nas•cent / násent, náysent / adj.

1. (esp. of a process or organization) just coming into existence and beginning to display signs of future potential.

2. in the act of being born.



We pulled the springboard out of the equipment room and placed it just in front of the free throw line. From mid-court I ran as fast as I dared, hit the board, flew up and completely missing the slam dunk, grabbed onto the rim. I swung a bit and dropped down.
"That sucked!"
"Yea, yea. You're next dickhead."
I picked up the ball from the corner and threw it at him. Ryan was stringy but really fast; a nascent athelete of some kind although he was most likely destined to stay on the farm. Backing up all the way to the other end of the gym he ran and hit the board full steam. I watched in awe as he launched, slammed the ball through the mesh, grabbed the rim, turned upside down, let go and landed on the floor with a sick thud. His head bounced one and a half times. I doubled over laughing. He tried to get up and slipped back down. I laughed till my eyes were blurry with tears. Then the blood started pouring out from above his left eye. Pouring.

e•mas•cu•late /imáskyelayt/ v. & adj.


1. castrate, geld
2. make feeble or ineffective


Something about the way she passed the butter was so cold; emasculating intonations dotting the ends of her sentences like tiny knives...no, no. Mark simply could not justify letting her out of the dryer just yet.

me•tas•ta•sis /metástesis/ n. (metastasizing v.)


1. the transference of a disease, etc., from one part or organ to another.


Long after the guise of employment and welcome at the cramped apartment had dissipated, the guest began baking things daily and becoming increasingly creative with their placement. I would often come home from work famished, wanting only a hard boiled egg only to find them all gone, used in the most recent batch of tasteless cookies which I'd later find in my shirt pockets or folded into my clean underwear. This time, as I emptied the crumbled goods into the trash I could feel her gaze on my back. It was coming from the gap between the doors of the armoire. She had begun metastasising from room to room as to complicate the arithmetic of her overstay and I couldn't remember her name or when she had gotten here.

pro•lix /prolíks/ adj.


1. (of speech, writing, etc.) wordy, redundant; tedious.


"Oh this useless thing! A terrible read. Underdeveloped characters, impossibly fractured plot, entirely prolix, over-explanatory dialogue. Ugh."
Carter set down the dictionary and sipped his coffee.

can•ter /kánter/ n. & v.


1. a gentle gallop.


It was then that the bottom half of Marie's body rebelled. After years of careful plotting, it made it's move, breaking into a canter down the stairs leaving the tyrant upper half groping at the empty space below the navel.

pre•emp•tive /prée-émptiv/ adj.


1. (of military action) intended to prevent attack by disabling the enemy.
2. to seize upon before someone else can.


The remaining six of them were standing around the last piece discussing very diplomatically exactly how and when to divide it when Jim, armed with a silver fork he had concealed in his shirt cuff, made a preemptive attack and devoured the cake. He laughed and laughed. Then they shot his balls off.

cil•i•um /síleeum/ n. (usu. in pl. cil•i•a /sílea/)


1. a short minute hairlike vibrating structure on the surface of certain cells, either causing currents in the surrounding fluid or providing propulsion.


After leaving them in the room to argue about the whereabouts of James's Foam Suppressor, I stood leaning over the railing looking down at the Jewish women's morning swim club. They moved in slow elliptical patterns, their black gowns like cilia moving them through the water.

ca•price /keprées/ n. /kepríshes/ adj.

1. an unaccountable or whimsical change of mind or conduct.



I stared a long time at the blue one. I walked around the store with it in my hand. When I came back to the shelf again, I thought, the red one was pretty nice too. I thought about how the red one would be nice to see in the mornings and would match the pillows. Okay, red it is. As I approached the counter I imagine me waking up tomorrow and first thing thinking "Shit. Should've got the blue one." Back to the shelf. I decidedly grab the blue one. As I turn away I notice that the red one has a nice sparkle. I have both in my hands. I could get both. Switch them in and out. Red in the evenings, blue in the..well. Blue would be good in the evening too. Just pick one! Christ. It's so hard though. This is taking way too long. I stare and stare. Suddenly I pick up the gold one, march to the register, pay, leave, ride the train home and fall asleep for 12 hours.