Vocabulary Mnemonics

February 8, 2025

Matt’s words

Aglet (n): shoe lace tip 

Oh no! The aglet came off! Now my laces are going to fray.

Mnemonic: At the back you have the tag, and in the front you have the aglet.

Malapropism (n):  unintentionally saying the wrong word in a funny way

“I might just fade into Bolivian.” – Mike Tyson

“Commiserate with experience”

Mnemonic: “mal” means bad. “Apropos” means appropriate. So, you get “badly appropriate,” or inappropriate.

Courtier (ˈkȯrt-yər) (n): someone in attendance at a royal court; flatterer

Powerful Russians close to the Kremlin sought out contact with Trump and his courtiers, dangling the promise of damaging information about Clinton.—William C. Wohlforth, Foreign Affairs, 22 June 2021

Mnemonic: Think of the word “court” at the beginning, then at “er.” Like a jester is someone who jests, a court-er is someone who works for the court.

Accismus uhk-siz-muhs (n): To feign indifference to get what you want (reverse psychology)

Accismus is a common tactic for sports GMs.

I’m on to you, you’re trying to use accismus on me.

Mnemonic: In the middle of the word you have “sizz,” short for sizzle. Shizzle you usually implies something is cool. But in this case you pretend it’s just “muh.”

Simper (v): to smile is an artificial, silly, or self-conscious way. Trying to flatter someone

She simpered at Dad, hoping to get to stay up late

Maybe just this once, she said with a simper.

Mnemonic: Dogs whimper to get what they want. Humans simper.

Dr. Mom’s words

Ratiocination (n) : the process of exact thinking or reasoned train of thought; logic

Sherlock Holmes was a well-known expert in ratiocination, through which he solved myriad crimes.

Mnemonic: The word begins with ratio, which is a comparison between values (numbers). You reason how the numbers are related by an analytical, often deductive process. That’s what ratiocination is.

Ecumenical (adj): representing and promoting unity among a number of different Christian churches; also, worldwide or general in extent, influence, or application

The religious leaders carried on a friendly ecumenical dialogue, despite their doctrinal differences.

The two spoke at length about the ecumenical mission and the promotion of peace through love. —Victor Gaetan, Foreign Affairs, 3 Apr. 2013

Mnemonic: After the first syllable you have, “You men, I call” (in the religious sense) to come together, to be united.

Extant (adj): currently living or existing; also, standing out above a surface; being visible

There is, he reports, no extant copy of the Super Bowl I television broadcast; nobody bothered to keep the tapes.—Joe Queenan, New York Times Book Review, 1 Feb. 2009

Mnemonic: Use the second definition to remember the more common first one. “Ex” means out, and “tant” sounds like “stand.” Something extant is something that stands out. It’s something you can see. It exists.

Insolent (adj): insultingly contemptuous in speech or conduct; overbearing, haughty

…an appallingly insolent response to a reasonable request…

They could go days without food or water; they could withstand burning heat …  ; and if they were horribly cruel to their captives, they could themselves accept torture with insolent defiance. —James A. Michener, Texas, 1985

Mnemonic: Shorten “insolent” to “insolt.” This sounds like “insult.”

Concomitant (adj): naturally accompanying or associated with; related, auxiliary to or simultaneous with

I love travel, despite the concomitant worries.

It has been argued that sputum eosinophilia is related to concomitant features of asthma.

Mnemonic: “Con” means with, as in accompanying, and “comitant” sounds like “commandant,” which means the commanding officer or leader. So con-commandant means you’re associated with the main event.

COLOSSAL COMPILATION:

There was little extant evidence that courtiers concomitant with Alexander the Great’s reign had aglets on their shoelaces or ever engaged in insolent, simpering behavior or accismus, but it stands to reason that some probably let slip malapropisms or gingerly demonstrated ratiocination exclusively in ecumenical settings.