#455 exequies

exequies- the rites and ceremonies used at funerals; exequy (singular)

C14 from Latin exequiae (plural) funeral procession, rites, from exequi to follow to the end, from sequi to follow

The media exequies for Cronkite were no surprise, of course: there is no undertaker like television, and he was its own.

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#454 exemplary

exemplary- fit for imitation; model: an exemplary performance; serving as a warning: an exemplary jail sentence; representative; typical: an action exemplary of his conduct

exemplar- a person or thing to be copied or imitated; model

C14 from Latin exemplarium model, from exemplum example

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#453 exegesis

exegesis- explanation or critical interpretation of a text, especially of the Bible

C17 from Greek, from exegeisthai to interpret, from ex+hegeisthai to guide

A certain kind of exegesis finds more in the text than is warranted, has blind spots toward a number of the text's emphases, and seems unaware of how one-sided and exploitative an exegesis can be.

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#452 exculpate

exculpate- to free from blame or guilt; vindicate or exonerate

C17 from Medieval Latin exculpare, from Latin ex+ culpare to blame, from culpa fault, blame

exculpable...

Many people found a way to exculpate and excuse the fashion designer because he was under stress of his fashion show.

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#451 excogitate

excogitate- to devise, invent, or contrive; to think out in detail

C16 from Latin excogitare, from cogitare to ponder

Twice or thrice he rose from his chair, paced the room with a determined brow, and sat down again with vigorous clutch of the pen; still he failed to excogitate a single sentence that would serve his purpose.

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#450 exchequer

exchequer- often in capitals in Britain, others... the accounting department of the Treasury, responsible for receiving and issuing funds

-C13 (in the sense of chessboard, counting table); from Old French eschequier, from eschec check

The Labour Party had a healthy exchequer, but it is now catastrophically debt ridden.

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#449 excelsior

excelsior- excellent: used as a motto and as a trademark for various products, like find wood shavings used for packing; upwards

C19 from Latin: higher

Excelsior is the motto of New York State, hence sometimes called the Excelsior State.

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#448 exacerbate

exacerbate- to make (pain, disease, emotion,..) more intense; aggravate; to irritate

C17 from Latin exacerbare to irritate, from acerbus bitter

They hoped the troops would not exacerbate tensions in the area.

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#447 evoke

evoke- to call or summon up (a memory, feeling, etc.) especially from the past; to call forth or provoke; produce; elicit

C17 from Latin evocare to call forth, from vocare to call

evocative- tending or serving to evoke

His words evoked an angry reply.

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#446 evangelical

evangelical- based upon or following from the gospels; denoting or relating to any of certain Protestant sects or parties which emphasize the importance of personal conversion and faith in atonement...

from evangel (archaic) C14 from Church Latin evangelium, from Greek evangelion good news, from eu + angelos messenger

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#445 evanescent

evanescent- adj.- passing out of sight; fading away, vanishing; ephemeral or transitory

evanesce- verb- to fade gradually from sight; vanish

C19 from Latin evanescere to disappear

He was given the evanescent position of acting director before being dismissed.

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#444 euthanasia

euthanasia- the act of killing someone painlessly, especially to relieve suffering from an incurable illness; also called mercy killing

C17 via New Latin from Greek: easy death, from eu + thanatos death

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#443 eureka

eureka- an exclamation of triumph on discovering or solving something

C17 from Greek heureka I have found (it), from heuriskein to find; traditionally the exclamation of Archimedes when he realized, during bathing, that the volume of an irregular solid could be calculated by measuring the water displaced when it was immersed.

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#442 eu

eu(prefix) well, pleasant, or good

Latin from Greek, from eus good

eugenics- the study of methods of improving the quality of the human race

euphemism- an inoffensive word or phrase substituted for one considered offensive or hurtful

euphony- the alteration of speech sounds so as to make them easier to pronounce; a pleasing sound

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#441 ethos

ethos- the distinctive character, spirit, and attitudes of a people, culture, era

C19 from Late Latin: habit, from Greek

A revolutionary ethos has swept through a number of Arab countries.

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#440 ethereal

ethereal- extremely delicate or refined; exquisite; almost as light as air; impalpable; airy; celestial or spiritual; dissolved in an ether

C16 from Latin aethereus, from Greek aitherios, from aither ether

Their motion through the bushes often disturbed clouds of yellow butterflies, which had been hanging on the fringes of the tall purple asters, and which rose toying with each other, and fluttering in ethereal dances against the blue sky, looking like whirls and eddies of air-flowers.

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#439 et cetera/ etcetera

et cetera/etcetera- and the rest; and others; and so forth:used at the end of a list to indicate that other items of the same class or type should be considered or included; or the like; or something else similar

from Latin, from et and cetera the other things

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#438 espresso

espresso- strong coffee made by forcing steam or boiling water through ground coffee beans; an apparatus for making coffee in this way

C20 Italian short for caffe espresso, literally: pressed coffee

I usually have three or four cups of coffee in the morning and rarely buy a high priced espresso.

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#437 esoteric

esoteric- restricted or intended for an enlightened or initiated minority especially because of abstruseness or obscurity: an esoteric cult; difficult to understand; not openly admitted, private

from Greek esoterikos, from esotero inner

Certain esoteric sects and psuedo-scientists place considerable importance upon these rare objects, occasionally manifesting in hysterical and apocalyptic cults.

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#436 eschew

eschew- to keep clear of or abstain from something disliked, injurious; shun; avoid

C14 from Old French eschiver, of Germanic origin skiuhan to frighten away

There are people who eschew paper "eschew," pronounced "achoo," is an onomatopoeia for sneezing at something.

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#435 eschatology

eschatology- the branch of theology or biblical exegesis concerned with the end of the world

C19 from Greek eskhatos last

Eschatology is often associated with evangelical, narrow perspectives.

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#434 escapade

escapade- a wild or exciting adventure, especially one that is mischievous or unlawful; scrape; any lighthearted or carefree episode; prank; romp

C17 from French, from Old Italian scappata, from Vulgar Latin excappare to escape

This shameless escapade is just more evidence that this brazen, swashbuckling cowboy had no regard for his peers.

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#433 escalade

escalade- an assault by the use of ladders, especially on a fortification; to gain access to a place by the use of ladders

C16 from French, from Italian scalata, from scalare to mount

The escalade to the plateau was filled with vistas.

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#432 erudite

erudite- having or showing extensive scholarship; learned

C15 from Latin eruditus, from erudire to polish

I can choose to be erudite or trivial in my observations.

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#431 erogenous

erogenous- sensitive to sexual stimulation; erogenous zones of the body; arousing sexual stimulation

C19 from Greek eros love, desire + genous

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#430 ergonomics

ergonomics- the study of the relationship between workers and their environment; also called biotechnology

C20 from Greek ergon work+eco nomics

Functionality and ergonomics are important considerations in design.

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#429 eradicate

eradicate- to obliterate; stamp out; to pull or tear up by the roots

C16 from Latin eradicare to uproot, from radix root

The new chief was committed to eradicating injustice.

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#428 equivocal

equivocal- adj. capable of varying interpretations, ambiguous; deliberately misleading or vague; evasive; of doubtful character or sincerity; dubious

C17 from Late Latin aequivocus - vox- voice

also equivocate verb to use vague or ambiguous language; avoid speaking directly or honestly

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#427 equinox

equinox- either of the two occasions, six months apart, when day and night are of equal length

vernal equinox, autumnal equinox

C14 from Medieval Latin equinoxium, changed from Latin aequinoctium

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#426 equanimity

equanimity- calmness of mind or temper; composure

C17 from Latin aequanimitas, from aequus even, equal+animus mind, spirit

When faced with a "Let it be" scenario, your sense of equanimity is the greatest victory.

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#425 epitome

epitome- a typical example of a characteristic or class; embodiment; personification

C16 Latin from Greek epitemnein to abridge

THE Bible contains the history of the human race in epitome; is the mirror in which every age and every generation may see reflected its own features and complexion.

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