hiatus, n. : “A gap or interruption in space, time, or continuity; a break” (American Heritage High School Dictionary) (pronounced hī-ā’-tes) I know this word isn’t as unusual as some of the ones I’ve done before…but it fit so well for this week I couldn’t resist (plus if you keep reading, there’s a bonus word […]

tardigradous, a. : “Slow-paced; moving or stepping slowly” (Webster) (pronounced tar’-dih-gred-us, with the accent on the first syllable, and equal emphasis on the remaining syllables). Turtles are notorious for their tardigradous way of getting around. Snails, inchworms, grandparents, and cantankerous children (like Jimmy below) like to operate at this speed as well.   “Jimmy, go […]

daggle, v. : “To trail in mud or wet grass; to befoul; to dirty, as the lower end of a garment.” Also, “To run through mud and water” (Webster)(pronounced dag’-gl, with the accent on the first syllable, like waggle). Anyone can daggle. Kids and puppies are probably the most frequent culprits, but sometimes even adults […]

flittermouse, n. : “A bat; an animal that has the fur of a mouse, and membranes which answer the purpose of wings, and enable the animal to sustain itself in a fluttering flight” (Webster). (Pronounced flit’-ter-mouse, like glitter-mouse; plural, flittermice; also flickermouse or flickermice) I know people probably don’t use the word bat very much, […]