Today is December 27th :)

"I had called upon my friend Sherlock Holmes upon the second morning after Christmas, with the intention of wishing him the compliments of the season." is the opening sentence of "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle", by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

So--wishing you all compliments of the season--whatever the season means to each of you--and here's the word, from Merriam-Webster:

carbuncle
noun
car·bun·cle ˈkär-ˌbəŋ-kəl

1a
obsolete : any of several red precious stones

b: the garnet cut cabochon

2: a painful local purulent inflammation of the skin and deeper tissues with multiple openings for the discharge of pus and usually necrosis and sloughing of dead tissue

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples of bacterial infections are boils, eyelid styes, carbuncles, nail infections, and hair follicle infections.
— Elizabeth Woolley, Verywell Health, 15 Apr. 2024

So, what will remain sitting there is an ugly carbuncle.
— Brian T. Allen, National Review, 23 Dec. 2023

But others, notably Staphylococcus aureus, cause a range of diseases, from pus-producing boils, carbuncles, and abscesses to food poisoning, osteomyelitis, and toxic shock syndrome.
—Mark Caldwell, Discover Magazine, 11 Nov. 2019

The solid gold frame is set with an assortment of dazzling gemstones, including 345 aquamarines, 37 white topaz, 27 tourmalines, 12 rubies, seven amethysts, six sapphires, two jargoons, one garnet, one spinel, and one carbuncle.
— Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 11 Apr. 2023

It’s been that way since the late 1960s, but if Kaktovik ain’t pretty, then Prudhoe—North America’s largest oil field—is a carbuncle in the permafrost.
— Jamie Lafferty, National Geographic, 29 Dec. 2021

The drama, in their view, is nothing less than a monstrous carbuncle on the face of British society.
— Meredith Blakestaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 8 Nov. 2022

But all that was knocked down half a century ago, to be replaced by a concrete carbuncle that destroyed the arch and chunks of nearby streets and has been making commuters miserable since 1968.
— The Economist, 8 Feb. 2020

This isn't Westeros; no one's out here massing troops on opposite sides of a meadow while the fat cats in the biggest tent play an oversized game of Risk and tend to their carbuncles.
—Peter Rubin, WIRED, 20 Aug. 2019

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French charbucle, carbuncule, from Latin carbunculus small coal, carbuncle, diminutive of carbon-, carbo charcoal, ember

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

med_cat

fascia, n.

senses 1 and 3 are usually ˈfā-sh(ē-)ə, sense 2 is usually ˈfa-

1: a flat usually horizontal member of a building having the form of a flat band or broad fillet: such as

a: a flat piece used as a molding

b: a horizontal piece (such as a board) covering the joint between the top of a wall and the projecting eaves

called also fascia board

c: a nameplate over the front of a shop

2: a sheet of connective tissue covering or binding together body structures (such as muscles)

also : tissue of this character

3: or facia

ˈfā-sh(ē-)ə

British : the dashboard of an automobile

Examples:

And the property’s three structures are wrapped in red cedar with a metal fascia.

—R. Daniel Foster, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2024

Gua sha allows for targeted massage to release tension along muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia of the face and neck so that qi can flow properly through the meridians, thereby restoring balance.

—Jackie Snow, Los Angeles Times, 17 July 2024

Still trying to differentiate between fascia and soffit?

—Kamron Sanders, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 July 2024

Etymology

Italian, from Latin, band, bandage; akin to Middle Irish basc necklace

First Known Use

1563, in the meaning defined at sense 1
~~

I never knew this word had other meanings besides meaning #2, until

lindahoyland mentioned it in the meaning #1b recently ;)

You can see an illustration of that meaning here: www.swishbp.co.uk/design/what-are-fascias/

med_cat

Today's word is brought to you by

conuly

Prosopometamorphopsia: "A rare disorder called Prosopometamorphopsia makes people’s faces appear “demon-like,” with grossly stretched-out features".

You can read more about it, and see some pictorial representations in this article, from People

med_cat

bougie

1 of 3

adjective
bou·gie ˈbü-ˌzhē

variants or less commonly boujee
ˈbü-ˌjē
or bourgie
ˈbu̇r-ˌzhē,
ˈbü-ˌzhē

bougier also boujier or bourgier; bougiest also boujiest or bourgiest

informal + usually disparaging : marked by a concern for wealth, possessions, and respectability : bourgeois

Soothing rhythms after midnight, theme songs to lucky affairs, shotgun weddings, and bougie proms, the fodder for adventurous crooners on amateur night at the Apollo …
—Michael A. Gonzales

After college, [writer Colson Whitehead] stopped going out to Sag Harbor much. "It was too bourgie," he said.
—Charles McGrath

bougie
2 of 3
noun (1).

variants or less commonly bourgie
plural bougies also bourgies

informal + usually disparaging

: a middle-class person : bourgeois

Of course, it may have occurred to Garber that people who summer in charming Nantucket houses, as she does, ought not to throw stones at wasteful bougies.

—Zoe Heller

bougie
3 of 3

noun (2)

bou·gie ˈbü-ˌzhē
-ˌjē

plural bougies

1: a wax candle

2 a
: a tapering cylindrical instrument for introduction into a tubular passage of the body

b
: suppository

(source: Merriam Webster Online, m-w.com)

Here is a photo of meaning 3 of 3, subcategory 2a:

Source: www.acepnow.com/article/tips-handling-bougie-airway-management-device/3/

med_cat

The blind spot

The blind spot, or scotoma, is the place in our eyes where the optic nerve passes through the retina to the brain. The pipeline of nerve cells that constitute the optic nerve produces a kind of 'hole' in the retina, a part of the field of vision that is not perceived due to the lack of light-detecting photoreceptor cells. This seemingly poor design of the retina, which produces the blind spot in our visual field, is referred to by experts as the inverted eye. The blind spot is located about 15 degrees on the nasal side of the fovea. Healthy humans do not generally notice this lack of visual information since our brain interpolates the blind spot based on surrounding detail, information from the other eye, and the calculation of different images resulting from eye movements.

The blind spot was first documented by Edme Mariotte, a French physicist, in 1660.

You can read more about the eye, and see illustrations and diagrams in this article

from Zeiss

sallymn

xocolatophobia [koh-koh-ley-tuh-foh-bee-uh, shoh-koh-lo‐]

noun:
an irrational or disproportionate fear of chocolate

Examples:

Happily, I can report that chocolate buttons pose no problem as I don’t have xocolatophobia (fear of chocolate). (Kate Battersby, Fear of buttons: One writer describes the heartbreaking truth behind her weird phobia, You Magazine, January 2019)

In 2015, the Express shared the story of Andrew Bullock, a man in Berkshire, England, who was living with xocolatophobia. Bullock noted that, while he had no particularly traumatizing experience with chocolate, he thought he inherited his fear from his mother, who "had it too." (Chase Shustack, Fear Of Chocolate: It's A Real Thing, mashed, April 2022)

Ironically, as many as 30 little-known phobias are associated with the romantic holiday, according to the Stress Management Center and Phobia Institute. Among them are philophobia for those afraid of falling in love, katagelophobia for those afraid of being ridiculed or disliked (also known as 'being human' for some), xocolatophobia for those afraid of chocolate, and philematophobia for those with a fear of kissing. (Alyssa Skiba, Fear and Loathing on Valentine's Day, Door County Pulse, February 2015)

(click to enlarge)

Origin:

Xocolatophobia 'fear of chocolate' is a compound of Nahuatl chocolātl 'a drink made from ground, roasted cocoa beans' and the combining form -phobia. The tradition for naming phobias is to use the Ancient Greek translation of the feared word, but because chocolate does not translate into Ancient Greek, the Nahuatl source is used instead. Chocolate comes via Spanish from chocolātl, with the final -tl in Nahuatl replaced with Spanish -te for easier pronunciation; compare Spanish coyote 'coyote' and tomate 'tomato,' from Nahuatl coyōtl and tomatl. The spelling of xocolatophobia with x instead of ch likely stems from the popular - if unproven - hypothesis that chocolātl comes from Nahuatl xococ 'bitter' and ātl 'water.' Xocolatophobia was first recorded in English in the late 2000s. (Dictionary.com)

sallymn

lalochezia [lăl′ō-kē′zē-ə]

noun:
emotional relief gained by using indecent or vulgar language

(click to enlarge)

Examples:

Lalochezia is an emotional relief obtained by spewing vulgar language, and science suggests that swearing regularly could be good for your overall health and function. If you happen to stub your toe, letting it all out by swearing increases your heart rate and reduces the pain felt overall. (Anthony Bouchard , Let it All Out - Swearing is Healthy for You, Labroots, December 2018)

The lexicographer later said she could "testify to the effectiveness of 'lalochezia'," which describes the use of swearing to alleviate stress and frustration. (Ash Percival, Countdown's Susie Dent 'Gutted' After New Book Word Perfect Is Printed With Series Of Typos, Huffington Post, October 2020)

The Trivandrum MP, Shashi Tharoor has made it a practice to baffle his Twitter followers with idiosyncratic words that send us scrambling for a dictionary. And since Twitter is usually an exasperating farrago of webaqoofs voicing troglodytic opinions, often as a result of their lalochezia, Tharoor’s short school sessions are a welcome change. (Jisha Joseph, Shashi Tharoor's Latest Tharoorian Poem Is The Baap Of All His Previous Word Tweets, Storypick, July 2018)

Origin:

'Lalochezia' is derived from a couple of Greek words. The first part, 'lalos,' means 'speech, chatter, babbling.' The second part comes from the root word 'khezo,' which some sources say means 'to relieve oneself,' but is, it seems, more properly defined as 'I poop.' (The Word Wide Web)

You'd be forgiven for struggling make much headway trying to figure out where that word comes from, because neither of the two etymological roots at play in lalochezia are particularly fruitful in English.

Of the two, it's that initial lalo- that you've probably come across before, although probably at the opposite end of a word. It derives from lalos, a Greek word meaning 'speech' or 'chatter,' which is the origin of the fairly familiar English suffix -lalia, root of a crop of medical and morphological terms concerned with speech or language...

The final -chezia of lalochezia, meanwhile, comes from a similar Greek root, khezo, literally meaning 'I defecate.' Somewhat mercifully, as we said before, -chezia isn't the most familiar nor fruitful of word units in English, but it nevertheless does crop up in a handful of eminently useful words like allochezia (a medical name for defecation from somewhere other than the, er, usual place), and dyschezia (another name for constipation, or, shall we say, impaired pooping). As for lalochezia - well, unfortunately there's really no nice way of putting this: it literally means 'shitting out of your mouth.' (Haggard Hawks, July 2018)

med_cat

Anosmia, n.: inability to smell

Ageusia, n.: inability to taste

Both are Greek in origin

I'd seen "anosmia" before, but not "ageusia"--and here's where I came across it:

"The 50-year-old man was admitted to an emergency room with a temperature of 99.9°F (37.7°C). He reported two days of vertical diplopia, perioral paresthesias, and gait instability. His neurologic examination showed intact cognitive function and language.

Five days earlier he developed a cough, malaise, headache, low back pain, fever, anosmia, and ageusia."

(And here, two bonus words for you, "diplopia" is double vision, and "paresthesia" is numbness and/or tingling)

(Source: Two Rare Neurologic Conditions Linked to COVID-19, from Medscape)

med_cat

Lonomiasis, n.

An illness caused by the venom of the Lonomia species caterpillar. This caterpillar lives in South America.

You can see a photo of the caterpillar and read more about it here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonomia

med_cat

A sphygmomanometer, also known as a blood pressure meter, blood pressure monitor, or blood pressure gauge, is a device used to measure blood pressure,
composed of an inflatable cuff to collapse and then release the artery under the cuff in a controlled manner,[1] and a mercury or mechanical manometer to measure the pressure.

It is always used in conjunction with a means to determine at what pressure blood flow is just starting, and at what pressure it is unimpeded.
Manual sphygmomanometers are used in conjunction with a stethoscope.

Etymology:

Greek sphygmos pulse (from sphyzein to throb) + International Scientific Vocabulary manometer, a device for measuring pressure

First known use: circa 1889

More info can be found at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphygmomanometer

calzephyr77.livejournal.com

Unguent - noun. A medieval word meaning a soothing or healing salve.

I admit this ungainly word came to me while I was doing a crostic puzzle. All the crossword clues are lettered and numbered, and the corresponding letter goes into a grid that forms a quote. Sometimes it's easy to answer the clues - other times, you rely on the quote to help you deduce the word. By the time unguent was spelled out as the answer, I was sure that it could not possibly be right. I was sure that I had made some error, but a quick Google taught me a new obscure word :-)

spikesgirl58.livejournal.com

I'm going to be handling the Monday word, so let's start with one that is near and dear to my heart.

Aprosexia - An abnormal inability to pay attention, characterized by near-complete indifference to everything.

Not to be confused with hyperprosexia - meaning to concentrate on one thing to the exclusion of everything else

Now it tends to be blamed on ADD, but it's not my fault that I'm polyphasic...

med_cat

According to the Grandiloquent Word of the Day calendar, today, March 16th, is "World Sleep Day", and the word of the day is:

Soporose (adj.): characterized by or manifesting an abnormal degree of sleepiness.

Etymology:

Latin sopor, deep sleep or lethargy.

prettygoodword.livejournal.com

Over in my main journal, I'm running a week of words learned from playing Words With Friends, and so here's another:

vagus (VAY-guhs) pl. vagi (VAY-gee) - n., either of the two tenth cranial nerves.

So, there's thirteen pairs of nerves that leave the cranium itself, rather than the spine, the tenth of which (by some spatial ordering system) is the vagus nerves. The name, in case you're wondering, comes from Latin for wandering: it's the longest nerve of the autonomic nervous system, controlling (and conducting sensory information from) the pharynx, larynx, heart, and all the abdominal organs above the latter half of the colon except the adrenal glands (including the uterus). I'd include a picture, but frankly I'm not readily finding anatomical diagrams that include just a vagus and all of it. So I'll just have to leave you with the tidbit that it's worth 12 points in Words With Friends and 9 points in Scrabble.

---L.

prettygoodword.livejournal.com

castrophrenia or castraphrenia (kas-truh-FREE-nee-uh) - n., the belief that one's thoughts are being stolen by someone else.

An occasional symptom of schizophrenia. Here "stolen" means not just being mindread but actually being sucked out of the brain, so you no longer can think them. The word strikes me as useful as a general term for paranoia, possibly in the adjectival form castrophrenic. Created by combining Latin roots castrāre, to cut off + -phrenia, mental disorder.

---L.

med_cat

cryptogenic, adj. cryp·to·gen·ic \ˌkrip-tə-ˈje-nik\

: of obscure or unknown origin: a cryptogenic disease

(as distinguished from phanerogenic and idiopathic)

Etymology:

Derived from Greek "κρυπτός", meaning hidden, and "γένεσις", meaning origin

Example: Cryptogenic stroke if often caused by atrial fibrillation.

First Known Use :1873

theidolhands.livejournal.com

an·dro·phi·li·a [ˈandrɔfi-lē-ə]:
origin: (1946) Latin; Greek; an= human + dro= male + philia= loving.

noun (adjective, androphilic)
1. A love of men; the sexual attraction to males (regardless of one's own gender). May also be called "androsexuality".

2. In animals, towards humans, in a scientific capacity -- such as a pet preferring the company of males to females would be androphilic.

full set of flags here (note: "skoliosexual" describes attraction to non-binary people)
___

gy·no·phi·li·a (ˌgī-nə-fi-lē-ə) is the same, but with a preference for females.

These terms allow sexuality to be discussed beyond the typically binary boundaries of specific sexual labels such as heterosexual or homosexual; it focuses on attraction versus a description of the individual experiencing that attraction.

trellia-chan.livejournal.com

nocebo: [noh-see-boh]

noun:

A nocebo is the opposite of a placebo. It is an inert substance--or even a real medication--that causes negative side effects or symptoms in a patient simply because it is what they are expecting from it.

Also referred to in the phrase "the nocebo effect," when the expectation of a negative outcome (symptom) that produces a real negative result.

As an example, people who believe that they suffer from Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity will experience real symptoms by imagining that exposure to electricity is causing them harm. In this case, it is electricity that is the nocebo.

Etymology: Coined in 1961 as a companion to the word "placebo" which dates back to the late 1700s. Latin, literally translating into "I will be harmful." Related: English word nocent meaning "harmful." From Latin nocēre meaning "to harm."

trellia-chan.livejournal.com

venter:

noun:

In zoology:

1. the abdomen or belly, the undercarriage of an animal
2. a bellylike cavity
3. a bellylike protuberance

In law:

1. the womb
2: a wife or mother who is the source of offspring
3. in venter, conceived but not yet born

Origin: Latin, venter meaning belly. First known use 1535-1545

Related: adj: ventral, of or related to the belly; abdominal

theidolhands.livejournal.com

lim·er·ence [ˈlɪmɪrəns]:
origin: (1977) American; coined by Prof. Dorothy Tennov (psychology) University of Bridgeport, Connecticut - no specific etymology.

noun (verb: limerent)
Have you seen Madonna in the film Who's That Girl (1987)? Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes? Or how Elsbeth Tascioni from The Good Wife interacts with an attorney named Josh? The failed experience within Julie & Julia (2009)?

Then you'll have some memory reference for this word!

Limerence is that sudden fixation, fascination, maybe even a slight obsession with another person and it comes over you all of a sudden. You think & fantasize about them all the time! It may be romantic or platonic, but basically you need that person's respect/admiration/attention and you can't control the feelings that you're having -- it's kismet, an involuntary attachment, and desire for reciprocation.

If you care to share, who is someone that you've been limerent for?

Or perhaps another fictional example of a limerence?

Current Music: Whose That Girl - Madonna

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Word of the Day!

Entries tagged with medical

Friday Word: Carbuncle

Saturday Word: Fascia

fascia, n.

Friday Word: Prosopometamorphopsia

Friday Word: Bougie

Friday Word: Scotoma

The blind spot

Sunday Word: Xocolatophobia

Sunday Word: Lalochezia

Saturday words: Anosmia and Ageusia

Friday word: Lonomiasis

Monday word: Sphygmomanometer

Wednesday Word: Unguent

Greetings, all

Friday word: Soporose

Thursday word: vagus

Thursday word: castrophrenia

Friday word: Cryptogenic

Saturday & Sunday Word: Androphilia & Gynephilia

Wednesday word: nocebo

Wednesday word: venter

Saturday Word: Limerence

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