Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Wondrous Words Wednesday-Oct. 12

Bermudaonion asks you to share new words that you have learned during your reading adventures in the last week. Feel free to join in the fun!

Here are a few new words I learned while reading Testimony by Anita Shreve:

Paroxysmal: any sudden, violent outburst; a fit of violent action or emotion.

Here is how paroxysmal was used on page 6:
Mike closed his eyes, not wanting to watch this particular boy have his own paroxysmal seizure.

Raconteur:  a person who is skilled in relating stories and anecdotes interestingly.

Here is how raconteur was used on page 63:
Owen was a raconteur and could hold forth on any number of topics.

Provenance:  place or source of origin.

Here is how provenance was used on page 93:
Back in his den, Mike stood up from the couch, intending to retrieve the small cassette from the movie camera and then to summon Arlene and Kasia to his office so that he could question them about the provenance of the tape.

Phalanx: a number of individuals, especially persons united for a common purpose.

Here is how phalanx was used on page 116:
When January 21 rolls around in about a month's time, there will be a phalanx of media trucks parked on the quad, and reporters will be interviewing every student willing to talk to them.

Well I must say that this is quite an abundance of new words that I have learned from this book so far, and I'm only halfway through it!

5 comments:

bermudaonion said...

I knew a couple of those words and a couple were new to me. I've always loved the sound of raconteur but doubt I've ever used it.

Alyce said...

Great words! There were a few that I would have really needed the context to guess the meaning.

Laura's Reviews said...

Great words! There are a lot in Testimony! I read it a couple of years ago. I'm interested in what you will think of it. I need to stop by later for your review!

Joy Weese Moll said...

I know provenance well enough to use it from having friends in the art world, the rest are unfamiliar.

Peggy@Peggy Ann's Post said...

i love Anita Shreve and I haven't read this one yet! Here's my words