Spell This

As I mentioned in my 25 Random Things about me, I am a logophile...a lover of words.

This, in no way, means I use fancy words, or that I am a word snob. I simply like to learn new words, hear unique words, or see these unusual words.

I love dictionaries. I always have. In fact, when my dad comes to visit in April, he will be bringing me a very disheveled dictionary that I used throughout my years at home. I have found only one awesome replacement in the technological world: my mac's version of the dictionary. It also includes a thesaurus, another passion I choose to look at for words.

I don't do it as often, but I "collect" cool words. I also collect quotes, but that's for another posting.

Although one would think that I would be word savvy and would be an excellent speller, I'm really not. I think I'm about average, maybe one iota above, but nowhere near the level of being in an amateur spelling bee.

I probably wouldn't even try. When I was in elementary school, I was pretty cocky about how good I was at spelling. But more often than not, I was eliminated in the first or second round of a CLASSROOM spelling bee. I was so disappointed by my showings that I don't have the nerve to "compete".

But I still have a fascination for words. And with my Page-A-Day calendar for teachers (it was on sale *and* there's a lot of cool trivia information I get to read about), I was able to learn a few more new words.

The calendar page for today shared the words that won the Scripps National Spelling Bee for each year ending with a "9" since 1929.

The definitions were not included. Just the words. But because I only recognized three words, I decided to look up the definitions and include them here.

1929: asceticism - suggesting the practice of severe self-discipline and abstention from all forms of indulgence, typically for religious reasons

1939: canonical - three varied definitions: 1. ordered by canon law; 2. accepted as being accurate and authoritative; 3. relating to a cathedral chapter of a member of it

1949: dulcimer - a musical instrument with a long rounded body and a fretted fingerboard, played by bowing, plucking, and strumming

1959: catamaran - a yacht or other boat with twin hulls in parallel

1969: interlocutory - 1. law given provisionally during the course of a legal action; 2. rare of or relating to dialogue or conversation

1979: maculature - blotting paper

1989: spoliator - the action of ruining or destroying something

1999: logorrhea - a tendency to extreme loquacity

This year's competition will be May 26th-28th.