The Highly Selective Dictionary for the Extraordinarily Literate (25 page)

1. frown or scowl.

2. of the sky or clouds etc., look dark and threatening.

Related words:
lour
and
lower
both nouns
,
loury
(LOW-ree) and
lowery
(LOW-
e
r-ee)
both adjectives
.

lubricious
(loo-BRISH-
e
s)
adjective

1. slippery; smooth.

2. oily.

3. lewd, salacious.

Related words:
lubricity
(loo-BRIS-i-tee)
noun
,
lubriciously
(loo-BRISH-
e
s-lee)
adverb
.

lucent
(LOO-s
e
nt)
adjective

1. shining, luminous.

2. clear, translucent.

Related words:
lucency
noun
,
lucently
adverb
.

lucubration
(
LOO
-kyuu-BRAY-sh
e
n)
noun

1. laborious work, especially late at night.

2. a literary work, especially one of pedantic or elaborate character.

Related words:
lucubrate
(LOO-kyuu-
BRAYT
)
verb
,
lucubrator
(LOO-kyuu-
BRAY
-t
e
r)
noun
,
lucubratory
(loo-KYOO-br
e
-
TOR
-ee)
adjective
.

Lucullan
(loo-KUL-
e
n)
adjective
, also given as
Lucullean
and
Lucullian
, both pronounced
LOO
-k
e
-LEE-
e
n

marked by lavishness, especially said of feasting; sumptuous.

lugubrious
(luu-GOO-bree-
e
s)
adjective

dismal, mournful, gloomy, especially in an exaggerated manner.

Related words:
lugubriously
adverb
,
lugubriousness
and
lugubriosity
(l
e
-
GOO
-bree-OS-i-tee)
both nouns
.

luxuriant
(lug-ZHUUR-ee-
e
nt)
adjective

growing profusely.

Do not confuse
luxuriant
with
luxurious
, which see.

Related words:
luxuriance
noun
,
luxuriantly
adverb
.

luxurious
(lug-ZHUUR-ee-
e
s)
adjective

1. supplied with luxuries.

2. very comfortable.

What a difference a change of suffixes makes! Many writers hesitate when having to make a choice between
luxurious
and
luxuriant
. While there is some argument over whether to accept these two adjectives as synonyms, you are best advised to take a hard line. Use
luxurious
in the sense of
supplied with luxuries
or
very comfortable
, and
luxuriant
in the sense of
growing profusely
, and you will be in excellent company, admired by editors and readers who appreciate careful usage. In short, you will be able to
luxuriate
,
enjoy yourself
, in the knowledge that your unimpeachable and carefully crafted prose style meets the highest standards.

Related words:
luxuriate
(lug-ZHUUR-ee-
AYT
)
verb
,
luxuriously
(lug-ZHUUR-ee-
e
s-lee)
adverb
,
luxuriousness
and
luxury
(LUG-zh
e
-ree)
both nouns
.

lycanthropy
(l
I
-KAN-thr
e
-pee)
noun

a delusion in which one imagines oneself to be a wild animal, especially a wolf, and exhibits depraved appetites.

Related words:
lycanthrope
(L
I
-k
e
n-
THROHP
)
noun
,
lycanthropic
(L
I
-k
e
n-THROP-ik)
adjective
.

macerate
(MAS-
e
-
RAYT
)
verb

1. make or become soft by steeping in a liquid.

2. waste away by fasting.

Related words:
macerater
(MAS-
e
-
RAYT
-
e
r),
macerator
and
maceration
(
MAS
-
e
-RAY-sh
e
n)
all nouns
;
macerative
(MAS-
e
-
RAY
-tiv)
adjective
.

maenad
(MEE-nad)
noun

1. a riotous or frenzied woman.

2. a Bacchante—a priestess of Bacchus—in classical mythology the god of wine.

magniloquent
(mag-NIL-
e
-kw
e
nt)
adjective

1. lofty in expression.

2. boastful; bombastic.

3. pompous.

Related words:
magniloquence
noun
,
magniloquently
adverb
.

maladroit
(
MAL
-
e
-DROYT)
adjective

1. awkward, bungling.

2. tactless.

Related words:
maladroitly
adverb
,
maladroitness
noun
.

malediction
(
MAL
-i-DIK-sh
e
n)
noun

a curse.

Related words:
maledictive
(
MAL
-i-DIK-tiv) and
maledictory
(
MAL
-i-DIK-t
e
-ree)
both adjectives
.

malefic
(m
e
-LEF-ik)
adjective

of magical arts, harmful, malign, baneful.

Related words:
maleficent
(m
e
-LEF-
e
-s
e
nt)
adjective
,
maleficence
noun
.

malevolent
(m
e
-LEV-
e
-l
e
nt)
adjective

1. wishing harm to others.

2. evil, injurious.

Related words:
malevolence
noun
,
malevolently
adverb
.

malinger
(m
e
-LING-g
e
r)
verb

pretend to be ill in order to avoid work or shirk duty.

Related word:
malingerer
noun
.

Mammon
(MAM-
e
n)
noun

wealth personified, regarded as an evil influence.

Related words:
mammonish
adjective
,
mammonism
(MAM-
e
-
NIZ
-
e
m)
noun
.

mansuetude
(MAN-swi-
TOOD
)
noun

meekness; gentleness.

marmoreal
(mahr-MOR-ee-
e
l)
adjective
, also given as
marmorean
(mahr-MOR-ee-
e
n)

of or resembling marble.

Related word:
marmoreally
adverb
.

martinet
(
MAHR
-t
e
-NET)
noun

1. a person who demands strict obedience.

2. a disciplinarian.

Related words:
martinetish
adjective
,
martinetism
noun
.

masticate
(MAS-ti-
KAYT
)
verb

chew (food).

Related words:
masticable
(MAS-ti-k
e
-b
e
l) and
masticatory
(MAS-ti-k
e
-
TOR
-ee)
both adjectives
,
mastication
(
MAS
-ti-KAY-sh
e
n) and
masticator
(MAS-ti-
KAY
-t
e
r)
both nouns
.

matricide
(MA-tri-
S
I
D
)
noun

1. a person who kills his mother.

2. the crime itself.

Related word:
matricidal
(
MA
-tri-S
I
D-
e
l)
adjective
.

maudlin
(MAWD-lin)
adjective

sentimental in a silly or tearful way, especially from drunkenness.

Related words:
maudlinism
and
maudlinness
both nouns
,
maudlinly
adverb
.

mawkish
(MAW-kish)
adjective

feebly or falsely sentimental.

Related words:
mawkishly
adverb
,
mawkishness
noun
.

media
(MEE-dee-
e
)
plural noun, singular
medium
(MEE-dee-
e
m)

the means of modern communication, especially the press, journals, radio, and television.

Many words are mistreated in everyday speech, perhaps none more than
media
in the sense given above.
Media
is clearly a plural form of
medium
(which also has the plural
mediums
when used in some other senses, for example, in speaking of
persons who claim to be able to communicate with the spirits of dead persons
). So pervasive is the misuse of
media
as a singular noun—consider “The media is biased”—that it is regularly seen even in publications of high quality. Further, if you ever hear “The media are unbiased” in a news broadcast, you can bet that the item in which it appeared was written, edited, or spoken by a well-educated person, for example, an honors graduate of a leading university. In short,
media
as a singular noun is on the verge of winning the battle. At the same time, however, if you have the good fortune to write for learned readers, you will avoid criticism if you consistently use
media
as a plural noun,
medium
as a singular noun.

menarche
(m
e
-NAHR-kee)
noun

the onset of first menstruation.

Related words:
menarcheal
(m
e
-NAHR-kee-
e
l) and
menarchial
, pronounced the same way,
both adjectives
.

mendacious
(men-DAY-sh
e
s)
adjective

1. untruthful, telling lies, especially habitually.

2. false, untrue.

Related words:
mendacity
(men-DAS-i-tee) and
mendaciousness
(men-DAY-sh
e
s-nis)
both nouns
,
mendaciously
adverb
.

menhir
(MEN-heer)
noun

a tall upright stone set in place in prehistoric times.

mephitic
(m
e
-FIT-ik)
adjective

1. of gases etc., smelling unpleasant.

2. poisonous.

Related words:
mephitically
adverb
,
mephitis
(m
e
-F
I
-tis)
noun
.

mercurial
(m
e
r-KYUUR-ee-
e
l)
adjective

1. liable to sudden changes of mood; flighty, fickle.

2. having a lively temperament; animated.

Related words:
mercuriality
(m
e
r-
KYUU
-ree-AL-i-tee) and
mercurialness
(m
e
r-KYUU-ree-
e
l-nis)
both nouns
,
mercurially
adverb
.

meretricious
(
MER
-i-TRISH-
e
s)
adjective

showily attractive but cheap or insincere; tawdry.

Related words:
meretriciously
adverb
,
meretriciousness
noun
.

métier
(MAY-tyay)
noun

1. a person's trade, profession, or field of work.

2. a specialty, a forte.