I thought the morning constitutional was taking a shit.

And what a lovely paragraph about it. Thank you.

Oh I love to perambulate, sitting still is what I really hate

And a "perambulator" is a kid stroller. It was an enlightening moment when I first came across that word in Neil Stephenson's "Seveneves", delved into its etymology and then realised why my British friend called the stroller a "pram". This is just a contracted form of perambulator.

It did not occur to me that there's actually also a verb for it, so thank you for pointing that out! I love it, and I will use it henceforth!

Interrobang sounds like something from a porno about police work.

“Did you question the suspect?”

“Yeah, Chief, we interrobanged him and got the info.”

While I like the concept, I can't help but prefer '!?' or '?!'. There's more granularity of meaning, and I think it just looks nicer having two or more separate characters.

Only if you agree to stop calling them Hashtags and use their more-correct name of Octothorpes

I made AltGr + / type an interrobang so I'd always have access to it

How do I start?

Apparently Streptomyces are the cause.

It's funny, literally every Doctor Who fan knows this word and what it means thanks to Neil Gaiman.

To add to that, "ereyesterday" is the noun version for the day before yesterday.

the german version "Übermorgen" is widely used in germany.

I actually dislike that term a lot.

It's like spunkgargleweewee. It seems immature and makes me feel more dismissive towards the argument. Maybe that also has to do with it being a catch all term and people seem less willing to give specific examples of how things are declining in quality.

Wait did you just coin that? That's fucking brilliant /s

Edit: apparently I needed a /s because Lemmy doesn't use this term constantly or anything?

This one always makes me smile, because it's from the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. It's just some guy's blog in which he comes up with new words to express experiences and emotions that are difficult to describe, and that specific one has thoroughly broken containment

Sonder

Literally means "special" in German

That was lovely, thank you for that.

and zaftig

of a woman : having a full rounded figure : pleasingly plump

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zaftig

I prefer callipygian

Also: gyatt.

Sounds useful in Minecraft. Like you put a sign in a cave "exit widdershins" to tell people to follow the left wall.

Yesss. I love this word and use it whenever I can

And don't forget turnwise! (which is the opposite rotational direction defined by the direction the disc turns)

Widdershins start my hair, your Spooktober decorations are so spooky!!!!

Sounds like a creature that would have a lot of creepypasta written about it.

measure thrice, cut twice.

That's the definition but not how it's ever used.

Yeah, that word means uncle-like, but it's very much a word for a fun or chill uncle vibe.

Don't you slander uncledom like that, you unavuncluar tranch!

Copacetic

Relevant song

Gormless is one of my favorites too. Shame it's not used as much as it should be in general.

I only know the term from Disc World, is that a real world term or just one of the many whimsical terms Pratchett coined in the books

A paramour is an “other lover”. Para = beside, amour = love. It’s not a casual fuck buddy, it’s your cheating partner. I’m surprised to hear you say it’s unknown as a word these days? Seems like just a normal word to me, albeit one I’m happy to go without using as cheaters suck.

I use paramour, usually to describe an infidelity situation. No one under 35 knows what it is.

Interesting. The only two references I've ever heard to Paramour are the band and the achievement in Mass Effect. I'm now wondering if the devs of that series knew exactly what it meant (infidelity) because you get the achievement for having any relationship. Maybe it's because you can't remain loyal to your original partner to get it in all three games with one playthrough.

The are all great, but tawdry is fantastic!

Rolls of the tongue, and we all come across several tawdry things/people in a given day.

I don't think tawdry is archaic. A little uncommon, but still in use.

I was sure Harry Potter said it one time when he cast a spell.

SHEMOMEDJAMO!

Would "Have a good one" maybe serve that purpose? It's not exactly the same, but similar sentiment.

"May the odds be ever in your favor" works in almost any situation!

Reminds me of a much abbreviated version of this Irish prayer:

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind always be at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face,

and rains fall soft upon your fields.

And until we meet again,

May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

I use "have fun" completely unironically all the time. One time my partner's (Pakistani) carer thought I spoke Arabic because Afwan is apparently an Arabic salutation meaning approximately the same as "cheerio", "goodbye", or "you're welcome" in English. He also turns up around half one every day for added amusement

Dutch: 'Werk ze'

Doesn't exist in German? What about "Frohes Schaffen"?

"Good luck with/have fun with that!" In a pleasant tone while gesturing towards the act being done is enough, I've found

Unless it's clearly like, WORK, work, then something like "don't work too hard, there!" Is common

“Break a leg” is close, but more reserved for some grand performance

So in Estonian we have a bunch of those I don't remember because nobody uses them anymore. But the main one everyone knows is "Kivi kotti" (literally, stone/rock in your bag, but much like with "break a leg", you actually wish them well). It's still basically "good luck" but not so much for grand performances, it could just be for your first day of work, or going fishing (the real origin I guess). There's also "Nael kummi" which is "nail in your tire", which is reserved for people driving somewhere.

I will steal that one!

I say "good luck" in a non-sarcastic tone to people whenever they head off on some banal errand. It gets some confused looks sometimes, laughs others.

Being pedantic, but it's beyond that.

To grok is to know or understand so completely, it becomes a part of yourself. To know something fully. You can understand the concepts of astrophysics, but you might not grok the concept.

Specifically, it refers to a deep understanding.

[A critic] notes that [the coiner's] first intensional definition is simply "to drink", but that this is only a metaphor "much as English 'I see' often means the same as 'I understand'". (from Wikipedia)

When you claim to "grok" some knowledge or technique, you are asserting that you have not merely learned it in a detached instrumental way but that it has become part of you, part of your identity. For example, to say that you "know" Lisp is simply to assert that you can code in it if necessary – but to say you "grok" Lisp is to claim that you have deeply entered the world-view and spirit of the language, with the implication that it has transformed your view of programming. Contrast zen, which is a similar supernatural understanding experienced as a single brief flash. (The Jargon File; also quoted on Wikipedia)

For those who aren't familiar with the word, it comes from the 1961 scifi novel "Stranger in a Strange Land".

Ah, I grew up listening to Adventures In Odyssey and one character said that all the time. Beautiful word.

I like that it's root is fairly plain to see.

That's un-doubt-able - indubitable.

I love that word. I don't know where I even learned it first, but I sometimes throw it back out there. It's so fun!

This is my favourite too. I have a very sesquipedalian friend, and I had the honour of introducing him to the word.

Feel like tenebrous being on a list of obscure words is tenuous, but maybe I just have esoteric interests.

That list is going to send me down a rabbit hole looking for the etymology of words

I'm a master in Cacography!

‘Tenebroso’ is commonly used in Spanish, at least in Spain. This whole thread is very interesting.

Kakistocracy: “a state or society governed by its least suitable or competent citizens.”

See also kleptocracy: rule by thieves. I not infrequently refer to our government as a kleptocratic kakistocracy

Wud u tho?

"Could care less" is mine

Shoulda hoped for something better.

I once knew a guy from the deep south who'd say stuff like yoostacud. I yoostacud run a marathon. I thought that was marvellous! Another one was fixina. I'm fixina get tickets to the game tonight. You in?

Well .... I knew exactly what you meant, as you know what I mean when I say: "Rucksackriemenquerverbindsungsträgerersatzschnalle" and I think it's beautiful.

Also: "Getriebeschmiernippel"

The chest strap?

fuck germany

My favorite English word... I use it quite often because it fits the German Ductus.

Spotted the Radiohead fan

Nonplussed...that takes me back.

I was educated in a private school for British ex-pats run by a very old and very posh couple. This was the early eighties and they were already in their seventies, so definitely from a different era. Because of this and because of the size of our school (my entire year consisted of nine kids) we ended up quite odd. Up until highschool we had a mild but "poshy" London accent and words like vexing, nonplussed, providential, etc., peppered our vocabulary. Then my family moved to Louisiana followed by Texas and that shit went right out.

Also, the word is aluminium. It is NOT aluminum!

It's interesting, it is becoming a modern day contronym

https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/nonplussed

They’ve fallen from grace. Probably because it’s been a few centuries since the saxons

The language could use a refresher eh

And übermorgen in German

You can't just say "perchance"!

To sleep, perchance to dream. And in that sleep of death, what dreams may come!

Hamlet (hopefully I didn't get it too wrong)

And Russian oligarchs

I like to make the joke whenever someone mentions a Russian doctor falling out of a window or something:

There's defense and there's defenestration.

It's composed of de- an fenestra, the latter meaning window.

So literally de-windowing

People probably know a word based on it, unscrupulous, meaning having or showing no moral principles

I see you've never been to Canada.

Makes me want to find an excuse to use the term autoeroticdefenestration: to be sexually aroused by throwing yourself out of windows

I see what you did there

Followed by antipenultimate

As soon as I read "destructive to both sides in a conflict" I immediately thought of that case. And then you referenced it 😂

I had a look to see if I could find a full list but sadly not. However most Wikipedia entries for the individual novels include a section called, "The unfamiliar word," if you want to find more.

Be the change you want to see in the world.

It’s curious to see how things merge between languages. In Spain, both usufruct (usufructo) and eruction (eructo) are quite common words.

Eruction - A belch or burp

There could be some wild confusion if a New Zealander were to say "I've got a massive eruction building up" 😆

Same for overmogen in the Netherlands. And eergisteren for the day before yesterday.

Same for the Romanian "poimâine" (after tomorrow). We also have "alaltăieri" (the other yesterday). They are in use, quite common.

übermorgen

I can't wait to use it tomorrow.

And overmorrow.

You know that episode of Seinfeld where someone eats a candy bar with a knife and fork and it just spreads into the wild because people don't really question it?

That's what I'm hoping happens with overmorrow

Sometimes I feel like I'm still the only person who still uses it. I'm teaching my daughter the proper way to use it because the schools aren't.

It also means path dependency.

https://www.magtrol.com/product/hysteresis-brakes/

I use hysteresis daily... Refrigeration.

I think you meant lag. But this is a good one. One of my favorite words. It seems to be used in technical settings a lot, especially for electricity. I read an article a while back that applied it to social situations I.e. social hysteresis. It applies to so many things its ridiculous.

Two of my favorite:

Why do people still think vaccines cause autism despite the overwhelming evidence against? Social hysteresis.

Why do people think inflation is out of control in the US despite the fact that its been less than 3% for over a year? Social hysteresis. (Also because people want deflation)

On thermostats it's the difference between the off and on temperatures - like if you set it to 24 degrees, you could have a hysteresis of 1 degree, meaning it'll turn on again at 23 degrees. (Or something like that.)

Many languages have it. English for some reason does not use it

In my country we also have a word for that and it's always used when referring to overmorrow.

Not to be confused with philatelist, a stamp collector. The word means to enjoy receiving something without the necessity of payment.

There used to be a Scottish football ⚽ player called Kevin Twaddle. Always amused me.

Codswallop

Übermorgen is the name of my heavy metal band

It's archaic english. So yes, I think people will think you're weird. But maybe if you start using it with your dutch friends/colleagues in english-speaking contexts, you can slowly introduce it into common usage in your community. Might be cool.

Also don't forget "ereyesterday" for the day before yesterday.

It’s funny that a hangover in Dutch is a kater, or, (male) Katze

I learned that word from an old comic from the late 19th century called The Katzenjammer Kids, which apparently is the oldest strip still in syndication.

Uxor, Uxoris, f. (Latin) = wife

What a great word in today's dating scene. Is it an older word that has been modified to be more modern?

Lugubre in Spanish. Well known word in this other language. I love this thread!

Is that obsolete or obscure (in German speaking areas)?

Shannon Makes fan?

John Madden. Football.

No, someone just dropped a pile of vowels on a page while carrying them to be cleaned or something, and the monks decided to stick with it

Serendipity, a stroke of fortune! Great word.

For those that can't believe it's not a racial slur.

Niggard (14th C) is derived from the Middle English word meaning 'stingy,' nigon, which is probably derived from two other words also meaning 'stingy,' Old Norse hnǫggr and Old English hnēaw.[2] The word niggle, which in modern usage means to give excessive attention to minor details, probably shares an etymology with niggardly.[3]

I don't understand, why is that your word?