There’s almost too many words in the English language, with many more entering our lexicon seemingly every day. Yet it’s a shame that we rely on so few in everyday life. However, if your linguistics are feeling a little dull, you’re in luck. Irish-based design and illustration duo The Project Twins have a perfect solution for that. Composed of James and Michael Fitzgerald, their work is characterized by humor and wit delivered in a bright, bold aesthetic.
Many of the words are so obscure that they don’t always appear in dictionaries, but they’re all quite real. Your vocabulary lesson begins now.
1. Biblioclasm
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Noun. The practice of destroying, often ceremoniously, books or other written material and media. When the new bestseller was revealed to actually be another Twilight fan fiction, the result was a nationwide biblioclasm.
2. Cacedemonomania
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Noun. The pathological belief that one is inhabited by an evil spirit. We were worried it was cacedemonomania, but it turned out she just had a Meghan Trainor song stuck in her head.
3. Dactylion
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Noun. An anatomical landmark located at the tip of the middle finger. I wasn’t being rude, I was just showing you my dactylion
4. Jettatura
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Noun. The casting of the evil eye. Sandy performed a jettatura on Bill because Bill stole her sandwich.
5. Ktenology
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Noun. The science of putting people to death. Weekly ktenology night at the local pub is something of a downer.
6. Montivagant
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Adjective. Wandering over hills and mountains. John lives in Colorado, which is perfect for a montivagant-type guy like him.
7. Noegenesis
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Noun. The production of knowledge including observation, discovery of relationships, and the creation of related ideas. Consider these articles as inspiration for your noegenesis.
8. Ostentiferous
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Adjective. Bringing omens or unnatural or supernatural manifestations. After being on the receiving end of a jettatura, Bill found himself noticing all manner of ostentiferous animals and occurrences.
9. Pogonotrophy
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Noun. The act of cutting, or growing and grooming, a mustache, beard, sideburns, or other facial hair. If you’re interested in the finer aspects of pogontrophy, take a walk through Williamsburg. You won’t be interested anymore.
10. Scripturient
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Adjective. Possessing a violent desire to write. There are certain ViralNova articles that make our Facebook followers extra scripturient.
11. Vernalagnia
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Noun. A romantic mood brought on by Spring. Sid told Emily that he had vernalagnia, but unfortunately, it sounded too much like an STD for her to appreciate the meaning.
12. Xenization
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Noun. The act of traveling as a stranger. Xenization is a perfect activity when you need to get away from it all. It’s also a great word for Scrabble.
13. Yonderly
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Adjective. Mentally or emotionally distant; absent-minded. When he was overwhelmed with work, Fred could become somewhat yonderly.
14. Zugzwang
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Noun. A position in which any decision or move will result in problems. I’m thinking of starting a movement to officially change the word ‘politics’ to ‘zugzwang.’
(via TwistedSifter)
You can see the rest of the series, as well as other artwork, on the Project Twins’ website; there are 26 in total, one strange word for each letter of the alphabet. If you fall in love with one, you can also buy a print on their online shop. And now that your vocabulary has been enhanced, we do expect to see these words peppering your Facebook comments.
