"Can you help me build my vocabulary" game

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 21 Jan 2013, 10:03

I want to build my vocabulary. Here is a game I am starting about it.

I will start with the alphabet A. I will look up a word in the dictionary with A and write it here with its meaning. You just take the alphabet following A, find a word with that letter, and post it with its meaning. The more complex the word the better as it will help me build my vocabulary, but easy enough to be used in everyday writing.

A bit of research now for you all, so if you are game, please join in.

I will start with:

Apathy - noun - lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern.

Example: Widespread apathy among students.

(Please add word with p now as that follows A in the word)

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 22 Jan 2013, 20:12

OK, here goes.

Paca -noun - Any of a number of related short-tailed or tailless rodents of South or Central America, with spotted brown fur and hooflike toes.

Is this right?

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 22 Jan 2013, 21:29

Nice! Now where would I use paca in a sentence?

"Paca-like he gnawed on his salad sticks, doubtful that turning herbivorous would help him lose weight." ( they say that paca only eat plants and herbs in the wild, no meat, hmmm, must be diet conscious! )

This is fun! They look so scary! Saw the pictures. You have actually seen real ones?

My word....

Animosity - noun

1. Bitter hostility or open enmity; active hatred.
2. A hostile feeling or act.

"The deep-seated animosity between the two sisters helped him play them against each other. Unknown to him, the animosity was one-sided, as the older sister was a saint."

N please...

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 22 Jan 2013, 21:58

Ive seen them in a zoo. To me they look like mutant Guinea pigs.

So N is my word. Let me dig out the old Webster's.

Netherlander -noun - A native or inhabitant of the Netherlands.

Old Petrus, the Netherlander I once worked with, had a fondness for Lime Rickeys. This is actually true.

Fun game!

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 22 Jan 2013, 22:23

Enthusiast - noun
1. Aperson who is filled with enthusiasm for some principle, pursuit, etc.; a person of ardent zeal: a sports enthusiast.
2. a religious visionary or fanatic.

Old Petrus, a Lime Rickey enthusiast, enticed me into trying one. Mine was a classic case of 'love at first sip'!

I got the recipe down, as it's non alcoholic version without the bitters can be given to kids too.

N again please.

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 23 Jan 2013, 09:34

Nabob - noun - A native provincial deputy or governor of the old Mogul empire in India.

Petrus or Pete as we called him, version of a lime rickey was a Shasta lemon-lime drink with a shot of gin. It was pretty good.

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 24 Jan 2013, 08:17

Anonymous - adjective - 1. without any name acknowledged, as that of author, contributor, or the like: an anonymous letter to the editor; an anonymous donation.

Being anonymous in my writing gives me more room to be creative.

N again please

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 24 Jan 2013, 10:23

Neutral - Not taking part a quarrel, not taking part in a war.

Some of the South American countries remained neutral during WW 2.

Sorry about omitting the sentence on my last post, I had a senior moment.

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 24 Jan 2013, 20:54

Entity - noun - Something that exists as a particular and discrete unit: Persons and corporations are equivalent entities under the law.

Bighuey uses his entity as a senior to excuse his lack of concentration, blaming it on his old age.

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 24 Jan 2013, 21:39

N again. Nippur - A city in ancient Mesopotamia.

Nippur was one of the most ancient of all the Sumerian cities.

Getting old sucks, the old grey matter isnt as nimble as it used to be.

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 26 Jan 2013, 13:29

Getting old is a natural process. It's cool. Just stay healthy. That's important.

My word with i :

Inadvertent - inattentive, careless, unintentional.

An inadvertent slip of the tongue cost him his job, his marriage, and eventually his life.

N again. Sorry Bighuey.

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 26 Jan 2013, 20:28

Thats OK. The dictionary is full of N's.

Nidify - To build a nest.

Some birds started to nidify in my rosemary bush.

Wow, that poor sap must have gotten into some serious Doo-Doo.

asmaahsan · Post by **asmaahsan** » 26 Jan 2013, 22:51

No idea about the guy and where do you grow a rosemary bush!

(I got my dictionary out now, the printed copy, as its much easier to follow. Imagine the dust on it.

last i used it was when I was editing, seven years ago.)

Idiosyncrasy - a mental constitution, view, feeling, or mode of behavior, peculiar to a person.

The only reason I tolerated his idiosyncrasies was that he was one of the finest, and the most honest human beings I had ever come across in my life.

D for you B.

Bighuey · Post by **Bighuey** » 27 Jan 2013, 10:16

I have a rosemary bush in my front yard. Its a good spice for just about anything

Dibble - A pointed tool used to make holes in the soil for seeds.

I planted some cantaloupe seeds, and used a dibble to make the holes.

I always wondered what they called those things.

I for you.