Word origins

• HecateA powerful goddess of magic, crossroads, fire, light, the moon, and the underworld. Her Roman counterpart is Trivia.
• bibliothecaA library.
• squaleneA linear triterpene hydrocarbon found in shark liver oil and in human sebum; it plays a role in the biosynthesis of steroids.
• perplexTo cause to feel baffled; to puzzle.
• gladiolusThe center part of the sternum.
• squalidExtremely dirty and unpleasant.
• receptAn idea that is formed by the repetition of percepts.
• chimaeraA cartilaginous marine fish in the subclass Holocephali and especially the order Chimaeriformes, with a blunt snout, long tail, and a spine before the first dorsal fin
• lacerationAn irregular open wound to soft tissue.
• chelaA pincer-like claw of a crustacean or arachnid.
• revelatoryOf, pertaining to, or in the nature of a revelation.
• motileIn organisms: having the power to move spontaneously.
• gyreA swirling vortex.
• rectusAny of a number of muscles controlling the movement of the eyeball.
• clamourUK and Canada standard spelling of clamor.
• plagiarizeTo use, and pass off as one's own, someone else's writing, speech, ideas, or other intellectual or creative work, especially in an academic context; to commit plagiarism.
• exhalationThe act or process of exhaling; breathing out
• Valensa Roman cognomen
• efferentCarrying away from.
• FestivusA nondenominational holiday featured in a Seinfeld episode, now celebrated (seriously or otherwise) on December 23rd.
• aspirateThe puff of air accompanying the release of a plosive or fricative consonant.
• varmintA pestilent or predatory ground-borne animal, especially one that kills or harasses a farmer's animals or crops.
• HypatiaA female given name from Latin [in turn from Ancient Greek].
• caputThe head.
• phaseolusany of several domesticated beans, of the genus Phaseolus, native to the Americas
• HelvetiaA region inhabited by the Helvetii in central Europe.
• acerbicTasting sour or bitter.
• PomeraniaA former duchy, historical province of Prussia, and now a geographic region of Central Europe split between Germany and Poland on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea.
• ruminateTo chew cud. (Said of ruminants.) Involves regurgitating partially digested food from the rumen.
• pervadeTo be in every part of; to spread through; to permeate.
• imbueTo instill or inspire (someone) with a certain quality, feeling, or idea.
• colloqueTo hold colloquy; to converse.
• egotismA tendency to talk excessively about oneself.
• TiberiasA town in the Northern District, on the Sea of Galilee in Israel.
• ChaldeanOf or pertaining to Chaldea specifically, or ancient Babylonia in general.
• arumA flower or plant in the genus Arum
• DrusillaA female given name from Latin.
• SidonFormer name of Saïda: a city in Lebanon; a former city-state in Phoenicia.
• acridSharp and harsh, or bitter and not to the taste.
• granulosaA layer of small cells that forms the wall of an ovarian follicle.
• rutileThe most frequent of the three polymorphs of titanium dioxide, crystalizing in the tetragonal system, TiO₂.
• fibulaAn ancient kind of brooch used to hold clothing together, similar in function to the modern safety pin.
• vestibulumA cavity into which, in certain bryozoans, the esophagus and anus open.
• cristaAny of the internal compartments formed by the inner membrane of a mitochondrion, where many chemical reactions take place.
• inarticulateNot articulated in normal words.
• subgenusA subdivision of a genus.
• coruscantEmitting flashes of light; glittering.
• ostendTo exhibit or show
• magnanimousNoble and generous in spirit.
• vadoseOf or pertaining to water beneath the surface of the earth which is located above the level of the permanent groundwater.
• ejectaMaterial which has been ejected, especially from a volcano or an impact crater.
• joinderThe joining of a litigant to a suit.
• eductionThe act of educing, of deducing: deduction.
• bucolicRustic, pastoral, country-styled.
• BelialA wicked demon in Christian and Jewish apocrypha.
• AeolusThe name of a number of characters in Greek mythology, including the founder of the Aeolian race, and a god with power over wind.
• misericordiaAn amercement.
• apotheosisThe fact or action of becoming or making into a god; deification.
• TethysPersonification of fertile waters, she was a Titan daughter of Uranus and Gaia, and with her brother Oceanus gave birth to all rivers and the Oceanids.
• AtalantaA huntress and heroine in Greek mythology, renowned for her great speed and strength; depending on the version of the myth, either the daughter of Iasus (a prince of Arcadia) by Clymene or of King Schoeneus of Boeotia.
• prepositionalOf, pertaining to, or of the nature of a preposition.
• ThuringiaA state of modern Germany.
• HispaniolaAn island of the Caribbean, divided politically into the independent nations of Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
• denariusA small silver coin issued both during the Roman Republic and during the Roman Empire, equal to 10 asses or 4 sesterces. Roughly one day’s wage for a skilled worker.
• AugustinianOf, or relating to St Augustine of Hippo or his doctrines, especially on predestination and grace.
• aquilineOf, pertaining to, or characteristic of eagles; resembling that of an eagle.
• BellonaA woman of great spirit and vigour.
• portentSomething that portends an event about to occur, especially an unfortunate or evil event; an omen.
• baculovirusAny large rod-shaped virus of the family Baculoviridae, including the granuloviruses and nucleopolyhedroviruses.
• repatriateA person who has returned to their country of origin or whose original citizenship has been restored.
• pneumonitisInflammation of the tissue of the lungs.
• inculcateTo teach by repeated instruction.
• impetigoA contagious bacterial skin disease forming pustules and yellow crusty sores, chiefly on the face and hands. It is common in children and infection is often through cuts or insect bites.
• agonA struggle or contest; conflict; especially between the protagonist and antagonist in a literary work.
• gladiusA Roman sword roughly two feet long.
• actusA former Roman unit of length, equal to 120 Roman feet (about 35.5 m)
• quadrennialHappening every four years.
• thespianOf, or relating to drama and acting; dramatic, theatrical.
• imitativeImitating; copying; not original.
• arborealOf, relating to, or resembling a tree.
• culexAny of various mosquitoes of the genus Culex, some of which carry disease.
• recencyThe property of being recent; newness.
• minimusA being of the smallest size.
• jubaAn American dance of West African origin that involves stomping as well as slapping and patting the arms, legs, chest, and cheeks.
• sacrumA large triangular bone at the base of the spine, located between the two ilia (wings of the pelvis) and formed from vertebrae that fuse in adulthood.
• apheresisElision, suppression, or complete loss of a letter or sound (syllable) from the beginning of a word, such as the development of special from especial.
• TusculumA city of Latium said to have been founded by Telegonus, the son of Ulysses
• RosicrucianA 'Brother' of the 'Order of the Rose Cross'; a member of a Rosicrucian Order.
• claudicationLimping.
• prurientUneasy with desire; itching; especially, having a lascivious anxiety or propensity; lustful.
• avitalRelating to a grandfather or ancestor.
• MontalvoA surname from Spanish.
• excretaBodily waste which is excreted from the body.
• quanticA homogeneous polynomial in two or more variables.
• copulaA word, usually a verb, used to link the subject of a sentence with a predicate (usually a subject complement or an adverbial), that unites or associates the subject with the predicate.
• nihilistA person who accepts or champions nihilism.
• magisThe philosophy of striving to do more for Jesus Christ, associated with Ignatian spirituality and the Society of Jesus.
• stagnateTo cease to flow or run.
• mantissaA minor addition to a text.
• sacrosanctBeyond alteration, criticism, or interference, especially due to religious sanction; inviolable.