I’m always pleasantly delighted when I discover new words. I test them on my tongue like a new spice and sprinkling them into drafts to solidify them in my memory. In the past, I only made a mental note of them before moving on with the story. Then I picked up Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir and forever doomed my marginalia.
It was the first time in a long time I really had to sit down with a pen scribbling in the margins and my phone open the least ad-infested dictionary website. My copy of Gideon is now covered in notes about everything from theories and reactions to brief explanations to Biblical and extremely specific medical references. It’s a gorgeously massacred paperback decorated with tabs and topped off with a broken spine.
It’s my favorite example of what reading looks like.
If you haven’t guessed, “marginalia” was one of the words I picked up from Gideon the Ninth. I have a distinct memory of pausing after I looked it up and laughing to myself because I was doing exactly the same thing as Harrow–trying to understand the text and defacing it in the process.
I started to keep track of all of the words I either learned or found interesting in everything I read–after all, I enjoy a good list of neat words with quick definitions as much as the next person.
Have I rambled enough? Here’s the td;lr: Here’s the list of words I collected while reading Gideon the Ninth. Enjoy!
Ameliorate (v.) – Make (something bad or unsatisfactory) better.
Apse (n.) – A large semicircular or polygonal recess in a church, arched or with a domed roof, typically at the eastern end, and usually containing an alter.
Beatific (adj.) – Blissfully happy; imparting holy bliss.
Bouffant (adj.) – Puffed out.
Cairn (n.) – A heap of stones piled up as a memorial or as a landmark.
Catarrh (n.) – Excessive discharge or buildup of mucus in the nose or throat, associated with inflammation of the mucous membrane.
Clement (adj.) – (about weather) mild; (about a person or person’s actions) merciful.
Coruscating (v.) – To give off or reflect light in bright beams or flashes; sparkle.
Discomfit (v.) – To put into a state of perplexity and embarrassment; disconcert; To frustrate the plans of; thwart.
Disconsolate (adj.) – Cheerless; dejected, downcast.
Effrontery (n.) – Shameless boldness, insolence.
Equanimity (n.) – Evenness of mind, especially under stress.
Foetid (adj.) – Smelling extremely unpleasant.
Folderol (n.) A useless ornament or accessory; trifle
Fug (n.) – The stuffy atmosphere of a poorly ventilated space.
Hypovolemia (n.) – A decrease in the volume of circulating blood in the body (as from traumatic injury or severe dehydration).
Insensate (adj.) – Lacking physical sensation; lacking sympathy or compassion; unfeeling.
Intercession (n.) – The action of intervening on behalf of another.
Judder (v.) – To vibrate with intensity.
Languor (n.) – The state or feeling, often pleasant, of tiredness or inertia; an oppressive stillness of the air.
Limn (v.) – To draw or paint on a surface ; To outline in clear, sharp detail.
Lintel (n.) – Horizontal architectural member spanning and usually carrying the load above an opening.
Main-Gauche (n.) – A type of parrying dagger.
Marginalia (pl. n.) – Marginal notes or embellishments (in a book); Nonessential items
Mellifluous (adj.) – Having a smooth, rich flow; Filled with something (such as honey) that sweetens.
Mouldering/Moldering (v.) – To crumble into particles; disintegrate; decay
Moue (n.) – A pouting expression used to convey annoyance or distaste.
Novitiate (n.) – The period of state of being a novice
Overweening (adj.) – Showing excessive confidence or pride.
Pneuma (n.) – Soul, spirit; An invisible liquid or vapor held to travel throughout the body and to be necessary to and associated with life.
Pneumatic (adj.) – Of, or relating to the pneuma: spirit.
Po-faced (adj.) – Humorless or disapproving.
Poleaxed (v.) – To attack, strike, or fell with or as if with a poleaxe.
Prolix (adj.) – (about speech or writing) Using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy.
Qua (conj.) – In the Capacity of; as being.
Rangy (adj.) – Able to range for considerable distances; long-limbed and long-bodied.
Reproof (n.) – Criticism for a fault; rebuke.
Scions (n.) – Descendant of wealthy, aristocratic, or influential family.
Sepulchrous (adj.) – Relating to a tomb or interment; gloomy; dismal.
Sotto Voce (adv.) – In a quiet voice, as if note to be overheard.
Stolidity (n.) – Apathy demonstrated by an absence of emotional reactions.
Susurrus (n.) – A whispering or rustling sound.
Tarpaulin (n.) – A piece of material used especially for protecting exposed objects or areas; a tarp.
Voile (n.) – A thin, semitransparent fabric of cotton, wool, or silk.
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