Stationary: /stāSHə-nerē/, adjective: unchanging in condition, static; fixed in a place, immobile “There are three classes of men; the retrograde, the stationary and the progressive.” Johann Kaspar Lavater, Swiss poet and philosopher Stationery: /stāSHə-nerē/, noun: paper used to write letters usually accompanied with matching envelopes “Whatever you choose for your stationery is your favorite color because it’s where you pour your heart out.” Mary... Read More

/bamˈbo͞ozəl/, transitive verb: 1. to cheat, trick or fool If you ever lure me with your lying flatteries, and I find satisfaction in myself, if you bamboozle me with pleasure, then let this be my final day! (lines 133 -136) Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Faust 2. to deceive, bewilder, mystify “…If we’ve been bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the... Read More

/bəˈnevələnt/, adjective: 1. wishing to do good, actively helpful; kind hearted, good natured “But friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life, and thanks to a benevolent arrangement the greater part of life is sunshine.” Thomas Jefferson 2. serving a charitable rather than profit-making purpose; philanthropic, humanitarian “Think of the universe as a benevolent parent. A child may... Read More

/klair voy iəns/, noun: 1. the supposed faculty of perceiving things or events in the future or beyond normal sensory contact “Intuition comes very close to clairvoyance; it appears to be the extrasensory perception of reality.” Alexis Carrel 2. exceptional insight “With that strange knowing that comes over me, like a clairvoyance, I know that I am sure of myself and my enormous and... Read More

/efərˈvesəns/, noun: 1. bubbles in a liquid; fizz “The wild gas, the fixed air is plainly broke loose: but we ought to suspend our judgments until the first effervescence is a little subsided, till the liquor is cleared, and until we see something deeper than the agitation of the troubled and frothy surface.” Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France 2. showing high... Read More

/dəˈmäkrəsē/, noun: 1. a system of government by the whole population, usually through elected representatives “Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education.” Franklin D. Roosevelt 2. any organization governed on democratic principles “In a democracy, the well-being, individuality and happiness of every citizen is important for the overall prosperity,... Read More

Council /kounsəl/, noun: 1. a group of people who provide advice and guidance on important matters, “The council now beginning rises in the Church like the daybreak, a forerunner of most splendid light.” Pope John XXIII 2. a body of people, often elected, who manage the affairs of and make governing rules for a city, county, municipality, etc. Counsel /kounsəl/, noun: 1. advice, especially... Read More

/ɡäsəmər/, noun: 1. a very light or delicate material; insubstantial, “The true reformer does not want time, nor money, nor cooperation, nor advice. What is time but the stuff delay is made of? And depend upon it, our virtue will not live on the interest of our money. He expects no income, but outgoes; so soon as we begin to count the cost, the... Read More

/ kəˌmyo͞onəˈkāSH(ə)n /, noun: 1. the imparting or exchanging of information or news, “The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” George Bernard Shaw 2. social intercourse, “Communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy and mutual valuing.” Rollo May 3. the practice and science of transmitting information. “Of all of our inventions for mass communication, pictures... Read More

/madər/, noun: 1. an affair or situation under consideration; a topic. “Life is not a matter of holding good cards, but sometimes, playing a poor hand well. “ Jack London 2. a physical substance which occupies space and possesses rest mass, “A person by study must try to disengage the subject from useless matter, and to seize on points capable of improvement. … When... Read More