my good name.
occaecation | n | 1608 -1691
the act of blinding
After his occaecation, he was unable to enjoy simple pleasures such as reading.
occulcation | n | 1656 -1656
act of treading on or trampling
Repeated occulcations of this field by soldiers have left it useless for agriculture.
odynometer | n | 1889 -1893
instrument for measuring pain
Suspecting his patient's illness to be feigned, he pulled out his trusty odynometer.
omniregency | n | 1616 -1670
universal rulership; state of complete authority
The principle of omniregency is now seriously mistrusted, and not only by radicals.
oncethmus | n | 1656 -1656
braying
The oncethmus of most politicians is far worse than that given off by any beast.
operiment | n | 1650 -1656
a covering
If you don't get an operiment for your classic car, it will rust away in a brief time.
oporopolist | n | 1671 -1725
fruit-seller
Our opropolist's oranges often offer odd odours.
orgiophant | n | 1886 -1886
one who presides over orgies
The orgiophant had dozens of hangers-on who sought to attend his parties.
ossifragant | adj | 1656 -1656
bone-breaking
The ossifragant wrestler earned a reputation for brutality, so no one would fight him
ovablastic | adj | 1922 -1922
making eggs burst open in the womb
The doctor rejected the ovablastic technique, finding it to violate his moral principles.
palintocy | n | 1693 -1847
repayment of interest paid on a loan
I understand you can't pay me everything, but I demand a palintocy, at the very least.
palmoscopy | n | 1857 -1890
observation of heartbeat or pulse as part of medical diagnosis
Even without his medical bag, he could use palmoscopy to diagnose her heart attack.
pamphagous | adj | 1702 -1702
eating everything; all-consuming
To the pamphagous victor goes the Golden Wiener of Triumphal Consumption!
panchymagogue | n | 1657 -1893
medicine purging all the humours from the body
What you need is a good panchymagogue to get you back on your feet!
pannuscorium | n | 1858 -1860
soft leather cloth used on the tops of shoes and boots
The pannuscorium of his old shoes was covered in indelible stains.
papicolist | n | 1633 -1810
one who worships the pope; a papist
Today, even papicolists grudgingly admit that papal infallibility cannot be literally true.
parepochism | n | 1685 -1685
error in dating or assigning time period
The antique dealer was well known for his parepochisms, so we didn't feel too bad.
paterophobia | n | 1840 -1840
fear of the early Church fathers
The Romans' paterophobia mellowed over time, until Christianity was fully accepted.
patration | n | 1656 -1656
perfection or completion of something
The patration of my dissertation will be an occasion for great merriment.
pecuarious | adj | 1656 -1658
serving or belonging to beasts or cattle
The children tossed the pecuarious leavings at one another, to their parents' dismay.
pedegorize | v | 1665 -1665
to construct a pedigree; to derive through a pedigree
The owners of the racehorse took great efforts to pedegorize her carefully.
penarious | adj | 1656 -1658
of or pertaining to victuals or provisions
The quartermaster is in charge of penarious matters, so stay out of his business!
penintime | adj | 1686 -1718
second from inmost
Venus, our solar system's penintime planet, is Earth's twin in many regards.
perantique | adj | 1883 -1883
very antique or ancient
She treasured the perantique mirror even though the glass was somewhat warped.
pessundate | v | 1656 -1658
to cast down or ruin
The Roman Empire was pessundated by its economic woes rather than moral decline.
phalerate | adj | 1656 -1702
ornamented; decorated
The phalerate umbrella-stand in the corner of the room attracted the guests' attention.
phasianic | adj | 1884 -1884
of or pertaining to pheasants
Our phasianic hunting-trips have become increasingly futile in recent years.
philargyrist | n | 1633 -1663
lover of money; covetous person
I am no philargyrist, but I like to live well, so charity isn't in my best interest.
phlyarologist | n | 1867 -1867
one who talks nonsense
He was a petty phlyarologist who could rarely hold an intelligent conversation.
phoenigm | n | 1646 -1858
reddening of the skin; reddish medical application
The phoenigm of his cheeks after the race testified both to his fatigue and his elation.
phylactology | n | 1966 -1966
science of counter-espionage
Though phylactology reached its peak in the Cold War, it is arguably still important.
pication | n | 1684 -1684
application of warm pitch to the skin as medical treatment
While it seems harsh, pication is effective for cleansing pores and restoring skin tone.
pigritude | n | 1623 -1656
slothfulness
Despite the college student's pigritude, he continued to maintain a 'B' average.
piladex | n | 1897 -1901
game where an inflated bag is hit with hand to keep aloft across a table
From piladex to hacky-sack, pastimes involving hitting objects are known to all ages.
pilimiction | n | 1847 -1874
passing of hair-like bodies in the urine
His doctor was particularly concerned about his pilimiction, for obvious reasons.
plebicolar | adj | 1626 -1820
courting or appealing to the common people
He profited from his plebicolar demeanour, and avoided the fate of many other nobles.
plegnic | adj | 1612 -1664
acting by a blow; striking like a hammer; percussive
Her plegnic pounding of the piano-keys contrasted sharply with her tiny frame.
plenisphere | n | 1912 -1912
a perfect sphere
The iridescent plenispheres in the sky told him that someone was blowing bubbles.
pocilliform | adj | 1846 -1846
shaped like a little cup
The golf ball hardly budged from its pocilliform resting-spot atop the tee.
poliadic | adj | 1886 -1886
of the nature of a local or tutelary god
Respect for poliadic spirits and deities continued long after the region converted.
pomarious | adj | 1656 -1775
of or belonging to an orchard or fruit-garden
Newton's pomarious enlightenment concerning gravity is no more than a myth.
ponask | v | 1922 -1963
to cook game by splitting it and roasting it on a spit
We ponasked the freshly-caught pheasant at our campsite.
portmantologist | n | 1887 -1934
one who studies or coins portmanteau words
Rather than being a portmantologist, why not use perfectly good existing words?
prandicle | n | 1656 -1658
small meal
In those years, she would take several prandicles during the course of each day.
prebition | n | 1656 -1656
act of offering, showing or setting before
The prebition of his treasure-find to the king earned him great honour and esteem.
pregnatress | n | 1765 -1765
female power that generates or gives birth to something
As the pregnatress of our little group, her opinion was still highly regarded.
prescited | adj | 1400 -1660
foreknown or predestined for damnation; condemned
If you believe some of us are prescited from birth, there is no reason to do good works.
primifluous | adj | 1657 -1657
that which flows first
The primifluous wines of the evening were excellent, unlike the plonk served later.
privign | n | 1605 -1654
stepson
Though he was only her privign, she always treated him as if he were her own child.
psalloid | adj | 1756 -1895
resembling a harp or stringed instrument
Her renown as a maker of psalloid instruments led to a position at the royal court.
psephograph | n | 1906 -1907
machine for automatically recording votes
These newfangled computers are no more reliable than an old-fashioned psephograph.
pseudisodomous | adj | 1601 -1850
style of wall construction using stones of different thickness
The use of pseudisodomous brickwork gives the room an antique feel.
ptochology | n | 1891 -1891
study of beggars and unemployment
If we want to understand the roots of poverty, we must undertake work in ptochology.
pudify | v | 1656 -1656
to cause to be ashamed
Your remarks do not pudify me, for you are as guilty of such offenses as I am!
pugnastics | n | 1830 -1830
displays of pugilistic ability
Ali's pugnastics were much more impressive than his overly boastful showmanship.
pullarian | adj | 1652 -1652
of or pertaining to chicken or fowl
Our pullarian mascot was trampled by the opposing team's offensive line.
pyroleter | n | 1878 -1878
double-pump fire extinguisher that produces carbonic acid
The pyroleter was insufficient to combat the fire at the old library.
quadragintireme | n | 1799 -1799
vessel with forty rows of oars
He couldn't have reached the battle even if he had been commanding a quadragintireme.
quadrimular | adj | 1664 -1664
lasting for four years
The quadrimular interval between Olympiads is a long wait in terms of athletes' careers.
quaeritate | v | 1657 -1657
to question; to inquire
If I might quaeritate, why are we headed in the wrong direction on the trail?
quercivorous | adj | 1858 -1858
feeding on oak trees
The proliferation of quercivorous insects is a boon rather than a bane to the ecosystem.
quibbleism | n | 1836 -1836
practice of quibbling
His carping and quibbleism earned him much scorn, a fact of which he was oblivious.
quotientive | adj | 1871 -1871
indicating how often
She set up the schedule using a quotientive formula to ensure fairness.
radicarian | adj | 1880 -1880
pertaining to the roots of words
A radicarian knowledge of Latin is of central importance for English etymology.
ramifactive | adj | 1766 -1766
developing into a branch; forming a branch
Despite the infertility of the soil, the trees retained a limited ramifactive capacity.
recineration | n | 1657 -1683
second reduction to ashes
The recineration of his book manuscript in the second fire drove him over the edge.
redamancy | n | 1656 -1656
act of loving in return
Despite his lack of redamancy, her passion for him was unabated for several years.
rendling | n | 1784 -1784
curdling or setting of cheese
Seeing the realization slowly dawn upon her was like witnessing the rendling of cheese.
resarciate | v | 1656 -1657
to mend; to make amends
She wanted to resarciate their friendship before it was damaged irreparably.
rhedarious | adj | 1656 -1656
of or serving as a carriage or chariot
His fancy for rhedarious transport was seen as old-fashioned by his friends.
rhodologist | n | 1911 -1924
one who studies and classifies roses
Any rhodologist knows that a rose by any other name does not smell as sweet.
rimestock | n | 1662 -1834
old almanac with runic writings
He bought the old rimestock at auction, but was unaware of its calendric function.
riviation | n | 1676 -1676
fishing
While anglers are the sort who enjoy quiet contemplation, I find riviation to be boring.
roblet | v | 1674 -1755
to lead astray
He roblets his intended victims in the old part of the city before mugging them.
rogalian | adj | 1656 -1656
of or pertaining to a great fire
The books' authors were rightly incensed at their works' rogalian fate under the censors.
rogitate | v | 1656 -1658
to ask frequently
"Are we there yet?", the kids rogitated, apparently unaware of their parents' frustration.
roomthily | adj | 1674 -1674
spatially; with respect to space
His bachelor apartment is roomthily challenged, to say nothing of the smell.
rupography | n | 1838 -1838
art of taking impressions of coins or medals in sealing wax
The police confiscated my rupography tools, thinking that I used them for forgery.
ruricolous | adj | 1730 -1858
living in the country or in fields
Though the city has its attractions, I much prefer the quiet ruricolous life.
I hope you have found this site to be useful. If you have any corrections, additions, or comments, please contact me. Please note that I am not able to respond to all requests. Please consult a major reference dictionary before e-mailing your query. All material on this page © 2005 Stephen Chrisomalis. Links to this page may be made without permission. You may download a copy of this page for your personal use, provided that it is not modified in any way and this message is present in full on any print or electronic copies. Top of page Return to the Phrontistery
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