Hiatus

hiatus \hī-ˈā-təs\ noun: 1 a. a break in or as if in a material object; gap {the hiatus between the theory and the practice of the party — J. G. Colton}, b. a gap or passage in an anatomical part or organ,
2 a. an interruption in time or continuity; break (especially a period when something, as a program or activity, is suspended or interrupted) {after a 5-year hiatus from writing}, 3. the occurrence of two vowel sounds without pause or intervening consonantal sound

Etymology: Latin, from hiare to yawn

You may have noticed a hiatus in the entries here. After nearly a year and a half of daily postings, I suddenly and unexpectedly found myself unable to continue. Perhaps one day I’ll have the strength to resume, but in the meantime Sklonklish will remain online as an archive of words and images. If your perusal of these pages gave you even a small fraction of the pleasure I received in presenting these surreal pictures and wonderful words, then Sklonklish was a success.

Götterdämmurung

Götterdämmurung /ˌgah-təˈdæm-ə-rung/ noun: 1. apocalypse, 2. any cataclysmic downfall or momentous, apocalyptic event, especially of a regime or an institution

Etymology: German Götterdämmurung twilight of the gods, from Götter gods + Dämmerung haziness, nebulousness

Götterdämmurung is a German translation of the Norse Ragnarök, the prophesied mythological war of the gods and end of the world

Ouroboros

Ouroboros \ôr-rŏb'-ôr-rŭs\ noun: 1. a snake or serpent that forms the shape of a circle by eating its own tail (representing cyclicality, self-reflexivity or the continuous cycle of life and death), 2. a picture or symbol representing this

Etymology: Greek ouroboros tail-eater

Compare this etymology with yesterday’s; they both stem from the ancient Greek word for tail.

Cynosure

cynosure \ˈsī-nə-ˌshur or ˈsi-nə-ˌshur\ noun: 1 a. (capitalized) the northern constellation Ursa Minor, b. North Star, 2. one that serves to direct or guide,
3. a center of attraction or attention {turned an eyesore into a cynosure — Catherine Reynolds}

Etymology: Middle French cynosure Ursa Minor, guide, from Latin cynosura Ursa Minor, from Greek kynosoura, from kynos oura, (literally) dog’s tail

“Dog’s tail.” Hmmm…

Skirl

skirl \ˈskər(-ə)l\ intransitive verb: 1. (of a bagpipe) to emit the high shrill tone of the chanter, 2. to give forth music
transitive verb: to play music on the bagpipe
noun: a high shrill sound produced by the chanter of a bagpipe

Etymology: Middle English (Scots) skrillen, skirlen to scream, shriek, of Scandinavian origin

I bet there was a lot of skirling going on for Robert Burns Day on January 25th.

Ablution

ablution \ə-ˈblü-shən\ noun: 1 a. the washing of one’s body or part of it (as in a religious rite), b. plural the act or action of bathing

Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, from Late Latin ablutio, from Latin abluere to wash away, from ab- + lavere to wash

Does this word make you think of lutefisk, too?

Nabob

nabob \ˈnā-ˌbäb\ noun: 1. a provincial governor of the Mogul empire in India,
2. a person of great wealth or prominence

Etymology: Hindi navāb & Urdu nawāb, from Arabic nuwwāb, plural of nā'ib governor

Nabob, baobab, nabob, baobab!

Tumescent

tumescent \tü-ˈme-sənt\ adjective: somewhat swollen {tumescent tissue}

Etymology: Latin tumescent-, tumescens, present participle of tumescere to swell up, inchoative of tumēre to swell

You guessed it — tumor shares an etymology.

Tumid

tumid \ˈtü-məd\ adjective: 1. marked by swelling; swollen; enlarged {a badly infected tumid leg}, 2. protuberant; bulging {sails tumid in the breeze}, 3. bombastic; turgid

Etymology: Latin tumidus, from tumēre to swell

It’s not the teat — it’s the tumidity.

Turgid

turgid \ˈtər-jəd\ adjective: 1. being in a state of distension; swollen; tumid {turgid limbs},
2. excessively embellished in style or language; bombastic; pompous {turgid prose}

Etymology: Latin turgidus, from turgēre to be swollen

Would you rather have turgid limbs or turgid prose?

Olivaceous

olivaceous \ˌä-lə-ˈvā-shəs\ adjective: of the color olive or olive green

Etymology: Latin oliva olive + -aceus characterized by, full of

If olive and olive green are too quotidian for you, go ahead and use olivaceous.

Alluvium

alluvium \ ə-ˈlü-vē-əm\ noun: clay, silt, sand, gravel, or similar detrital material deposited by running water (plural alluviums or alluvia)

Etymology: Latin alluvius, from Late Latin alluere wash, flow past, from ad- to, in addition + luere atone, fulfill, pay, wash, cleanse

There should be a nursery rhyme incorporating fluvial and alluvium.

Senescence

senescence \si-ˈne-sən(t)s\ noun: 1. the state of being old; the process of becoming old, 2. the growth phase in a plant or plant part (as a leaf) from full maturity to death

Etymology: senescent, from Latin senescent-, senescens, present participle of senescere to grow old, from sen-, senex old

Compare this word to April 17’s juvenescence.

Doula

doula \ˈdü-lə\ noun: a woman experienced in childbirth who provides advice, information, emotional support, and physical comfort to a mother before, during, and just after childbirth

Etymology: Greek doulē female slave

Wikipedia states, “In Greece the word has negative connotations, denoting ‘slave,’ as some doulas have inadvertently discovered through their international social networks. For this reason some women performing professional labor support choose to call themselves ‘labor companions’ or ‘birthworkers.’”

Plagal

plagal \ˈplā-gəl\ adjective: 1. of a church mode, having the keynote on the fourth scale step, 2. of a cadence, progressing from the subdominant chord to the tonic

Etymology: Medieval Latin plagalis, ultimately from Greek plagios oblique, sideways, from plagos side; akin to Latin plaga net, region, Greek pelagos sea

Plagal’s etymology is related to yesterday’s word pelagic.

Pelagic

pelagic \pə-ˈla-jik\ adjective: of, relating to, or living or occurring in the open sea; oceanic {pelagic sediment} {pelagic birds}

Etymology: Latin pelagicus, from Greek pelagikos, from pelagos sea

It’s easy to see the relationship between today’s pelagic and yesterday’s littoral, but don’t forget about January 15th’s fluvial; check it out here.

Littoral

littoral \ˈli-tə-rəl; ˌli-tə-ˈral, -ˈräl\ adjective: of, relating to, or situated or growing on or near a shore especially of the sea
noun: a coastal region, especially the shore zone between high tide and low tide points

Etymology: Latin litoralis, from litor-, litus seashore

According to Merriam-Webster’s online pronunciation audio clips, littoral and literal sound exactly alike. I guess one tells the difference based solely on context.

Nevus

nevus \ˈnē-vəs\ (plural nevi \ˈnē-ˌvī\) noun: a congenital or acquired usually highly colored area on the skin that is either flat or raised

Etymology: New Latin, from Latin naevus

Different kinds of nevi have different anatomical or physiological origins. Moles, for instance, are made up of melanocytes (the cells that produce the pigment melanin), while port-wine stains get their color from dilated capillaries.

Nasion

nasion \ˈnā-zē-ˌän\ noun: the intersection of the frontal and two nasal bones of the human skull, visible on the surface of the face as a distinctly depressed area directly between the eyes and just superior to the bridge of the nose

Etymology: Latin nasus nose, sense of smell

The nasion is a depression and the inion is a projection. Could the two fit together like puzzle pieces? Only one way to find out. (Make sure your volunteer is a friend.)

Inion

inion \ˈi-nē-ˌän, -ən\ noun: the most prominent projection of the occipital bone at the lower rear part of the skull

Etymology: New Latin, from Greek inion back of the head, diminutive of in-, is sinew, tendon

According to Wikipedia the inion is not a straight synonym for the external occipital protuberance, but more precisely the highest point of said protuberance. I’m a little confused, though, because none of the anatomical diagrams I find online distinguishes between the two. If you can describe the difference or point to a picture that does, please post a comment.