Unwrinkle those brows and relax your facial muscles for today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world!

The definition of today’s wacky word from TermWiki.com:

gla·bel·la [gluh-bel-uh] -noun the area between the eyebrows and above the bridge of the nose

Glabella comes from the Latin word glabellus, which means smooth and hairless, and glaber, meaning bald, due to the lack of hair that is usually found in this area.

It doesn’t seem like an extraordinary anatomical feature, but the glabella was actually the focus of much attention and money not too long ago. And to some extent,  it still is. Most people who know the glabella will also refer to it by one of its nicknames: the “eleven” or the “W”.  These nicknames originate from the glabella’s susceptibility to producing vertical wrinkles as people age and their skin begins to reveal the effects of its elasticity. These wrinkles can result simply from repeatedly furrowing the brows when frowning, scowling, squinting or just from focusing on something.

After a two week siesta of preparing for and celebrating CSOFT’s annual localization extravaganza, Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world, is back as we hoot our way into the night.

From TermWiki.com, the definition of today’s wacky word:

lu·cu·bra·tion [loo-kyoo-brey-shuhn] -noun laborious work, study, or thought that happens, especially at night; to work or write in a detailed, scholarly manner

The etymology of lucubration stems from the Latin lucubrationem, which means “nocturnal study, night work.” Lucubration is also related to lucubrare, which means “to work by artificial light”; this is derived from lucere, “to shine”. Lucubration also has a second meaning, referring to any solemn literary work that is the product of laborious and scholarly concentration, which can take place at any time of the day (or night).

For today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world, we’ll take you back to a period of time when sliced bread and a glass of milk meant more than…well, sliced bread and a glass of milk!

Today’s Wacky Word definition from TermWiki.com:

milque·toast [milk-tohst] -noun a timid, meek, or unassertive person

American comic creator H. T. Webster was born in 1885. By the time he was twenty, he was already publishing comics in Recreation magazine; by 1912, he was working for the New York Tribune as a daily cartoonist. H.T. Webster himself was sometimes called “The Mark Twain of American cartoonists” because of his humor and delivery.

Fine tune those ears for today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world!

From TermWiki.com, the definition of today’s wacky word:

mon·de·green [mon-di-green] -noun a word or phrase resulting from a misinterpretation of a word or phrase that has been heard, usually with an amusing result

A mondegreen is the often comical result of what one thinks is heard when actually mishearing or misinterpreting something—song lyrics are not the only victims, but usually the most common. Mondegreen was coined in 1954 by Sylvia Wright when she introduced the word to the world in the Harper’s Magazine article, “The Death of Lady Mondegreen.” The article was about Wright’s realization that the line Lady Mondegreen from the Scottish ballad “The Bonny Earl of Murray” was actually laid him on the green. In what would have been a beautifully poignant and poetic end to two lovers’ lives ended up being the lonely death of Earl o’ Moray:

Last week, we learned how to fletcherize our food to a pulp. With today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world, we’ll be focusing on the other side of dining… wining!

From TermWiki.com, the definition of today’s wacky word:

quaff [kwof] -verb to drink plentifully and with enjoyment

Quaff was first used in 1515, but its etymology is unclear. Some sources believe the word quaff came from quassen, which means “to overindulge (in food and drink)”, the –ss erroneously identified as –ff. Another source suggested that the word quaff came into existence as an onomatopoeia.

If you’re looking for something to chew on, go ahead and take a bite out of today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world!

The definition from TermWiki.com:

fletch·er·ize [flech-uh-rahyz] -verb to chew (food) slowly and thoroughly; prolonged chewing

Like clerihew, this week’s word is another eponym derived from Horace Fletcher, an American food faddist and dietician who lived from 1849 to 1919. From 1895 until his death in 1919, Fletcher campaigned vigorously and passionately about what he believed were the keys to good health. This included:

Get your rhyming caps on and find a muse because Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world, is back with this week’s wacky word.

The definition from TermWiki.com:

cler·i·hew [kler-uh-hyoo] -noun a pseudo biographical poem that is four lines long, usually whimsical in nature

The word clerihew is an eponym, derived from the middle name of Edmund Clerihew Bentley. Aside from creating the clerihew, Bentley (1875 to 1956) was also a journalist and novelist. His most famous mystery novel, Trent’s Last Case, received high praise from both Dorothy L. Sayer and Agatha Christie; it is also considered to be one of the first modern mystery novels.

Today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world, can be multiplied sevenfold… that’s a lot of wacky!

From TermWiki.com, the definition of today’s wacky word:

ple·iad [plee-uhd] -noun a group of eminent or brilliant individuals or things, usually seven in number

Those of you out there who are familiar with Greek mythology might recognize this word. Today’s word is derived from Pleiades, the seven daughters of Atlas.

Like most myths, there are many versions of this story. Identified as Maia, Electra, Celaeno, Taygete, Merope, Alcyone, and Sterope, in one version of their story the seven sisters are grief-stricken after one of their half sisters, Hyades, dies. So overwhelmed with grief and unable to bear the loss, the seven sisters kill themselves. After hearing about this, Zeus immortalizes them by transforming the sisters into a group of stars, now observed as the star cluster Pleiades. Another account of the tale describes the  seven sisters fleeing to hide from the hunter Orion amidst the stars; he too, though, was transformed into a star in relentless pursuit.

Wave your wand, smoke that cigar, and settle in for today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world!

From TermWiki.com, the definition of today’s wacky word:

mun·dun·gus [muhn-duhng-guhs] -noun Foul-smelling tobacco

Mundungus is derived from the Latinized adaptation of the Spanish word mondongo, which means tripe or intestines. Mondongo is also related to modejo, which means belly of a pig.

When it was first borrowed from the Spanish in the 17^th century, mundungus took on the same meaning as mondongo. It was then altered to describe the edible offal of an animal or the less appetizing definition, “uncleaned entrails of a beast, full of filth.” From there, it began being used to define foul-smelling tobacco. Quite the leap, but we suppose the connection can still be made.

Today’s Wacky Word Wednesday, a weekly celebration of the wackiest and most interesting words from around the world, presents a word with multiple interconnected wacky meanings.

From TermWiki.com, the definition of today’s wacky word:

quag·mire [kwag-mahyuhr] -noun a difficult or awkward situation; a soft marshy area of land that yields under the feet; bog

Quagmire was first used in the 1570s. Quag is said to have come from cwabba, an Old English term defined as to shake or tremble; mire still holds its historical meaning of bog or swamp. It wasn’t until 1775 that quagmire began to take on the definition of “a difficult or awkward situation”. This more current meaning is derived from the literal difficulty one would feel when sinking into a swampy pit and trying to get out…which makes sense; it is indeed quite the predicament, made all the more awkward depending on the company around you.