Love Words? Then Call Yourself a Logophile!

A logophile is a person who loves words, a word buff if you please. But whether you are a logophile or not, you will surely learn a new word or two from this next installment of Little Known Words and More. So, buckle up because it's time to add more words to your treasure chest of English words.

Accouchers

Helping women give birth is not solely done by midwives. There are male midwives, too. These mid-men are referred to as accouchers.

Anosmia

Suffering from this condition will not allow you to enjoy the smell of roses and many other things around you. Anosmia can be a temporary or permanent olfactory disorder where a person is unable to perceive odors.

Ageusia

Life can be bland for people who cannot taste anything at all (sour, bitter, sweet, salty and savory or umami). This inability of the tongue to detect taste is ageusia. But if only partial loss of taste is present, the right term to use is hypogeusia.

Caruncula

Do you know where your tear and sweat glands are in your eyes? They are in the caruncula. This is the pink flesh that you find in the inner corners of your eyes.

Giving Expressive English Words a Second Chance

At the beginning of each year, Lake Superior State University (LSSU) publishes its Banished Words List consisting of English words as well as phrases that have been deemed overused and abused and thus need to be banished from the current consciousness. LSSU began this Banished Words List in 1976 and it continues to this day. For the 2012 edition, some of the words that made it to the notorious list are amazing (which made the top of the list), baby bump, ginormous, man cave and occupy.

On the flip side, another American university has, this time, come to the defense of some English language words. Theirs is a list of words not for banishment but for revival. Wayne State University has come up with its own word list consisting of words that they believe should be once again, part of the communication process. Instead of banishing words to oblivion, WSU is all for reviving English language words and giving these words the chance to prove their worth and reason for being. A group within WSU called Word Warriors has made it their calling to give deserving words a chance for glory once again.

Borboryg-what?! Little Known Words and More

Have you ever been embarrassed by borborygmus? Chances are you have at least once in your lifetime. But a borborygmus is nothing to be red-faced about. Everyone experiences a borborygmus. It is part of being human. Even animals can experience it. What is a borborygmus? It is the sound you hear coming from your abdomen caused by gas. Sometimes, a borborygmus can be so loud that it causes embarrassment. There's no need to use a stethoscope to hear these rumbling and gurgling sounds. Winnie the Pooh knows how to best describe borborygmi (plural of borborygmus). When he is hungry, he would often say, "There's a rumbly in my tumbly."