Grammar Punk Blog

noc⋅tur⋅nal

/nɒkˈtɜr nl /  [nok-tur-nl]

–adjective

–noun

Origin:
1475–85; < LL nocturnālis. See nocturn, -al ¹

Ah, the creatures of the night. We mere human mortals have such a shallow view of the night, most of us sleeping through this mysterious phase of time. Are there creatures out there in the nocturne of which we have no knowledge? Do we want to know?

N I 5 ; Prep

Naturally nocturnal, Daphne dithered impatiently near the window, awaiting the fall of night and the rise of the full moon; it would be good hunting tonight.

Dra⋅co⋅ni⋅an

/dreɪˈkoʊniən, drə-/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [drey-koh-nee-uhn, druh-]

–adjective

1. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of Draco or his code of laws.

2. (often lowercase) rigorous; unusually severe or cruel: Draconian forms of punishment.

Another weirdly cool word, am I right? This is one of the wonderfully good, yet intrinsically maddening things about the English language; we have absolutely no compunction about begging, stealing, and borrowing from other languages. Actually, many of our words are composed of Greek and Latin roots. What is English anyway? But we digress… Give this one a try.

 Grammar Punk Sentence: R I 4 : Conj

Leslie had long and bitterly protested the positively draconian laws dictated by the school board: No Pomeranians allowed in the cafeteria.

Now you try!

cal⋅li⋅o⋅pe

   /kəˈlaɪəpi; for 1 also ˈkæliˌoʊp/ 

–noun

Also called steam organ. a musical instrument consisting of a set of harsh-sounding steam whistles that are activated by a keyboard.

in Greek mythology, the Muse of epic poetry, one of the nine Muses believed to inspire and nurture the arts.

Origin: 

1855–60, Americanism; < L < Gk Kalliópē, equiv. to kalli- calli- + op- (s. of óps) voice + -ē fem. ending

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)

Calliope is one of my all-time favorite words. I know, huh. It is a seriously cool word. The main thing I like about it is the pronunciation.  [kuh-lahy-uh-pee]. Say it out loud. 

In North America we have more or less adapted the musical instrument to the vehicle that most often employs it: the merry-go-round, carousel, the dorkiest ride at the fair. You know, the thing with all the horses that go up and down on a pole and goes around at about 1.5 MPH. 

The fact that somewhere along the way the ancient Greek word for the Muse of poetry became the word for a type of organ—arguably one of the least melodic musical instruments ever… You have to love the English language.

 S U 4

Dana began to have serious doubts about the masculinity of her date when he proclaimed the calliope too dangerous.

Now you try!

bel⋅li⋅cose

bɛlɪˌkoʊs/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [bel-i-kohs]

–adjective

inclined or eager to fight; aggressively hostile; belligerent; pugnacious.

Origin: 

1400–50; late ME < L bellicōsus, equiv. to bellic(us) pertaining to war (bell(um) war + -icus -ic ) + -ōsus -ose 1 

The English language is right up there with the most difficult languages to assimilate, let alone master. Our word of the week is yet one example; we have altogether too many words that can mean basically the same thing. Which is not so great for those learning the language as a first, second, or fifteenth language. However, it’s perfectly fabulous for writers.

And not so much.

So let’s look at bellicose. It intrinsically means warlike, aggressive and since it dates back to the 15th century where this sort of attitude was sort of understandable, that was what the word meant. But now bellicose can convey crankiness, grouchy, ornery, touchy, insensitive, belligerent… And let’s not forget colloquially: jerk, creep, dipwad…you get the idea.

Which sounds like bad news, I know. But as far as usage goes, having so many choices for that thought, emotion, or really cool text message is only a good thing, right? And when it comes to writing, there is nothing quite as satisfying as finding that perfect word that looks just right, sounds good, matches your theme, and is exactly the word the character in your current work is looking for.

How cool is that?

Here’s a Grammar Punk sentence using bellicose:

B  E  5  ;  Adj.

Typically bellicose, the badgers behaved outrageously at the neighborhood block party; as far as the beavers were concerned, they would not be invited back.

Now you try!

ac·co·lade

Pronunciation: ˈa-kə-ˌlād, -ˌläd

Function: noun

Etymology: French, from accoler to embrace, from Vulgar Latin *accollare, from Latin ad- + collum neck

Date: 1623

1 a: a ceremonial embrace b: a ceremony or salute conferring knighthood2 a: a mark of acknowledgment : award b: an expression of praise 3: a brace or a line used in music to join two or more staffs carrying simultaneous parts.

Here’s a Grammar Punk sentence with a dice roll of Consonant (L), Vowel (U), Punctuation (,) and Grammar (Adjective) including the Word of the Week:

L U 2 , Adj. | Strutting majestically, chins held high, the lemurs accepted the accolades of their tribe proudly.

Now you try it!