This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website April 29, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Puerile means:
A) Pearly
B) Professional
C) Childish
D) Crooked
What an Elegant EDIFICE!
May 6, 2013 by
Could you imagine living in a house with 700 rooms?
There is such an edifice (see definition below), located just outside Paris, France.
Known as the Palace of Versailles, this elegant, one-time royal residence first began as a hunting lodge. But in 1661, the French King Louis XIV began transforming it into the palace that exists today.
Surrounded by magnificent gardens and fountains, the palace features an opulent Hall of Mirrors with enormous chandeliers, ornately painted ceilings and a spectacular display of sparkling mirrors.
The Hall of Mirrors is perhaps most famous for being the location where the Treaty of Versailles was signed, ending World War I in 1919.
This spectacular Versailles gallery boasts a total of 357 mirrors. So, no matter where visitors look, they’re likely to catch glimpses of themselves!
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: What would you consider to be the most remarkable edifice in your hometown?
EDIFICE: A building, especially a large, imposing structure.
What a CORPULENT Creature!
May 2, 2013 by
Can you name the largest animal on earth? You might think it’s the elephant.
But the correct answer is actually a marine mammal–the blue whale. These enormous creatures can measure up to 100 feet long and weigh as much as 200 tons.
When it comes to land animals, however, the African elephant does top the list as the most corpulent (see definition below) animal, weighing about 7 tons.
Other weighty creatures include the white rhinoceros and the hippopotamus, both of which can tip the scales at up to 4 tons.
Even so, these animals still don’t compare to the massive size of the blue whale. Believe it or not, the blue whale sometimes eats up to 4 tons of krill a day.
Now that’s a very big meal!
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: What types of advantages do you think that a corpulent creature might have in the animal kingdom?
CORPULENT: Fat, obese.
Vocabulary Practice: Remember MAXIM?
May 1, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website April 25, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Maxim means:
A) A hurried comment
B) A congenial man
C) A huge piece of candy
D) A general principle
Vocabulary Practice: Remember OSCULATE?
April 30, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website April 22, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Osculate means:
A) To kiss
B) To turn in circles
C) To trip and fall
D) To tell silly jokes
A Bit Too PUERILE?
April 29, 2013 by
Clowns love to make people laugh!
Decked out in their red, plastic noses, makeup and outrageous hats, they perform all sorts of antics to amuse their audiences.
Good clowns rely on a wide range of tricks. They make silly faces, juggle balls, throw pies and often ride a one-wheel cycle called a unicycle.
Some people enjoy watching clowns. But others find their type of humor to be a bit too puerile (see definition below).
In some cases, people think that clowns are even scary. If someone has an extreme fear of clowns, that person is said to suffer from “coulrophobia.”
So if you’re invited to a circus, be forewarned. You’re likely to see some those jocular characters clowning around!
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: What do you think of the type of entertainment provided by clowns?
PUERILE: Childish, juvenile, silly.
A MAXIM to Live By
April 25, 2013 by
If you have a problem that you’re not sure how to solve, there might be a maxim (see definition below) that will help guide you. Consider these:
“Actions speak louder than words”
“Less is more.”
“All good things come to those who wait.”
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.”
“Buyer beware!”
“Work smarter, not harder.”
These little nuggets of truth, which are sometimes also referred to as adages, are frequently quoted because they can apply to any number of different situations.
In many cases, you can find the answer you need by turning to the carefully chosen words in one of these maxims!
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: What is your favorite maxim, and why does it have meaning for you?
MAXIM: A short, pithy general principle or truth.
Vocabulary Practice: Remember INCIPIENT?
April 24, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website April 18, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Incipient means:
A) Buried underground
B) Overly ambitious
C) Disrespectful
D) Beginning to exist
Vocabulary Practice: Remember EXPEDITIOUS?
April 23, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website April 15, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Expeditious means:
A) Careful and circumspect
B) Noisy and raucous
C) Marked by speed and efficiency
D) Characterized by scholarly effort
Shall We OSCULATE on the Cheek?
April 22, 2013 by
We all know that humans osculate (see definition below) to show affection or sometimes to simply greet one another.
But plenty of animals, including chimpanzees, sea lions, horses, bears and cows, also show kissing-like behavior.
In the animal kingdom, “kissing” often consists of nuzzling or licking a companion’s face. It can sometimes be used as a form of grooming or as a demonstration of trust.
If you have ever spent much time around dogs, you know that these animals frequently “kiss”—or actually lick–their owners’ faces.
Scientists don’t agree on the exact meaning of these canine kisses. However, experts caution us that our pooches’ mouths do carry lots of germs.
So, the next time Fido wants to give you a doggie kiss, it’s best to steer him away from your mouth!
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: Do you think that it’s ever appropriate to osculate someone you’ve just met on the cheek?
OSCULATE: To kiss.
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