Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Wondrous Words Wednesday


Kathy over at Bermudaonion's Weblog hosts Wondrous Words Wednesday. If you come across a word (or two) while reading that is new to you and would like to share your new knowledge, then hop over to Kathy's place and link up!

This week I've been working on Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh and found the following:

Adze: an axe or woodcarving tool

Context: "Seen from a distance, it resembled a gigantic wishbone adorned with a hairy crest. It was by this crest that they held it, standing well away from the two shafts, one of which was wooden while the other glinted dully in sunlight. It was a Maori adze.

Corroboree: a ceremonial meeting of Australian Aborigines; also used in the northwest Australia to define theatrical practices as different from ceremony

Context: The men on the top of the mound--there were two of them now beside [Septimus]Falls--squatted close to each other as if they held a corroboree.

Recrudescence: a reoccurance of symptoms in a patient whose disease seems to have been cured or put in remission. A relapse.

Context: Your anatomical uncle says he doesn't think there will be a recrudescence of the fibrositis, which is, I consider, a magic phrase.


7 comments:

Lindsay Cummings author said...

love this words idea!!! new follower! love the blog!

follow me?!

http://lindsaycummingsblog.blogspot.com/

bermudaonion said...

Wow, I think those are great words, even though I can't pronounce most of them! Thanks for playing along.

Scribacchina said...

I think I never read anything about Aborigines, and I didn't know the first two words. The third I knew, but now I am wondering what "anatomical uncle" may mean (or would I rather not know?)

Martha@Hey, I want to read that said...

I just discovered Ngaio Marsh last year. Great words. Thanks for stopping and commenting at my blog, I look forward to getting to know you. Good luck with admission season.

Bev Hankins said...

@Scribacchina: the uncle is a doctor (just a fancy way of saying he deals with anatomy)

Joy Weese Moll said...

I was curious about the anatomical uncle, too. The words are new to me!

Annie said...

I like "adze"...it seems like a noise : wind or arrow ?