Arcane (adj)
ah-kain
Understood by few; mysterious or secret.
Mid 16th century: from Latin arcanus, from arcere ‘to shut up’, from arca ‘chest’.
Example sentences
“I’ve had it with the whole institution and their arcane procedures.”
Malamute (noun) mal-a-myoot one of an Alaskan breed of large dogs having a dense, coarse coat, raised originally by the Inuit for drawing sleds. First recorded in 1895–1900. Sometimes capitalized,…
Bedizen (verb) bed-iz-uhn to dress or adorn in a showy, gaudy, or tasteless manner. First recorded in 1655–65 and formed from the verb dizen, “to deck with clothes or finery.”…
Ormolu (noun) awr-muh-loo Also called mosaic gold. an alloy of copper and zinc used to imitate gold. 1755–65; French or moulu ground gold, equivalent to or (Latin aurum) + moulu,…
Phototropism (adj) fo-to-trop-iz-m Tendency to grow towards the sunlight. First recorded in 1895–1900; photo- + -tropism (more…)
Embower (verb) em-bou-er to shelter in, cover or surround with foliage. First recorded in 1570–80; em-1 + bower (a leafy shelter or recess) (more…)
Etiolate (verb) ee-tee-oh-layt to cause (a plant) to whiten or grow pale by excluding light. / to cause to become weakened or sickly; drain of colour or vigor. First recorded…
Onomatopoeia (noun) on-oh-mat-a-pee-uh The formation of a word by imitation of a sound made by or associated with its referent. First recorded in 1570–80 and comes via Late Latin, from…
Discord (noun) dis-kawrd lack of concord or harmony between persons or things. First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English noun descorde, discorde, from Anglo-French, Old French descort, descorde, from Latin discordia,…