Stuff David Foster Wallace circled in his American Heritage Dictionary
April 15, 2010 – 5:22 pm
My near obsession with David Foster Wallace continues. As I exert concerted effort to finish the last 16th or so of Infinite Jest, I keep happening upon other DFW internet material like the DFW Audio Project (horrible picture of him there, BTW, but that site is for listening, not photos) and this list of words you see here; words David Foster Wallace circled in his dictionary — shamelessly ripped from a Slate article:
- Ablative absolute
- Ablaut
- Abulia
- Acephalous
- ACTH
- Adit
- Adumbrate
- Agrapha
- Ailanthus
- Aleatory
- Alfresco
- Algolagnia
- Alpestrine
- Ament
- Anecdotage
- Androsterone
- Anemone fish
- Anneal
- Antiphon
- Antipode
- Apathetic
- Apercu
- aphagia
- Aphotic
- Apocarpous
- Appoggiatura
- Aquavit
- Arc-boutant
- Archimedean screw
- Archine
- Arcuate
- Argon
- Armamentarium
- Arrière-ban
- Arris
- Ascites
- Asco-
- Aspheric
- Astrolabe
- Athabasca/Athabaska
- Atony
- Auscultate
- Autolysis
- Azygous
- BAL
- Banderole/banderol
- Banquette
- Bathyscaph
- Benthos
- Bespoke
- Bialy
- Bibulous
- Bisque
- Bonded warehouse
- Bregma
- Cachexia
- Cachinnate
- Cairngorm
- Caisson
- Calenture
- Caliposis
- Caparison
- Carbinol
- Carpophagous
- Cartouche/cartouch
- Cassis
- Catachresis
- castellated
- Catarrhine
- Catastasis
- Cecum
- Cete
- Chalcedony
- chatelain
- Chatoyant
- Chthonic
- Citronella
- Clastic
- Clavate
- Climbing irons
- Clinometer
- Clinquant
- Cobnut
- Coir
- Collective bargaining
- Conchoidal
- Condonation
- Confluence
- Contredanse
- Corporation
- corvée
- corvine
- coryphaeus
- couvad
- coxcomb
- crasis
- cunctation
- curettage
- deadeye
- debouch
- decalcomania
- decrepitate
- deforce
- delectation
- delft
- deliration
- delitescence
- demotic
- demulcent
- deracinate
- descant
- desiderate
- desinence
- desuetude
- diadem
- dicast
- digitate
- dihedral
- diopter
- dioptometer
- dioptric
- dioptrics
- diriment
- dissimulate
- distichous
- divaricate
- domino
- double-tongue
- durbar
- edema
- ejecta
- Elaine
- elan
- emulous
- entrepôt
- enucleate
- eparchy
- epopee
- eruct
- eructation
- esker
- espadrille
- espalier
- estovers
- esurient
- etiolate
- euhemerism
- exergue
- facial index
- fastigiate
- fauces
- fazenda
- feculent
- fibroin
- fictile
- fiduciary
- fisc
- flagitious
- flense
- flitch
- fluvial
- foamflower
- folium
- forensic
- fornication
- fossorial
- fourfold
- fraktur
- fraxinella
- fulgurant
- gallimaufry
- gallinaceous
- garniture
- gavage
- gerent
- girasol
- glans penis
- Glengarry
- glycine
- gnosis
- gnostic
- Gnosticism
- graminivorous
- gravid
- guttate
- hagiarchy
- haik
- Havelock
- Heliogabalus
- hematuria
- heterodox
- heterogeneous
- heteroplasty
- horripilation
- hyperopia
- hyperplasia
- hypnagogic
- hypocaust
- hypocorism
- iatric
- illation
- imbricate
- imperforate
- inanition
- indene
- indurate
- inextirpable
- internecine
- intinction
- intussuscept
- invidious
- kakemono
- kala-azar
- Kallikaks
- karabiner
- kohl
- laciniate
- lamia
- landau
- legatee
- leptosome
- litotes
- logical positivism
- longeron
- lordosis
- lucubrate
- lugubrious
- luxate
- macaronic
- mage
- Mahabharata
- maieutic
- mammillate
- mansuetude
- mantic
- mantua
- manumit
- marcescent
- mare clausum
- massif
- mavourneen
- mazurka
- meatus
- meninx
- mercer
- meretricious
- meristem
- mesomorph
- metacenter
- metagenesis
- misericord
- misogamy
- misology
- misoneism
- mitzvah
- moiré
- moke
- Molly Maguire
- molybdenum
- monel metal
- monitory
- monody
- monoplegia
- morganatic
- motile
- mucronate
- multipara
- mures
- murra
- nacelle
- nappe
- narghile
- nekton
- neroli
- névé
- nevus
- nictitating membrane
- niddering
- nigrosine
- obsequy
- ocarina
- officinal
- omasum
- ombudsman
- ommatophore
- onyx
- opalescence
- ophidian
- ornithosis
- orology
- orpine
- orrery
- ort
- orthochromatic
- orthoepy
- orthogonal
- oscitancy
- Osiris
- osmic
- osmium
- osteophyte
- oviform
- ovine
- paillette
- parotitis
- parturient
- parvenu
- peccant
- pedalfer
- pedicel
- pelf
- pellicle
- penumbra
- peplum
- pepo
- perdition
- perfidy
- pergola
- periodontics
- periotic
- peripeteia
- periphrasis
- periphrastic
- peripteral
- permittivity
- pertussis
- petroglyph
- petrolatum
- phlox
- photogravure
- phylactery
- piaffer
- pilose
- pinchbeck
- pinnate
- planation
- pleach
- pleasance
- pleonasm
- plethoric
- plication
- plimsoll
- plissé
- polder
- pons asinorum
- pons varolii
- poplar
- portcullis
- prebend
- preferment
- premonition
- preterition
- pronate
- pronephros
- proptosis
- prosopopeia
- puerperal fever
- quinate
- quondam
- raga
- ramulose
- realgar
- rebarbative
- rebec
- rebus
- recrudesce
- recruit
- rectus
- recurvate
- recusant
- red lead
- relaxin
- relict
- reliction
- remarque
- replevin
- réseau/reseau
- rete
- revetment
- rogation
- ruth
- salient
- saliferous
- saprophagous
- sarcastic
- sarcoptic mange
- sassafras
- sateen
- saturnalia
- saturnine
- scabrous
- scarious
- scholium
- seborrhea
- sedilia
- sepsis
- serous
- shako
- shinplaster
- sibilate
- sibyl
- siphonophore
- skirl
- slime mold
- sociometry
- socle
- Sogdian
- soke
- solander
- sordino
- soubrette
- spavin
- splendent
- spline
- sprachgefühl
- Stabat Mater
- stative
- stato–
- steatopygia
- steatorrhea
- stipule
- stochastic
- stoup
- strickle
- stridulate
- suborn
- succussion
- sudd
- sudorific
- suint
- sumptuary
- supernatant
- surcingle
- sylph
- sylphid
- symposiarch
- syntax
- sypher
- tabanid
- tabes
- tabla
- taiga
- talapoin
- talion
- tanist
- Tantalus
- tartuffe
- telium
- tenesmus
- tennis
- tepefy
- tercel
- tertium quid
- tetrastichous
- thigmotaxis
- thymus
- timbale
- tontine
- tr.
- trabeated
- traduce
- traducianism
- trepan
- trephine
- trews
- tropophyte
- tympanites
- Tyr
- tyro
- urticant
- urticate
- urushiol
- uxorial
- uxoricide
- uxorious
- valgus
- vang
- varletry
- varve
- veloce
- venule
- vernier caliper
- versant
- versicolor
- vinculum
- virilism
- vitelline
- vivandière
- viva voce
- viviparous
- volant
- volar
- votary
- witenagemot