hellscape [hel-skeyp]

noun:
1 a bleak landscape or one that resembles hell
2 a place or time that is hopeless, unbearable, or irredeemable

Examples:

The planet is a toxic hellscape, but upon scanning its atmosphere a compound called phosphine was detected, which can originate from organic processes. (Mike Wehner, Signs of life on Venus may ( Read more... )

Heddle - noun.

Heddles, which may be metal, made from string or fabric strips, are the doohickeys that make loom weaving so much easier--and sometimes aggravating ( Read more... )

heinous [hey-nuhs]

adjective:
1 hatefully or shockingly evil, abominable
2 (informal) very unappealing; ugly

Examples:

Although fans see a glimpse of Nigari's sad backstory as he's shooting people with a sniper rifle, the fact that he was bullied as a kid doesn't do much to justify his heinous actions on the show. (Saab Hannah, Alice In ( Read more... )

Today's word is brought to you by prettygoodword--many thanks!

hendiadys
Nov. 19th, 2021 | 08:07 am
hendiadys (hen-DAY-uh-dis) - n., (rhet.) an expression using two independent words connected by and instead of a more usual combination of modifier plus independent word ( Read more... )

Tuesday, Sep. 14, 2021

Hierarchy (noun)
hi·er·ar·chy [hahy-uh-rahr-kee, hahy-rahr-]

noun plural hi·er·ar·chies.
1. any system of persons or things ranked one above another.
2. government by ecclesiastical rulers.
3. the power or dominion of a hierarch.
4. an organized body of ecclesiastical officials in successive ranks or orders: the Roman ( Read more... )

Hirple - noun or verb

Hirple is a chiefly Scottish word which means to limp (verb) or to describe a limping motion (noun).

Some example sentences:

‘At the moment of his ultimate triumph, Stein left the bench in Lisbon, and he can be seen hirpling away to the dressing room.’

‘After returning to the UK he more or less hopped and hirpled his way ( Read more... )

Hapax - noun.

Here's a cool term for all the word nerds out there, suggested by full_metal_ox along with a fascinating link about hapaxes.

Basically, it's a a word that only appears once in a work of or genus of literature or in a body of work by a particular author.

handwavium [hand-wav-eeum]
noun:
(informal, fiction) Any hypothetical but unobtainable material with desirable engineering properties

Examples:

It’s a great movie, as long as you’re willing to swallow all of the slick handwavium that injects things like human-computer “brainjack” interfaces and human bodies functioning as (spoiler alert!) high- ( Read more... )

Hireath - noun.

I want to try and include at least one non-English word a month, just to keep things interesting! Today's word is hireath, a Welsh word meaning nostalgia, homesickness, longing or regret.

is a Welsh word for homesickness or nostalgia, an earnest longing or desire, or a sense of regret.

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horbgorbling [horbgorb-ling]
verb:
(Archaic/slang,Scottish) Roaming without intent, wandering aimlessly for pure pleasure

Examples:

"Gore spent his time horbgorbling around ineffectively", the writer claimed, meaning that he travelled about in a feckless manner, fumbling, or "mooching", as we'd say here. (Diarmaid O Muirithe, The words we use, ( Read more... )