Wordly Wise List Eighteen

Front 1

autonomous

Back 1

Function: adjective
Etymology: Greek autonomos independent, from aut- + nomos law — more at nimble
Date: 1800
1: of, relating to, or marked by autonomy
2 a: having the right or power of self-government b: undertaken or carried on without outside control : self-contained <an autonomous school system>
3 a: existing or capable of existing independently <an autonomous zooid> b: responding, reacting, or developing independently of the whole <an autonomous growth>
4: controlled by the autonomic nervous system

Front 2

belligerent

Back 2

Function: adjective
Etymology: modification of Latin belligerant-, belligerans, present participle of belligerare to wage war, from belliger waging war, from bellum + gerere to wage
Date: 1577
1: waging war ; specifically : belonging to or recognized as a state at war and protected by and subject to the laws of war
2: inclined to or exhibiting assertiveness, hostility, or combativeness
— belligerent noun
— bel·lig·er·ent·ly adverb

Front 3

default

Back 3

Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English defaute, defaulte, from Anglo-French, from defaillir to be lacking, fail, from de- + faillir to fail
Date: 13th century
1: failure to do something required by duty or law : neglect
2archaic : fault
3: a failure to pay financial debts
4 a: failure to appear at the required time in a legal proceeding b: failure to compete in or to finish an appointed contest <lost the game by default>
5 a: a selection made usually automatically or without active consideration due to lack of a viable alternative <remained the club's president by default> b: a selection automatically used by a computer program in the absence of a choice made by the user
— in default of : in the absence of

Front 4

dogged

Back 4

Function: adjective
Date: 1653
: marked by stubborn determination <a dogged competitor> <dogged devotion

Front 5

emancipate

Back 5

Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): eman·ci·pat·ed; eman·ci·pat·ing
Etymology: Latin emancipatus, past participle of emancipare, from e- + mancipare to transfer ownership of, from mancip-, manceps contractor, from manus hand + capere to take — more at manual, heave
Date: 1613
1: to free from restraint, control, or the power of another ; especially : to free from bondage
2: to release from paternal care and responsibility and make sui juris
3: to free from any controlling influence (as traditional mores or beliefs)

Front 6

flora

Back 6

Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural floras also flo·rae \ˈflȯr-ˌē, -ˌī\
Etymology: New Latin, from Latin Flora, Roman goddess of flowers, from Latin flor-, flos
Date: 1777
1: a treatise on or list of the plants of an area or period
2: plant or bacterial life ; especially : such life characteristic of a region, period, or special environment <fossil flora> <intestinal flora> — compare fauna

Front 7

gourmet

Back 7

Function: noun
Etymology: French, from Middle French, alteration of gromet boy servant, vintner's assistant, probably ultimately from Middle English grom groom
Date: 1820
: a connoisseur of food and drink ; broadly : connoisseur 2 <a film gourmet>

Front 8

hindmost

Back 8

Function: adjective
Date: 14th century
: farthest to the rear : last

Front 9

mania

Back 9

Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Late Latin, from Greek, from mainesthai to be mad; akin to Greek menos spirit — more at mind
Date: 14th century
1: excitement manifested by mental and physical hyperactivity, disorganization of behavior, and elevation of mood ; specifically : the manic phase of bipolar disorder
2 a: excessive or unreasonable enthusiasm <a mania for saving things> —often used in combination b: the object of such enthusiasm

Front 10

memoirs

Back 10

Function: noun
Etymology: Middle French memoire, from memoire memory, from Latin memoria
Date: 1571
1: an official note or report : memorandum
2 a: a narrative composed from personal experience b: autobiography —usually used in plural c: biography
3 a: an account of something noteworthy : report bplural : the record of the proceedings of a learned society

Front 11

opulence

Back 11

Function: noun
Date: circa 1510
1 : wealth, affluence
2 : abundance, profusion

Front 12

prate

Back 12

Function: intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s): prat·ed; prat·ing
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle Dutch; akin to Middle Low German pratten to pout
Date: 15th century
: to talk long and idly : chatter

Front 13

residue

Back 13

Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin residuum, from neuter of residuus left over, from residēre to remain
Date: 14th century
: something that remains after a part is taken, separated, or designated or after the completion of a process : remnant, remainder : as a: the part of a testator's estate remaining after the satisfaction of all debts, charges, allowances, and previous devises and bequests b: the remainder after subtracting a multiple of a modulus from an integer or a power of the integer that can appear as the second of the two terms in an appropriate congruence <2 and 7 are residues of 12 modulo 5> c: a constituent structural unit (as a group or monomer) of a usually complex molecule <amino acid residues from hydrolysis of protein>

Front 14

sporadic

Back 14

Function: adjective
Etymology: Medieval Latin sporadicus, from Greek sporadikos, from sporadēn here and there, from sporad-, sporas scattered; akin to Greek speirein to sow — more at sperm
Date: circa 1689
: occurring occasionally, singly, or in irregular or random instances <sporadic protests> <a sporadic disease>

Front 15

thermal

Back 15

Function: adjective
Etymology: Greek thermē
Date: 1742
1 [Latin thermae public baths, from Greek thermai, plural of thermē] : of, relating to, or marked by the presence of hot springs <thermal waters>
2 a: of, relating to, or caused by heat <thermal stress> <thermal insulation> b: being or involving a state of matter dependent upon temperature <thermal conductivity> <thermal agitation of molecular structure> c: having low energies of the order of those due to thermal agitation <thermal neutrons>
3: designed (as with insulating air spaces) to prevent the dissipation of body heat <thermal underwear>

Front 16

umber

Back 16

Function: noun
Etymology: probably from obsolete English, shade, color, from Middle English ombre, umbre shade, shadow, from Anglo-French, from Latin umbra — more at umbrage
Date: 1568
1: a brown earth that is darker in color than ocher and sienna because of its content of manganese and iron oxides and is highly valued as a permanent pigment either in the raw or burnt state
2 a: a moderate to dark yellowish brown b: a moderate brown