Leoma’s Weekly Words

  Torrid Definition Adjective 1. Extremely hot. 2. Filled with intense emotions, especially associated with love and sex. 3. So hot as to be oppressive. The desert heat ranged from torrid at midday to merely sweltering in the evening.   Word Origin Latin...

  Peripatetic Definition Adjective 1. Given to walking about, especially on foot. 2. Constantly traveling. 3. Having to do with Aristotle, who walked about as he taught, or his philosophy. The peripatetic journalist was in London last week and arrived in Dallas...

  Kerfuffle Definition Noun 1. A commotion, disturbance, or fuss The kerfuffle at the after-Christmas sales tables caused quite a mess.   Word Origin Derived from Gaelic, though it is uncertain whether it originated from Scots Gaelic curfuffle (from car...

  Tintinnabulation Definition Noun 1. The ringing of bells. 2. A sound like that of bells ringing or the breaking of glass. The New Year's Eve celebration was filled with bright lights and tintinnabulation.   Word Origin Latin verb tintinnare (to ring,...

    Tiffin Definition Noun 1. (British, India) A light midday meal or snack. 2. (India) A stackable round, metal box or container used to carry lunch to workers in India. Similar boxes are used to contain lunch in many parts of Asia. 3. (England) A cake-like...

    Synergy Definition Noun 1. Combined effort with a result greater than the sum of the parts. In business and technology, the term describes a hoped-for or real effect resulting from different individuals, departments, or companies working together and...

plus, win, wi Wassail Definition  noun 1. An old English toast used when drinking the health of a person. The traditional reply is drink-hail. 2. A hot drink made from hot mulled cider, wine, or ale, plus spices, and (often) baked apples. It's traditionally served in...

Behindhand Definition  adjective 1. Late or tardy 2. Behind in accomplishing a task or paying a debt 3. Behind in a trend, not keeping up 4. Not having enough of 5. Inferior, less advanced 6. Delayed in development adverb 1. Belatedly or tardily 2. In debt  ...

   Ablution      (usually used in the plural) Definition Noun 1. The act of washing oneself. 2. Formal: The washing of one's body or part of it as part of a religious rite (part of religious purification). 3. The cleansing of sacred containers or other objects....

  Axolotl Definition Noun 1. A feathery-gilled salamander also known as the Mexican walking fish, the axolotl never outgrows its juvenile stage (retaining its external gills through life) and can only briefly survive out of the water. It can regrow almost any lost or...