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Do you actually know what "crepuscular" means?
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 3:25 pm
by deer of the dawn
Another round in the
Bad Writing Game includes use of the word "crepuscular" and it made me wonder how many people who have read the Chrons actually know the definition of the word, or just kind of pass over their eyes as they read as a kind of literary wild card, letting it mean whatever they guess it to mean in the context.
What do
you think it means--
without using Google or a dictionary!!!
You may only look at this spoiler
AFTER answering the poll, or I'll get all crepuscular on you.
cre·pus·cu·lar/krəˈpəskyələr/
Adjective:
Of, resembling, or relating to twilight.
(of an animal) Appearing or active in twilight.
Synonyms:
dim - dusky - twilight
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 3:30 pm
by aliantha
I guessed at the answer and was right!
I actually did read the 1st and 2nd Chrons once with a dictionary at my elbow, so I could look up all the crazy words he uses. Haven't done that yet with the Last Chrons. But he hasn't thrown too many new crazy words at us, I don't think...
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 4:24 pm
by Iolanthe
Wrong
And I pride myself on my vocabulary
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 4:30 pm
by sgt.null
looked it up years ago when i first came across it.
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 4:31 pm
by Vraith
aliantha wrote: But he hasn't thrown too many new crazy words at us, I don't think...
Not quite as many it doesn't seem...but there was that one sentence that like fifty different colors [mostly shades of yellows and greens IIRC??].
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 5:13 pm
by aliantha
Vraith wrote:aliantha wrote: But he hasn't thrown too many new crazy words at us, I don't think...
Not quite as many it doesn't seem...but there was that one sentence that like fifty different colors [mostly shades of yellows and greens IIRC??].
Which book? I might have just, y'know, let my eyes pass over that sentence....
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 5:29 pm
by Absolam
I admit I did not look this up when reading the books. I guessed and it turns out I was only "half" right. Not sure if that means my vocabulary is half empty or half full.
-Absolam
Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2012 5:43 pm
by Iolanthe
Hello Absolam
Always half full, never half empty
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 5:40 am
by Avatar
Optimists. Gotta love 'em.
--A
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 5:52 am
by Shuram Gudatetris
I was correct in the option I picked as well, although I seem to be alone (so far) in that option
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:09 am
by Cambo
aliantha wrote:Vraith wrote:aliantha wrote: But he hasn't thrown too many new crazy words at us, I don't think...
Not quite as many it doesn't seem...but there was that one sentence that like fifty different colors [mostly shades of yellows and greens IIRC??].
Which book? I might have just, y'know, let my eyes pass over that sentence....
It was in AATE,
Describing the colours of the Ardent's ribbons.
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 11:49 am
by Linna Heartbooger
I picked the one I would've picked before I looked the word up for the Bad Writing Contest! (#2... it just felt right!)
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 11:54 am
by aliantha
Cambo wrote:aliantha wrote:Vraith wrote:
Not quite as many it doesn't seem...but there was that one sentence that like fifty different colors [mostly shades of yellows and greens IIRC??].
Which book? I might have just, y'know, let my eyes pass over that sentence....
It was in AATE,
Describing the colours of the Ardent's ribbons.
Oh! I *do* remember that!
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:06 pm
by deer of the dawn
Well, people did better than I expected!
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 12:14 pm
by I'm Murrin
I didn't vote, because my first thought was relating it to twilight and I didn't realise the connection with "dim".
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 3:15 pm
by sgt.null
Murrin wrote:I didn't vote, because my first thought was relating it to twilight and I didn't realise the connection with "dim".
there is a joke there - but i will resist.
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 3:51 pm
by Vraith
Cambo wrote:aliantha wrote:Vraith wrote:
Not quite as many it doesn't seem...but there was that one sentence that like fifty different colors [mostly shades of yellows and greens IIRC??].
Which book? I might have just, y'know, let my eyes pass over that sentence....
It was in AATE,
Describing the colours of the Ardent's ribbons.
I didn't remember that that's what it was...[I'm actually not convinced it IS, I thought it was something Linden and power], but it definitely was in AATE...I searched Z's AATE posts to find the line cuz I knew he quoted it somewhere, and it is:
a personal effluvium of cerise and incarnadine and carbuncle, ecru and ivory, turquise and viridian and azure, blue as deep as velvet, yellows ranging from the fulvous and the sulphuric to the palest gold.
So I was wrong about mostly yellows and greens...it's got most of the rainbow in there.
ON TOPIC though: when I run across crepuscular, [funny how common a word it is in fantasy/horror and almost nowhere else] my auto thought is a reddish dim light [perhaps cuz I think "sunset beside "twilight?," or maybe cuz it reminds me of "corpuscle?,"....I don't really know.]
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2012 4:04 pm
by Lefdmae Deemalr Effaeldm
sgt.null wrote:Murrin wrote:I didn't vote, because my first thought was relating it to twilight and I didn't realise the connection with "dim".
there is a joke there - but i will resist.
I have an an idea about that, but not sure if that's the one you thought of. Can you tell me if don't want to post it here?
If that's so, I'd think the Watchers tend to know well the connection between "Twilight" and dim, Zorm knows particularly well