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:
- Matriculate: Formal process of entering a university
- Mottle: Mark with spots or smears of colour.
- Circumflex: this symbol ^
- Ellipse: Oval shape
- Sheaf: Bundle of objects of a single kind (esp. papers)
- Lapidary: Speaking in a concise and effective way, suitable to be carved into stone.
- Stasis: A period or state of inactivity.
- Impropriety: A failure to show honesty or modesty.
- Sotto: Intentionally lowering the volume of ones voice for effect.
- Nepotism: Favour given to relatives and friends.
- Sallow: Of an unhealthy yellow or brown colour
- Hirsute: Hairy
- Countenance: Accept as…
