foodie
noun
The restaurant is very popular among foodies.
morphine
noun
Opioids such as heroin, morphine and methadone were the most common drugs connected to fatalities, being implicated in 937 deaths. — Stephen Castle, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2025
morphology
noun
a: a study and description of word formation (such as inflection, derivation, and compounding) in language
b: the system of word-forming elements and processes in a language
In linguistics, morphology is the study of words, including the principles by which they are formed, and how they relate to one another within a language.
flout
verb
In 1971, John Wheeler pointed out to his graduate student Jacob Bekenstein that black holes seem to flout the Second Law of Thermodynamics.
linchpin
noun
Because bees are a linchpin to the industry that feeds us. — National Geographic, 30 July 2019
excise
noun
an excise imposed on a number of goods
Excise taxes are taxes imposed by both the federal and provincial governments on alcohol,
tobacco, gasoline and vehicle air conditioning. Canada has some of the highest rates of taxes on
cigarettes and alcohol in the world. - CANADA’S TAXATION SYSTEM
equinox
noun
March equinox
The spring equinox arrives on March 20, and you’ll be immediately bitten by the adventure bug. — Nina Kahn, StyleCaster, 24 Feb. 2025
harmonize
verb
A group of singers were harmonizing on the street corner.
HST is Harmonized Sales Tax
levy
verb
levy a tax
They levied a tax on imports.
loophole
noun
Kurt Gödel never defined the constitutional loophole he’d found.
She took advantage of a loophole in the tax law.
shamrock
noun
a plant of folk legend with leaves composed of three leaflets that is associated with St. Patrick and Ireland
clover
noun
fiscal
noun
Sales were up in the last fiscal year.
jot
verb
jot this down
He paused to jot a few notes on a slip of paper.
carryover
noun
superstitions that are carryovers from ancient times
This is a friendly reminder that this week’s pizza order is a carry-over from the snow day we had on February 13th!
carrousel
noun
backcountry
noun
he took a month’s supplies and headed out to the backcountry
push-pull
adjective
a push-pull circuit
refuel
verb
The airplane landed to refuel.
reconciliation
noun
Signing the trade agreement was praised as an act of reconciliation between the two countries.
hackle
noun
The ways young children play can also raise animals’ hackles. — Alla Katsnelson, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2020
songbird
noun
By the end of June, many songbirds have stopped singing, making the birds much harder to spot. — Loren Holmes, Anchorage Daily News, 10 May 2018
skyrocket
verb
prices are skyrocketing
the crisis has caused oil prices to skyrocket
grin
verb
grinning from ear to ear
She continued to tease her brother, grinning wickedly.
grinned at the kids’ fooling around in the pool
noun
a happy grin
I wanted to wipe the grin off his face.
frown
verb
frowned in anger
critics frown on the idea
noun
a frowny face
gerund
noun
In the sentence “Learning can be fun,” “learning” is a gerund.
psychedelic
adjective
Ibogaine is a psychedelic drug from the bark of the iboga tree, a shrub native to Central Africa that is used in traditional healing ceremonies and initiation rituals. - Ibogaine: The last trip?, CBC News
mitigate
verb
mitigate a patient’s suffering
Myanmar
geographical name
Myanmar, one of Asia’s poorest nations, has largely been shut off from the world by its military government during four years of civil war. - CNN 10, March 31, 2025
rubble
noun
one of many devastating scenes across the crippled city of Mandalay damage stretches across entire neighborhoods homes and historic buildings reduced to rubble. Buddhist monasteries places of peace and reflection now piles of debris. - CNN 10, March 31, 2025
bodybuilding
noun
She’s been doing competitive bodybuilding for a few years now.