Warrior Words
of the Week
Come each Monday to learn a new
word or phrase to add to your army.
word or phrase to add to your army.
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What is bombastic (bom-bas-tick)? It is a way of speaking that sounds super intelligent, but really doesn't say much at all. It's kind of like a balloon popping and scaring you because you think it might be a bomb going off, but really, it's just a balloon popping—making a lot of noise, but not really dangerous or threatening. Sometimes people speak bombastically. They might yell and scream, but deep down, you know they are kind and mean well. Or, they might sound really, really smart, and what they are saying is just a bunch of fluff. These are both examples of bombastic speech. Consider the following: Three myopic rodents. Three myopic rodents. Observe how they perambulate. Observe how they perambulate. They all circumnavigated the agriculturist's significant other Who amputated their extremities with a carving utensil. Did you ever observe such an occurrence in your existence As three myopic rodents? All of that delicious nonsense above is a bombastic way of rephrasing the old nursery rhyme below: Three blind mice. Three blind mice. See how they run. See how they run. They all ran after the farmer's wife Who cut off their tails with a carving knife Did you ever see such a sight in your life As three blind mice? Do you prefer traditional or bombastic?  While this male lion is ranting in a bombastic manner,
his wife doesn't seem terribly impressed or frightened.
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 Sardonic (sar-don-ick) is not a particularly nice word, but it is a word that is good to know and fun to say. What it means is mocking (making fun of) or cynical (not believing in). Sardonic is generally used to describe one's sense of humor or smile. To have a sardonic wit would be to make fun of things to make others laugh. "Your uncle is so tall he has his own weather system." This is a look you might get if you make a sardonic comment! This might make someone laugh, but it also might be at the expense of hurt feelings. Sardonic humor can be funny, but it should be used carefully so as not to offend. A snafu (snah-foo) is like a small stone in your shoe. Or, your dog eating your homework. Or your mother burning dinner. What it means is a situation that should be working out has been taken hostage by something that is messing it up. The word is actually an acronym—a word made up by the initials of other words it stands for: Situation Normal: All Fouled Up So, when things should be running routinely, like walking, doing homework, or making dinner, and something happens to foul it up, the situation hits a snafu or turns into a snafu. Either would be correct. This would be a great word to try out on your parents or your teacher when something goes afoul in your life. Simply say, "I'm sorry, but I ran into a snafu."  Propinquity is the state of being close to someone or something, whether physically or emotionally. My propinquity to words has led to this website and the cause of literacy. I also have a great propinquity to my mother who taught me to love words. I wish I didn't have such a propinquity to chocolate.
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AuthorI am Becky Lyn Rickman. I am a writer because I love words almost as much as I love the people in my life. I want to fill the world with magnificent words and then jump in and splash around in them. I live with Mr. Bingley and Mr. Darcy, my cats, but the only words they really love are "meat" and "gravy." Archives
March 2018
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