The Internet Book Database of Fiction

To all the science and logic readers of this forum thread:

The purpose was "'cause" surprise was the desired "effect."
Claire was in a near cliffhanger situation.

No more than that.
No deeper meaning.
No foolin'

diptych

Pronunciation: /ˈdiptik/
noun
1a painting, especially an altarpiece, on two hinged wooden panels that may be closed like a book.
2an ancient writing tablet consisting of two hinged leaves with waxed inner sides.

Origin:
early 17th century: via late Latin from late Greek diptukha 'pair of writing tablets', neuter plural of Greek diptukhos 'folded in two', from di- 'twice' + ptukhē 'a fold'


Wikimedia

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Dave drew his diptych. His day job was auto mechanic. Naturally, his subject was a dipstick.

Algot Runeman wrote:diptych
1 a painting ...
2 an ancient writing tablet ...

Are you sure diptych isn't modern Greek slang for dipshit ?
You know, the stick the Greek use to gauge the content level of a septic tank or the vernacular for their politicians.

Lilliputian

Pronunciation: /ˌliləˈpyo͞oSHən/
adjective
trivial or very small: America’s banks no longer look Lilliputian in comparison with Japan’s

noun
a trivial or very small person or thing.

Origin:
early 18th century: from the imaginary country of Lilliput in Swift's Gulliver's Travels, inhabited by people 6 inches (15 cm) high, + -ian


imdb

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Scott thanked the many skilled craftsmen who had participated in making the LegoLand city.
He felt at home, in the lilliputian buldings.

Algot Runeman wrote:Lilliputian

First she fluffed up the pillow, then with a few tickles playfully prodded him between the smooth sheets, tucked him in and, with a hypnotic voice, read a soothing story from the dog-eared children's book. After he fell asleep, she gently kissed her son's mop of blond hair, closed the mosquito net, stepped out on the landing, turned off the light and silently closed the door.

This was the daily routine when Lilli put Ian to bed.

Maybe that excessive softness and all the thwarted mosquitoes drove Ian later in life to invent the bug sponge?

I am 4' 10" (approx. 1.5 m) in height.

Lilliputian = Me

megaflop [definition 1]

Pronunciation: /ˈmegəˌfläp/
noun
Computing
a unit of computing speed equal to one million floating-point operations per second.

Origin:
1970s: back-formation from megaflops (see mega-, -flop)


Image: Screen capture from Wikipedia

1010101010101010101010101010101010101010101010101010101010101010101010111

It took more than a second just to type "8.25+5.23=", no megaflop to see here.
Of course, we are now waiting to see if the Facebook IPO will turn out to be one megaflop, too.

Algot Runeman wrote:Of course, we are now waiting to see if the Facebook IPO will turn out to be one megaflop, too.

It has gone past megaflop, has almost traversed gigaflop, and is galloping furiously toward teraflop.

rugose

Pronunciation: /ˈro͞oˌgōs/
adjective
chiefly Biology
wrinkled; corrugated: rugose corals

Derivatives
rugosity
Pronunciation: /ro͞oˈgäsətē/
noun

Origin:
late Middle English: from Latin rugosus, from ruga 'wrinkle'


Ed Fladung

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Each goblet had been lovingly wrapped with rugose cardboard before being inserted into the cubbies of the box. The packer had known the glassware was going to travel far, but could not know the ship carrying them would run aground. Mary wondered who the intended recipient had been. It was certain that the goblets would be marvelous conversation pieces for every visit of guests to the beach house.

Algot Runeman wrote:rugose

Is there a rigorous solution to that rugose mouse maze?

cephalic

Pronunciation: /səˈfalik/
adjective
technical
of, in, or relating to the head.

Origin:
late Middle English: from Old French cephalique, from Latin cephalicus, from Greek kephalikos, from kephalē 'head'


Ed Schipul

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Various groups have been so enamored by lilliputian ideals that they have attempted to celebrate smaller people through cephalic reduction. Some have also said the practice is an attempt to enforce a cure for a swelled head. No, no. Stand back. Get away from me, you heathens!

Algot Runeman wrote:cephalic

That's what the carnival's fire-eater looked like after her little mishap.
They tried encephalic resuscitation and CPR, but the lass was too well done.

Later the carnival's House of Horrors was only too happy to exhibit her in the Amazonian section.

amuse-gueule

Pronunciation: /ˌämo͞oz ˈgəl/
noun (plural amuse-gueules pronunc. )
a small, savory item of food served as an appetizer before a meal.

Origin:
late 20th century: French, literally 'amuse mouth'


Elke Sisco

.- -- -- -- -.

Amuse-gueule, indeed. You'll get a guffaw from me. I'm not amused at all. Food that requires a microscope to see does not intrigue me whatsoever.

Algot Runeman wrote:amuse-gueule
a small, savory item of food served as an appetizer before a meal.
Origin:
late 20th century: French, literally 'amuse mouth'

The French word "gueule" by itself is actually rude and never used in polite society.

Compare "Tais-toi, mon amour." (Shut up, my love.) vs "Ta gueule, la nana!" (Shut yer trap, you dumb broad!).

As a dentist I would *never* have asked a patient to "Ouvre ta gueule", but always "Ouvrez la bouche, s'il vous plaît."

But ... "amuse-gueule" is hyperbole where the rudeness is inverted to mean "an exquisite tidbit delicately prepared to awaken your taste buds", hence *is* allowed and not rude at all.

On the other hand, I understood "Les Grandes Gueules" (French movie, 1966, with André Bourvil and Lino Ventura) to literally mean "The Loudmouths" or "The Bellowers".

When my grandma and grandpa visited the Parisian Crazy Horse, the gorgeous dancers were visually titillating amuse-gueules.

I assume Voralfred will correct me if I'm wrong here.

schlimazel

Pronunciation: /SHləˈmäzəl/
(also schlemazel)
noun
informal
a consistently unlucky or accident-prone person.

Origin:
Yiddish, from Middle High German, slim, 'crooked' + Hebrew, mazzāl, 'luck'


Looney Tunes

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Note the clueless smiles on both of these iconic schlimazels. Together they must have been bitten, squashed, bashed, dropped and generally "destroyed" thousands of times. Yet they have the absolute certainty that their luck is about to change. This time...

My introduction to the word schlimazel:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRmKzxhMzwo

obnubilate

Pronunciation: /äbˈn(y)o͞obəˌlāt/
verb
[with object] literary
darken, dim, or cover with or as if with a cloud; obscure.

Derivatives
obnubilation
Pronunciation: /äbˌn(y)o͞obəˈlāSHən/
noun

Origin:
late 16th century: from Latin obnubilat- 'covered with clouds or fog', from the verb obnubilare


Jeff Kramer

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Below the ridge, everything was obnubilated.

Algot Runeman wrote:obnubilate

I'm afraid that, even for cognoscenti, the obnubilate is just so much obfuscate.

Please, I beg you, do not discombobulate.

E Pericoloso Sporgersi wrote: As a dentist I would *never* have asked a patient to "Ouvre ta gueule", but always "Ouvrez la bouche, s'il vous plaît."

Indeed! Your patient probably wouldn't come back!

E Pericoloso Sporgersi wrote: But ... "amuse-gueule" is hyperbole where the rudeness is inverted to mean "an exquisite tidbit delicately prepared to awaken your taste buds", hence *is* allowed and not rude at all.

That's perfectly correct!

E Pericoloso Sporgersi wrote: On the other hand, I understood "Les Grandes Gueules" (French movie, 1966, with André Bourvil and Lino Ventura) to literally mean "The Loudmouths" or "The Bellowers".

In this context, "gueules" is indeed somewhat rude, but only moderately so.
It does not so much describes the number of decibels (as "bellowers" would imply) but how much they talk, and what kind of things they say. Obnoxious, yes, but not necessarily foul-mouthed.
The english title of the movie is "The wise guys"

behemoth

Pronunciation: /biˈhēməTH, ˈbēəməTH/
noun
a huge or monstrous creature.
something enormous, especially a big and powerful organization: shoppers are now more loyal to their local stores than to faceless behemoths [as modifier]: behemoth telephone companies

Origin:
late Middle English: from Hebrew bĕhēmōṯ, intensive plural of bĕhēmāh 'beast'


Kirsten Pauli

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I don't know about you, but that Lunesta® behemoth scares me. Lying there, trying to fall asleep, I open my eyes and there it is circling above my face. How the heck am I supposed to sleep NOW!

brogue [definition 2]

Pronunciation: /brōg/
noun
[usually in singular]
a marked accent, especially Irish or Scottish, when speaking English: a fine Irish brogue a sweet lilt of brogue in her voice

Origin:
early 18th century: perhaps allusively from brogue1, referring to the rough footwear of Irish peasants


Sarah K

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Braden's brogue bedeviled Brie's brain. It was so thick that her thoughts became mired and slow. It was, of course, his plan. Add a little Guinness and he'd spend the night.

N.B. The shoes shown are definitely not brogues [definition 1], durable outdoor shoes with perforated decorations.

The shoes (above) are called "brógans" in Irish Gaelic. Brogues is a derisive spoken abbreviation of brógans first used by the English to mock the Irish - ie. The dumb Micks with the ratty brogues - which those dumb Micks then turned into the word for their lovely - and superior - use of their oppressor's language.

eviternity

Pronunciation: /ˌeviˈtərnitē/
noun
archaic or literary
eternal existence; everlasting duration.

Derivatives
eviternal
Pronunciation: /-ˈtərnl/
adjective

Origin:
late 16th century: from Latin aeviternus 'eternal' + -ity


Richard Yuan

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Rock of Ages, granite has the appearance of eviternity. Yet, it eventually becomes sand, sculpted by waves at the edge of oceans.

Algot Runeman wrote:eviternity

Though Laurie's brogues appear seldom used, I suspect they will not last an eviternity.

Brogans, Rock of Ages, will fade at last, but an eviternity may be inadequate to describe the longevity of some things.


30 Days of OCEANS