A synonym for garbage or trash. rubbish Rubbish is a synonym for garbage or trash. The word is more commonly used by speakers of British English than by speakers of American English. The noun rubbish also means writing or speech that is worthless, untrue, or nonsense, especially in British English. Your teacher might tell you that…
Pretentious or snooty… hoity-toity Someone who’s hoity-toity is pretentious and snooty. If you speak to someone in a hoity-toity accent, they are going to assume that you’re a snob. Your hoity-toity aunt might refuse to eat lunch in your favorite diner, insisting on someplace fancier, and a hoity-toity salesman might make you feel like you don’t…
Anything that relates to teaching… pedagogical Anything that relates to teaching is pedagogical. If your teacher has pedagogical dreams all night long, even in sleep, his mind is in the classroom. The adjective pedagogical, pronounced “peh-duh-GAH-gi-cal,” comes from the Greek word paidagōgikos meaning “teacher.” If it’s pedagogical, it concerns teaching, from lesson plans to approaches to teaching, even how…
allegedly If someone is said to be allegedly guilty of something, it means that proof has yet to be produced or they have yet to be found formally guilty by law. Allegedly is used almost entirely in a legal sense, referring to a potentially criminal action that is being or will shortly be decided in court.…
Traveling from one location to another… peregrinate People who peregrinate are constantly on the move, traveling from one location to another. You might peregrinate from Italy to Spain to France during your European backpacking trip. The most common way to peregrinate is on foot, wandering from place to place, as when you decide to peregrinate around your city’s…
Making small talk with various people… schmooze When you schmooze at a party, you chat with many different people. Being able to schmooze casually and confidently is a good quality in a hostess or a politician. If you say, “I just want to stop by the reception and schmooze for a little bit,” it means you’re going to see…
A lively, fancy word for “fussy.” persnickety Persnickety is a lively, fancy word for “fussy.” If you’ve sent your salad back to the kitchen three times, you might be a persnickety eater. The adjective persnickety sounds prickly like a porcupine, and persnickety people can indeed be sharp and prickly when they don’t get things precisely as they wish. I…