predation - pree-DAY-shun - the relationship of one animal species to another when one hunts, kills & eats the other

Example: "According to a publication from the DNR, congregating birds makes them more susceptible to predation, to everything from raptors to house cats."

plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose - ploo-sah-shahnj, ploo say lah mem shoze - the more things change, the more they remain the same

Example: "Reviewing Disney's 'The Princess & the Frog,' Allison Samuels commented on the new & daring racial theme; then, regarding the animation, wrote 'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.'"

curmudgeon - ker-MUD-jen - a stubborn & ill-tempered person, a surly person

Example: "A curmudgeon who happens to be a lawyer in Washington recently snarled, 'The economy is so bad Exxon just laid off 25 Congressmen.'"

pillory - pill-oh-ree - to ridicule or castigate (reprimand severely) someone publicly

Example: "Despite a distinguished record as a US district judge in Indiana, David Hamilton has been pilloried as a judge for his supposed determination to chase Christians out of the public square in order to make space for Muslims."

concurrent - kon-CURR-ent - simultaneous, at the same time

Example: "Concurrent with promises from auto manufacturers to increase gas mileage came this from a study by the UofM Transportation Research Institute: the average fuel efficiency of US cars has improved by only 3mpg since the days of the Model T."

vicissitudes - vis-SIS-ih-TOODS - unexpected changes, particularly in one's fortunes

Example: "AAA predicts less people flying & more people driving longer distances for Thanksgiving, likely the result of current economic vicisssitudes."

egregious - ih-GREE-zhus - in bad taste, blatant, extraordinarily ridiculous

Example: "According to the Sierra Magazine, a Berlin brothel in an egregious display of being patriotically "green" offers discounts for customers arriving by bicycle or public transportation."

parochial - par-OAK-ee-AL - having a limited or narrow outlook, limited in scope, regional, myopic
esoteric - ESS-oh-TAIR-ik - understood by, or appreciated by, only a few

Example: "The movie 'The Blind Side' is universally accepted with a positive approval of 71% critical response, while the vampire film 'New Moon,' perhaps more esoteric than parochial in its intent, is aimed at a target audience of young women and is the largest box office success despite it's mere 29% critical approval."

indigenous - in-DIDJ-en-US - native, home grown, originating in a specific region

Example: "The Afghan interior minister said, 'What we are talking about is a local, spontaneous and indigenous response to the Taliban; just give us the resources & we will defend our own country.' "

erudite - AIR-you-DITE - having or showing great knowledge or learning

Example: "The most invigorating day - starting at 6am with Bob Edwards' spellbinding interviews and continuing with news intelligently covered by Scott Simon and other equally erudite NPR hosts - occurs each Saturday, not to be missed by people who hunger for fascinating programs no longer found on the biased or dumbed-down commercial stations."

buzzword - buzz-word - a fashionable, in vogue word & sometimes a neologism (newly coined word), that is common to managerial, technical, administrative, and political work environments; there it rises to common usage, meant to impress or cover a range of more specific meanings

Example: "Opra is the latest person to be described with two overused buzzwords in today's news, as 'iconic' and 'out-of-the-box'."

crapper - krap-per - Thomas Crapper, late 19th century plumber whose name became synonymous with a toilet, celebrated on his birthday, today.

Example: "According to legend, it was the doughboys of WWI who picked up on the name and referred to any toilet as a "crapper.'"

corpulent - KOR-pew-lent - fat, obese, well overweight

Example: "The FDA announced that the number of corpulent people will, in 10 years, average over half the US population, costing billions of additional dollars in health expenses."

prescient -PREE-shee-ent - knowing or having knowledge of actions or events before they take place

Example: "Even as drug makers promise to support Washington's health care overhaul by shaving $8 billion a year off the nation's drug costs, in a prescient move the industry has been raising its prices at the fastest rate in years."

torpid - TOR-PID - lax, sloth-like, listless, sluggish

Example: "Sarah Palin's book, 'Going Rogue,' far from being torpid, depicts the McCain campaign as overscripted, defeatist, disorganized and dunder-headed - slow to shift focus from the Iraq war to the cratering economy, insufficiently tough on Mr. Obama and contradictory in its media strategy."

ineptitude - in-EP-tih-TOOD - having or showing no skills, clumsiness, incompetency

Example: "Sportswriter Jim LaJoie is quoted as saying, 'Even though I'm a Packers fan, a part of me wants to see the Detroit Lions finally turn around decades of ineptitude.'"

arcane - are-KANE - mysterious, secret, enigmatic

Example: "According to Newsweek Magazine, 'With upwards of 70% of all equity-trading done by high-frequency traders, the arcane world of such trading is one of the least understood practices in the market - in which sophisticated investors use computer programs to buy & sell huge amounts of stocks at breakneck speed.'"

volatile - VOL-uh-tuhl - unstable, likely to explode due to instability, liable to change quickly & for the worse

Example: "The Obama administration is being praised by teachers unions for adding flexibility to its 'Race to the Top' grant program, though it still retains politically volatile elements."

au courant - OH-curr-AHN - up-to-date, hip, current

Example: "This week's revival of the 1981 musical at Harlem's Apollo Theatre, "Dreamgirls," has been made au courant with a cast of 26 using more than 580 new outfits and 184 newly designed wigs."

cupidity - kyoo-PID-it-ee - greed (especially for money or possessions), avarice, rapaciousness

Example: "In his most explosive film to date ('Capitalism: A Love Story'), Flint native Michael Moore attacks the gross cupidity of financial powers like Goldman Sachs which, he sets out to prove in this thought-inducing documentary, are powerful enough to control Congress & the secretaries of the Treasury at the expense of the common taxpayer."

cacophony - kah-KOFF-uh-NEE - a harsh & discordant mixture of sounds, stridently noisy, raucous

Example: "The 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall tonight - which will be celebrated by tearing down a mile and a half long styrofoam wall constructed for the occasion - is expected to be boisterous, accompanied by beer drinking and a cacophony of sounds well into the night."

prodigious - pro-DIJ-us - powerful, huge, spectacular, Herculean, phenomenal

Example: "Along with the usual bad news this morning were three positive items, the most prodigious being a meeting of leaders from 50 major religions in Copenhagen, who feel they can individually be more effective than politicians or scientists in drawing up long range plans to ward off the dangers of global changes.

vaunt - VAHNT - to brag, boast

Example: "Some scholars, noting yesterday's shootings at Ft. Hood, vaunt their theory as accurate, that 'Every psychologist needs one.'"

polemic - poh-LEM-ik - a strong verbal or written attack

Example: "Clint Eastwood's next polemic film, 'Inveticus,' concerns Nelson Mandela & his anti-apartheid campaign in South Africa - coming soon to a theatre near you."

creme de la creme - KREM-der-lah-KREM - the best, upper crust, blue bloods, the greatest

Example: "New York's Mayor Bloomberg, who spent an all-time record of 100 million dollars for his campaign, proved himself once again the creme de la creme of elite politicians."

contentious - kon-TEN-shus - controversial, inciting argument, disagreeable, testy

Example: "When President Obama congratulated Karzai on a successful return to Afghanistan presidency, he also, in a contentious mood, admonished Karzai to take on what he avoided during his first term: the rampant corruption and drug trade that have fueled the resurgence of the Taliban."

ancillary - ANS-sill-AIRY - providing support for somebody or something

Example: "NPR suggests that for ancillary information regarding most asked Q&As on swine flu, go to NPR.org

cloistered - KLOY-STIRD - isolated, reclusive, shielded

Example: "As with other women in her position, for the former soldier returning from Iraq, cloistering herself seems to make sense. Post-traumatic stress disorder distorts personalities: some veterans who have it fight in their sleep; others feel paranoid around children. And as women return to a society unfamiliar with their wartime roles, they often choose isolation over embarrassment.