ice baby

• ice
• baby
• vitrification
• ice twins
• ice twin
• ice
• twin
• twins

A baby conceived from a human egg which has been frozen for a period of time.
Example:
Egg freezing breakthrough will create generation of 'ice babies'. (The Telegraph, 9th October 2005) History, related words:
Though the expression "ice baby" might conjure up images of the American rapper Vanilla Ice perfoming his best-known single 'Ice Ice Baby', it has developed a significant and rather more serious meaning in the 21st century. "Ice baby" is the term now given to a baby born from a frozen human egg. The number of ice babies arriving in the next few years seems set to significantly increase with the development of a new procedure which overcomes the difficulties previously associated with egg freezing. Existing methods have run a major risk of damaging the eggs during the freezing process, but a new technique called vitrification, involving the use of a substance which acts as a kind of 'anti-freeze', reduces the potential for damage and thereby substantially increases the rate of successful pregnancies resulting from fertilisation of frozen eggs. Egg freezing started out as a process intended to assist women with fertility problems, particularly cancer patients wanting to protect their fertility prior to undergoing radiotherapy or chemo-therapy. However more recent advances have made the ice baby an increasingly controversial concept. Significantly improved success rates mean that there is now the potential for women to choose conception dates which fit in with their career plans. Women in their 20s and 30s could store their eggs for future use, putting their fertility, quite literally, 'on ice', and delaying motherhood until as late as their 50s. The universal potential of egg freezing is massive, described by some as on a par with the introduction of the contraceptive pill. It is predicted that within as little as a year we will see the first ice baby born as a matter of lifestyle choice rather than medical necessity. The term "ice baby" has appeared in the context of fertility treatment since the mid-nineties. On the model of the term test-tube baby, which first appeared in the seventies, "ice baby" is used to refer to babies born as a result of medical intervention which incorporates some kind of freezing process, whether of embryos, eggs or sperm. In 2002, a Manchester couple were the beneficiaries of what was believed to be a world record in fertility treatment, when an ice baby was born 21 years after his father's sperm was frozen prior to cancer treatment as a teenager. In the same year, Britain's first ice baby from a frozen egg was born, Emily Perry, conceived after her mother received treatment at the Midland Fertility Services clinic near Birmingham. With recent medical advances and the potential for egg freezing to be perceived as the ultimate kind of family planning, the term "ice baby" seems likely to enter mainstream use. We might also expect to see an increasing number of references to ice twins - twin ice babies.

icky

• gross

Displeasing, disgusting, unappealing.
Example:
Your kitchen is so icky! Why don't you bother to clean it up?
Etymology:
The word may be dervied from 'sticky', which describes something that attaches itself to you in an unwanted and unpleasant way. Synonym: gross


ideate
[EYE-dee-ayt]
to form an idea or conception of smth.
Example:
"Drawing on typically far-ranging and hands-on experience, designers are prolific in ideating". (Mike Tennity, "Design Management Journal", Summer 2003)
Etymology:
Like "idea" and "ideal", "ideate" comes from the Greek verb "idein", which means "to see". The sight-thought connection came courtesy of Plato, the Greek philosopher who based his theory of the ideal on the concept of seeing, claiming that a true philosopher can see the essential nature of things and can recognize their ideal form or state. Early uses of "idea", "ideal", and "ideate" in English were associated with Platonic philosophy; "idea" meant "an archetype" or "a standard of perfection," "ideal" meant "existing as an archetype," and "ideate" referred to forming Platonic ideas. But though "ideate" is tied to ancient philosophy, the word itself is a modern concoction, relatively speaking. It first appeared in English only about 400 years ago.


idiot box

• idiot
• box
• boob tube
• boob
• tube

A television.
Example:
I wasted my whole night in front of the idiot box.
Etymology:
An 'idiot' is a stupid person, and most televisions look like square 'boxes' (containers). This phrase suggests that if you spend too much time looking at the 'box' (television), you'll become an 'idiot'. Synonym: boob tube


idyll

• idyllic

[EYE-dl]
1. A simple descriptive work, either in poetry or prose, dealing with simple, rustic life; pastoral scenes; and the like.
2. A narrative poem treating an epic, romantic, or tragic theme.
3. A lighthearted carefree episode or experience.
4. A romantic interlude.
Examples:
1) Sheep are not the docile, pleasant creatures of the pastoral idyll. Any countryman will tell you that. They are sly, occasionally vicious, pathologically stupid. (Joanne Harris, "Chocolat")
2) From too much looking back, he was destroyed,... trying to re-create an idyll that never truly existed except in his own imagination. (Gore Vidal, "The Essential Gore Vidal")
3) She kept a diary that poignantly captured the sense of youthful gaiety shattered by events suddenly intruding on their teenage idyll. (James T. Fisher, "Dr. America")
4) The Guevaras' honeymoon idyll, such as it was, did not last long. (Jon Lee Anderson, "Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life")
Etymology:
"Idyll" ultimately derives from Greek "eidullion" ("a short descriptive poem (usually on pastoral subjects); an idyll"); from "eidos" ("that which is seen; form; shape; figure"). The adjective form is idyllic.


if the shoe fits, wear it

• shoe fits
• shoe
• fit
• wear
• fits

If the remark applies to you, you should admit that it is true; if what is being said in general describes you then it probably means you.
Examples:
1) He was complaining that most of the workers at his company were lazy. However his friend looked at him and said that if the shoe fits, wear it.
2) Some students never clean up after art class. I'm not mentioning names, but if the shoe fits, wear it.
History:
This proverb comes from an older expression popular in the 1700s, "If the cap fits, put it on." The "cap" referred to was a dunce cap. As the years went by, the "cap" in the saying changed to "slipper", perhaps because of the popularity of the story of Cinderella. A playwright in the early 1900s wrote, "If the slipper fits, wear it." Later "slipper" changed to "shoe." The idea is clear: accept a comment that refers to you as you would wear a shoe that fits your foot.


if wishes were horses

• beggars would ride
• if
• wishes
• wish
• were
• be
• horses
• horse
• beggars
• beggar
• would
• ride

This proverb comes from past times, when horses were a primary means of transportation and many people were too poor to own them. It means that if wishes were easy achieve, then everyone would have everything they want.
Example:
"I wish I had a million dollars," said Cal.
"Sure," said Alicia, "and if wishes were horses, beggars would ride."

ignoble
[ig-NOH-bul]
1. Of low birth or family; not noble; not illustrious; plebeian; common; humble.
2. Not noble in quality, character, or purpose; characterized by baseness, lowness, or meanness.
Examples:
1) Heroes are only human. Their noble deeds inspire, as they should. Their ignoble deeds make clear that even the greatest human is no god. (Don Wyclif, "Dr. King's Moral Debit," New York Times, November 14, 1989)
2) Although she returns to Ireland, Billy counts on her coming back to marry him, and when Dennis tells him she has died from pneumonia, he's shattered for life, drowning his romantic sorrow in alcohol and sliding passively toward a drunk's ignoble death. (Celia McGee, "'Billy' captivates with quiet strength," USA Today, December 2, 1999)
Etymology:
"Ignoble" derives from Latin "ignobilis", from "in-" ("not") + "nobilis" (Old Latin "gnobilis" - "noble").


ignoramus

• ignoramuses
• blockhead
• boob
• dimwit
• dodo
• lunkhead
• meathead
• nitwit

[ig-nuh-RAY-mus]
An ignorant person; a dunce.
Example:
1) My "perfect" reader is not a scholar but neither is he an ignoramus; he does not read because he has to, nor as a pastime, nor to make a splash in society, but because he is curious about many things, wishes to choose among them and does not wish to delegate this choice to anyone; he knows the limits of his competence and education, and directs his choices accordingly. (Primo Levi, "This Above All: Be Clear", New York Times, November 20, 1988)
2) I am quite an ignoramus, I know nothing in the world. (Charlotte Bronte, "Villette")
Etymology:
"Ignoramus" was the name of a character in George Ruggle's 1615 play of the same name. The name was derived from the Latin, literally, "we are ignorant", from "ignorare" ("not to know"), from "ignarus" ("not knowing"), from "ig-" (for in-, "not") + "gnarus" ("knowing, acquainted with, expert in"). It is related to ignorant and ignore. The correct plural form is "ignoramuses". Since "ignoramus" in Latin is a verb, not a noun, there is no justification for a plural form ending in "-i".
Synonyms:
blockhead, boob, dimwit, dodo, lunkhead, meathead, nitwit.

ignorance is bliss

• ignorance
• bliss

It is better not to know bad news sometimes, especially if you're happy; ignorant people have nothing to worry about.
Examples:
1) The teacher said, "Ignorance is bliss - until you write exams".
2) The bad news can wait until tomorrow. Sometimes, ignorance is bliss.
History, more examples:
Many writers over the centuries have expressed this idea. The Greek playwright Sophocles wrote it around 400 B.C. Nineteen hundred years later Erasmus, a Dutch scholar, quoted it. Then Thomas Gray, the British poet of the 1700s, used it in one of his poems. He wrote: "Where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise." It has been a popular saying ever since.


ilk
[ILK]
Sort, kind.
Example:
Mr. Reynolds ran a tight, efficient business with hard-working employees, and so he had no patience for slackers like Charlie and his ilk.
History, related words, more examples:
The Old English pronoun "ilca," the predecessor of "ilk," was synonymous with "same." "Ilk" persisted in that use in Scots, where it was used in the phrase "of that ilk," meaning "of the same place, territorial designation, or name." It was used chiefly in reference to the names of land-owning families and their eponymous estates, as in "the Guthries of that ilk," which meant "the Guthries of Guthrie." But a misunderstanding arose concerning the Scots phrase - it was apparently interpreted as meaning "of that kind or sort," a usage that soon found its way into modern English. "Ilk" has been established in English with its current meaning and part of speech since the late 18th century.

imbibition

• absorption

[im-buh-BIH-shun]
1. The act or action of drinking
Example:
The sign at the entrance to the building stated that the imbibition of alcoholic beverages on the premises was prohibited.
2. The act or action of taking in or up
Synonym: absorption
Etymology:
All senses of "imbibition" are based on Latin "imbibere", a verb whose meaning "to drink in" includes absorption of liquids, consuming drink, and appropriating ideas. Joseph Thomas James Hewlett was a 19th-century English curate and schoolmaster who supplemented his insufficient income by writing novels. In "Parsons and Widows", in which the author disguises himself as "the Curate of Mosbury", Hewlett provided us with the first known use of "imbibition" to refer to a person's drinking, in the phrase "imbibition of a little strong beer". Until then, "imbibition" had been used scientifically to refer to various processes of soaking and absorption, or figuratively, to the taking in of knowledge. (The word is still used scientifically today to refer to the taking up of fluid.)


imbricate

• ombriphilous

[IM-bruh-kayt]
To overlap; especially: to overlap like roof tiles.
Example:
Fine-spun and see-through, the cotton... acts as canvas and writing paper, pierced and covered by the imbricated stitches that decorate it. (Frances Richard, "Artforum International", January 1, 2005)
History, related words:
The ancient Romans knew how to keep the interior of their villas dry when it rained. They tiled their roofs with overlapping curved tiles so the "imber" (Latin for "rain") couldn't seep in. The tiles were, in effect, "rain tiles," so the Romans called them "imbrices" (singular "imbrex"). The verb for installing the tiles was "imbricare." The "imbr-" root has never really been put to use in English rain-related words (though scientists have made use of the closely-related Greek "ombros"; for example, "ombriphilous" describes a plant that loves heavy rainfall). English speakers used the past participle of "imbricare" - "imbricatus" - to create "imbricate," which was first used as adjective meaning "overlapping (like roof tiles)" and later became a verb meaning "to overlap."


imbroglio
[im-BROHL-yoh] 1. A complicated and embarrassing state of things. 2. A confused or complicated disagreement or misunderstanding. 3. An intricate, complicated plot, as of a drama or work of fiction. 4. A confused mass; a tangle.
Examples:
1) The political imbroglio also appears to endanger the latest International Monetary Fund loan package for Russia, which is considered critical to avoid a default this year on the country's $17 billion in foreign debt. (David Hoffman, "Citing Economy, Yeltsin Fires Premier", Washington Post, May 13, 1999)
2) Worse still, hearings and investigations into scandals -- from the imbroglio over Clarence Thomas's Supreme Court nomination in 1991 to the charges of perjury against President Clinton in 1998 - have overshadowed any consideration of the country's future. (John B. Judis, "The Paradox of American Democracy")
3) To the extent that Washington had a policy toward the subcontinent, its aim was to be evenhanded and not get drawn into the diplomatic imbroglio over Kashmir. (George Perkovich, "India's Nuclear Bomb")
4) The imbroglio over the seemingly arcane currency issue threatens to plunge Indonesia - and possibly its neighbors as well - into a renewed bout of financial turmoil. (Paul Blustein, "Currency Dispute Threatens Indonesia's Bailout", Washington Post, February 14, 1998)
Etymology:
"Imbroglio" derives from Italian, from Old Italian "imbrogliare" ("to tangle, to confuse"), from "in-" ("in") + "brogliare" ("to mix, to stir"). It is related to "embroil" ("to entangle in conflict or argument").


imbue

• infuse
• imbrue

[im-BYOO]
1. To permeate or influence as if by dyeing; to infuse
2. To instill profoundly; to cause to become impressed or penetrated.
3. To tinge or dye deeply; to cause to absorb thoroughly; as, "clothes thoroughly imbued with black."
4. To provide with something freely or naturally; to endow.
Examples:
1) The coach hoped that his pep talk would imbue the team with a sense of confidence before the final game.
2) Beauty is equal parts flesh and imagination: we imbue it with our dreams, saturate it with our longings. (Nancy Etcoff, "Survival of the Prettiest")
3) Along with the rest of us he would certainly applaud attempts to imbue the young with the spirit of fair play. (John Bryant, "Football should heed the Corinthian spirit," Times (London), February 17, 2000)
4) He wanted to remake American cinema into a positive force for good, to imbue it with a transcendent sense of virtue and order. (Thomas Doherty, "Pre-Code Hollywood")
Etymology, related words, more examples:
First appearing in English in the mid-1500s, "imbue" derives from the Latin verb "imbuere," meaning "to dye, to wet, to steep, to saturate or moisten." Like its synonym "infuse," "imbue" implies the introduction of one thing into another so as to affect it throughout. A nation can be imbued with pride, for example, or a photograph might be imbued with a sense of melancholy. In the past "imbue" has also been used synonymously with "imbrue," an obscure word meaning "to drench or stain," but etymologists do not think the two words are related. "Imbrue" has been traced back through Anglo-French and Old French to the Latin verb "bibere," meaning "to drink."


immaculate

• maculate
• spottily

[ih-MAK-yuh-lut]
1. Having no stain or blemish; pure.
2. Containing no flaw or error.
3. Spotlessly clean; having no colored spots or marks.
Example:
The Rileys expected to find that their teenagers had wreaked havoc in the house while they were gone, but they found the place immaculate and tidy.
History, antonym, synonym, more examples:
The opposite of "immaculate" is "maculate," which means "marked with spots" or "impure." The Latin word "maculatus," the past participle of a verb meaning "to stain," is the source of both words and can be traced back to "macula," a word that scientists still use for spots on the skin, the wings of insects, and the surface of celestial objects. "Maculate" has not marked as many pages as "immaculate," but it has appeared occasionally (one might say "spottily"), especially as an antithesis to "immaculate." For example, in "The New Republic", May 25, 1998, Victor Hugo's "Les Miserables" is described as being "about the struggle of a mistreated man as he rises to the top, along with a mortal conflict between this maculate virtuous man and an immaculate pursuing demon."


immolate
[IM-uh-layt]
1. To sacrifice; to offer in sacrifice; to kill as a sacrificial victim.
2. To kill or destroy, often by fire.
Examples:
1) What have I gained, that I no longer immolate a bull to Jove, or to Neptune, or a mouse to Hecate... if I quake at opinion, the public opinion, as we call it; or at the threat of assault, or contumely, or bad neighbors, or poverty, or mutilation, or at the rumor of revolution, or of murder? (Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Essays and English traits")
2) In the city of Bhopal, police used water canon to thwart a group of Congress workers who were on the point of immolating themselves. (Peter Popham, "Gandhi critics are expelled by party," Independent, May 21, 1999)
3) Bowls of honey at the room's center drew random insects to immolate themselves against a nearby bug zapper. (Carol Kino, "Damien Hirst at Gagosian," Art in America, May 2001)
Etymology:
"Immolate" comes from the past participle of Latin "immolare" ("to sacrifice; originally, to sprinkle a victim with sacrificial meal"), from "in-" + "mola" ("grits or grains of spelt coarsely ground and mixed with salt").


immure

• shut in
• confine
• shut
• cloister
• imprison
• incarcerate

1. To build into a wall; especially: to entomb in a wall.
2. To enclose within or as if within walls; hence, to shut up; to imprison; to incarcerate.
Examples:
1) The prince in the fairy tale visits Rapunzel, who is immured in a tower with no doors or stairs, by climbing up her long braids of hair.
2) Not surprisingly, Sally shuddered at the thought of being immured in the black cave, to die slowly and hopelessly, far below the sunny hillside. (Peter Pierce, "The Fiction of Gabrielle Lord," Australian Literary Studies, October 1999)
3) True, there was a Mughal emperor in Delhi until 1857, but he was emperor in name only, the shadow of a memory, described by Lord Macaulay as 'a mock sovereign immured in a gorgeous state prison'. (Anthony Read, "The Proudest Day")
4) When I tried to think clearly about this, I felt that my mind was immured, that it couldn't expand in any direction. (Andrew Solomon, "The Noonday Demon")
5) Immured by privilege in a way of life that offered little scope, army wives were often enfeebled by boredom. (Frances Spalding, "Duncan Grant: A Biography")
Synonyms: shut in; confine; cloister; imprison; incarcerate.
Etymology, more meanings and examples:
Like "mural", "immure" comes from "murus", a Latin noun that means "wall". "Immurare", a Medieval Latin verb, was formed from "murus" ("wall") and the prefix "in-, im-" (meaning "in" or "within"). It is related to mural, a painting applied to a wall. "Immure", which first appeared in English in the late 16th century, literally means "to wall in" or "to enclose with a wall", but it has extended meanings as well. In addition to senses meaning "imprison" and "entomb", the word sometimes has broader applications, essentially meaning "to shut in" or "to confine". One might remark, for example, that a very studious acquaintance spends most of her time "immured in the library" or that a withdrawn teenager "immures himself in his bedroom every night".


imperturbable

• serene
• unflappable
• calm
• cool
• composed
• perturb
• perturbable

[im-per-TER-buh-bul]
marked by extreme calm, impassivity, and steadiness
Synonyms: serene, unflappable, calm, composed, cool
Example:
As an emergency medical technician, Carol was expected to remain imperturbable even under the most chaotic and demanding of circumstances.
History, related words:
From Latin "imperturbabilis" - "that cannot be disturbed" (Augustine), from "in-" ("not") + "perturbabilis".
There is an interesting time lag between the appearance of "imperturbable" and its antonym, "perturbable." Although "imperturbable" is known to have existed since the middle of the 15th century, "perturbable" didn't show up in written English until 1800. The verb "perturb" (meaning "to disquiet" or "to throw into confusion") predates both "imperturbable" and "perturbable"; it has been part of English since the 14th century. All three words derive from the Latin "perturbare," also meaning "to throw into confusion," which in turn comes from the combination of "per-" and "turbare," which means "to disturb." Other relatives of "imperturbable" include "disturb" and "turbid."


impervious

• pervious

[im-PUR-vee-uhs, im-PER-vee-us]
1. Not admitting of entrance or passage through; impenetrable.
2. Not capable of being harmed or damaged.
3. Not capable of being affected or disturbed.
Examples:
1) Shipboard Internet communications will not be ubiquitous for several years, in part because it is expensive and complicated to rewire ships, and in part because the companies want systems that are impervious to such potential Internet problems as hackers, software viruses and pornography. (Peter H. Lewis, "From: Noah@Ark. Subject: Rain." New York Times, October 3, 1999)
2) The building is tremorproof, fireproof and impervious to even the most powerful tornado. (Michael D'Antonio, "Bunker Mentality," New York Times Magazine, March 26, 2000)
3) He was wearing a red ronko, a "war vest," which, he said, made him impervious to bullets. (Jeffrey Goldberg, "A Continent's Chaos," New York Times Magazine, May 21, 2000)
4) As it turns out, digital signals are so robust and impervious to interference that the station has picked up a viewable signal 65 miles away from the tower. (Joel Brinkley, "TV Goes Digital: Warts and Wrinkles Can't Hide," New York Times, March 3, 1997)
5) The church's thick stone walls seemed to be impervious to noise... ("Pittsburgh Post-Gazette", August 26, 2001)
Etymology, related words:
The English language is far from impervious, and, of course, a great many Latinate terms have entered it throughout its history. "Impervious" is one of the many that broke through in the 17th century. It comes from Latin "impervius", from "in-/im-" ("not") + "pervius" ("with a way through", hence "penetrable"), from "per-" ("through") + "via" ("way"). "Pervius" is also the source of the relatively uncommon English word "pervious," meaning "accessible" or "permeable".


implacable
[im-PLAK-uh-bull] Not placable; not to be appeased; incapable of being pacified; inexorable; as, an implacable foe.
Examples:
1) For it is my office to prosecute the guilty with implacable zeal. (Paola Capriolo, "Floria Tosca", translated by Liz Heron)
2) He... then continued on up the road, his shoulders bent beneath the implacable sun. (Arturo Pérez-Reverte, "The Fencing Master")
3) She conducted her life and her work with all the steady and implacable seriousness of a steamroller. ("The Stein Salon Was The First Museum of Modern Art", New York Times, December 1, 1968)
Etymology:
"Implacable" ultimately comes from Latin "implacabilis", from "in-" ("not") + "placabilis" ("placable"), from "placo, placare" ("to soothe, calm, appease").



impolitic

• unwise
• inexpedient

[im-PAH-luh-tik]
Not politic; contrary to or lacking in policy.
Synonyms: unwise, inexpedient.
Example:
It was highly impolitic of Mayor Washburn to recommend a mayoral pay increase shortly before he ran for reelection.
Etymology, related words, more examples:
"Impolitic" appeared over 400 years ago as an antonym of "politic," a word that basically means "shrewd," "sagacious," or "tactful." "Politic" came to us via Middle French from Latin "politicus." The Latin word, in turn, came from a Greek word based on "polites," meaning "citizen." "Impolitic" has often been used to refer to action or policy on the part of public figures that is considered politically unwise - from British statesman Edmund Burke's judicious "the most ... impolitick of all things, unequal taxation" (1797) to a recent description (in "U.S. News & World Report", June 20, 2005) of DNC Chairman Howard Dean's "impolitic dissing of the other side."


importunate
[im-POR-chuh-nit]
Troublesomely urgent; overly persistent in request or demand; unreasonably solicitous.
Examples:
1) An emperor penguin in captivity starved to death by feeding all his rations - about six pounds of fish daily - to an importunate chick. (Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, "The Emperor's Embrace")
2) The play is a cacophony of importunate ringing doorbells and telephones, of pleas both professional and romantic from an exasperating assortment of colleagues and admirers. (Ben Brantley, "Present Laughter," New York Times, November 19, 1996)
3) Jokes form a kind of currency, such that a wise-crack from the most importunate beggar may bring instant reward. (Max Rodenbeck, "Cairo: The City Victorious")
Etymology:
"Importunate" is derived from Latin "importunus" - "unsuitable, troublesome, (of character) assertive, insolent, inconsiderate."


importune

• Beg
• Entreat
• beseech
• implore

[im-per-TOON]
1. To press or urge with troublesome persistence.
2. To annoy, trouble.
Example:
At times the whole world seems to be in conspiracy to importune you with emphatic trifles. (Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Essays")
3. To beg, urge, or solicit persistently or troublesomely.
Etymology; synonyms, their difference, examples:
C.1425 (implied in "importunely"), from M.Fr. "importuner", from M.L. "importunari" - "to make oneself troublesome," from L. "importunus" - "unfit, troublesome," originally "having no harbor" (i.e. "difficult to access"), from "in-" ("not") + "portus" ("harbor").
"Importune" has many synonyms - including "beg," "entreat," "beseech," and "implore." "Beg" suggests earnestness or insistence especially in asking for a favor ("The children begged to stay up late"). "Entreat" implies an effort to persuade or to overcome resistance ("She entreated him to change his mind"). "Beseech" implies great eagerness or anxiety ("I beseech you to have mercy"), and "implore" adds to "beseech" a suggestion of greater urgency or anguished appeal ("He implored her not to leave him"). But it is "importune" that best conveys irritating doggedness in trying to break down resistance to a request and the accompanying annoyance ("The filmmakers were importuning viewers for contributions"), as it has since Middle English speakers adopted it from Anglo-French.


imprecation
[im-prih-KAY-shuhn]
1. The act of imprecating, or invoking evil upon someone.
2. A curse.
Examples:
1) After a while, he stopped hurling imprecations... and, as he often did after such an outburst, became quite remorseful. (Wayne Johnston, "The Colony of Unrequited Dreams")
2) Would he criticize an erring colleague? "I shall," Dirksen would promise, in a voice like the finest whiskey aged in fog, "invoke upon him every condign imprecation." (Lance Morrow, "We Lose a Great Speaker, We Gain a Great Book," Time, May 24, 2000)
Etymology:
"Imprecation" derives from Latin "imprecatio", from "imprecari" ("to invoke harm upon, to pray against"), from "in-" + "precari" ("to pray").


impregnable
1. Not capable of being stormed or taken by assault; unconquerable; as, an impregnable fortress.
2. Difficult or impossible to overcome or refute successfully; beyond question or criticism; as, an impregnable argument.
Examples:
1) During this destruction the villagers... relied on their ancient instinct for survival and retreated to the impregnable fortress of the mountain. (Suheil Bushrui and Joe Jenkins, "Kahlil Gibran: Man and Poet")
2) What Spinoza says of laws is equally true of party-platforms, - that those are strong which appeal to reason, but those are impregnable which compell the assent both of reason and the common affections of mankind. (James Russell Lowell, "The Election in November", The Atlantic, October 1860)
Etymology:
"Impregnable" is from Old French, from the prefix "im-" ("not", from Latin "in-") + "prenable" ("able to be taken or captured"), from "prendre" ("to take"), from Latin "prehendere".


imprimatur
[im-prih-MAH-tur; -MAY-]
1. Official license or approval to print or publish a book, paper, etc.; especially, such a license issued by the Roman Catholic episcopal authority.
2. Approval; sanction.
3. A mark of approval or distinction.
Examples:
1) Vatican officials have overruled a 1994 decision by a bishop in England, ordering him to withdraw his imprimatur from a popular religious education text that had come under attack from conservatives. ("Vatican orders bishop to remove imprimatur," National Catholic Reporter, February 27, 1998)
2) His name was known and respected on both sides of the Atlantic; his imprimatur on a stock or bond offering could be worth millions to the firm doing the issue. (H. W. Brands, "Masters of Enterprise")
3) But neither controversial phenomena nor potentially illuminating but statistically insignificant research has had the imprimatur of a peer-reviewed journal - until now. (Kaja Perina, "Probing folklore & fringe science," Psychology Today, July-August 2002)
Etymology:
"Imprimatur" is from New Latin "imprimatur" - "let it be printed," from "imprimere" - "to imprint," from Latin, from "in-" + "premere" ("to press").


improvident
Lacking foresight or forethought; not foreseeing or providing for the future; negligent or thoughtless.
Examples:
1) Elizabeth's husband... had been a reckless, improvident man, who left many debts behind him when he died suddenly of a consumption in September 1704. (David Nokes, "Jane Austen: A Life")
2) Lily is spoiled, pleasure-loving, and has one of those society mothers who are as improvident as a tornado. (Elizabeth Hardwick, "Sight-Readings: American Fictions")
3) He called the decision "an exercise in raw judicial power" that was "improvident and extravagant". (Linda Greenhouse, "White Announces He'll Step Down From High Court", New York Times, March 20, 1993)
Etymology:
"Improvident" derives from Latin "improvidens", "improvident-", from "im-" (for "in-), "not", + "providens, provident-", present participle of "providere" ("to see beforehand, to provide for"), from "pro-" ("before, forward") + "videre" ("to see").


impuissant
[im-PWIH-sunt]
weak, powerless
Example:
Jonah was a relentless bully who sought to intimidate any impuissant student that he could find in the schoolyard.
Etymology:
Both the adjective "impuissant" and the noun "impuissance" came to English from Anglo-French. They are derived from the prefix "in-" (meaning "not") and the noun "puissance", which means "power" and is a word in English in its own right. "Puissance" derives from the verb "poer", meaning "to be able" or "to be powerful", and is ultimately related to the same Latin roots that gave us words such as "power" and "potent". While both "puissant" and "impuissance" first appeared in English during the 15th century, "impuissant" did not make its first appearance in the language until 1629.


impunity
exemption or freedom from punishment, harm, or loss
Example:
The emperor was shocked and dismayed by the rebellion of a people whom he had so long oppressed with impunity.
Etymology:
Kings behaving with impunity can be a royal pain - which makes sense etymologically. "Impunity" (like the words "pain", "penal", and "punish") traces to the Latin noun "poena", meaning "punishment". The Latin word, in turn, came from Greek "poine", meaning "payment" or "penalty". Leaders acting with impunity have prompted use of the word since the 1500s, as in this 1660 example by Englishman Roger Coke: "This unlimited power of doing anything with impunity, will only beget a confidence in kings of doing what they list [desire]." But "impunity" can be applied to the lowliest of beings as well as the loftiest: "Certain beetles have learned to detoxify [willow] leaves in their digestive tract so they can eat them with impunity" ("Smithsonian", September 1986).


in a bind

• in a jam
• bind
• jam
• be in a bind
• be in a jam

In a bad situation; in trouble
Examples:
1) Professor X. was really in a bind after he was captured by the hostile natives. 2) Ted was in a bind after Jane decided to move out of their apartment.
Etymology:
'Bind' means 'to tie' or 'to secure'. The phrase 'in a bind' comes from lumberjacks (men who cut down trees). When a saw gets stuck or caught in a tree, it is 'in a bind', or trapped in the wood.
Synonym: in a jam


in cahoots

• be in cahoots
• in cahoot
• cahoots
• cahoot

In a partnership, with an implication of criminality; working together on secret plans.
Example: I'm afraid our accountant may be in cahoots with the local crime boss.
Etymology: This phrase was in use by the early 1820s. It may derive from the French word for cabin, 'cahute' - and thus refer to people planning something in a small cabin or house, beyond observation.

in full swing

• be in full swing
• full swing
• full
• swing
• be in full action
• in full action
• full action
• action

At the highest level of activity; proceeding with full vigor; in full operation; going on without restraint.
Synonym: in full action
Examples:
1) For the first time in years the factory was in full swing.
2) The party was in full swing.
Etymology:
The phrase "in full swing" (1570) is probably from bell-ringing.


in high gear

• high gear
• high
• gear

Carrying on an activity with a great deal of energy, or at a rapid pace; to be very enthusiastic about something.
Example: We worked in high gear to finish the project before the deadline.

in hot water

• be in hot water
• be in the hot seat
• in the hot seat
• hot water
• hot
• water
• the hot seat
• hot seat
• seat

To be in trouble; to be the object of a someone's anger; in an embarrassing situation with someone of authority.
Examples:
1) Jim's friendly relationship with his secretary landed him in hot water with his wife. 2) Because she arrives late for work so frequently, Kim is in hot water with her boss.
Etymology:
This popular expression was being used as early as the 1500s. It may refer to the fact that if you're cooking and you accidentally spill scalding water on yourself, you'll be in trouble. Or it could refer to the ancient custom of pouring a pot of boiling water on intruders as a way of chasing them off. In any case, hot water is definitely something you want to stay out of - unless it's a bubble bath! 'Hot water' is used for cooking, too, and if you are 'in hot water', you are in a bad situation.
Synonym: in the hot seat

in one ear and out the other

• in
• out
• the other
• other

Without any influence or effect; unheeded
Example:
His mind was made up, so my arguments went in one ear and out the other.


in one's hair

• be in one's hair
• hair

Constantly annoying; bothering someone again and again.
Examples:
1) My little brother is always getting in my hair! 2) Be careful how you fill out your tax forms - you don't want the government in your hair.
Etymology:
It can be difficult to remove something that is caught in your hair. For example, if you get chewing gum in your hair it can take hours to get it out - and it's very annoying to do. So if a person is 'in your hair', they are annoying and hard to get rid of.


in one's stead

• in my stead
• in smb.'s stead
• in stead
• stead

In one's place or in place of that person; in one's place but with authority to represent that person.
Example:
Allen went to the meeting in my stead.

in perpetuity

• perpetuity

forever; for an indefinitely long period of time
Example:
The US Government gave the land to the tribe in perpetuity.


in the bag

• bag

Certain of success; fixed.
Example:
The quarterback thinks that the state championship is in the bag.
History:
In the 1600s hunters used to stuff the small birds and animals they had shot into their game bags. A successful hunter had his catch "in the bag." Also, in cockfighting, the game birds were transported to the battle scene in bags. An owner, confident of his bird, would say that victory was "in the bag." By the first half of the 20th century this expression had come to mean a "sure win."


in the black

• be in the black
• the black
• black

Showing a profit; operating at a profit; in a sound financial position; having an income which exceeds expenses.
Example:
After one year our company was in the black.

in the doghouse

• doghouse

In disgrace, disfavor or dislike; facing punishment.
Examples:
1) He is in the doghouse with his wife because he went out drinking three times last week.
2) My mother forgot it was my father's birthday, so she's in the doghouse.
Etymology:
This might have come from the old custom of banishing a bad dog outside to its doghouse. Or it could have originated with the story of Peter Pan, in which Mr. Darling treats the beloved pet dog badly and his children fly off with Peter Pan. Mr. Darling feels so guilty that he lives in the doghouse until his children return home.

in the hot seat

• be in the hot seat
• in hot water
• be in hot water
• hot seat
• hot water
• hot
• seat
• water

In trouble; in a very uncomfortable situation.
Examples:
1) The analysts who promoted the dot-bomb stocks are now in the hot seat with the SEC. 2) Andrew was really in the hot seat after his girlfriend caught him lying to her. Etymology:
'Hot seat' is American prison slang for the electric chair (a method of execution). The phrase 'in the hot seat' has come to refer to any kind of bad situation. Synonym: in hot water

in the limelight

• be in the limelight
• limelight

At the center of attention
Example:
Mario loves to be in the limelight. Wait until he sees his picture on the front page.
Etymology:
All theaters today have powerful electric spotlights that throw bright beams of light on featured performers. In many theaters, beginning in the 1840s, the beam was created by heating lime, a form of calcium oxide, until it produced brilliant white light. A strong lens directed it onto the dancer, juggler, actor, or singer on stage. Anyone "in the limelight" was the center of the audience's attention. Today, we say that a person who gets a lot of attention, especially from the media, is "in the limelight."

in the pink

• be in the pink
• pink

In excellent health physically and emotionally; looking and feeling healthy and happy.
Examples:
1) Last time I saw Barb, she was in the pink. She looked great.
2) I was pleased to see that old Zack's in the pink.
Etymology:
Centuries ago "pink" was the name for a popular garden flower. The meaning of the word changed over the years to mean a thing or person at its best. Then William Shakespeare used "pink" in one of his plays (around 1600) to mean perfection. And by the early 1900s, "pink" referred to health, probably because a rosy or pink complexion is a sign of good health


in the red

• be in the red
• red
• the red

In debt, in the minus.
Example:
Last year our business was still in the red.

in the same boat

• be in the same boat
• the same boat
• same boat
• same
• boat

Having the same trouble; in the same messy situation; in a similar situation.
Examples:
1) We are all in the same boat now that our company has gone out of business.
2) Look, we're all in the same boat, and we've got to work together.
History:
Ever since this saying was first used by ancient Greeks, people have known that all passengers in the same boat, from a sailboat to an ocean liner, share the same possible risks. Over the centuries, the meaning of the expression came to include all people in similar, unpleasant circumstances on land, sea, or in the air.


in the slammer

• slammer
• behind bars
• up the river
• be in the slammer
• under glass
• behind
• bars
• river
• glass
• bar

In jail; behind the locked doors of a prison.
Example: Tomas spent a few years in the slammer for robbing a grocery store. Etymology: The phrase refers to the closing of a door. When a door is 'slammed' it means that it was closed with great force. Synonyms: behind bars, up the river, under glass


inamorata

• inamorato

[in-am-uh-RAH-tuh]
A woman whom one is in love with; a mistress.
Examples:
1) Each of the gubernatorial candidates has been vying to prove that he is the least likely to take a state plane to the beach for a date with his inamorata or get involved with a struggle over how to evict his spouse from the governor's mansion. (Gail Collins, "Uncontested Contests," New York Times, November 2, 1999)
2) There are cynical experts on romanticism who counsel one to switch from one young inamorata to another in the nick of time. (Paul West, "Life With Swan")
Etymology:
"Inamorata" comes from Italian "innamorata", feminine of "innamorato", from the past participle of "innamorare" ("to inspire with love"), from "in-" (from Latin, "in, into, on, among") + "amore" ("love", from Latin "amor", from "amare" - "to love"). A man with whom one is in love is an inamorato.


incarcerate

• cancel

1. to put in prison
Example:
After being incarcerated for ten years, the former prisoner was ready to enjoy life as a free civilian.
2. to subject to confinement
Etymology:
A criminal sentenced to incarceration may wish his debt to society could be canceled, but such a wistful felon might be surprised to learn that "incarcerate" and "cancel" are related. "Incarcerate" comes from "incarcerare", a Latin verb meaning "to imprison". That Latin root comes from "carcer", Latin for "prison". Etymologists think that "cancel" probably got its start when the spelling of "carcer" was modified to "cancer", which means "lattice" in Latin - an early meaning of "cancel" in English was "to mark (a passage) for deletion with lines crossed like a lattice". Aside from its literal meaning, "incarcerate" can also have a figurative application meaning "to subject to confinement," as in "a man who is incarcerated in his obsessions".


incarnadine
[in-KAR-nuh-dyn]
1. Having a fleshy pink color.
2. Red; blood-red.
3. To make red or crimson.
Examples:
1) Captain Dobo opened the castle's wine cellars and broke open the casks for his men, who greeted the sultan's soldiers without first politely wiping the incarnadine wine from their blood-red lips and bearded chins. (Kevin Keating, "Kilroy Was Here!" International Travel News, October 1, 2001)
2) The more he scrubbed it, the more it bled. It made the seas incarnadine, he said. (Judy Driscoll, "Biddy takes pink gin to the country dance," Hecate, May 1, 1993)
3) In a night of rain, the ruddy reflections of their lights incarnadine the clouds till the entire city appears to be the prey of a monster conflagration. (Alvan F. Sanborn, "New York After Paris," The Atlantic, October 1906)
4) Will all great Neptune's ocean wash this blood
Clean from my hand?
No, this my hand will rather
The multitudinous seas incarnadine,
Making the green one red.
(Shakespeare, "Macbeth")
Etymology:
From Italian "incarnatino", which came from the Latin "incarnato", something "incarnate", made flesh, from "in-" + "caro, carn-" - "flesh." It is related to "carnation", etymologically the flesh-colored flower; "incarnate" - "in the flesh; made flesh"; and "carnal" - "pertaining to the body or its appetites."


incestuous amplification

• incestuous
• amplification
• group polarization
• group
• polarization

1. The reinforcement of set beliefs among like-minded people, leading to miscalculations and errors in judgment.
2. The act or result of amplifying, enlarging, or extending a memetic process in an improperly intimate or interconnected way.
3. a) An inappropriate addition to or expansion of a statement or idea; b) a statement with such a taboo addition.
4. (politics) a) The process of increasing the magnitude of a overarching plan, especially the magnitude of repetition, force, or noxiousness, without altering any other quality; b) the result of such a process.
5. A wartime condition that occurs when policy makers listen only to people who share their set beliefs, increasing the risk for miscalculation.
PRONUNCIATION: in-ses'too-us ahm-pli-fee-kay-shun
Examples:
1) Back in Washington, around the water coolers at the Pentagon, they talk about this idea called "incestuous amplification" as a bad thing. In the echo chamber of Hollywood, however, incestuous amplification... is what they call a movie studio. This town embraces incestuous amplification! Which leads us to this year's nominations for the Oscars. People, it's groupthink run amok. (William Booth, "A Quest for Gold", The Washington Post, February 22, 2004)
2) Without knowing it, the Columbia investigators were identifying a pervasive social problem, one that unites these examples and that leads to many failures in the public and private sectors. In military circles, this process is called "incestuous amplification". Among psychologists, it is known as "group polarization". In a nutshell: Like-minded people, talking only with one another, usually end up believing a more extreme version of what they thought before they started to talk. (Cass R. Sunstein, "The Power of Dissent", Los Angeles Times, September 17, 2003)
Synonym: group polarization


inchoate
[in-KOH-it]
1. In an initial or early stage; just begun.
2. Imperfectly formed or formulated.
Examples:
1) Mildred Spock believed that, at about the age of three, her children's inchoate wills were to be shaped like vines sprouting up a beanpole. (Thomas Maier, "Dr. Spock: An American Life")
2) She also had a vision, not yet articulated, an inchoate sense of some special calling that awaited her. (Linda Lear, "Rachel Carson: Witness for Nature")
3) You take on a project because of the feeling, perhaps inchoate, that it may in some way contribute to your deeper understanding of the larger-scale research program you have chosen as your life's work. (Christopher Scholz, "Fieldwork: A Geologist's Memoir of the Kalahari")
Etymology:
"Inchoate" comes from the past participle of Latin "inchoare", alteration of "incohare" ("to begin").


incidence

• incident
• instance
• incidences

[IN-suh-dunss]
The rate of occurrence or effect.
Example:
When ... water flows through a system with a lot of lead in its plumbing, you'd expect to find a high incidence of lead contamination. That's exactly what our tests showed. ("Consumer Reports", February 1993)
Etymology, related words, examples:
From Latin "incidentem" (nom. "incidens"), prp. of "incidere" - "happen, befall," from "in-" ("on") + "-cidere", comb. form of "cadere" - "to fall".
The words "incident," "incidence," and "instance" may seem similar (and, in fact, "incident" and "incidence" are closely related), but they are not used identically. In current use, "incidence" usually means rate of occurrence and is often qualified in some way ("a high incidence of crime"). "Incident" usually refers to a particular event, often something unusual or unpleasant ("many such incidents go unreported"). "Instance" suggests a particular occurrence that is offered as an example ("another instance of bureaucratic bumbling"); it can also be synonymous with "case" ("many instances in which the wrong person was arrested"). The plural "incidences" sometimes occurs in such contexts as "several recent incidences of crime", but this use is often criticized as incorrect.


incipient

• incipiency
• incipience
• inception

beginning to come into being or to become apparent
Example:
A sudden increase in bickering and quarrels marked an incipient jealousy between the two stars of the television series.
Etymology, relative words:
A good starting point for any investigation of "incipient" is the Latin verb "incipere", which means "to begin". "Incipient" first emerged in English in a scientific text of 1669 that referred to "incipient putrefaction". Later came the genesis of two related nouns, "incipiency" and "incipience", both of which are synonymous with "beginning". "Incipere" also stands at the beginning of the words "inception" ("an act, process, or instance of beginning") and "incipit", a term that means literally "it begins" and which was used for the opening words of a medieval text. "Incipere" itself derives from another Latin verb, "capere", which means "to take" or "to seize".


incisive

• incise
• excise
• incisor
• incision
• precise
• concise

[in-SYE-sive]
Impressively direct and decisive (as in manner or presentation).
Example:
After reading the first draft of my story, she offered several incisive comments, all of which proved extremely helpful to me.
Etymology, related words:
"Incisive" has been used in English since around 1834 and derives from the Latin verb "caedere," meaning "to cut." Its linguistic kin include many cuttings from the fruitful stem "caedere," such as "scissors," "chisel," "incise" ("to cut into or engrave"), "excise" ("to remove by cutting"), "incisor" ("a front tooth typically adapted for cutting"), "incision" ("cut" or "gash"), "precise" ("minutely exact"), and "concise" ("brief").


incommensurable

• commensurate
• incommensurate
• commensurable
• incommensurable

[in-kuh-MEN-suh-ruh-bul]
1. Not commensurable.
2. Lacking a basis of comparison in respect to a quality normally subject to comparison.
Examples:
1) Our anxieties for you and Margaret and my anxieties for the success of my book ... are two so incommensurable things that they ought not of right to be brought together in one letter. (Robert Frost, "Letters")
2) The two theories are incommensurable, making any attempt at comparison across disciplines ridiculous.
History, related words, more examples, synonyms:
"Commensurable" means "having a common measure" or "corresponding in size, extent, amount, or degree." Its antonym "incommensurable" generally refers to things that are unlike and incompatible, sharing no common ground (as in "incommensurable theories"), or to things that are very disproportionate, often to the point of defying comparison ("incommensurable crimes"). Both words entered English in the 1500s and were originally used (as they still can be) for numbers that have or don't have a common divisor. They came to English by way of Middle French and Late Latin, ultimately deriving from Latin "mensura," meaning "measure." "Mensura" is also an ancestor of "commensurate" (meaning "coextensive" or "proportionate") and "incommensurate" ("disproportionate" or "insufficient"), which overlap in meaning with "commensurable" and "incommensurable" but are not exact synonyms.


incommunicado
[in-kuh-myoo-nuh-KAH-doh]
(Adverb or adjective) Without the means or right to communicate.
Examples:
1) Western diplomats in Cuba said yesterday that the fact that the six have been held incommunicado for so long suggests that the Cubans fear they pose a security threat. (Daniel McGrory, "Cuba to explain why it is holding six Britons," Times (London), October 25, 2000)
2) This was Morrison's last despatch. Shortly after it was sent, the Boxers cut the telegraph line. Peking was not only besieged, but incommunicado. (Martin Gilbert, "A History of the Twentieth Century: Volume One, 1900-1933")
3) They went underground, they sought an underworld of codes and shadows: incognito, incommunicado, and quietly dissident. (Martin Amis, "Survivors of the Cold War," New York Times, October 5, 1997)
4) He was held incommunicado for 72 hours, his phone lines cut. (Joseph Finder, "By Any Other Name," New York Times, June 9, 1996)
Etymology:
"Incommunicado" comes from Spanish "incomunicado", past participle of "incomunicar" ("to cut off"), from "in-" (from Latin) + "comunicar" ("to communicate"), from Latin "communicare", from "communis" ("common").

incongruous
[in-KONG-groo-us]
1. Lacking in harmony, compatibility, or appropriateness.
2. Inconsistent with reason, logic, or common sense.
Examples:
1) I have since often observed, how incongruous and irrational the common Temper of Mankind is. (Daniel Defoe, "Robinson Crusoe")
2) She made nightdresses and petticoats in the old-fashioned mode and sold them to a shop in the market town - one of those exclusive little shops with a single garment and something imaginatively incongruous - a monkey's skull or an old boot - arranged in the window. (Alice Thomas Ellis, "Fairy Tale")
3) They made an incongruous pair as they walked on: one was slight and dapper, some thirty-five years in age, with long, clipped mustaches, and dressed in the height of modern elegance, complete with pearl buttons and gold watch chain. The other, ambling a few paces behind, was a towering fellow with grizzled mutton-chop whiskers, whose ill-fitting frock coat barely contained a barrel chest. (Ben Macintyre, "The Napoleon of Crime")
Etymology:
"Incongruous" comes from Latin "incongruus", from "in-" ("not") + "congruus" ("agreeing, fit, suitable"), from "congruere" ("to run together, to come together, to meet").


incontrovertible

• controvertible
• controvert

[in-kahn-truh-VER-tuh-bul]
Not open to question; too clear or certain to admit of dispute.
Synonym: indisputable, unquestionable.
Examples:
1) The manager presented the clerk's time card as incontrovertible evidence that the employee had been late for work all five days the previous week.
2) It is in the nature of philosophical questions that they do not have final, incontrovertible answers, or, more exactly, that every answer raises new questions. (George Soros, "Open Society: Reforming Global Capitalism")
3) And although the evidence was substantial, it was not incontrovertible. (Al Strachan, "Phantom Goal, part 2", Toronto Sun, May 23, 1999)
4) Despite speculation based on ancient tales and ancient art, no incontrovertible evidence has been discovered of polio's existence before the nineteenth century, at least not in its epidemic form. (Sherwin B. Nuland, "A Summer Plague: Polio and Its Survivors", New Republic, October 16, 1995)
Etymology, antonyms, related words:
If something is indisputable, it's incontrovertible. But if it is open to question, is it "controvertible"? It sure is. The antonyms "controvertible" and "incontrovertible" are both derivatives of the verb "controvert" (meaning "to dispute or oppose by reasoning"), which is itself a spin-off of "controversy." And what is the source of all of these controversial terms?
"Incontrovertible" is "in-," ("not") + "controvertible", which is derived from Latin "controversia" ("a dispute"), from "controvertere" ("to turn against, to turn in the opposite direction, to dispute"), from "contro-" ("against") + "vertere" ("to turn"). The Latin adjective "controversus" literally means "turned against."


incumbent
[in-KUM-bunt]
1. the holder of an office or ecclesiastical benefice
2. one that occupies a particular position or place
Example:
The two-term incumbent has already raised almost a million dollars for the upcoming congressional race.
History:
When "incumbent" was first used in English in the 15th century, it referred to someone who occupied a "benefice," or a paid religious position. This was often a lifetime appointment; the person could only be forced to leave the office in the case of certain specific legal conflicts. In the mid-17th century, "incumbent" came to refer to anyone holding any office, including elected positions. These days, in the American political system, "incumbent" generally refers to someone who is the current holder of a position during an election to fill that position. "Incumbent" came to English through Anglo-French, and derives from the Latin "incumbere," meaning "to lie down on."


incunabulum

• incunabula

[in-kyuh-NAB-yuh-lum]
1. A book printed before 1501.
2. A work of art or of industry of an early period.
Example:
Among the library's archives is a collection of exquisite incunabula.
History, related words:
The invention of the mechanized printing press in the 15th century revolutionized the way books were produced, dramatically increasing the number and variety of works to be published and distributed to awaiting readers. "Incunabulum" first appeared in English in the 19th century, referring retroactively to those books produced in the first decades of printing press technology, specifically those printed before the year 1501, a date that appears to have been determined only arbitrarily. Coming from Latin, "incunabulum" is singular of "incunabula," which translates literally to "swaddling clothes" or "bands holding the baby in a cradle." The "baby" in this case is likely a figurative one, referring to a book that was produced when the art of printing was still in its infancy.


indefatigable

• active
• tireless
• unflagging
• vigorous

[in-dih-FAT-ih-guh-bul]
Incapable of being fatigued; not yielding to fatigue; not readily exhausted; untiring; unwearying.
Examples:
1) For the next thirteen years, with indefatigable zeal he rummages the libraries for charts and details of the spice trade and Pacific voyages. (Alan Gurney, "Below the Convergence")
2) She was always seeking to add to her collection and was an indefatigable first-nighter at Broadway shows. (Meryle Secrest, "Stephen Sondheim: A Life")
3) Ernest Hemingway was, luckily, an indefatigable letter-writer. (Carlos Baker, "A Search for the Man As He Really Was," New York Times, July 26, 1964)
Etymology:
"Indefatigable" comes from Latin "indefatigabilis", from "in-" ("not") + "defatigare" ("to tire out"), from "de-" (intensive prefix) + "fatigare" ("to weary").
Synonyms:
active, tireless, unflagging, vigorous.


indelible
[in-DEL-uh-buhl]
1. That cannot be removed, erased, or washed away.
2. Making marks that cannot easily be removed or erased.
3. Incapable of being forgotten; memorable.
Examoles:
1) It was part of his image, indelible as the ink stains under the breast pocket. (Mark Childress, "Gone for Good")
2) In a sense, these years were like a blur of hunger, a time without roots or a sense of stability that made an indelible mark and colored his every move years later. (Marcos Bret?n and Jos? Luis Villegas, "Away Games")
3) It had been an indelible performance, an astonishing display of spiritual determination; he had done nothing less than give a clinic in what set him apart from everyone else in his profession. (David Halberstam, "Playing for Keeps")
4) Lore would have it that he lost only once before he drew an indelible lesson about gambling and life. (Sally Denton and Roger Morris, "The Money and the Power")
Etymology:
"Indelible" is from Latin indelebilis, from "in-" ("not") + "delebilis" ("that can be obliterated or destroyed"), from "delere" ("to blot out, to efface, to destroy").


indigence

• indigent
• destitution
• penury
• poverty
• want

[IN-dih-juhn(t)s]
A state of extreme poverty or destitution; a level of poverty in which real hardship and deprivation are suffered and comforts of life are wholly lacking.
Examples:
1) He is ever a handful of pocket change away from utter indigence. (Sven Birkerts, "The Socratic Method," New York Times, November 9, 1997)
2) The lean and hungry, unkempt, and addled look I'd cultivated throughout my twenties was beginning to read like desperation and indigence as I stepped into my mid-thirties. (Stephen McCauley, "The Man of the House")
Etymology:
"Indigence" comes from Latin "indigentia" ("neediness"), from "indigens, indigent" - present participle of "indigere" ("to be in need of"), from Latin "indu" - archaic form of "in-" ("in") + "egere" ("to be needy, to need, to lack"). The adjective form is "indigent".
Synonyms, their difference:
"Poverty," "penury," want," "destitution," and "indigence" all describe the state of someone who is lacking in key resources. "Poverty" covers the range from severe lack of basic necessities to an absence of material comforts ("the refugees lived in extreme poverty"). "Penury" suggests a cramping or oppressive lack of money ("illness condemned him to years of penury"). "Want" and "destitution" imply extreme, even life-threatening, poverty ("they lived in a perpetual state of want", "the widespread destitution in countries beset by famine"). "Indigence" implies seriously straitened circumstances and usually connotes the endurance of many hardships and the lack of comforts ("she struggled through the indigence of her college years").


indigenous

• indigene

[in-DIJ-uh-nuss]
1. Having originated in and being produced, growing, living, or occurring naturally in a particular region or environment.
Example:
Most people know that kangaroos are indigenous to Australia, but some species are also found on the island of New Guinea.
2. Innate, inborn.
Etymology, related words, more examples:
"Indigenous" derives from the Latin noun "indigena" (meaning "native"), which was formed by combining Old Latin "indo" (meaning "in" or "within") with the verb "gignere" (meaning "to beget"). Another term that comes from the "indigena" root is "indigene," a word for a plant or animal that lives, grows, or originates in a certain area. "Indigene" is the older of the two; it has been used in English since the late 16th century, whereas the earliest documented use of "indigenous" occurred nearly 50 years later. "Indigenous" is mostly used in scientific contexts to describe organisms and the habitats to which they belong, but since the mid-19th century it has also been used in non-scientific contexts (as in "emotions indigenous to the human spirit").


indissoluble

• permanent
• indissolvable
• insoluble

not dissoluble; (esp.) incapable of being annulled, undone, or broken
Synonym: permanent
Example:
The contract should have been indissoluble, but the lawyers discovered an obscure clause that made it not so.
Etymology:
"Indissoluble" is a legacy of Latin. The Latin adjective "dissolubilis" gave us "dissoluble" (both meaning "capable of being dissolved"), which first appeared in print in 1534, followed rapidly by the addition of "in-" to make its antonym in 1542. "Dissolubilis" derives from "dissolvere" ("to loosen" or "to dissolve"), which in turn comes from "dis-" ("apart") and "solvere" ("to loosen"). Not surprisingly, "dissolvere" is also the source of "dissolve" and "dissolvable", among other words. Is there an "indissolvable"? Yes and no. It exists, but it is archaic and exceedingly rare. The word most likely to be used for things that cannot be dissolved in a liquid is "insoluble". "Indissoluble" generally refers to abstract entities, such as promises or treaties, that cannot be dissolved.


indoctrinate

• brainwash
• teach
• docent

[in-DAHK-truh-nayt]
1. To instruct especially in fundamentals or rudiments.
Synonym: teach
2. To imbue with a usually partisan or sectarian opinion, point of view, or principle.
Synonym: brainwash
Example:
New hires were indoctrinated with the company's philosophy during a two-day orientation.
History, related words:
"Indoctrinate" simply means "brainwash" to many people. But its meaning isn't always so negative. When this verb first appeared in English in the 17th century, it simply meant "to teach" - a meaning that followed logically from its Latin root. The "doc" in the middle of "indoctrinate" derives from the Latin verb "docere," which also means "to teach." Other offspring of "docere" include "docent" (referring to a college professor or a museum guide), "docile," "doctor," "doctrine," and "document." It was not until the 19th century that "indoctrinate" began to see regular use in the sense of causing someone to absorb and take on certain opinions or principles.


indolent
[IN-duh-luhnt]
1. Avoiding labor and exertion; habitually idle.
Synonyms: lazy; inactive.
2. Conducive to or encouraging laziness or inactivity.
3. Causing little or no pain.
4. Slow to heal, develop, or grow.
Examples:
1) We worked very hard - at least Iris did; I was more naturally indolent. (John Bayley, "Elegy for Iris")
2) Charles was too indolent - he never applied himself to the business of kingship as Louis XIV did. (John Brewer, "The Pleasures of the Imagination")
3) There, people did as much as they chose and few ripples ever disturbed the prevailing atmosphere of indolent tranquillity. (Rufina Philby et al., "The Private Life of Kim Philby")
4) Now, though, researchers understand that some cancers are indolent - so indolent, in fact, that they will never grow large enough in the patient's lifetime to cause medical problems. (Gina Kolata, "Test Proves Fruitless, Fueling New Debate on Cancer Screening," New York Times, April 9, 2002)
Etymology:
"Indolent" is from Latin "in-" ("not") + "dolens" ("hurting, suffering pain"), from "dolere" ("to suffer pain").


indurate
1. [IN-dur-it; -dyur-], adjective: Physically or morally hardened; unfeeling; stubborn.
2. [IN-dur-ayt; -dyur-], transitive verb: a) To make hard; to harden. b) To harden against; to make hardy; to habituate. c) To make hardened; to make callous or stubborn. d) To establish; to fix firmly.
3. intransitive verb: a) To grow hard; to harden. b) To become established or fixed.
Examples:
1) They are completely indurate. They aren't hard-nosed; they live without any sense of malice. There is no time or need for others. (John Stone, "Evil in the Early Cinema of Oliver Stone," Journal of Popular Film and Television, Summer 2000)
2) First off, the avoid-terminal-prepositions rule is the invention of one Fr. R. Lowth, an eighteenth-century British preacher and indurate pedant who did things like spend scores of pages arguing for hath over the trendy and degenerate has. (David Foster Wallace, "Tense Present," Harper's Magazine, April 2001)
3) New findings in science point toward a buoyant view of our being: one in which life is favored, not improbable, and the universe a welcoming place, not an indurate domain. (Gregg Easterbrook, "Science sees the light," New Republic, October 12, 1998)
4) Only an exceptionally strong personality or a criminal indurated by bitter experience can withstand prolonged, skillful interrogation in silence. (Charles E. O'Hara and Gregory L. O'Hara, "Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation")
5) The terrain he walked over still looked like sand, but the sand was cemented together, firm as concrete. Indurated soil. (Geoffrey A. Landis, "Mars Crossing")
6) But "hard cheeses indurate, soft cheeses collapse." ("Flaubert's Parrot")
7) People don't change, they set in. (Antonia Quirke, "Jack of all trades," New Statesman, October 29, 2001)
"Indurate" is derived from the past participle of Latin "indurare", from "in-" (intensive prefix) + "durare" ("to harden"), from "durus" ("hard").


ineffable
[in-EF-uh-buhl]
1. Incapable of being expressed in words; unspeakable; unutterable; indescribable.
2. Not to be uttered; taboo. . . . the tension inherent in human language when it attempts to relate the ineffable, see the invisible, understand the incomprehensible. (Jeffrey Burton Russell, "A History of Heaven")
3) Pope John Paul II notes that people are drawn to religion to answer the really big questions - for example, "What is the ultimate ineffable mystery which is the origin and destiny of our existence?" (William A. Sherden, "The Fortune Sellers")
4) One cannot blame them very much; explaining the ineffable is difficult. (Edward O. Wilson, "The Biological Basis of Morality," The Atlantic, April 1998)
Etymology:
"Ineffable" is from Latin "ineffabilis", from "in-" ("not") + "effabilis" ("utterable"), from "effari" ("to utter"), from "ex-" ("out") + "fari" ("to speak").


ineffectual

• bootless
• fruitless
• futile
• unavailing
• useless
• vain

[in-ih-FEK-choo-uhl]
Not producing the proper effect; without effect; weak; useless; futile; unavailing.
Examples:
1) Rush, the aging black Labrador that had waited patiently outside during lunch, ran joyfully on the beach, splashing in the water, making ineffectual attempts to catch a seagull. (Annabel Davis-Goff, "The Dower House")
2) The case sobered Coley not only because of the speed with which the cancer killed, but because of the crude, puny, and utterly ineffectual obstacles hurled by her doctors to impede its fatal course. (Stephen S. Hall, "A Commotion in the Blood")
3) On the one hand, the North Korean leadership resolutely refused to experiment with any serious economic reforms and only dabbled in ineffectual foreign investment legislation. (Nicholas Eberstadt, "The End of North Korea")
Synonyms:
bootless, fruitless, futile, unavailing, useless, vain.
Etymology:
"Ineffectual" ultimately comes from Latin "in-", negative prefix + "effectus" ("effect, result"), from "efficere" ("to produce, to effect"), from "ex" ("out of") + "facere" ("to make").


ineluctable
[in-ih-LUCK-tuh-buhl]
Impossible to avoid or evade; inevitable.
Examples:
1) California's vision of itself as a car culture grew out of the impracticality of mass transit in reaching most of its scenic wonders, the innate restlessness of its inhabitants and the ineluctable attraction of an open road. ("From the Land of Private Freeways Comes Car Culture Shock," New York Times, October 16, 1997)
2) Linnaeus' classification scheme became popular not because it captured some ineluctable truth about nature. Rather, by the botanist's own admission, the system divided species based more on intuition than science, much as an art historian might group paintings into schools. ("Cultivating a New Tree," Los Angeles Times, September 25, 1999)
Etymology:
"Ineluctable" is from Latin "ineluctabilis", from "in-" ("not") + "eluctari" ("to struggle out of, to get free from"), from "ex-, e-" ("out of") + "luctari" ("to struggle").


inexorable
[in-EK-sur-uh-bul; in-EKS-ruh-bul]
Not to be persuaded or moved by entreaty or prayer; firm; determined; unyielding; unchangeable; inflexible; relentless.
Examples:
1) But the idea of providence, whether the biblical version or the Enlightenment's or Marx's, is at bottom a tragic notion, for it implies that individual human choices count for nothing against the weight of an inexorable, overwhelming force, whether benign or cruel, whether known as God, History, Destiny, Progress or DNA. (James Carrol, "Laughing Our Way to Defeat," New York Times, February 16, 1986)
2) . . . such notions as the 'logic of the facts', or the 'march of history', which, like the laws of nature (with which they are partly identified), are thought of as, in some sense, 'inexorable', likely to take their course whatever human beings may wish or pray for, an inevitable process to which individuals must adjust themselves. (Isaiah Berlin, "The Sense of Reality")
3) Confronted again with pictures of flag-draped coffins and mutilated bodies, with the sounds of random gunfire and angry chants, the world had to readjust to the fact that not every problem is solvable, that the global tide of peace is not inexorable, and that progress does not inevitably make civilizations more civilized. ("Fires Of Hate," Time, October 23, 2000)
Etymology:
"Inexorable" comes from Latin "inexorabilis", from "in-" ("not") + "exorabilis" ("able to be entreated, placable"), from "exorare" ("to entreat successfully, to prevail upon"), from "ex-" (intensive prefix) + "orare" ("to speak; to argue; to pray").


infant

• infante

1. a child in the first period of life, beginning at his birth; a young babe; sometimes, a child several years of age.
Example:
And tender cries of infants pierce the ear. (W.Pitt.) 2. (law) a person who is not of full age, or who has not attained the age of legal capacity; a person under the age of twenty-one years; a minor. Example:
An infant under seven years of age is not penally responsible; between seven and fourteen years of age, he may be convicted of a malicious offense if malice be proved. he becomes of age on the day preceding his twenty-first birthday, previous to which time an infant has no capacity to contract. 3. (obs.) same as infante. 4. of or pertaining to infancy, or the first period of life; tender; not mature. 5. intended for young children.
6. to bear or bring forth, as a child; hence, to produce, in general (obs.).
Example:
This worthy motto, "no bishop, no king," is infanted out of the same fears.
Etymology:
The word "infant" derives from the Latin "infantem" ("young child"); this is a noun use of an adjective that means "unable to speak" (from Latin "in-" = "not", and "fans" = "speak").


infinitesimal
[in-fin-ih-TESS-uh-mul]
1. Taking on values arbitrarily close to but greater than zero.
2. Immeasurably or incalculably small.
Example:
The days get longer in seemingly infinitesimal increments, but by the end of February we've gained two whole hours of sunlight since the winter solstice.
Etymology, related words, more examples:
"Infinite" means "endless" or "extending indefinitely." It is ultimately from Latin "infinitus," the opposite of "finitus," meaning "finite." The notion of smallness in "infinitesimal" derives from the mathematical concept that a quantity can be divided endlessly; no matter how small, it can be subdivided into yet smaller fractions, or "infinitesimals." The concept was still in its infancy in 1710 when Irish philosopher George Berkeley observed that some people "assert there are infinitesimals of infinitesimals of infinitesimals, etc., without ever coming to an end." He used the adjective in a mathematical sense, too, referring to "infinitesimal parts of finite lines." Less than a quarter century later, the adjective had acquired a general sense applicable to anything too small to be measured.


information environmentalism

• information
• environmentalism
• information environmentalist
• environmentalist

The movement that seeks to reduce information overload and its effects on peoples' lives.
information environmentalist - n.
Examples:
1) There's a growing "information environmentalism" movement in the United States against the overwhelming torrent of more media than any mind can cope with. Gurus of the movement are said to be throwing away their TV sets with the same ideological zeal with which feminist women are said, in the age just after the age of steam trains, to have burned their bras. ("Dear Madge", Canberra Times (Canberra, Australia), May 30, 2004)
2) The information age, it seems, is data-contaminated. And it's not just the volume of information that's worrisome; it's the lack of context in which it's delivered. At least that is the argument of a new and growing group of people some call "information environmentalists." Their aim: to reclaim quiet mental space from the chirping persistence of cellphones, personal digital assistants, instant messaging, niche cable channels, and a virtual landscape littered with news, entertainment, and sales pitches. "We are ready to see this new kind of information environmentalism, ready to ask about the pollution of our experience and our attention," says David Levy, professor at the University of Washington's Information School. (Dean Paton, "E-serenity, now!", Christian Science Monitor (Boston, MA), May 10, 2004)


ingenue
[AN-zhuh-noo]
1. A naive girl or young woman.
2. An actress playing such a person; the stage role of an ingenue.
Examples:
1) This is not the face of an ingenue; this is an old soul in a new body - wary, wise to her own long past, on to the wiles of the world, and having miles to go before she sleeps. (Sarah Ban Breathnach, "Something More")
2) Her passages - from ingenue to royal bride to young mother to estranged wife to independent-minded divorcee - attracted a global audience and made Diana the world's most famed and photographed woman. (Eugene Robinson, "From Sheltered Life to Palace Life, To a Life of Her Own," Washington Post, September 1, 1997)
Etymology:
"Ingenue" comes from the French, from Latin "ingenuus" ("freeborn; worthy of a free man; hence honorable, frank; tender, delicate").


ingenuous
[in-JEN-yoo-uhs]
1. Demonstrating childlike simplicity; innocent; naive.
2. Free from reserve, restraint, or guile; open; frank.
3. (Obsolete) Noble; honorable.
Examples:
1) It's a bit ingenuous to offer information to a reporter with a notebook in her hand and then expect not to be quoted. (Sadie Mah, "Quoting an interviewee," Jakarta Post, September 17, 1999)
2) Not like World War I, where soldiers and their sweethearts courted to the strains of "Lili Marlene," and the prevailing sense of doom was misted over with ingenuous devotion to both girl and country. (Jayne Blanchard, "War romance passionate in 'Wedding,' " Washington Time, August 13, 2004)
3) It still has a cockeyed charm, an ingenuous optimism which, even in these dangerous times, comforts you like a lovable old teddy bear. ("Art beat," The Press (Canterbury, New Zealand), November 29, 2003)
4) Benson later wrote in his diary: "... a simpler, more ingenuous, more unaffected, more genuinely interested boy, I never saw." (Peter Firstbrook, "Lost on Everest")
Etymology:
"Ingenuous" comes from Latin "ingenuus" ("honest, freeborn"), from "in-" ("in") + "gignere" ("to beget; to produce").


inimical

• amicable
• amiable

1. Having the disposition or temper of an enemy; being adverse often by reason of hostility or malevolence.
Synonyms:
unfriendly; hostile; unfavorable.
2. Opposed in tendency, influence, or effects.
Synonyms:
antagonistic; adverse.
Examples:
1) Here the planet under scrutiny is Venus - a world even more inimical to human existence than Mars. With a poisonous CO2 atmosphere, hellish temperatures and atmospheric pressure 90 times that of Earth's, "a person exposed to Venus's surface... would flash-burn a split second before any remaining chemical residue was squashed flat". (Gerald Jonas, "Science Fiction", New York Times, February 27, 2000)
2) Yeats's conflict with his father was not only about the conventional employment which J. B. Yeats believed was inimical to creative freedom. (Terence Brown, "The Life of W. B. Yeats")
3) T. H. Logan, an inimical police officer, drives his wife mad with grief by killing the seal she used to love to swim with. (Aoibheann Sweeney, "Gnawing on Bones", New York Times, June 11, 2000)
4) When he called the company's help line, Jared was startled by the cold, inimical voice of the customer service representative.
Etymology, more examples, related words:
"Inimical" comes from Late Latin "inimicalis", from Latin "inimicus" ("unfriendly, adverse, hostile"), from "in-" ("not") + "amicus" ("friendly, well-wishing, favorable to"), from "amare" ("to love").
So, in Latin "inimical," one finds both a friend and an enemy. In current English, "inimical" rarely describes a person, however. Instead, it is generally used to describe forces, concepts, or situations that are in some way harmful or hostile. For example, high inflation may be called inimical to economic growth. "Inimicus" is also an ancestor of "enemy," whereas "amicus" gave us the much more congenial "amicable" (meaning "friendly" or "peaceful") and "amiable" (meaning "agreeable" or "friendly").


injunction

• conjunction

[in-JUNK-shun]
1. The act or an instance of enjoining.
Synonyms: order, admonition
2. A court order requiring a party to do or refrain from doing a specified act.
Example:
The judge granted a temporary injunction against the planned construction.
Etymology, related words and meanings:
"Injunction" derives, via Anglo-French and Late Latin, from the Latin verb "injungere," which in turn derives from "jungere," meaning to "join." Like our verb "enjoin," "injungere" means "to direct or impose by authoritative order or with urgent admonition." (Not surprisingly, "enjoin" is also a descendant of "injungere.") "Injunction" has been around in English since at least the 15th century, when it began life as a word meaning "authoritative command." In the 16th century it developed a legal second sense applying to a court order. It has also been used as a synonym of "conjunction" (another "jungere" descendant), meaning "union," but that sense is extremely rare.


inkhorn
[INK-horn]
1. Affectedly or ostentatiously learned.
Synonym: pedantic.
2. A small bottle of horn or other material formerly used for holding ink.
Examples:
1) ... the widespread use of what were called (dismissively, by truly learned folk) "inkhorn terms." (Simon Winchester, "Word Imperfect," The Atlantic Monthly, May 2001)
2) In prison he wrote the De Consolatione Philosophiae, his most celebrated work and one of the most translated works in history; it was translated... by Elizabeth I into florid, inkhorn language. (The Oxford Companion to English Literature, s.v. "Boethius, Anicius Manlius Severinus")
Etymology:
"Inkhorn" derives from the name for the container formerly used (beginning in the 14th century) for holding ink, originally made from a real horn. Hence it came to refer to words that were being used by learned writers and scholars but which were unknown or rare in ordinary speech.


innocuous

• nocuous

[ih-NOK-yoo-uhs] 1. Harmless; producing no ill effect. 2. Not likely to offend or provoke; as, "an innocuous remark".
Examples:
1) Furthermore, the public, not knowing how to interpret certain facts and figures, may end up unfairly vilifying a company that uses only innocuous traces of a certain toxic chemical. ("Can Selfishness Save the Environment?", The Atlantic, September 13, 2000)
2) Maybe Grandpop misunderstood that perfectly innocuous remark and thought the man said "smell." Anyway his temper crackled and exploded. (John McCabe, "Cagney")
Etymology, related words, antonym:
"Innocuous" is from Latin "innocuus", from "in-" ("not") + "nocuus" ("harmful"), from "nocere" ("to harm"). It is related to "innocent", formed from "in-" + "nocens, nocent-" ("harming, injurious, hence criminal, guilty"), from the present participle of "nocere". Less common is the opposite of "innocuous" - "nocuous".


inscrutable

• impenetrable
• indecipherable
• mysterious
• obscure
• incomprehensible
• unaccountable

Difficult to fathom or understand; difficult to be explained or accounted for satisfactorily.
Examples:
1) US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright recalled the inscrutable comment of a French diplomat about the interaction of the various European organisations: "It will work in practice, yes. But will it work in theory?" (Jonathan Fenby, "France on the Brink")
2) There is nothing mysterious to a seaman unless it be the sea itself, which is the mistress of his existence and as inscrutable as Destiny. (Joseph Conrad, "The Heart of Darkness")
3) He delighted in keeping people guessing. His thought processes were eclectic, inscrutable and unpredictable. ("Martin Mogridge," 'Times' (London), March 17, 2000)
4) A page of John Lennon's enigmatic lyrics for "I Am [the] Walrus," one of the Beatles' most inscrutable songs, was sold for ?78,500 at auction in London yesterday. (John Shaw, "Lennon lyric sells for ?78,500," 'Times' (London), October 1, 1999)
Synonyms:
impenetrable, indecipherable, mysterious, unaccountable; obscure; incomprehensible. Etymology:
"Inscrutable" is from Late Latin "inscrutabilis", from Latin "in-" - "not" + Late Latin "scrutabilis" - "searchable," from Latin "scrutari" - "to search through, to examine thoroughly (as if rummaging the trash or a heap of discarded garments)", from "scruta" - "trash, rags". The noun form is "inscrutability". It is related to "scrutiny" - "careful examination".


inselberg

• monadnock

[IN-sul-berg]
An isolated mountain.
Example:
Briana tied her hiking boots, adjusted her pack, and looked out across the distance at an inselberg rising abruptly from the flat plain surrounding it.
Etymology, a synonym:
"Inselberg," which first appeared in English in 1913, comes from the German words "Insel," meaning "island," and "Berg," meaning "mountain," apparently because German explorers thought isolated mountains rising from the plains of southern Africa looked like islands in the midst of the ocean. Geologically speaking, an inselberg is a hill of hard volcanic rock, such as granite, that has resisted wind and weather and remained strong and tall as the land around it eroded away. Ayers Rock and Olga Rocks in central Australia are two spectacular examples of inselbergs. The word "monadnock," derived from the name of Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire, is a synonym of "inselberg."


insider
1. One who belongs to a certain group or place.
2. An officer of a corporation or others who have access to private, privileged information about the corporation's operations (such as future changes in management, upcoming profit and loss reports, secret sales figures and merger negotiations) which will affect the value of stocks or bonds.
Examples:
1) While there is nothing wrong with being an insider, use of the confidential information unavailable to the investing public in order to profit through sale or purchase of stocks or bonds is unethical and a crime under the Securities and Exchange Act.
2) An insider is a person whose opportunity to profit from his or her position of powerin a business is limited by law to safeguard the public good. Both federalsecurities acts and state blue sky laws regulate stock transactions ofindividuals with access to inside information about a corporation, since theprospect of insider trading may inhibit investment by the general public due totheir concern that the price of securities has been artificially inflated ordeflated by such trading.

insider trading

• insider
• trading

Buying or selling corporate stock by a corporate officer or other insider on the basis of information that has not been made public and is supposed to remain confidential; illegal stock and securities trading amongst people who have access to private information about a company's financial status allowing them to benefit from buying or selling stock.
Example:
Joseph P. Kennedy, father of President John F. Kennedy, made much of his fortune in the 1920s by insider trading before it was a crime.


insolation
the average amount of sunlight reaching the ground


instauration
[in-stor-RAY-shun]
1. Restoration after decay, lapse, or dilapidation.
2. An act of instituting or establishing something.
Example:
Once, humanity dreamed of the great instauration - a rebirth of ancient wisdom that would compel us into a New Age.... (Knute Berger, "Seattle Weekly", December 14, 2005)
History:
"Instauration" first appeared in English in the early 17th century, a product of the Latin verb "instaurare," meaning "to renew or restore." This same source gave us our verb "store," by way of Middle English and Anglo-French. Less than 20 years after "instauration" broke into English, the philosopher Francis Bacon began writing his "Instauratio Magna", which translates to "The Great Instauration". This uncompleted collection of works, which was written in Latin, calls for a restoration to a state of paradise on earth, but one in which mankind is enlightened by knowledge and truth.


instead of

• instead
• instead of smb.
• instead of smth.

In one's place, without any authority of this person (as opposed to this person); in place of smth.
Examples:
1) Joe was picked for the team instead of me.
2) Let`s meet at the restaurant instead of the department store as we had planned.


instigate

• provoke
• incite
• foment

[IN-stuh-gayt]
To goad or urge forward.
Synonym: provoke, incite
Example:
It was believed that much of the public backlash against the mayor was instigated by his political rival, who published a smear attack in the local newspaper.
History, related words, more examples:
Although "instigate" is often used to mean "incite" (as in "hoodlums instigating violence"), the two words differ slightly in their overall usage. "Incite" usually stresses an act of stirring something up that one did not necessarily initiate ("the court's decision incited riots"). "Instigate" definitely implies responsibility for initiating or encouraging someone else's action and usually suggests dubious or underhanded intent ("he was charged with instigating a conspiracy"). Another similar word, "foment," implies causing something by means of persistent goading ("the leader's speeches fomented a rebellion"). Deriving from the past participle of the Latin verb "instigare," "instigate" first appeared in English in the mid-16th century, approximately 60 years after "incite" and about 70 years before "foment."


insuperable

• insurmountable

Incapable of being passed over, surmounted, or overcome
Synonym:
insurmountable; as, "insuperable / insurmountable difficulties."
Examples:
1) They have overcome almost insuperable odds that the poor facilities and elements have brought about. (Raimund E. Goerler (Editor), "To the Pole: The Diary and Notebook of Richard E. Byrd", 1925-1927)
2) Once the Soviet Union acquired the bomb, in 1949, proposals for nuclear disarmament were rejected on grounds that the character of the Soviet regime posed an insuperable obstacle. (Jonathan Schell, "The Gift of Time")
Etymology:
"Insuperable" comes from Latin "insuperabilis", from "in-" ("not") + "superare" ("to go above or over, to surmount"), from "super" ("above, over").


intense
existing in a high degree; extreme

interesterification

• transesterification
• interestification
• ester
• esterification

Also: interestification
This process that is a form of bio-catalysis: using lipase enzymes (or some form of them) in the presence of isopropyl or isobutyl alcohol yields a new form of BioDiesel called branched-alkyl ester.
NB: A variant spelling, "interestification", sounds as though it might be something that enhances your interest in a subject. It's certainly a process being carefully watched by nutritionists.
Example:
The company presented some data on utilization of fats that have been modified with interestification.
Etymology:
"Inter-" + "esterification", early 20c. (= "ester" + "-fication")
(The name comes about because the component fatty acids in the oils are combined with organic groups and are so technically esters; these are shifted about within the oil molecules during the reaction.)
"Inter-" - L. "inter" - "among, between", a comparative of "en-" ("in"); "entre-" in Fr.
"Esterification" - the process, in which carboxylic acids react readily with alcohols in the presence of catalytic amount of mineral acids to yield esters.
"Ester" (chem.) - compound produced by a reaction of an alcohol and an acid; the word was invented by L. Gmelin, a german chemist.
"Interesterification" has been turning up more frequently at the early 21st c. as a result of increasing concern over side-effects of the technologies that produce some of the processed foods we eat. Manufacturers of products such as cakes and biscuits need fats in solid form, but unsaturated fats usually occur as liquids, so makers have commonly converted them to solids by hydrogenation. The problem is that some of the fat is converted to a type called trans fat, which humans can't easily digest. As a result, firms are instead starting to turn to interesterification, in which acids or enzymes modify the fats to make them solid.
Synonym: transesterification


interlocutor

• interlocutory decree
• interlocutory
• decree
• loquacious
• circumlocution
• ventriloquism
• eloquent
• grandiloquence

[in-ter-LAH-kyuh-ter]
1. One who takes part in dialogue or conversation.
Example:
Steve's aggressive insistence on the correctness of his own opinions frequently made his interlocutors uncomfortable.
2. A man in the middle of the line in a minstrel show who questions the end men and acts as leader.
Etymology, related words:
"Interlocutor" derives from the Latin "interloqui," meaning "to speak between" or "to issue an interlocutory decree." (An interlocutory decree is a court judgment that comes in the middle of a case and is not decisive.) "Interloqui," in turn, ultimately comes from the words "inter-" ("between") and "loqui" ("to speak"). Some other words that English borrowed from "loqui" are "loquacious" ("talkative"), "circumlocution" (essentially, "talking around a subject"), "ventriloquism" ("talking in such a way that one's voice seems to come from someone or something else"), "eloquent" ("capable of fluent or vivid speech"), and "grandiloquence" ("extravagant or pompous speech").


internecine

• mutually ruinous
• ruinous

1. Of or pertaining to a quarrel, conflict or struggle within a group or organization: "an internecine feud among proxy holders".
2. Mutually destructive, destructive to both sides.
3. Involving, or accompanied by, mutual slaughter, bloodshed, carnage and killing: "internecine war".
Synonym: mutually ruinous
Etymology:
The word "internecine" (1663) derives from the Latin "internecinus" - "very deadly or destructive", which in turn derives from "internecare" - "kill or destroy". According to the OED, Samuel Johnson mistranslated its Latin ancestor to mean "mutually destructive" when in fact it means "very deadly or destructive" - but Johnson's version has become the current meaning.



interpolate
[in-TER-puh-layt]
(Transitive verb)
1. To alter or corrupt (as a text) by inserting new or foreign matter.
2. To insert (words) into a text or into a conversation.
3. To insert between other things or parts; intercalate.
4. To estimate values of (data or a function) between two known values.
5. (Intransitive verb) To make insertions (as of estimated values).
Example:
The biographer has interpolated many letters by the painter within the text, along with numerous sketches and paintings.
History, more examples:
"Interpolate" comes from the Latin "interpolare," a verb with various meanings, among them "to refurbish," "to alter," and also "to falsify." "Interpolate" entered English in the 17th century and early on applied to the alteration (and in many cases corruption) of texts by insertion of additional material. Modern use of "interpolate" still often suggests the insertion of something extraneous or spurious, as in "she interpolated her own comments into the report".


interrobang

• interabang
• interobang

[in-TER-uh-bang]
A punctuation mark designed for use especially at the end of an exclamatory rhetorical question; combination of a question mark and exclamation point in written material (used to express that a statement is both a rhetorical question and an exclamation). A sentence that ends in an interrobang either asks a question in an excited manner or expresses excitement in the form of a question. As to the form, an interrobang is an exclamation sign (!) placed over a question mark (?) such that both share the same dot. The two marks may be placed separately, too ("?!").
Example:
"You mean the exclamation point superimposed over a question mark?!" said Sam, a fourth-grader from Phoenix who was riding the chair with us. "We just learned about the interrobang in school." (Stephen Wilbers, "Liven the conversation by discussing punctuation", Minneapolis Star Tribune, 3 Apr. 1998)
Etymology:
Mid-20th century; "interro" from "interrogation" ("point") + "bang" (printers' slang for "exclamation point").
This punctuation mark is not yet standard, and probably never will be, though for a brief period in the 1960s it was added to a few typewriter keyboards. It was invented in 1962 through the actions of Martin Speckter, head of a New York advertising agency. He declared that advertising copywriters needed a new mark to punctuate exclamatory rhetorical questions common in advertising headlines ("What?! Whiter than White?!"). His idea was to to combine the two marks into a single symbol. He asked readers of his magazine "Type Talks" to suggest a name for the character. Of the names submitted Speckter favored "exclamaquest" and "interrobang" and finally chose the latter.


intransigent

• uncompromising
• transact

Characterized by refusal to compromise or to abandon an extreme position or attitude; agreeing, but only on terms.
Synonym: uncompromising
Example:
Despite the mediator's best efforts, the opposing sides in the dispute remained intransigent.
Etymology:
The word derives from the Spanish "Los Intransigentes" (literally: "those who will not agree"), the name of an extreme republican party in 1870's Spain. "Intransigente" ("uncompromising") is a combination of the familiar prefix "in-" ("not") and "transigente" ("willing to compromise"). "Transigente" comes from the Spanish verb "transigir" ("to compromise"), which in turn comes from Latin "transigere" ("to come to an agreement"). The French have a similar verb, "transiger," which also means "to compromise." The word "transigent" doesn't really exist in English. There is, however, one other common English word that traces from Latin "transigire" - "transact," meaning "to conduct (business)."



intrepid
[in-TREP-id]
Fearless; bold; brave; undaunted; courageous; as, an intrepid soldier; intrepid spirit.
Examples:
1) Join the few dozen rich and intrepid souls... who have paid hefty deposits to sign up for the first commercial rides into space. (Dinesh D'Souza, "The Virtue of Prosperity")
2) Less than 70 years earlier, the intrepid James Cook in his ship Resolution had been the first explorer to cross the Antarctic Circle. (Lennard Bickel, "Shackleton's Forgotten Men)
Etymology:
"Intrepid" comes from Latin "intrepidus" ("calm"), from "in-" ("not") + "trepidus" ("anxious, disturbed").
Synonyms: daring, dauntless, heroic, resolute, stalwart, valiant.


introspection
[in-truh-SPEK-shuhn]
The act or process of self-examination; contemplation of one's own thoughts and feelings; a looking inward.
Examples:
1) Bill could be harshly self-critical, while Mac -- though not oblivious of his mistakes - had no time for introspection. (Kai Bird, "The Color of Truth")
2) Romanes acknowledged that to interpret an animal's thought processes this way required a heavy dose of inference from our own mental patterns, which we access through introspection. (Stephen Budiansky, "If a Lion Could Talk")
3) Religion absorbed Bailey, and following a period of intense introspection, he began a long quest to become a Congregationalist minister. (Thomas G. Dyer, "Secret Yankees")
Etymology:
"Introspection" derives from the past participle of Latin "introspicere" ("to look inside"), from "intro-" ("to the inside") + "specere" ("to look").


inure
[in-YOOR]
1. (Transitive verb) To make accustomed or used to something painful, difficult, or inconvenient; to harden; to habituate; as, "inured to drudgery and distress."
2. (Intransitive verb) To pass into use; to take or have effect; to be applied; to serve to the use or benefit of; as, "a gift of lands inures to the heirs."
Examples:
1) They were a hard-driven, hardworking crowd inured to the hardest living, and they found their recreation in hard drinking and hard fighting. (Allen Barra, "Inventing Wyatt Earp")
2) How does one become inured to unpredictable moments of helplessness? (Stephen Kuusisto, "Planet Of The Blind")
3) At school, he repeatedly jabbed the nib of his pen into his hand, wanting to inure himself to agony. (Peter Conrad, "Enter the philosopher, with an axe," The Observer, September 8, 2002)
4) It is true that 35.3 percent of the tax benefits would inure to households with incomes of $250K or higher. (William F. Buckley Jr., "The Rich Get Poorer," National Review, January 7, 2003)
Etymology:
"Inure" derives from prefix "in-" ("in") + obsolete "ure" ("use, work"), from Old French "uevre" ("work"), from Latin "opera" ("trouble, pains, exertion"), from "opus" ("work").


invective
[in-VEK-tiv]
(noun) 1. An abusive expression or speech; a vehement verbal attack. 2. Insulting or abusive language.
(adjective) 3. Of, relating to, or characterized by insult, abuse, or denunciatory language.
Examples:
1) But one can also note that he chose a fitting image for himself, going out in a duel of honor, armed all over with spikes of witty invective and a specialised knowledge of insult. (Adrian Frazier, "George Moore, 1852-1933")
2) They all seemed to be in their usual mood of precarious good humour which could splinter at any moment into invective and menacing gesture. (Alice Thomas Ellis, "Pillars of Gold")
3) One evening John Mitchell, slightly in his cups, let loose at Whalen with a mess of invective about writers, their inflated notion of their importance to political campaigns, and the need to keep them in their place. (Leonard Garment, "In Search of Deep Throat"
4) Political satire at the expense of governments or institutions is one thing. Personal invective is another. (Victoria Glendinning, "Jonathan Swift: A Portrait") Etymology:
"Invective" comes from Late Latin "invectivus" ("reproachful, abusive") from Latin "invectus", past participle of "invehi" ("to inveigh against").


inveigh
[in-VAY] To rail (against some person or thing); to protest strongly or attack with harsh and bitter language - usually with "against"; as, "to inveigh against character, conduct, manners, customs, morals, a law, an abuse."
Examples:
1) It is my intention to inveigh against what seems to be the gradual (continuing?) publishing practice of making books that are so fat and windy that they sit, with some exceptions, like hefty neglected lumps on the shelves waiting for the first clever marketer to include a backpack with their purchase. (Martin Arnold, "They're Bigger. But Better?", New York Times, October 28, 1999)
2) He saved it for his preaching, when he inveighed against sin and the devil. (Rubem Fonseca, "Vast Emotions and Imperfect Thoughts"; translated by Clifford E. Landers)
3) I inveighed against the landlord, who, I thought, was trying to save electricity with those weak lightbulbs, but I suspected that I might need new glasses. (Henry A. Grunwald, "Twilight: Losing Sight, Gaining Insight")
4) Reuther never hesitated to inveigh against "poverty, hunger, and disease." (Stanley Aronowitz, "From the Ashes of the Old")
Etymology:
"Inveigh" is from Latin "invehi" ("to attack with words"), passive form of "invehere" ("to carry or bring into or against"), from "in-" ("in, into") + "vehere" ("to carry").




inveterate

• habitual

[in-VET-uh-rut]
1. Firmly established by long persistence.
2. Confirmed in a habit.
Synonym: habitual
Example:
It started with an occasional cigarette in college, but by her late twenties, Lilly was an inveterate smoker.
Etymology, related words, additional meanings and examples:
Like "veteran," "inveterate" ultimately comes from Latin "vetus," which means "old," and which led to the Latin verb "inveterare" ("to age"). That verb in turn gave rise eventually to the adjective "inveteratus," the direct source of our adjective "inveterate" (in use since the 14th century). In the past, "inveterate" has meant "long-standing" or simply "old." For example, one 16th-century writer warned of "Those great Flyes which in the springe time of the yeare creepe out of inveterate walls". Today, "inveterate" most often applies to a habit, attitude, or feeling of such long existence that it is practically ineradicable or unalterable.


invidious
[in-VID-ee-uhs]
1. Tending to provoke envy, resentment, or ill will.
2. Containing or implying a slight.
3. Envious.
Examples:
1) But to the human hordes of Amorites - Semitic nomads wandering the mountains and deserts just beyond the pale of Sumer - the tiered and clustered cities, strung out along the green banks of the meandering Euphrates like a giant's necklace of polished stone, seemed shining things, each surmounted by a wondrous temple and ziggurat dedicated to the city's god-protector, each city noted for some specialty - all invidious reminders of what the nomads did not possess. (Thomas Cahill, "The Gifts of the Jews")
2) In his experience people were seldom happier for having learned what they were missing, and all Europe had done for his wife was encourage her natural inclination toward bitter and invidious comparison. (Richard Russo, "Empire Falls")
3) The lover's obsessiveness may also take the form of invidious comparisons between himself, or herself, and the rival. (Ethel S. Person, "Love Triangles," The Atlantic, February 1988)
4) For five decades, Indian liberals, and some from Europe and America, have been shaming the Western world with its commercialism, making invidious comparisons with Indian spirituality. (Leland Hazard, "Strong Medicine for India," The Atlantic, December 1965)
Etymology:
"Invidious" is from Latin "invidiosus" ("envious, hateful, causing hate or ill-feeling"), from "invidia" ("envy"), from "invidere" ("to look upon with the evil eye, to look maliciously upon, to envy"), from "in-" ("upon") + "videre" ("to look at, to see").


iota
[eye-OH-tuh]
1. The ninth letter of the Greek alphabet, corresponding to the English "i".
2. A very small quantity or degree; a jot; a bit.
Examples:
1) Copernicus, Galileo and Kepler taught us that the Earth moves and rotates while the heavens stand still, but this did not change by one iota our direct perception that the heavens do move and that the Earth does not budge. (Julian Barbour, "The End of Time")
2) He has not moderated his demands one iota in seven years. (Charles Krauthammer, "The Last Deal, or No Deal," Time, July 17, 2000)
3) I couldn't help feeling that in spite of every iota of evidence to the contrary, something was about to happen. (Jane Smiley, "The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton")
Etymology:
"Iota" is the smallest letter in the Greek alphabet. The word "jot" also derives from "iota".


irascible
[ih-RASS-uh-bul]
Prone to anger; easily provoked to anger; hot-tempered; marked by hot temper and easily provoked anger.
Examples:
1) The boys knew they'd have to endure a tirade from their irascible coach if they were late to football practice again.
2) The lawyer described his client as an irascible eighty-two-year-old eccentric who alternated between spinning fascinating tales about her past and cussing him out. (Jack Olsen, "Hastened to the Grave")
3) His father was an irascible and boastful bully, a heavy drinker and a gambler. (Robin Waterfield, "Prophet: The Life and Times of Kahlil Gibran")
Etymology, related words:
The key to the meaning of "irascible" isn't the negative prefix "ir-", but the Latin noun "ira", meaning "anger". "Irascible" is from Latin "irascibilis" ("prone to anger"). From "ira", which is also the root of "irate" and "ire", came the Latin verb "irasci" ("to become angry"), which led to the French "irascible". English speakers borrowed the word from French in the 16th century.


irons in the fire

• iron in the fire
• irons
• iron
• fire

1. very busy, plate is full.
Example:
I can't help with your project. I have too many irons in the fire.
2. If the shoe fits, wear it.
Example:
If you have a number of irons in the fire, keep all of them hot.

irony

• ironies
• Socratic irony
• Socratic
• dramatic irony
• dramatic
• tragic irony
• tragic

I. Adjective
1. Made or consisting of iron; partaking of iron; iron; as, irony chains; irony particles. 2. Resembling iron taste, hardness, or other physical property.
II. Noun; plural "ironies" 1. A sort of humor, ridicule, or light sarcasm, which adopts a mode of speech the meaning of which is contrary to the literal sense of the words; a stylistic device in which the contextual evaluative meaning of a word is directly opposite to its dictionary meaning (subdivided into verbal irony and sustained irony); the foregrounding not of the logical but of the evaluative meaning; the contradiction between the said and implied.
2. A usually humorous or sardonic literary style or form characterized by irony.
3. An ironic expression or utterance.
4. A pretense of ignorance and of willingness to learn from another assumed in order to make the other's false conceptions conspicuous by adroit questioning - called also Socratic irony.
5. Odd or amusing situation, because it involves a contrast; incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result; an event or result marked by such incongruity.
6. Incongruity between a situation developed in a drama and the accompanying words or actions that is understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play - called also dramatic irony, tragic irony. Examples:
1) Sinclair examined the closed, clever face for any hint of irony, but found none.
2) The irony is that many officials in Washington agree in private that their policy is inconsistent...
3) Irony is used in literature to create humour or to reveal hidden meanings to the reader.
Etymology:
Date: 1502.Latin "ironia", from Greek "eironia" ("feigned ignorance", "simulated ignorance"), from "eiron" ("dissembler").
The Greek word denoted the discussion technique used, for example, by Socrates, where: (1) you pretend NOT to know something; (2) you get your opponent to explain it to you; and then (3) use this explanation as the starting point for picking apart the opponent's argument and presenting yours.


irrefragable
[ih-REF-ruh-guh-buhl]
Impossible to refute; incontestable; undeniable; as, an irrefragable argument; irrefragable evidence.
Examples:
1) I had the most irrefragable evidence of the absolute truth and soundness of the principle upon which my invention was based. (Sir Henry Bessemer, Autobiography)
2) On June 4, the Citizen featured an interview with the Joneses' lawyer, R. S. Newcombe, who insisted that at the pending manslaughter trial he would bring "positive, absolute, irrefragable proof from... the most eminent scientists in the world" to show that both the Bates and Hunt operations were necessary and that no surgeon could have saved their lives. (Regina Morantz-Sanchez, "Conduct Unbecoming a Woman")
Etymology:
"Irrefragable" derives from Late Latin "irrefragabilis", from Latin "in-" ("not") + "refragari" ("to oppose").


irritainment
Entertainment and media spectacles that are annoying, but you find yourself unable to stop watching them, because they are compulsively watchable. The O.J. trials were a prime example. The US presidential election coverage on TV was another.
Examples:
1) Rather than let heated tempers rise, let's blow off steam on the Net.Scandal mailing list . . . If you've got a beef, this is a good place to beat it to death. The list is "dedicated to the pursuit of sloth and irritainment," it says, and of course, so are we. (Angela Gunn, "Online Grapevine," Computer Shopper, August 1, 1995)
2) Jim Sinclair, assistant manager of the Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, explained how to treat food and beverage operations as entertainment, during the Midwest Fairs Assn. meeting here. He first stated that everything they do at the fair is entertainment. "It's a matter of perspective and presentation." He said the catch word is 'eatatainment' when combining experiences. "Irritainment is a word we've come up with that means something is so annoying, you can't stop watching it. Present all but that." A good example was the O.J. Simpson murder trial. (Tom Powell, "Minnesota's Sinclair promotes food as new 'eatatainment'," Amusement Business, June 10, 2002)
Etymology:
"Irritainment" = "irritate" + "entertainment"



irrupt
1. To burst in forcibly or suddenly; to intrude.
2. (ecology) To increase rapidly in number.
Examples:
1) Furthermore, and most decisively, the 1848 revolutions had shown how the masses could irrupt into the closed circle of their rulers, and the progress of industrial society itself made their pressure constantly greater even in non-revolutionary periods. (Eric J. Hobsbawm, "The Age of Capital: 1848-1875")
2) What happens in these flashes of inspiration is a kind of transcendence in science in which a new concept, something that has never been dreamt or thought of before, irrupts into the scientist's imagination. (Roy Bhaskar, "Reflections on Meta-Reality")
3) What sounds are these that sting as they caress, that irrupt into my soul and twine about my heart? (Nikolai Gogol, "Dead Souls")
4) Archetypes are primordial forces, hidden within the collective unconscious, which normally lie dormant and unnoticed but which can suddenly irrupt into the conscious mind and produce the most unexpected results. (Dewi Rees, "Death and Bereavement")
5) But unlike the populations of some of their more famous relatives (more famous to ecologists, at least), whose population fluctuations follow a regular, three-year cycle, some meadow vole populations irrupt sporadically and others almost always stay high or low. (Richard S. Ostfeld, "Little loggers make a big difference", Natural History, May 2002)
Etymology:
"Irrupt" is derived from the past participle of Latin "irrumpere", from "ir-" = "in-" ("in") + "rumpere" ("to break").


itinerant

• itinerant
• itinerary
• errant

[igh-TIN-uh-runt, eye-TIN-uhr-uhnt]
1. Passing or traveling from place to place; wandering; especially: covering a circuit.
from place to place; wandering. 2. One who travels from place to place.
Examples:
1) John Steinbeck's novel, "The Grapes of Wrath", traces the migration of itinerant farm workers from the Oklahoma Dust Bowl to California.
2) Like many itinerant vendors in rural places, he was a smooth-talking purveyor of dreams along with tawdry trinkets, and Eliza responded to this romantic wanderer. (Ron Chernow, "Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller")
3) Molds were therefore used only for small amounts of fat, shared with neighbors at cooperative candle dippings or supplied by itinerant candlemakers who went from house to house, helping with the task. (Susan Strasser, "Waste and Want")
4) Even the itinerant street-vendors cease bustling about and stand still with their mobile stalls, their straps, their samples of merchandise, their mouths wide open and their heads in the air. (Dacia Maraini, "The Silent Duchess")
5) Their characters are itinerants, voyagers between lands, languages and religions. (Maya Jaggi, "A son of the road", The Guardian, November 16, 2002)
Etymology, related words:
In Latin, "iter" means "way" or "journey." That root was the parent of the Late Latin verb "itinerari," meaning "to journey." It was that verb which ultimately gave rise to today's English word for traveling types: "itinerant." The linguistic grandsire, "iter," also contributed to the development of other words in our vocabulary, including "itinerary" ("the route of a journey" and "the plan made for a journey") and "errant" ("traveling or given to traveling").


ivories

• ivory

Teeth
Examples:
1) Make sure you brush your ivories before you go to bed. 2) Lisa has a nice set of ivories.
Etymology: Probably due to the similar color of real ivory and human tooth enamel.