desuetude
(en)
(noun) discontinuance from use or exercise; disuse
11
the degree in sociology and political economy that Pnin had obtained with some pomp at the University of Prague around 1925 had become by mid century a doctorate in desuetude
strange
8 months, 1 week ago
the degree in sociology and political economy that Pnin had obtained with some pomp at the University of Prague around 1925 had become by mid century a doctorate in desuetude
strange
8 months, 1 week ago
bathos
(en)
(noun) a literary term coined by Alexander Pope to describe to describe amusingly failed attempts at sublimity (an effect of anticlimax created by an unintentional lapse in mood from the sublime to the trivial or ridiculous); adj is "bathetic"
50
And after a bathetic sojourn on Ellis Island, Timofey and Liza parted
notable
8 months, 1 week ago
And after a bathetic sojourn on Ellis Island, Timofey and Liza parted
notable
8 months, 1 week ago
carmine
(en)
(noun) a rich crimson or scarlet lake made from cochineal / (noun) a vivid red
85
glanced at the desk photograph of a beautiful dead woman, at those great blue eyes, that carmine mouth
uncertain
8 months, 1 week ago
glanced at the desk photograph of a beautiful dead woman, at those great blue eyes, that carmine mouth
uncertain
8 months, 1 week ago
sybaritic
(en)
fond of sensuous luxury or pleasure; self-indulgent (derives from the Greek city Sybaris)
151
He began them soon after five and only interrupted them to don, for the reception of his guests, a sybaritic smoking jacket of blue silk, with tasselled belt and satin lapels
uncertain
8 months, 1 week ago
He began them soon after five and only interrupted them to don, for the reception of his guests, a sybaritic smoking jacket of blue silk, with tasselled belt and satin lapels
uncertain
8 months, 1 week ago
excelsior
(en)
a Latin word often translated as "ever upward" or "still higher" / NORTH AMERICAN: softwood shavings used for packing fragile goods or stuffing furniture.
153
extravagant mass of excelsior and paper that had spread all over the kitchen like a carnival storm
uncertain
8 months, 1 week ago
extravagant mass of excelsior and paper that had spread all over the kitchen like a carnival storm
uncertain
8 months, 1 week ago
scabrous
(en)
(adjective) difficult knotty / (adjective) ; rough to the touch; as / (adjective) having small raised dots, scales, or points / (adjective) covered with raised, roughened, or unwholesome patches / (adjective) dealing with suggestive, indecent, or scandalous themes; salacious / (adjective) squalid
160
who always confessed he never could see the point of any 'scabrous anecdote'
notable
8 months, 1 week ago
who always confessed he never could see the point of any 'scabrous anecdote'
notable
8 months, 1 week ago