English Rules Word of the Day http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ en-us Karl Swedberg 2008-08-24T19:24:42-05:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 scry http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/scry.php

foretell the future using a crystal ball or other reflective object or surface

the inspiration...

 1297@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-08-24T19:24:42-05:00 bugbear http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/bugbear.php

a cause of obsessive fear, irritation, or loathing

the inspiration...

 1294@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-07-25T22:57:57-05:00 charlatan http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/charlatan.php

one making usually showy pretenses to knowledge or ability; a fraud; a quack

the inspiration...

 1293@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-07-20T23:02:03-05:00 dunderhead http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/dunderhead.php

a stupid person

the inspiration...

 1290@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-07-10T21:24:39-05:00 scrum http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/scrum.php

an ordered formation of players, used to restart play, in which the forwards of a team form up with arms interlocked and heads down, and push forward against a similar group from the opposing side

the inspiration...

 1287@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-05-25T12:02:39-05:00 segue http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/segue.php

to move smoothly and unhesitatingly from one state, condition, situation, or element to another

the inspiration...

 1284@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-04-28T07:53:53-05:00 extirpate http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/extirpate.php

1. to pull up by the roots 2. to destroy totally; exterminate 3. to remove by surgery

the inspiration...

 1282@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-04-16T23:26:10-05:00 acedia http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/acedia.php

spiritual torpor and apathy; ennui

the inspiration...

 1281@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-04-15T21:59:19-05:00 ziggurat http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/ziggurat.php

a temple tower of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians, having the form of a terraced pyramid of successively receding stories

the inspiration...

 1279@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-04-05T14:11:55-05:00 apogee http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/apogee.php

1. the point in the orbit of the moon or a satellite at which it is furthest from the earth (the opposite of perigee) 2. figurative: the highest point in the development of something; the climax or culmination of something

the inspiration...

 1278@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-04-02T20:33:49-05:00 derring-do http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/derringdo.php

action displaying heroic courage

the inspiration...

 1277@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-03-25T21:19:00-05:00 theodicy http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/theodicy.php

the vindication of divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil

the inspiration...

 1276@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-03-23T10:54:00-05:00 gormless http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/gormless.php

(chiefly British) lacking intelligence and vitality; dull.

the inspiration...

 1266@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-02-21T20:53:00-05:00 mountebank http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/mountebank.php

1. a hawker of quack medicines who attracts customers with stories, jokes, or tricks. 2. a flamboyant charlatan

the inspiration...

 1264@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-01-28T23:21:00-05:00 canard http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/2008/canard.php

1. an unfounded or false, deliberately misleading story 2. a short winglike control surface projecting from the fuselage of an aircraft ... mounted forward of the main wing and serving as a horizontal stabilizer

the inspiration...

 1267@http://www.englishrules.com/wotd/ 2008-01-21T20:19:00-05:00