Sunday 31 July 2016

Atrament

ATRAMENT

-noun
a liquid substance that is black in colour











Drowning sorrow
In exotic atrament
And a stiff upper lip

Saturday 30 July 2016

Nolition

NOLITION

-noun
the state of being unwilling











Lounging in the shade
Without even the will
To fight nolition
Dolce farniente 

Friday 29 July 2016

Retable

RETABLE

-noun
an ornamental screen-like structure above and behind an altar, especially one used as a setting for a religious picture or carving











With urban walls
As sole retable
Art propagates
Along cracked stucco

Thursday 28 July 2016

Secant

SECANT

-noun
1. (of an angle) a trigonometric function that in a right-angled triangle is the ratio of the length of the hypotenuse to that of the adjacent side; the reciprocal of cosine. Abbreviation: sec
2. a line that intersects a curve











Staring at lines
Hunting for decant
Deciphering circles


Wednesday 27 July 2016

Programme

PROGRAMME

-noun
1. a written or printed list of the events, performers, etc., in a public performance
2. a performance or series of performances, often presented at a scheduled time, especially on radio or television
3. a specially arranged selection of things to be done
4. a plan, schedule, or procedure
5. a syllabus or curriculum
-verb
6. to design or schedule (something) as a programme
-noun, verb
7. (computing) a variant spelling of program











Looking at the programme
They salivate over the score
Waiting for encores

















Tuesday 26 July 2016

Program

PROGRAM

-noun
1. a sequence of coded instructions fed into a computer, enabling it to perform specified logical and arithmetical operations on data
-verb
2. (trans.) to feed a program into (a computer)
3. (trans.) to arrange (data) into a suitable form so that it can be processed by a computer
4. (intr.) to write a program











Cast in iron
The program soon ran out
Breaking down reality
Exploding in our face

Monday 25 July 2016

Frabjous

FRABJOUS

-adj.
splendid; joyous


















Ă” frabjous days
Innocent glee

Of incipient holidays

Sunday 24 July 2016

Pan

PAN

-noun
1. a wide metal vessel used in cooking
2. Also called: panful . the amount such a vessel will hold
3. any of various similar vessels used especially in industry, as for boiling liquids
4. a dish used by prospectors, especially gold prospectors, for separating a valuable mineral from the gravel or earth containing it by washing and agitating
5. either of the two dish-like receptacles on a balance
6. Also called: lavatory pan British the bowl of a lavatory
7. (terrain)
a. a natural or artificial depression in the ground where salt can be obtained by the evaporation of brine
b. a natural depression containing water or mud
8. (Caribbean) the indented top from an oil drum used as the treble drum in a steel band
9. a small ice floe
10. a small cavity containing priming powder in the locks of old guns
11. a hard substratum of soil
-verb
12. (when trans., often followed by “off” or “out”) to wash (gravel) in a pan to separate particles of (valuable minerals) from it
13. (intransitive; often followed by “out”) (of gravel) to yield valuable minerals by this process
14. (trans.) (informal) to criticize harshly

-verb
1. to move (a film camera) or (of a film camera) to be moved so as to follow a moving object or obtain a panoramic effect
-noun
2. the act of panning

-noun
1. the leaf of the betel tree
2. a preparation of this leaf which is chewed, together with betel nuts and lime, in India and the East Indies




















Catching gold from the sun

An old pan rusts on the wall

Saturday 23 July 2016

Morigerate

MORIGERATE

-adj.
1. also: morigerous . obedient; acquiescent
-verb
2. (intr.) to conform

























Why try and tell him
To morigerate
When we all love

His madness?

Friday 22 July 2016

Thursday 21 July 2016

Pomade

POMADE

-noun
1. a perfumed oil or ointment put on the hair, as to make it smooth and shiny
-verb
2. (trans.) to put pomade on

























Old thrillers
Collecting dust
Killer pomade

On torn covers

Wednesday 20 July 2016

Dubiety

DUBIETY

-noun
1. the state of being doubtful
2. a doubtful matter




















Looking over the chasm
Dubiety casting cracks in stone
Faith left the stage a long time ago

Pursued by the bear of management

Tuesday 19 July 2016

Swelter

SWELTER

-verb
1. (intr.) to suffer under oppressive heat, especially to sweat and feel faint
2. (trans.) archaic to exude (venom)
3. (trans.) rare to cause to suffer under oppressive heat
-noun
4. a sweltering condition
5. oppressive humid heat


























Summer swelter means
Drastic measures

Compensating with grattachecca

Monday 18 July 2016

Faugh

FAUGH

-exclamation
an exclamation of disgust, scorn, etc.


















So this art, they say?
Faugh!
Just a pair

And mine are nicer!


Sunday 17 July 2016

Duff

DUFF

-noun
A thick flour pudding, often flavoured with currants, citron, etc., and boiled in a cloth bag


























I couldn’t find
A suitable bag
So baked my duff
Instead and

Called it clafoutis

Saturday 16 July 2016

Fractious

FRACTIOUS

-adj.
1. irritable
2. unruly

























Most of the time
Fast asleep
With a side of fractious

Play hour

Friday 15 July 2016

Strife

STRIFE

-noun
1. angry or violent struggle; conflict
2. rivalry or contention, especially of a bitter kind
3. (Australian and New Zealand) trouble or discord of any kind
4. (archaic) striving

























Some days
Keeping your head up

Is a real strife

Thursday 14 July 2016

Foul

FOUL

-adj.
1. offensive to the senses; revolting
2. offensive in odour; stinking
3. charged with or full of dirt or offensive matter; filthy
4. (of food) putrid; rotten
5. morally or spiritually offensive; wicked; vile
6. obscene; vulgar
7. not in accordance with accepted standards or established rules; unfair
8. (especially of weather) unpleasant or adverse
9. blocked or obstructed with dirt or foreign matter
10. entangled or impeded
11. (of the bottom of a vessel) covered with barnacles and other growth that slow forward motion
12. informal unsatisfactory or uninteresting; bad
13. archaic ugly
-noun
14. (sport) a violation of the rules
15. something foul
16. an entanglement or collision, especially in sailing or fishing
-verb
17. to make or become dirty or polluted
18. to become or cause to become entangled or snarled
19. (trans.) to disgrace or dishonour
20. to become or cause to become clogged or choked
21. (trans.) nautical (of underwater growth) to cling to (the bottom of a vessel) so as to slow its motion
22. (trans.) sport to commit a foul against (an opponent)
23. (trans.) baseball to hit (a ball) in an illegal manner
24. (intr.) sport to infringe the rules
25. (trans.) (of an animal, especially a dog) to defecate on
26. to collide with (a boat, etc.)
-adv.
27. in a foul or unfair manner


























Foul love
Stolen space

Best love

Wednesday 13 July 2016

Fugal

FUGAL

-adj.
of, relating to, or in the style of a fugue

















What
Is
This fear
But a dream
A fugal moment
A breath instantly neglected
Quickly forgotten
For a scar
Burning
Our

Souls


Tuesday 12 July 2016

Grip

GRIP

-noun
1. the act or an instance of grasping and holding firmly
2. Also called: handgrip . the strength or pressure of such a grasp, as in a handshake
3. the style or manner of grasping an object, such as a tennis racket
4. understanding, control, or mastery of a subject, problem, etc.
5. Also called: handgrip . a part by which an object is grasped; handle
6. Also called: handgrip . a travelling bag or holdall
7. any device that holds by friction, such as certain types of brake
8. a method of clasping or shaking hands used by members of secret societies to greet or identify one another
9. a spasm of pain
10. a worker in a camera crew or a stagehand who shifts sets and props, etc.
11. a small drainage channel cut above an excavation to conduct surface water away from the excavation
-verb
12. to take hold of firmly or tightly, as by a clutch
13. to hold the interest or attention of

-noun
1.(medicine) a variant spelling of grippe (influenza)















A couple of sugar cubes
As grips for love

Popularity with horses

Monday 11 July 2016

Flamboyant

FLAMBOYANT

-adj.
1. elaborate or extravagant; florid; showy
2. rich or brilliant in colour; resplendent
3. exuberant or ostentatious
4. of, denoting, or relating to the French Gothic style of architecture characterized by flame-like tracery and elaborate carving
-noun
5. Also called: flamboyante . another name for royal poinciana




















Hidden in a corner
A flamboyant fountain

Records a fastuous past

Sunday 10 July 2016

Meatball

MEATBALL

-noun
1. minced beef, shaped into a ball before cooking
2. (US and Canadian slang) a stupid or boring person

























I still struggle
To consider meatballs
A delicacy and yet
I loved hunting

Subtle flavours in these

Saturday 9 July 2016

Spurn

SPURN

-verb
1. to reject (a person or thing) with contempt
2. (when intr., often followed by “against”) archaic to kick (at)
-noun
3. an instance of spurning
4. archaic a kick or thrust




















When he returned home
He first spurned food
Then came back to life
And now steals in his friends’ bowl

Business as usual

Friday 8 July 2016

Sublime

SUBLIME

-adj.
1. of high moral, aesthetic, intellectual, or spiritual value; noble; exalted
2. inspiring deep veneration, awe, or uplifting emotion because of its beauty, nobility, grandeur, or immensity
3. unparalleled; supreme
4. poetic of proud bearing or aspect
5. archaic raised up
-noun
6. something that is sublime
7. the ultimate degree or perfect example
-verb
8. (trans.) to make higher or purer
9. to change or cause to change directly from a solid to a vapour or gas without first melting
10. to undergo or cause to undergo this process followed by a reverse change directly from a vapour to a solid


























Summer is here
Subliming our dreams

Into clouds

Thursday 7 July 2016

Cogent

COGENT

-adj.
compelling belief or assent; forcefully convincing





















This terrified bunny
Suffers from the cogent fear that

I might see him if he moves

Wednesday 6 July 2016

Rapid

RAPID

-adj.
1. (of an action or movement) performed or occurring during a short interval of time; quick
2. characterized by high speed
3. acting or moving quickly; fast

























Ours is a lazy journey
Far from the world
Of rapid public transport
Punctuated by stops

And pictures along the way

Tuesday 5 July 2016

Bustle

BUSTLE

-verb
1. (when intr., often followed by “about”) to hurry or cause to hurry with a great show of energy or activity
-noun
2. energetic and noisy activity

-noun
a cushion or a metal or whalebone framework worn by women in the late 19th century at the back below the waist in order to expand the skirt
















Around the fountain
A bustle of sphinxes

Plays around with skulls and roses

Monday 4 July 2016

Massive

MASSIVE

-adj.
1. (of objects) large in mass; bulky, heavy, and usually solid
2. impressive or imposing in quality, degree, or scope
3. relatively intensive or large; considerable
4. (pathology) affecting a large area of the body
5. (geology)
a. (of igneous rocks) having no stratification, cleavage, etc.; homogeneous
b. (of sedimentary rocks) arranged in thick poorly defined strata
6. (mineralogy) without obvious crystalline structure
-noun
7. (slang) a group of friends or associates; gang



















In another dimension
Massive shells do not birth goddesses

But eat them alive for power

Sunday 3 July 2016

Sponge

SPONGE

-noun
1. any multicellular typically marine animal of the phylum Porifera, usually occurring in complex sessile colonies in which the porous body is supported by a fibrous, calcareous, or siliceous skeletal framework
2. a piece of the light porous highly absorbent elastic skeleton of certain sponges, used in bathing, cleaning, etc.
3. any of a number of light porous elastic materials resembling a sponge
4. another word for sponger, i.e. a person who lives off other people by continually taking advantage of their generosity; parasite or scrounger
5. informal a person who indulges in heavy drinking
6. leavened dough, especially before kneading
7. short for sponge cake
8. Also called: sponge pudding . (British) a light steamed or baked pudding, spongy in texture, made with various flavourings or fruit
9. porous metal produced by electrolysis or by reducing a metal compound without fusion or sintering and capable of absorbing large quantities of gas
10. a rub with a sponge
-verb
11. (trans.; often followed by “off” or “down”) to clean (something) by wiping or rubbing with a damp or wet sponge
12. (trans.; usually followed by “off”, “away”, “out”, etc.) to remove (marks, etc.) by rubbing with a damp or wet sponge or cloth
13. (when trans., often followed by “up”) to absorb (liquids, especially when spilt) in the manner of a sponge
14. (trans.; often followed by “off”) to get (something) from (someone) by presuming on his generosity
15. (intr.; often followed by “off” or “on”) to obtain one's subsistence, welfare, etc., unjustifiably (from)
16. (intr.) to go collecting sponges

























More and more
Edible sponges
Appear on plates
Good, fun,

And intriguing

Saturday 2 July 2016

Docible

DOCIBLE

-adj.
(obsolete) susceptible to teaching or training; easily tamed


















He didn’t have to be
Docible though he learned
When to come home
For meals or cuddles
Yet decided to leave
To die in peace

Friday 1 July 2016

Triad

TRIAD

-noun
1. a group of three; trio
2. (chemistry) an atom, element, group, or ion that has a valency of three
3. (music) a three-note chord consisting of a note and the third and fifth above it
4. an aphoristic literary form used in medieval Welsh and Irish literature
5. the US strategic nuclear force, consisting of intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and bombers

-noun (capitalised)
1. any of several Chinese secret societies, especially one involved in criminal activities, such as drug trafficking

















A triad of lines
Plus the passing of seasons

Syllables counting