Vocabulary Lesson

I've mentioned before on this Blog that I love words. I've given some examples of words I like and I may wind up repeating some of them here. Some of the words I use because they are obscure and it gives me a false sense of being an intellectual when I use them. Others I like just because of the way they sound.

One of these words comes from our Masonic Ritual. It sounds like hail but it is really hele. The word is used in our ritual. One Brother says, "I hele." and the other Brother answers, "I conceal." Both words mean the same thing. It is a really old word. The Oxford English Dictionary says that it comes from around 825 A.D. It means to, hide, conceal, to keep secret. So we are not saying "Hail fellow, well met." We are talking about keeping our Masonic secrets.

I have asked Past Grand Masters and District Lecturers what the word means and you might be surprised how many are not aware of the masonic meaning of the word. Let alone what the word really is.

Another word I like is palliate. In one of the charges the new brother is told not to aggravate or palliate the offenses of their brothers. I think everyone knows what aggrivate means but palliate? I heard that word for years before I looked it up. It means:

1. to relieve or lessen without curing; mitigate; alleviate.
2. to try to mitigate or conceal the gravity of (an offense) by excuses, apologies, etc.; extenuate.
[Origin: 1540–50;

So, I am being told not to make the offense worse but also not to cover it up. I wonder how many of us know that.

I like the word affluvia and disagreeable affluvia is obviously an obnoxious smell.

Another phrase in Masonry that I like comes from Shakespeare;

But that the dread of something after death,
The undiscovered country, from whose bourn
No traveler returns, puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have,
Than fly to others we know not of.
(3.1.76-82)

Hamlet is contemplating suicide and the undiscovered country is death. Bourn is

an archaic term for a boundary
bourne
boundary, bounds, bound - the line or plane indicating the limit or extent of something

See how Masonry can increase our knowledge.

There are many other words which may be found in Masonry which are peculiar to us in this day and age. We use them but almost no one else does. Cowans and evesdroppers, due guard, libertine and even token (as we use it). They creep into our day to day language and we can sometimes recognize one another just by our use of language. There is a web site, Curious Masonic Words, if you want to find more.

Now on to some other favorites of mine.

Dearth - A lady we knew had a sister in law who had a cabin at Leech Lake, Minnesota. We used to take Marge up when we went so she could visit them. They were from Huston, Texas and her husband (Marge's brother) worked in the space program. I liked her but the thing I remember most about her was the use of the word dearth. It means "shortage" or "lack" and she used it correctly when she said "There is such a dearth of cultural events up here." There certainly were. The only "cultural event" we went there for was the card playing at the Lodge. But then we were only there for a couple-three weeks during the year. To give her credit she did organize some events during her tenure up there. My dog demonstrated her feelings by "pooping" on her astroturf. She was very nice about it. We were embarrassed.

I used to tell my students "For your information, elucidation and edification ..." and then go on to teach them something (yeah right) and that was fun to say. Probably more for me than for them.

Another word that I like comes from a prayer Deign - it means

deign - do something that one considers to be below one's dignity

I think what I like about it is that it is so often mispronounced. The free on-line dictionary will actually pronounce it for you at this page.

I find that a wonderful service because I am always mispronouncing words.

Penultimate is a fun word. My friend Ferne knows what it means. (She reads New Yorker, also)

pe·nul·ti·mate
–adjective
1. next to the last: the penultimate scene of the play.

Schadenfreude

No direct English translation but basically it means that you get pleasure from others misfortunes. In the prayer on the left of the blog it says "May I never rejoice in the ill-fortune of one who has wronged me. " I really try to do that and sometimes it is difficult. But then I read Eucebius' prayer and it covers a lot for me to strive for.

That is it for now. Hope you enjoyed the vocabulary lesson. If not, that is just the way it is. Huge Hugs! jcs