apsos (en)

(noun) any of a Tibetan breed of small dogs that have a dense coat of long hard straight hair, a heavy fall over the eyes, heavy whiskers and beard, and a well-feathered tail curled over the back

aptronym (en)

a person's name that is regarded as amusingly appropriate to their occupation

arcadia (en)

(noun) a region or scene of simple pleasure and quiet

archaisms (en)

a thing that is very old or old-fashioned (i.e., archaic)

arche (grk)

beginning

architectonic (en)

relating to architecture or architects

Ariadne’s thread (en)

(from Greek mythology) the solving of a problem with multiple apparent means of proceeding through an exhaustive application of logic to all available routes

Arnoldian (en)

of or relating to Matthew Arnold (1822–1888), British poet and cultural critic who celebrated virtue

arrant (en)

(adjective) being notoriously without moderation; extreme

arrogate (en)

(verb) to claim or seize without justification / (verb) to make undue claims to having; assume / (verb) to claim on behalf of another; ascribe

ars gratia artis (la)

art for art's sake

ars poetica (la)

"the art of poetry"; also a poem written by Roman poet Horace in 19 BC, in which he advises poets on the art of writing poetry and drama

artistic idolatry (en)

a literal reverence for objects depicted in art with a neglect for the spirit of art

ascesis (en)

(noun) the practice of severe self-discipline, typically for religious reasons

asperities (en)

(noun) rigor severity / (noun) roughness of surface; unevenness / (noun) a tiny projection from a surface / (noun) roughness of sound / (noun) roughness of manner or of temper; harshness

aspersion (en)

(noun) a sprinkling with water especially in religious ceremonies / (noun) a false or misleading charge meant to harm someone's reputation / (noun) the act of making such a charge; defamation

aspic (en)

(noun) asp / (noun) a clear savory jelly (as of fish or meat stock) used as a garnish or to make a meat, fish, or vegetable mold

astrolabe (en)

(noun) a compact instrument used to observe and calculate the position of celestial bodies before the invention of the sextant

ate (grk)

(Greek tragedy) foolishness or madness

atelic (en)

the quality of a verb that shows that an action is incomplete

atman (en)

a philosophical concept referring to the existence of a metaphysical self; relevant to Buddhism and Hinduism

atonal (en)

(adjective) marked by avoidance of traditional musical tonality / (adjective) organized without reference to key or tonal center and using the tones of the chromatic scale impartially

attestation (en)

defined by Ricoeur as the balance of the idem and the ipse: one's belief in oneself, which cannot be verified by empirical evidence or extrinsic proof, but is based in confidence

aubade (en)

(noun) a song or poem greeting the dawn / (noun) a morning love song / (noun) a song or poem of lovers parting at dawn / (noun) morning music

augury (en)

(noun) divination from auspices or omens / noun) omen, portent