Acronym

Acronym: A word created from the first letters of other words.  For example: NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration. BOOK – Box Of Organized Knowledge CLASS – Come Late And Start Sleeping PHD – Please Hire.  Desperate. From Greek...

Acromegaly

Acromegaly: A medical condition causing abnormal growth in the hands, feet, and face.  Andre the Giant, the famous wrestler, who played a major role in “The Princess Bride”, suffered from acromegaly.  From Greek ἄκρον (height, summit, peak), and and μέγα (large,...

The Maple Tree

Quercus acerfolia: The oak with sharp leaves.  This particular tree, sometimes called the the maple-leaved oak, is native to the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas, in the United States. Quercus is the Latin word for “oak”.  You have seen the word before in the name of a...

Exacerbate

Exacerbate: to irritate; to exasperate; to inflame angry passions; to make a problem worse. Complaining about you problems rarely improves your plight.  In fact, complaining usually exacerbates the problem. Exacerbate comes from the Latin verb exacerbare (to irritate,...

Abandon

Not every word made it into the new series, Word Up.  There are so many that didn’t make it, that I have decided to start a new Chalkboard playlist! Let me know what you...

Acmopetala

Acmopetala – pointed petals.   The fritillaria acmopetala is a flower of the easter Mediterranean.  You can identify it by the pointed flower petals.   This is the source of the scientific name, acmopetala. Acmopetala comes from the Greek ἀκμή (point; top), and...