Word origins

• LukasA male given name from Latin, of rare usage, variant of Lucas.
• besA bronze coin of the Roman Republic, worth two thirds of an as.
• gratificationThe act of gratifying or pleasing, either the mind, or the appetite or taste.
• IgnatiusA male given name from Latin; of mostly Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox usage in English.
• mythicMythical; existing in myth.
• fluctuateTo vary irregularly; to swing.
• plexusA network of anastomosing or interwoven nerves, blood vessels, or lymphatic vessels.
• LuciusA male given name from Latin.
• causticCapable of burning, corroding or destroying organic tissue.
• emporiaAn unincorporated community in Volusia County, Florida, United States.
• pretextA false, contrived, or assumed purpose or reason; a pretense.
• ordinalIndicating position in a sequence.
• seduceTo beguile or lure (someone) away from duty, accepted principles, or proper conduct; to lead astray.
• multicolorHaving, resembling, or pertaining to many colors.
• geraniumAny flowering plant of the genus Geranium, of family Geraniaceae.
• BrutusA kind of wig.
• affineAssigning finite values to finite quantities.
• deliriumA temporary mental state with a sudden onset, usually reversible, including symptoms of confusion, inability to concentrate, disorientation, anxiety, and sometimes hallucinations. Causes can include dehydration, drug intoxication, and severe infection.
• prescriptiveOf or pertaining to prescribing or enjoining, especially an action or behavior based on a norm or standard.
• animaThe soul or animating principle of a living thing, especially as contrasted with the animus.
• follicleA small cavity or sac, such as a hair follicle.
• linguistOne who studies linguistics.
• bronchialOf or relating to the bronchia, bronchi or bronchioles.
• heraA female hero; a heroine, especially in lesbian or feminist circles.
• refuteTo prove (something) to be false or incorrect.
• horridBristling, rough, rugged.
• enigmaticPertaining to an enigma.
• lationMotion of a celestial object from one place to another; local motion.
• rubellaA mild disease caused by the Rubella virus infecting the respiratory tract, and characterised by a rash of pink dots, fever and swollen lymph nodes.
• certiorariA grant of the right of an appeal to be heard by an appellate court where that court has discretion to choose which appeals it will hear.
• revelAn instance of merrymaking; a celebration.
• abscessA cavity caused by tissue destruction, usually because of infection, filled with pus and surrounded by inflamed tissue.
• mementoA keepsake; an object kept as a reminder of a place or event.
• amphitheatreAn open, outdoor theatre (which may be a theatre in the round, or have a stage with seating on only one side), especially one from the classical period of ancient Greece or Rome, or a modern venue of similar design.
• acumenQuickness of perception or discernment; penetration of mind; the faculty of nice discrimination; acuity of mind.
• chimeraAny fantastic creature combining parts from different animals.
• refractionThe turning or bending of any wave, such as a light or sound wave, when it passes from one medium into another of different optical density.
• materiaThe physical substances which create the natural world: matter, materials, substance, etc.
• operableAble to be operated or used.
• centaurA mythical beast having a horse's body with a man's head and torso in place of the head and neck of the horse.
• cynicA person whose outlook is scornfully negative.
• CanopusA canopic jar.
• bienniumA period of two years, particularly for purposes involving intercalation or fiscal calculations.
• exaggerationThe act of heaping or piling up.
• indicaAny of the indica subspecies of the rice, Oryza sativa, which (unlike the japonica or sinica subspecies) are non-sticky and long-grained.
• soluteFree; liberal; loose.
• balsamA sweet-smelling oil or resin derived from various plants.
• horrendousExtremely bad; awful; terrible.
• florentineCooked or served with spinach.
• gratuitousGiven freely; unearned.
• phylumA rank in the classification of organisms, below kingdom and above class; also called a divisio or a division, especially in describing plants; a taxon at that rank
• torusA topological space which is a product of two circles.
• mnemonicEspecially of a series of ideas, letters, words, etc.: intended to help in remembering.
• sentientExperiencing sensation, thought, or feeling.
• monsOne of the fleshy areas at the base of the fingers; a mount.
• negateTo deny the existence, evidence, or truth of; to contradict.
• sacrificialRelating to sacrifice.
• refrigerateTo make (someone or something) cool; to cool down.
• crotonAny of various plants, of the genus Croton, that yield croton oil.
• tribusSynonym of tribe.
• dominaThe head of a nunnery.
• reticulumA network. For example, the endoplasmic reticulum forms a network of cellular components that functions as a transportation system within the cell.
• carinaA longitudinal ridge or projection like the keel of a boat.
• lyraThe middle portion of the ventral surface of the fornix of the brain.
• BereaA district of Lesotho.
• OptimusA pet name for a device, such as a car, computer, or robot.
• nascentEmerging; just coming into existence.
• quadraThe plinth, or lowest member, of any pedestal, podium, water table, or the like.
• berylliumThe chemical element (symbol Be) with an atomic number of 4; a soft silvery-white low density alkaline earth metal with specialist industrial applications.
• spatulaA kitchen utensil consisting of a flat surface attached to a long handle, used for turning, lifting, or stirring food.
• immerseTo place within a fluid (generally a liquid, but also a gas).
• fulcrumThe support about which a lever pivots.
• spinaA spine; the backbone.
• concatenationA series of links united; a series or order of things depending on each other, as if linked together; a chain, a succession.
• introspectionA looking inward; specifically, the act or process of self-examination, or inspection of one's own thoughts and feelings; the cognition which the mind has of its own acts and states.
• divisiveHaving a quality that divides or separates.
• ValentinaA female given name from Latin, Italian, or Spanish, masculine equivalent Valentine, Valentinus, and Valentino.
• brevityThe quality of being brief in duration.
• stimulatorA person, device or substance that stimulates.
• conjugationThe coming together of things; a union.
• larvaAn early stage of growth for insects and some amphibians, in which after hatching from their egg, insects are wingless and resemble a caterpillar or grub, and amphibians lack limbs and resemble fish.
• obstetricOf or relating to obstetrics (the care of women during and after pregnancy).
• diurnalHappening or occurring during daylight, or primarily active during that time.
• instillTo cause a quality to become part of someone's nature.
• malignancyThe state of being malignant or diseased.
• PompeiiA ruined Roman town in Italy, destroyed by Vesuvius (a volcano) in AD 79.
• CourtenayA female given name.
• herbaceousNot woody, lacking lignified tissues.
• inclementStormy, of rough weather; not clement.
• cuspA sharp point or pointed end.
• transcendentSurpassing usual limits.
• lichenAny of many symbiotic organisms, being associations of algae and fungi, often found as white or yellow-to-blue–green patches on rocks, old walls, etc.
• cariesThe progressive destruction of bone or tooth by decay.
• indulgentDisposed or prone to indulge, humor, gratify, or yield to one's own or another's desires, etc., or to be compliant, lenient, or forbearing.
• alibiThe plea or mode of defense under which a person on trial for a crime proves or attempts to prove being in another place when the alleged act was committed.
• esseEssence, essential nature.
• irreverentLacking respect; not having or not showing respect for or seriousness towards something that is usually treated with respect; going against conventional precepts.
• femurA thighbone.
• convolutionA twist or fold.
• affixA bound morpheme added to a word’s stem, such as a prefix or suffix.