Again, all my words this week are from A Severe Mercy. My vocabulary should be richer from the reading.
[ Shhh… there are really even more words I didn’t know; I’m not disclosing my full ignorance... ]
1. John Bull
(n)
Definition—a personification of England or the English; a typical Englishman
Use—“What I met, when I turned up at his rooms, was John Bull himself.”
(speaking of C.S. Lewis)
2. axiomatically
(adv) [ak-see-uh-MAT-ik-a-lee]
Definition—self-evident; obvious
Use—“Very simply, it seems to me that some intelligent power made this universe and that all men must know it, axiomatically, and must feel awe at the power’s infiniteness.”
3. congeries
(n) [kon-JEER-eez]
Definition—a collection of items or parts in one mass; assemblage
Use—“No longer did the Church appear only a disreputable congeries of quarrelling sects: now we saw the Church, splendid and terrible, sweeping down the centuries with anthems and shining crosses and steady-eyed saints.”
4. kine
(n)
Definition—plural of cow
Use—“The Magi saw a crown that lay ahead,
But not the bitter glory of the reign;
They called him King and knelt among the kine.”
5. mews
(n) [myoos]
Definition—a group of buildings originally containing private stables, often converted into residential apartments
Use—“In June, at the end of Summer Term, Davy and I inherited from a friend going down, a tiny mews flat, the Studio, in the centre of Oxford.”
6. tattoo
(n) [ta-TOO]
Definition—a knocking or strong pulsation
Use—“At that moment came a cheery tattoo on the door knocker.”
7. compunction
(n) [kuhm-PUHNGK-shuhn]
Definition—a strong uneasiness caused by a sense of guilt
Use—“The unworthiness made it good: i.e. produced humbled compunction—unde hoc mihi?”
Unde hoc mihi: Luke 1:43 in the Vulgate version. “Et unde hoc mihi ut veniat mater Domini mei ad me?” – Elisabeth’s exclamation upon Mary entering her house, both women miraculously pregnant: “And whence is this to me, that the mother of my LORD should come to me?”
* * *
Which words should I have already known? Which ones did you know?
2 comments:
I'm proud to say I knew tattoo and mews. I knew tattoo from when my son was in band - a lot of his friends were in percussion. I'm not sure why I knew mews. Thanks for participating today.
Tattoo is also the only one I knew. You always find the most interesting words, probably because you read such interesting books. I picked up The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin based on your reading and sharing of it.
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