Nabokov- Pale Fire

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Hesperus

In Greek mythology, Hesperus (Ancient Greek: Ἓσπερος Hesperos) is the Evening Star, the planet Venus in the evening. He is the son of the dawn goddess Eos (Roman Aurora) and is the half-brother of her other son, Phosphorus (also called Eosphorus; the "Morning Star"). Hesperus' Roman equivalent is Vesper (cf. "evening", "supper", "evening star", "west"[1]). Hesperus' father was Cephalus, a mortal, while Phosphorus' was the star god Astraios.

Lemniscate

In algebraic geometry, a lemniscate may refer to any of several figure-eight or ∞-shaped curves.[1][2] The word comes from the Latin "lēmniscātus" meaning "decorated with ribbons", which in turn may come from the ancient Greek island of Lemnos where ribbons were worn as decorations,[2] or alternatively may refer to the wool from which the ribbons were made.[1]

Preterism

Preterism is a Christian eschatological view that interprets prophecies of the Bible as events which have already happened. Daniel is interpreted as events that happened in the second century BC while Revelation is interpreted as events that happened in the first century AD. Preterism holds that Ancient Israel finds its continuation or fulfillment in the Christian church at the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. The term preterism comes from the Latin praeter, which is listed in Webster's 1913 dictionary as a prefix denoting that something is "past" or "beyond," signifying that either all or a majority of Bible prophecy was fulfilled by AD 70. Adherents of preterism are commonly known as preterists.

Parhelion (sun dog)

a bright spot in the sky appearing on either side of the sun, formed by refraction of sunlight through ice crystals high in the earth's atmosphere. Also called sun dog. ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from Latin parelion, from Greek para- 'beside' + hēlios 'sun.'

Waxwing

a crested Eurasian and American songbird with mainly pinkish-brown plumage, having small tips like red sealing wax on some wing feathers.

vermicular

adjective 1 like a worm in form or movement; vermiform. 2 of, denoting, or caused by intestinal worms. 3 marked with close wavy lines. ORIGIN late 17th cent.: from medieval Latin vermicularis, from Latin vermiculus, diminutive of vermis 'worm.'

gallicism

noun a French expression, esp. one adopted by speakers of another language. ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from French gallicisme, from Latin Gallicus (see Gallic) .

reticulation

noun a pattern or arrangement of interlacing lines resembling a net: the fish should have a blue back with white reticulation. • Photography the formation of a network of wrinkles or cracks in a photographic emulsion.

trillium

noun a plant with a solitary three-petaled flower above a whorl of three leaves, native to North American and Asia.red trillium red trillium [Genus Trillium, family Liliaceae (or Trilliaceae): several species, in particular red (or purple) trillium (T. erectum).] ORIGIN modern Latin, apparently an alteration of Swedish trilling 'triplet.'

claret

noun a red wine from Bordeaux, or wine of a similar character made elsewhere. • a deep purplish-red color. ORIGIN late Middle English (originally denoting a light red or yellowish wine, as distinct from a red or white): from Old French (vin) claret and medieval Latin claratum (vinum) 'clarified (wine),' from Latin clarus 'clear.'

Golconda

noun a source of wealth, advantages, or happiness: the posters calling emigrants from Europe to the Golconda of the American West. ORIGIN late 19th cent.: from the name of a city near Hyderabad, India, famous for its diamonds.

vicuña

noun a wild relative of the llama, inhabiting mountainous regions of South America and valued for its fine silky wool. [Vicugna vicugna, family Camelidae.] • cloth made from vicuña wool or an imitation of it. ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from Spanish, from Quechua.

cygnet

noun a young swan. ORIGIN late Middle English: from Anglo-Norman French cignet, diminutive of Old French cigne 'swan,' based on Latin cycnus, from Greek kuknos .

cognomen

noun an extra personal name given to an ancient Roman citizen, functioning rather like a nickname and typically passed down from father to son. • a name; a nickname. ORIGIN Latin, from co- 'together with' + gnomen, nomen 'name.'

torsion

noun the action of twisting or the state of being twisted, esp. of one end of an object relative to the other. • Mathematics the extent to which a curve departs from being planar. • Zoology (in a gastropod mollusk) the spontaneous twisting of the visceral hump through 180° during larval development. DERIVATIVES torsional |-SHənl| adjective. torsionally |-SHənl-ē| adverb. torsionless adjective ORIGIN late Middle English (as a medical term denoting colic or in the sense 'twisting' (esp. of a loop of the intestine)): via Old French from late Latin torsio(n-), variant of tortio(n-) 'twisting, torture,' from Latin torquere 'to twist.'

auto-da-fé

noun (pl. autos-da-fé) the burning of a heretic by the Spanish Inquisition. • a sentence condemning a person to an auto-da-fé. ORIGIN early 18th cent.: from Portuguese, literally 'act of the faith.'

farrago

noun (pl. farragoes) a confused mixture: a farrago of fact and myth about Abraham Lincoln. DERIVATIVES farraginous |fəˈrajənəs| adjective ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: from Latin, literally 'mixed fodder,' from far 'corn.'

scholium

noun (pl. scholia |-lēə| ) historical a marginal note or explanatory comment made by a scholiast. ORIGIN mid 16th cent.: modern Latin, from Greek skholion, from skholē 'learned discussion.'

psoriatic

nounMedicine a skin disease marked by red, itchy, scaly patches. DERIVATIVES psoriatic |ˌsôrēˈatik| adjective ORIGIN late 17th cent.: modern Latin, from Greek psōriasis, from psōrian 'have an itch,' (from psōra 'itch') + -asis.

facetia

pl.noun 1 dated pornographic literature. 2 archaic humorous or witty sayings. ORIGIN early 16th cent.: from Latin, plural of facetia 'jest,' from facetus 'witty.'