cabal (noun)
A private organization or party engaged in secret intrigues. (EB)
A secret political clique or faction. (OD)
cabotage (noun)
The right to operate sea, air, or other transport services within a particular territory. Restriction of the operation of sea, air, or other transport services within or into a particular country to that country's own transport services. (OD)
The transport of goods or passengers between two places in the same country by a transport operator from another country. It originally applied to shipping along coastal routes, port to port, but now applies to aviation, railways, and road transport as well. (Wikipedia)
A private organization or party engaged in secret intrigues. (EB)
A secret political clique or faction. (OD)
cabotage (noun)
The right to operate sea, air, or other transport services within a particular territory. Restriction of the operation of sea, air, or other transport services within or into a particular country to that country's own transport services. (OD)
The transport of goods or passengers between two places in the same country by a transport operator from another country. It originally applied to shipping along coastal routes, port to port, but now applies to aviation, railways, and road transport as well. (Wikipedia)
cad (noun)
A man who behaves dishonorably, especially towards a woman. (OD)
A man who treats other people, especially women, badly or unfairly. (CDC)
caddish (adjective)
Calcutta (city)
Calcutta (city)
Former name (until 2000) for Kolkata.
Caledonia (geographical name)
Latin name for Scotland.
Caledonia (geographical name)
Latin name for Scotland.
Caledonian (adjective): Relating to Scotland or the Scottish Highlands. (OD)
Caledonia and Caledonian are often used by organizations and commercial entities.
campanile (noun)
An Italian bell tower, especially a free-standing one. (OD)
A bell tower, usually built beside or attached to a church; the word is most often used in connection with Italian architecture. (EB)
capricious (adjective)
Given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior. (OD)
Derogatory: Marks the person as undependable, flighty, and possibly petty, likely to disregard the effect of a sudden change in plans, etc., on other people.
(Evans & Wollard, Capricious/Mercurial, Word-Detective.com, 2013)
See: mercurial
capture (noun and verb)
campanile (noun)
An Italian bell tower, especially a free-standing one. (OD)
A bell tower, usually built beside or attached to a church; the word is most often used in connection with Italian architecture. (EB)
capricious (adjective)
Given to sudden and unaccountable changes of mood or behavior. (OD)
Derogatory: Marks the person as undependable, flighty, and possibly petty, likely to disregard the effect of a sudden change in plans, etc., on other people.
(Evans & Wollard, Capricious/Mercurial, Word-Detective.com, 2013)
See: mercurial
capture (noun and verb)
noun: The act of winning or getting control of something. (CD)
verb: Winning or gaining control of something. (RM)
Note: I am particularly interested in the usage of capture as gaining complete or near complete ideological or regulatory control over some institution or institutions. For instance: Our universities have been captured by the progressive left. Or, the FDA and CDC have been captured by the pharmaceutical industry. As a noun, the pharmaceutical capture of the CDC was disastrous for the government's response to Covid. I think I first heard this use from Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying.
carcinogenic (adjective)
Note: I am particularly interested in the usage of capture as gaining complete or near complete ideological or regulatory control over some institution or institutions. For instance: Our universities have been captured by the progressive left. Or, the FDA and CDC have been captured by the pharmaceutical industry. As a noun, the pharmaceutical capture of the CDC was disastrous for the government's response to Covid. I think I first heard this use from Bret Weinstein and Heather Heying.
carcinogenic (adjective)
Having the potential to cause cancer. (NOA)
Anything, often a person or personality, that has a seriously unhealthy, deleterious, and/or pernicious effect on something or someone else. (RM)
Note: What I like about this word is its possible use outside of health-related contexts. For instance: Her attitude within the organization was positively carcinogenic. Or, she was a carcinogenic presence. Or even, she was carcinogenic. It need not be a person: The unknown software virus was carcinogenic to our computer system and daily operations. I never see this use defined in any formal dictionary, so I have created my own definition. While it may not be so defined in any formal sense, if you use carcinogenic in this manner, people will absolutely understand your meaning.
carinderia (noun)
Philippines
From the Tagalog word, karinderya: In the Philippines, a food stall with a small seating area, typically in a market or at a roadside. (OD)
casuistry (noun)
The use of clever but unsound reasoning, especially in relation to moral questions; sophistry. (OD)
catafalque (noun)
A decorated wooden framework supporting the coffin of a distinguished person during a funeral or while lying in state. (OD)
catechize (verb)
Put questions to or interrogate (someone). (OD)
catholic (adjective)
casuistry (noun)
The use of clever but unsound reasoning, especially in relation to moral questions; sophistry. (OD)
catafalque (noun)
A decorated wooden framework supporting the coffin of a distinguished person during a funeral or while lying in state. (OD)
catechize (verb)
Put questions to or interrogate (someone). (OD)
catholic (adjective)
Of or including all Christians; relating to the historic doctrine and practice of the Western Church. (NOA)
Of or relating to the universal Christian church or the ancient undivided Christian church or those churches that have claimed to be representatives of the ancient undivided church. (AHD)
Of, relating to, or forming the church universal or the ancient undivided Christian church or a church claiming historical continuity from it. (MW)
cenotaph (noun)
A monument to someone buried elsewhere, especially one commemorating people who died in a war. (OD)
Ceylon (country)
Former name (until 1972) for Sri Lanka. (OD)
chicory (noun)
chicory (noun)
An edible weed with crunchy bitter-tasting leaves. It is eaten in salads, and its roots, dried and roasted, are used as a coffee substitute. (CDC)
A powder made from the root of this plant and added to or used instead of coffee. Example: The coffee is very poor quality, mostly chicory. (CD)
chirography (noun)
Handwriting, penmanship. Calligraphy. (MW)
Handwriting, especially as distinct from typography. (OD)
Christmas (verb)
To celebrate Christmas; to spend the Christmas period in a particular place. (OED)
Note: I have written about this usage here.
chrysalis (noun)
A preparatory or transitional state. (NOA)
chrysalis (noun)
A preparatory or transitional state. (NOA)
A protected stage of development. (AHD)
Anything in the process of developing; a stage of development when something or someone is still protected. (CDC)
churchwarden (noun)
In the Anglican Church, the person who has been chosen by a congregation to help the vicar of a parish with administration and other duties. (CDC)
chutzpah (noun)
chutzpah (noun)
Supreme self-confidence; nerve; gall (MW)
Unusual and shocking behavior, involving taking risks but not feeling guilty; behavior that is extremely confident and often rude, with no respect for the opinions or abilities of anyone else. (CD)
Utter nerve; effrontery. (AHD)
Self-assurance bordering on impudence; audacity; effrontery.
(Chamber's Dictionary)
If you say that someone has chutzpah, you mean that you admire the fact that they are not afraid or embarrassed to do or say things that shock, surprise, or annoy other people. Also: Shameless audacity; impudence; brass. (CDC)
Note: From Yiddish. Chutzpah can be good or bad or both.
cicerone (noun)
A guide who gives information about antiquities and places of interest to sightseers. (OD)
ciceroni (plural)
cisgender (adjective, social construct)
Denoting or relating to a person whose sense of personal identity and gender corresponds with their birth sex. (OD)
Of, relating to, or being a person whose gender identity corresponds with the sex the person had or was identified as having at birth. (MW)
Note: Use of this term seems to be predicated on recognizing a difference between sex and gender. That is, sex being biological and gender being social & cultural (a social construct).
Opposite of transgender: Denoting or relating to a person whose sense of personal identity and gender does not correspond with their birth sex, which is different than transsexual. (RM)
See: gender dysphoria, neopronoun, pronouns (declaring or stating)
claret (noun)
A red Bordeaux wine; also a similar wine produced elsewhere. (MW)
Note: Quite fond of the word: claretless (adjective): Without claret. (OED) As in: Sadly, today we are claretless or a claretless dinner party.
cleric (noun)
A member of the clergy in any religion. (MW)
Note: I view the term cleric to be derogatory. For example, if one refers to a Christian priest or minister as a cleric, as one might very well refer to a mullah, buddhist priest, or the oracles of delphi, this is meant to be derogatory and condescending. Surely equating them, lumping them all together across religions, minimizes their unique claim to represent and lead the one true religion, and rather emphasizes that they are all equally fraudulent shepherds of the credulous.
clerisy (noun)
Intelligentsia (MW)
Learned or literary people regarded as a social group or class. (OD)
cloud (noun)
Something that has a dark, lowering, or threatening aspect. Something that obscures or blemishes. (MW)
Used to refer to a state or cause of gloom, suspicion, trouble, or worry. (OD)
Something which causes sadness or fear. (CD)
Anything that obsures or darkens something, or causes gloom, trouble, suspicion, disgrace, etc. (DC)
Anything that darkens, obscures, threatens, or makes gloomy. (CDC)
See: shadow
cockalorum (noun)
A boastful and self-important person. (MW)
cogent (adjective)
Of an argument or case: Clear, logical, and convincing. (OD)
cogently (adverb)
cogitate (verb)
Think deeply about something; meditate or reflect. (OD)
cogitation (noun): The action of thinking deeply about something; contemplation. (OD)
colleague (noun)
A person with whom one works in a profession or business. (OD)
An associate or coworker typically in a profession or in a civil or ecclesiastical office and often of similar rank or state; a fellow worker or professional. (MW)
Note: What’s interesting about this rather common term is that people tend to assume that they know what it means and how it defines someone, when in fact they are left unsure. Its vagueness is sometimes useful.
collywobbles (noun)
Stomach pain or queasiness. Intense anxiety or nervousness. (OD)
An uncomfortable feeling in the stomach caused by feelings of nervousness or slight fear. (CD)
commodity (noun)
A raw material, primary product, or other basic good which is traded in bulk and the units of which are interchangeable for the purposes of trading. In contemporary use, non-tangible resources such as electricity or internet bandwidth, or services such as freight or insurance, are often classed (and traded) as commodities, especially when they are fungible or interchangeable (OED).
In economics, a commodity is an economic good or service that has full or substantial fungibility: That is, the market treats instances of the good or service as equivalent, or nearly so, with no regard to who produced them. (Wikipedia)
See: fungible
comport (verb)
comport oneself: Conduct oneself; behave. Especially: To behave in a manner conformable to what is right, proper, or expected. (MW)
comport with: Accord or agree with. (OD)
comportment (noun): Personal bearing, carriage, demeanor, deportment; behavior, outward conduct, course of action. (OED)
conceit (noun)
A fanciful expression in writing or speech; an elaborate metaphor; an artistic effect or device; a fanciful notion. (OD)
As opposed to “excessive pride in oneself.”
concomitant (adjective)
Naturally accompanying or associated. (OD)
Congo (country)
comport (verb)
comport oneself: Conduct oneself; behave. Especially: To behave in a manner conformable to what is right, proper, or expected. (MW)
comport with: Accord or agree with. (OD)
comportment (noun): Personal bearing, carriage, demeanor, deportment; behavior, outward conduct, course of action. (OED)
conceit (noun)
A fanciful expression in writing or speech; an elaborate metaphor; an artistic effect or device; a fanciful notion. (OD)
As opposed to “excessive pride in oneself.”
concomitant (adjective)
Naturally accompanying or associated. (OD)
Congo (country)
First country: A large country in central Africa with a short coastline on the Atlantic Ocean; population 77,300,000 (estimated 2015); capital, Kinshasa; languages, French (official), Kongo, Lingala, Swahili, and others. Also called Congo-Kinshasa. Formerly called (1971–97) Zaire. The Democratic Republic of Congo was a Belgian colony known as the Congo Free State 1885–1908 and the Belgian Congo 1908–1960. Independence in 1960 was followed by civil war and UN intervention. General Mobutu seized control in a coup in 1965 and changed the name of the country from the Republic of the Congo to Zaire in 1971. The country experienced a huge influx of refugees following the violence in Rwanda in 1994, and the first of three destructive civil wars broke out in 1996. Mobutu was overthrown in 1997 by Laurent Kabila, who changed the country's name to the Democratic Republic of Congo. (NOA)
Second country: An equatorial country in Africa, with a short Atlantic coastline; population 6,800,000 (estimated 2015); languages, French (official), Kikongo, and other Bantu languages; capital, Brazzaville. Also called Republic of Congo, Congo-Brazzaville. The region was colonized in the 19th century by France, and as Middle Congo formed part of the larger territory of French Congo (later, French Equatorial Africa). The country became independent in 1960. (NOA)
consanguineous (adjective)
Relating to or denoting people descended from the same ancestor. (OD)
As in: consanguineous marriage.
Constantinople (city)
consanguineous (adjective)
Relating to or denoting people descended from the same ancestor. (OD)
As in: consanguineous marriage.
Constantinople (city)
Former name (until 1930) for Istanbul. (NOA)
construct (noun)
An idea or theory containing various conceptual elements, typically one considered to be subjective and not based on empirical evidence. (OD)
(verb) Form (an idea or theory) by bringing together various conceptual elements, typically over a period of time. (OD)
As opposed to the verb meaning build or erect.
copacetic (adjective)
In excellent order. (OD)
Very satisfactory. (MW)
Fine.
Interesting fact: No one seems to know the origin of this word.
construct (noun)
An idea or theory containing various conceptual elements, typically one considered to be subjective and not based on empirical evidence. (OD)
(verb) Form (an idea or theory) by bringing together various conceptual elements, typically over a period of time. (OD)
As opposed to the verb meaning build or erect.
copacetic (adjective)
In excellent order. (OD)
Very satisfactory. (MW)
Fine.
Interesting fact: No one seems to know the origin of this word.
copy (noun)
The text of an advertisement, publicity material, or other marketing asset. (RM)
copywriter: A person who writes such copy.
coquette (noun)
A flirtatious woman. (OD)
A woman who endeavors without sincere affection to gain the attention and admiration of men. (MW)
coquettish (adjective): Behaving in such a way as to suggest a playful sexual attraction; flirtatious. (OD)
coquettishly (adverb)
corrigendum (noun)
A thing to be corrected, typically an error in a printed book. (OD)
An error in a printed work discovered after printing and shown with its correction on a separate sheet. (MW)
coquette (noun)
A flirtatious woman. (OD)
A woman who endeavors without sincere affection to gain the attention and admiration of men. (MW)
coquettish (adjective): Behaving in such a way as to suggest a playful sexual attraction; flirtatious. (OD)
coquettishly (adverb)
corrigendum (noun)
A thing to be corrected, typically an error in a printed book. (OD)
An error in a printed work discovered after printing and shown with its correction on a separate sheet. (MW)
counterpart (noun)
A person or thing that corresponds to or has the same function as another person or thing in a different place or situation (OD).
Note: In negotiations, I use this term when discussing the other side or sides, as there may be more than one. Jim Camp (Start With No) prefers the term respected adversary. In any case, the parties on the other side are not your friends. And even if they are friends, for the purposes of a negotiation and transaction, one should treat them with a certain degree of dispassion. (RM)
See: negotiation
couthy (adjective)
Of a person: Warm and friendly. Of a place: Cosy and comfortable. (OD)
crass (adjective)
Showing no intelligence or sensitivity. (OD)
Having or indicating such grossness of mind as precludes delicacy and discrimination. (MW)
Without refinement, delicacy, or sensitivity; gross; obtuse; stupid. (DC)
See: gauche
credulous (adjective)
Having or showing too great a readiness to believe things. (OD)
Ready to believe especially on slight or uncertain evidence. (MW)
See: incredulous
crenellations (noun)
The battlements of a castle or other building. (OD)
crepitation (noun)
A crackling or rattling sound. (OD)
crepuscular (adjective)
Of, relating to, or resembling twilight; dim. Occurring or active during twilight. (MW)
cruciverbalist (noun)
A person who enjoys or is skilled at solving crosswords. (OD)
custom (noun)
Regular dealings with a shop or business by customers. (OD)
Business patronage; usually habitual patrons. (MW)
A customer's, especially regular, dealings with a particular shop, business, etc.; the fact or state of a person being a regular customer. Most often used with possessive: my custom; their custom, etc. (OED)
cut-glass (adjective)
Used about a way of speaking in which words are pronounced very clearly and carefully, in a way that is typical of someone from a high social class : A cut-glass accent. (CD)
Characterized by precise and careful enunciation. (OD)
Example: She spoke in cut-glass Parisian French.
cynophilist (noun)
A dog fancier; one that is favorably disposed towards dogs. (MW)
One who loves dogs. (WN)
credulous (adjective)
Having or showing too great a readiness to believe things. (OD)
Ready to believe especially on slight or uncertain evidence. (MW)
See: incredulous
crenellations (noun)
The battlements of a castle or other building. (OD)
crepitation (noun)
A crackling or rattling sound. (OD)
crepuscular (adjective)
Of, relating to, or resembling twilight; dim. Occurring or active during twilight. (MW)
cruciverbalist (noun)
A person who enjoys or is skilled at solving crosswords. (OD)
custom (noun)
Regular dealings with a shop or business by customers. (OD)
Business patronage; usually habitual patrons. (MW)
A customer's, especially regular, dealings with a particular shop, business, etc.; the fact or state of a person being a regular customer. Most often used with possessive: my custom; their custom, etc. (OED)
cut-glass (adjective)
Used about a way of speaking in which words are pronounced very clearly and carefully, in a way that is typical of someone from a high social class : A cut-glass accent. (CD)
Characterized by precise and careful enunciation. (OD)
Example: She spoke in cut-glass Parisian French.
cynophilist (noun)
A dog fancier; one that is favorably disposed towards dogs. (MW)
One who loves dogs. (WN)