Over 200 vocabulary words collected from Infinite Jest

David Foster Wallace’s lexicon was the stuff of legends. His widely acclaimed novel Infinite Jest contains over 20,000 unique words. While working my way through this extraordinarily lengthy and complex book, I defined and recorded every word I didn’t know. The resulting list is over 200 words long. Anyone who has read DFW has at some point wondered: why does he know words like “Crepuscular”, and how does he know it well enough to employ it in a sentence? Well, now you can too:

1. Matriculate: Formal process of entering a university
2. Mottle: Mark with spots or smears of colour.
3. Circumflex: this symbol ^
4. Ellipse: Oval shape
5. Sheaf: Bundle of objects of a single kind (esp. papers)
6. Lapidary: Speaking in a concise and effective way, suitable to be carved into stone.
7. Stasis: A period or state of inactivity.
8. Impropriety: A failure to show honesty or modesty.
9. Sotto: Intentionally lowering the volume of ones voice for effect.
10. Nepotism: Favour given to relatives and friends.
11. Sallow: Of an unhealthy yellow or brown colour
12. Hirsute: Hairy
13. Countenance: Accept as possible; admit as so.
14. Caustic: Sarcastic ina scathing manner.
15. Martial: Warlike
16. Supine: Lying face upwards.
17. Mollify: Appease the anger or anxiety of someone.
18. Gallant: Brave; Heroic
19. Procure: Obtain with special care.
20. Rapacious: Excessively greedy.
21. Debauch: Destroy the moral purity of; corrupt.
22. Oblique: Slanting
23. Fidelity: Faithful to a person or cause.
24. Apprise: Inform or tell someone
25. Pejorative: Expressing contempt or disapproval.
26. Locution: A particular and distinct style of speaking (a phrase)
27. Intonation: Rise and fall of the voice.
28. Sumptuous: Splendid and expensive looking.