I love collecting cool words (and writing about them). This is the full list of what I’ve collected to date, published for you to browse through and bask in the etymological wonder.
Current count: 462
Abecedarian: arranged alphabetically; elementary
Absquatulate: abscond, make off with; send away, dismiss
Abstemious: not self-indulgent
Acidulous: sharp tasting or sour
Acronical: of the rising or setting of a celestial object; occurring at or just after sunset
Ad deliquium (adv): bloodletting to the point of feeling faint
Adamantine: unbreakable; unyielding in attitude or opinion
Adumbrate: report or represent in outline, faintly
Adventitious: coming from another source and not inherent or innate
Agglutinate: firmly stick or be stuck together to form a mass
Ahoo: crooked, lopsided; askew, awry
Aleatoric: characterized by chance or indeterminate elements
Alieniloquy: an instance of straying from the subject one is supposed to be talking about; rambling or evasive talk
Amanuensis: literary or artistic assistant
Amaranthine: unfading or everlasting
Ambit: the scope, extent, or bounds of something
Anacampserote: a plant believed to have the power to restore lost love
Anacoluthon: a shift in an unfinished sentence from one syntactic construction to another
Anagnorisis: recognition; the denouement in a drama
Analgesic: painkiller
Animadvert: comment unfavorably or critically
Anodyne: unlikely to provoke dissent or offense
Anomie: lack of usual social or ethical standards in individual or group
Antelucan: of, belonging to, or occurring in the hours just before dawn
Aperçus: comment or reference that makes illuminating point (a-per-soo)
Aphelion: the point farthest from the sun in the path of an orbiting celestial body
Aphyllous: having no leaves
Apophatic: (of knowledge of God) obtained through negation
Apotheosis: highest point, culmination, climax
Apposite: apt in the circumstances or in relation to something
Appurtenance: an object that is used with or for something
Apricate: bask in the sun
Aquiline: like an eagle
Arch: deliberately playful or teasing; chief, principal
Arcuate: shaped like a bow, curved
Arenaceous: Consisting of sand or particles of a substance similar to sand
Argot: slang of particular group
Arrant: complete, utter
Arrears: money owed that should have been paid earlier (in arrears)
Asperity: harshness of tone or manner
Assiduous: showing great care or perseverance
Astringent: sharp or severe in manner or style; causing contraction of body tissues
Au courant: aware of what’s going on; well informed
Augury: omen; sign of future events
Autochthon: an original or indigenous inhabitant of a place
Autodidact: a self-taught person
Avarice: extreme greed for wealth
Avast: stop; cease
Avuncular: kind or friendly to younger or less experienced
Bacchanal: wild or drunken revelry
Badinage: humorous or witty conversation
Bantling: a young child
Bavardage: idle gossip, chitchat
Basal: Forming or belonging to a bottom layer or base
Belie: disguise or contradict
Benison: a blessing
Benthic: of the flora and fauna found on the bottom of a sea or lake
Bête noire: something one particularly dislikes
Bibulous: excessively fond of alcohol
Bier: movable frame on which corpse or coffin is carried
Biotic: of, relating to, or resulting from living things, especially ecologically
Bollix: bungle
Bombinate: make a sustained, murmuring sound similar to a buzz or drone
Bonify: make something good or better; amelioration, improvement
Bon mot: a witty remark
Bonny: attractive; beautiful
Bosky: wooded; covered by trees or bushes
Boulevardier: a sophisticated, socially active man who frequents fashionable places
Brackish: slightly salty
Brio: vigor or vivacity or style or performance
Broigus (adj): angry; irritated
Brumal: of or relating to winter
Bugbear: cause obsessive fear or irritation
Bully (adj): very good, first-rate
Cacoethes: an irresistible compulsion; a mania
Caliginous: misty, dark
Callipygian: having well-shaped buttocks
Calumny: making of false or defamatory statements
Canicular: of the period of hot weather between early July and early September
Canned: glowing from or as if from great heat
Canny: showing shrewdness and good judgment
Canter: between a trot and gallop
Cariad: sweetheart (Welsh)
Catena: a connected series of related things
Chartulary: collection of charters
Catalytic: relating to action of catalyst
Celerity: swiftness of movement
Chiaroscuro: treatment of light and shading in drawing
Chichi: showily elegant or trendy; pretentious
Chimera: something wished for but is illusory or impossible
Cicatrix: the scar of a healed wound
Clinquant: glittering with gold and silver; tinseled
Coeval: having the same age or date of origin; contemporary
Cogitation: thinking deeply about something; contemplation
Cognomen: an extra, personal name; nickname
Commodious: roomy and comfortable; convenient
Complaisant: willing to please others
Compunction: feeling of guilt after bad action (w/ neg.)
Congeries: disorderly collection; a jumble (pl.)
Contrail: white streak from plane
Contretemps: unexpected or unfortunate occurrence; dispute
Contumely: insolent or insulting language or treatment
Copple (or cop): little summit or eminence
Copse: a small group of trees
Coquelicot: brilliant red/orange color, of the common Red Poppy (French)
Coquette: a woman who flirts
Cordate: heart-shaped
Coriaceous: resembling or having the texture of leather
Coruscate: flash or sparkle
Corybantic: wild; frenzied
Crapulent: relating to the drinking of alcohol or drunkenness
Crepitate: make a crackling sound; break wind; fart
Crepuscular: resembling or relating to twilight
Custumal: written account of the customs of a manor or other local community
Cynosure: person or thing at center of attention or admiration
Darkle: to grow dark and gloomy
Declivitous: descending gradually, moderately steep, sloping
Decussate: (of two or more things) cross or intersect each other to form an X
De Trop: not wanted; unwelcome
Deliquescent: tending to melt or dissolve; becoming liquid
Demersal: (typically of fish) living close to the ocean floor
Demesne: land attached to manor for owner’s use
Denizen: inhabitant of particular place
Depilate: remove the hair from
Derring-do: action displaying heroic courage
Descry: catch sight of, find out, discover
Desideratum: something needed or wanted
Desire line: informal path that pedestrians prefer to take to get from one location to another rather than using a sidewalk or other official route
Desultory: lacking a plan, purpose, or enthusiasm; unfocused
Detritus: waste or debris
Diadem: jeweled crown worn as symbol of sovereignty
Didactic: intended to teach, esp. with moral intention
Dilatory: slow to act
Dithyramb: a passionate or inflated speech or poem
Donnybrook: scene of uproar and disorder
Dotard: old person, esp. a weak or senile one
Doyenne: most respected or prominent woman in a field
Dreadnought: battleship; one that is the largest or the most powerful of its kind; heavy overcoat
Duenna: woman chaperone of young girls
Ebullient: cheerful and full of energy
Echt (adj): authentic and typical
Educe: bring out or develop
Effulgent: shining brightly, radiant
Eldritch: weird, eerie
Elucidate: make clear, explain
Elysian: of or relating to heaven or paradise
Emetic: causing vomiting; a medicine that causes vomiting
Empyrean: belonging to or deriving from heaven
Enchiridion: book containing essential information on a subject (handbook)
Eolian: relating to or arising from the action of the wind
Epigrammatic: concise, clever, and amusing
Equipoise: balance of forces or interests
Erumpent: bursting forth or through a surface
Escutcheon: shield or emblem bearing a coat of arms
Estival: belonging to or appearing in summer
Etiolated: pale or drawn; having lost vigor or substance
Euphonic: pleasing to the ear
Exiguous: very small in size or amount
Extant: still in existence; surviving
Extirpate: root out and destroy completely
Falcate: hooked; curved like a sickle
Farouche (adj): sullen or shy in company
Farrago: a confused mixture
Fatuous: silly and pointless
Faute de mieux: for want of a better alternative
Fealty: tenant’s sworn loyalty to lord
Feckless: lacking in efficiency or vitality
Fecund: producing abundance and growth
Ferly: something unusual or strange; causing wonder or terror
Ferruginous: reddish brown; rust-colored
Festinate: to hasten
Fetor: strong, foul smell
Fettle: condition
Filigree: ornamental work of fine wire
Fillip: something acting as stimulus or boost of activity
Flexuous: having curves, turns, or windings; lithe or fluid in movement
Flummery: empty compliments; nonsense
Fluvial: of or found in a river
Folderol: trivial or nonsensical fuss
Footle: engage in fruitless activity; mess about
Frabjous: delightful; joyous
Frowzy: scruffy; neglected in appearance
Fugacious: tending to disappear; fleeting
Fuliginous: related to, containing, or producing soot
Fulsome: complimentary to excessive degree
Fustigate: to beat with or as if with a short heavy club
Gadabout: a habitual pleasure-seeker
Gaiety: state of being lighthearted or cheerful
Gambol: run or jump about playfully
Gasconade: extravagant boasting
Gauche: lacking ease or grace
Gelid: icy, extremely cold
Geodesic: of or denoting the shortest possible line between two points on a sphere or curve
Glabrous: free from hair or down; smooth
Gongoozler: idle spectator; one who stares protractedly at anything
Gibbet: gallows
Gobbet: a piece or chunk, especially of raw meat
Gradgrindian: having a soulless devotion to facts and figures; inflexibly utilitarian
Gravid: pregnant; full of meaning
Gyre: whirl or gyrate; a spiral or vortex
Halcyon: denoting a period of time that was idyllic, happy, peaceful
Hammajang: in a disorderly or chaotic state; messed up (all hammajang)
Hapax legomenon: a term of which only one instance of use is recorded
Haptic: of or relating to the sense of touch
Harridan: strict, bossy, or belligerent old woman
Hauteur: haughtiness; disdainful pride
Hebdomadal: weekly
Hegira: exodus or migration
Helctic: that serves to draw, fit for drawing
Hell-kettle: deep black gulf or abyss
Heuristic: enabling someone to learn something for themselves
Hobbledehoy: clumsy or awkward
Holophrasis: expression of a whole phrase or combination of ideas by one word (ungetable)
Holus-bolus: all at once; together
Hyaline: clear and translucent like glass
Hypethral (adj): having no roof; open to the sky
Iatrogenic: relating to illness caused by medical examination or treatment
Illimitable: without limits or an end
Imbriferous: rain-bringing, showery
Impecunious: having little or no money
Incarnadine (n & adj): a bright crimson or pinkish-red color
Inchoate: just begun and so not fully formed or developed
Incipient: in an initial stage; beginning to develop
Infra dig: demeaning; beneath one
Inimical: unfriendly; hostile
Iniquity: immoral or grossly unfair behavior
Insouciance: indifference, casual lack of concern
Intransigent: unwilling to change one’s views or agree
Iridescence: lustrous rainbowlike play of color by refraction of light (oil slick, soap bubble, fish scales)
Irrefragable: not to be disputed or contested
Itinerant: traveling from place to place
Jape: practical joke; say or do something in jest
Je ne sais quoi: quality that cannot be described or named easily
Jejune: naïve, simplistic, superficial
Jentacular: of or belonging to breakfast
Jocose: playful or humorous
Katabatic: flowing downhill, retreat (ant: anabatic)
Ken: one’s range of knowledge or sight
Lacrymal: connected with weeping or tears
Lacuna: unfilled space or interval; a gap
Lacustrine: of, relating to, or associated with lakes
Lagniappe: something given as a bonus or extra gift
Lambent: glowing, gleaming, or flickering with a soft radiance
Lapidary: engraved on or suitable for engraving on stone, ergo elegant and concise
Lees: the most worthless part or parts of something
Legerdemain: skillful use of one’s hands when performing tricks
Lemma: subsidiary theorem in proof; subject heading in composition/annotation
Lief (adv): as happily, as gladly (just as lief)
Ligneous (xyloid): made, consisting of, or resembling wood
Limn: describe or depict in painting or words
Lithic: of or relating to stone
Logorrhea: a tendency to extreme loquacity
Lucubration: study; meditation
Ludic: showing spontaneous and undirected playfulness
Lugubrious: looking or sounding sad or dismal
Lunate: crescent-shaped
Lunette: something crescent-shaped
Maladroit: ineffective or bungling; clumsy
Manitou: a supernatural being that controls nature; a spirit, deity, or object with supernatural power (Algonquin)
Manqué: having failed to become what one might have been; unfulfilled (after the word)
Mantic: of or relating to divination; prophetic
Marcescent: (of plants) withering without falling off
Martinet: a strict disciplinarian, esp. in the military
Meonic: of or relating to a kind of pregnant nothingness or void having the potential to transform into matter
Miasma: unpleasant or unhealthy smell
Morphallaxis: regeneration by the transformation of existing body tissues
Mottle: mark with spots or smears of color
Nacreous: of nacre (mother-of-pearl)
Ne plus ultra: perfect or ultimate example of its kind
Nemorivagant: wandering in a wood
Nepheligenous: producing clouds of smoke
Névé: granular snow that forms the surface of the upper end of a glacier (cf. Firn)
Nidify: to make a nest
Nid-nod: (v) nod repeatedly, as a sign of drowsiness; (adj) that nods
Nimbus: a luminous vapor, cloud, or atmosphere about a god or goddess when on earth
Niveous: snowy; white and lustrous like snow
Noctilucent: luminescent at night or in the dark
Noetic: relating to mental activity or the intellect
Nonage: period of immaturity or youth
Nonce: coined for or used on one occasion (for the nonce)
Noumenon: a thing as it is in itself, as distinct from a thing as it is knowable by the senses
Nubivagant: wandering in the clouds; moving through the air
Nugatory: of no value or importance
Numinous: suggesting the presence of the divine
Obacerate: to stop the mouth of (a person)
Obdurate: stubbornly refusing to change one’s opinion or action
Obiter dictum: judge’s incidental, non-essential opinion
Obloquy: strong public criticism or abuse
Obsequies: funeral rites
Obstinate: stubborn
Obstreperous: noisy and difficult to control
Oleaginous: oily or greasy
Ombrifuge: something providing shelter from the rain (esp. umbrella)
Ombrogenous: of peat, a bog, etc.: dependent on precipitation for its formation and maintenance
Omphalos: center, heart, or hub of a place, organization, sphere of activity (navel)
Opprobrious: disgraceful, shameful
Orchidaceous: showy, ostentatious; of or relating to orchids
Orogeny: the process of mountain building
Osculate: to kiss
Otiose: serving no practical purpose or result
Oxter: support by the arm, walk arm in arm with
Palaver: prolonged and idle discussion
Palustrine: of or relating to marshes or fen; marshy
Panacea: solution or remedy for all difficulties or diseases
Panegyric: a praising public speech or text
Panoply: complete or impressive collection of things
Pareidolia: the tendency to perceive a specific and often meaningful image in a random or ambiguous visual pattern
Paroxysm: sudden attack of particular emotion or activity
Parvanimity: smallness of mind, meanness; a small-minded person
Pavisand (v): display impressive or opulent array of clothing and ornament; flaunt one’s appearance (pavisander)
Peccadillo: small, unimportant offense or sin
Pedant: someone overly concerned with details and rules
Pelagic: of or relating to the open sea
Pell-mell: in a confused, rushed, or disorderly manner
Pellucid: translucently clear
Peradventure: perhaps
Perambulate: walk or travel through or around
Percipient: having a good understanding of things; perceptive
Perfidious: deceitful or untrustworthy
Perfunctory: carried out with a minimum of effort or reflection
Peripatetic: traveling from place to place
Peroration: inspiring end of a speech
Persiflage: light and slightly contemptuous mockery or banter
Perspicacious: having keen mental perception and understanding
Pervicacious: thoroughly obstinate or stubborn; headstrong, wilful
Pestiferous: harboring infection and disease
Phalanx: group of people together for common purpose
Phatic: denoting or relating to language used for general purposes of social interaction, rather than to convey information or ask questions
Philippic: bitter attack or denunciation
Phlegmatic: having unemotional and stolidly calm disposition
Phlizz: something apparently existing but having no real substance; anything without meaning or value; a chimera
Phonocamptic: reflecting sound, producing echo; relating to the reflection of sound
Pince-nez: eyeglasses with nose clip instead of earpieces
Piquant: having sharp or appetizing flavor
Plangent: loud, reverberating, and often melancholy
Plenteous: plentiful
Pleonasm: the use of more words than necessary
Pluviosity: rainfall
Pneumatic: of or relating to the spirit; operated by air or gas under pressure
Poky: annoyingly slow or dull
Poltroon: an utter coward
Polynya: area of open water surrounded by sea ice
Polysemy: coexistence of many possible meanings of a word or phrase
Popinjay: vain or conceited person
Postprandial: period after meal
Pother: a commotion or fuss
Predella: step or platform on which an altar is placed
Prodigious: remarkably impressive
Profligacy: recklessly extravagant or wasteful with resources
Prolix: using or containing too many words; tediously lengthy
Propinquity: state of being close to someone or something; proximity
Propitious: indicating good chance of success
Proreption: the action of creeping forward; a slow advance
Provender: food
Pulchritude: beauty
Punctilious: showing great attention to detail or correct behavior
Purlieu: area near or surrounding a place (pl.)
Pusillanimous: showing lack of courage or determination; timid
Putative: reputed or considered to be
Pyroclastic: relating to, consisting of fragments of rock erupted by a volcano
Querulous: complaining or whining petulantly
Quondam (adj): that once was; former
Ramify: form branches or offshoots
Ramose: consisting of or having branches
Rebarbative: unattractive and objectionable
Recalcitrant: uncooperative toward authority or discipline
Recherché: rare, exotic, or obscure
Recondite: little known; obscure (facts)
Recusant: one who refuses to accept or obey established authority
Redolent: strongly reminiscent or suggestive of (something)
Remontant: (of a plant) blooming or producing a crop more than once a season
Renascent: becoming active or popular again
Requiescat: wish or prayer for the repose of dead person (RIP)
Rhonchisonant: that sounds like snoring
Rimose: cracked, fissured
Riposte: quick clever reply to an insult or criticism
Roborant: a medicine, treatment, etc. that has a strengthening or restorative effect
Rococo: extravagantly or excessively ornate
Rubicund: having ruddy complexion
Rugose: wrinkled; corrugated
Rutilant: glowing or glittering with red or golden light
Sacerdotal: relating to priests or the priesthood
Saltation: dancing, leaping, abrupt movement; movement of hard particles such as sand over an uneven surface in a turbulent flow of air or water
Salvific: leading to salvation
Saprogenic: causing or produced by putrefaction or decay
Saturnalia: an occasion of wild revelry
Saturnine: (of a person or their manner) slow and gloomy
Saurian: of or like a lizard
Schadenfreude: pleasure derived from another’s misfortune
Schismatic: characterized by schism
Scholiast: commentator on ancient or classical literature (writing scholia)
Scion: descendant of notable family
Sclerotic: becoming rigid and unresponsive; losing ability to adapt
Scribacious: enthusiastic about or fond of writing
Scry: foretell the future using a crystal ball or other reflective object or surface
Sedulous: showing dedication and diligence
Senescence: the condition or process of deterioration with age
Sepulchral: relating to tomb; gloomy or dismal
Seriatim: taking one subject after another in regular order; point by point
Shibboleth: custom or belief unique to certain class or group of people
Sigil: inscribed or painted symbol considered to have magical power; sign or seal
Simony: the buying or selling of a church office or ecclesiastical preferment
Sinecure: position with little work but great benefit
Skullduggery: underhanded or unscrupulous behavior; trickery
Skylark: to frolic or sport
Sobriquet: a person’s nickname
Solivagant (adj & n): wandering about alone; characterized by going alone
Somnambulant: sleepwalking
Sopor: deep, lethargic, or unnatural sleep or state of sleep
Sororal: of or like a sister or sisters
Spizzerinctum: the will to succeed; vim, energy, ambition
Splenetic: bad-tempered; spiteful
Squireen: a petty squire; a gentleman in a small way
Stereoma: firmament
Stochastic: randomly determined; having a random probability distribution
Stygian: of the river Styx; dark, glooming, foreboding
Sundry: of various kinds; several
Surcease: cessation; relief or consolation
Surfeit: an excessive amount of something
Susurrus: whispering, murmuring, or rustling
Suzerain: state with control over internally autonomous state
Swivet: a fluster or panic
Sybaritic: fond of sensuous pleasure or luxury
Sylvan: living or located in the woods or forest
Tatterdemalion: tattered or dilapidated
Tesselate: decorate with mosaics
Teleiotic: complete, perfect; consummative
Teleology: study of design or purpose in natural phenomena
Telluric: of or relating to the earth; terrestrial
Telos: an ultimate object or aim
Temerarious: reckless; rash
Temporize: avoid making a decision or committing oneself to gain time
Tergiversate: make conflicting or evasive statements; change one’s loyalties
Termagant: harsh or overbearing woman; imaginary deity of violent and turbulent character
Threnody: a lament
Titubation: unsteadiness of movement; staggering, reeling, lurching
Tosh: rubbish; nonsense
Tribune: popular leader, champion of the people
Tumescent: swollen, esp. sexually; pompous or pretentious
Turbid: cloudy, opaque
Usury: loaning money at high interest rates
Variegated: exhibiting different colors; marked by variety
Venatic: of or relating to hunting
Ventifact: stone shaped by the erosive action of windblown sand
Veristic: extremely or strictly naturalistic
Vernal: of, in, or appropriate to spring
Vertiginous: causing, related to or affected by vertigo
Vilipend: regard as worthless or of little value; vilify
Vitreous: like glass in appearance or physical properties
Vituperative: bitter and abusive
Vociferous: vehement or clamorous
Volitant: able to fly; flying; moving about
Votary: person (monk or nun) who’s made vow to religious life
Weal: that which is best for something or someone
Welter: confused mass; state of general disorder
Weltschmerz: feeling of melancholy and world-weariness
Whilom: formerly, in the past
Willowwacks: a wooded, uninhabited area
Winsome: attractive or appealing in appearance or character
Withal (adv): in addition; all the same, nevertheless
Woolgathering: indulgence in idle fancies and daydreaming
Xeric: having very little moisture; dry