hellw0rldpeace

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Zoology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story

Aestivation - A period of summer dormancy. Summer dormancy is often exhibited by animals when conditions become unfavourable.

Anthroponosis - An infection or disease that is transmissible from humans to animals under natural conditions.

Arboreal - Used to describe an animal that lives in trees. There are many different arboreal invertebrates including species of ant, tarantula, stick insect and many different species of moth and butterfly.

Book lungs - The main respiratory organ in most arachnids (spiders and scorpions); get their name from the fact that the stacked plates have the appearance of the closed pages of a book.

Coelom - Fluid-filled cavity within the body of an animal; usually refers to a cavity lined with specialized tissue peritoneum in which the gut is suspended.

Eyespots - Markings on an insect, usually on the surface of the fore or hind wings, that resemble a mammalian eye; used to scare off potential predators by making the insect appear to be part of a much larger organism. In some species the eyespots are concealed when at rest but can be 'flashed' at a predator in an attempt to scare them away.

Haemolymph - Insect blood and is the fluid that fills the haemoceol; transfers nutrients from the insect gut to the organs, takes away waste and also transmits hormones.

Hypogeic - Describes organisms that live underground (usually within the soil).

Lepidopterist - An entomologist who specialises in studying butterflies and moths. The name lepidopterist is derived from the name of the Order of butterflies and moths, Lepidoptera.

Osculum - The main opening through which filtered water is discharged. Found in sponges.

Parapodia - A sort of "false foot" formed by extension of the body cavity. Polychaetes and some insect larvae have parapodia in addition to their legs, and these provide extra help in locomotion.

Saproxylic - Describes invertebrates that are dependent on dead or decaying wood (or dependent on other organisms that are themselves dependent on dead wood). These invertebrates may not be dependent on the wood for their entire life cycle but at least some stage is dependent on wood. A good example of this are the larvae of some beetles that feed on decaying wood. The adults may feed on other things (such as nectar).

Thanatosis - "Playing dead"; displayed by many species of insect when they feel threatened by a potential predator. The insect will often fall to the ground and tuck in any protruding legs or antennae. The insect will remain like this for some time, even when prodded or poked by the predator. Some time after the predator has lost interest the insect will start moving again and make its escape. It is commonly found among the beetles - ladybirds are particularly good at 'playing dead'.

Venation - The arrangement (number and position) of veins within an insect's wing; often used as a way of differentiating between species. In early insects, the veins running down the wing (longitudinal veins) were connected by a series of cross veins. Most insect groups have lost, or dramatically reduced the number of, these cross veins. However, some insects such as dragonflies and damselflies have wings that contain many cross veins.

Xylophagous - Describes animals that feed almost exclusively on wood. Insect examples of such animals include furniture beetles and death watch beetle.

Sources: 1 2 3 ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Word List: Psychology

concepts to help with your story/poem

All-or-nothing Thinking - In cognitive psychotherapy, a common thought distortion in which the individual irrationally evaluates everything as either wonderful or terrible, with no middle ground or “gray area”

Burnout - A state of exhaustion that relates to engaging continually in emotionally demanding work

Congruence - In humanistic psychotherapy, consistency between the real self and the ideal self; the source of mental health

Dodo Bird Verdict - A nickname for the common research finding that different forms of psychotherapy are roughly equally effective; derived from the line in Alice in Wonderland, “Everybody has won and all must have prizes”

Exception Questions - In solution-focused family therapy, a technique whereby therapists ask families to recall situations when the problem was absent or less severe

Fluid Intelligence - The ability to reason when faced with novel problems

Introspection - The process of looking inside the mind for evidence of mental processes or therapeutic change, rejected by behaviorists for its lack of objectivity

Microaggressions - Comments or actions made in a crosscultural context that convey prejudicial, negative, or stereotypical beliefs and may suggest dominance or superiority of one group over another

Negative Punishment - A form of punishment in which the individual “loses something good”

Negative Reinforcement - A form of reinforcement in which the individual “loses something bad”

Neurosis - Along with psychosis, one of the two broad categories of mental illness used in Europe in the 1800s; refers to disorders such as anxiety and depression in which the individual maintains an intact grasp on reality

Overpathologizing - Viewing as abnormal that which is actually normal; can be reduced by increasing cultural competence

Positive Punishment - A form of punishment in which the individual “gets something bad”

Positive Reinforcement - A form of reinforcement in which the individual “gets something good”

Social Support - Relationships with others who can provide support in a time of crisis and who can share in good fortune as well

Source: Clinical Psychology: Science, Practice, and Diversity (5th Edition) by Andrew M. Pomerantz

More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Law-Related Vocabulary

for your next poem/story (pt. 4/4)

Ambulatory - capable of being altered

Attainder - the termination of the civil rights of a person upon a sentence of death or outlawry for treason or a felony

Bestiality - the crime of engaging in sexual relations with an animal

Blasphemy - the crime of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God or a religion and its doctrines and writings and especially God as perceived by Christianity and Christian doctrines and writings

Brownfield - a tract of land that has been developed for industrial purposes, polluted, and then abandoned

Clemency - willingness or ability to moderate the severity of a punishment (as a sentence); an act or instance of mercy, compassion, or forgiveness

Cold blood - a state of mind marked by premeditation and deliberateness—usually used in the phrase in cold blood

Concubinage - the relationship between persons who are cohabiting without the benefit of marriage

Days of grace - period of time beyond a scheduled date during which a required action (as payment of an obligation) may be taken without incurring the ordinarily resulting adverse consequences (as penalty or cancellation); also called "grace period"

Donation mortis causa - a donation that is to take effect on the donor's death and that is revocable

Ex maleficio - arising from wrongdoing; created by law in response to a wrongdoing

Exonerate - to relieve especially of a charge, obligation, or hardship; to clear from accusation or blame

Express malice - the knowledge that defamatory statements especially regarding a public figure are false

Extreme cruelty - behavior toward a spouse that involves physical violence or threats thereof, acts calculated to destroy the peace of mind or health of the spouse, or acts destructive of the purpose of the marriage

Floodgate - something serving to restrain an outburst (as of litigation)—usually used in pl.

Flotsam - floating wreckage of a ship or its cargo

Flying squad - a usually small standby group of people ready to move or act quickly; especially: a police unit formed to respond quickly in an emergency; called also "flying squadron"

Fourth degree - a grade given to less serious forms of crimes

Freedom of the seas - the right of a merchant ship to travel any waters except territorial waters either in peace or war

Golden parachute - an agreement providing for generous compensation to an executive upon dismissal

Great bodily injury - physical injury suffered by the victim of a violent crime that causes a substantial risk of death, extended loss or impairment of a body part or function, or permanent disfigurement; physical injury that is more serious than that ordinarily suffered in a battery

Indemnify - to secure against hurt, loss, or damage

Messuage - a dwelling house with the adjacent buildings and curtilage and other adjoining lands used in connection with the household

Moiety - half of something

Moot - deprived of practical significance; made abstract or purely academic

Next friend - a person appearing in or appointed by a court to act on behalf of a person (as a child) lacking legal capacity

Nunc pro tunc - now for then—used in reference to a judicial or procedural act that corrects an omission in the record, has effect as of an earlier date, or takes place after a deadline has expired

Primogeniture - the state of being the firstborn of the children of the same parents; exclusive right of inheritance

Prurient - marked by or arousing an unwholesome sexual interest or desire

Putative - thought, assumed, or alleged to be such or to exist

Sedition - the crime of creating a revolt, disturbance, or violence against lawful civil authority with the intent to cause its overthrow or destruction

Seriatim - in a series; individually in a sequence

Strictissimi juris - according to the strictest interpretation of the law

Wrongful death - a death caused by the negligent, willful, or wrongful act, neglect, omission, or default of another

Wrongful life - a malpractice claim brought by or on behalf of a child born with a birth defect alleging that he or she would never have been born if not for the negligent advice or treatment provided to the parents by a physician or health-care provider (Note: Wrongful life claims have usually been rejected by the courts. The injury is not the birth defect, but the life itself, and courts are reluctant to declare life an injury. A specific calculation of damages for wrongful life would entail affixing a monetary value to the difference between life in an impaired state and nonexistence. There is no legally established right not to be born.)

If any of these words make their way into your next poem/story, please tag me, or leave a link in the replies. I would love to read them!

More: Law-Related Words ⚜ Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Hello! May I request a lot of latin forensic terms?

The most popular I am aware lf it's "post-mortem"!

Abet - to assist, encourage, instigate, or support with criminal intent in attempting or carrying out a crime—often used in the phrase, "aid and abet"

Actus reus - the wrongful act that makes up the physical action of a crime

Amicus curiae - one (such as a professional person or organization) that is not a party to a particular litigation but that is permitted by the court to advise it in respect to some matter of law that directly affects the case in question

Compos mentis - of sound mind, memory, and understanding

Corpus delicti - the substantial and fundamental fact necessary to prove the commission of a crime; also: the material substance (such as the body of the victim of a murder) upon which a crime has been committed

Functus officio - of no further official authority or legal effect—used especially of an officer who is no longer in office or of an instrument that has fulfilled its purpose

Habeas corpus - any of several common-law writs issued to bring a party before a court or judge; the right of a citizen to obtain a writ of habeas corpus as a protection against illegal imprisonment

Habeas corpus ad subjiciendum - a writ for inquiring into the lawfulness of the restraint of a person who is imprisoned or detained in another's custody

In flagrante delicto - in the very act of committing a misdeed; red-handed; in the midst of sexual activity

In esse - in actual existence

In loco parentis - in the place of a parent

Indicia - distinctive marks; indications

Mens rea - a culpable mental state, especially: one involving intent or knowledge and forming an element of a criminal offense

Modus operandi - a method of procedure, especially: a distinct pattern or method of operation that indicates or suggests the work of a single criminal in more than one crime

Obiter dictum - an incidental and collateral opinion that is uttered by a judge but is not binding; an incidental remark or observation

Onus probandi - burden of proof; the duty of proving a disputed assertion or charge

Prima facie - at first view; on the first appearance; legally sufficient to establish a fact or a case unless disproved

Pro se - on one's own behalf; without an attorney

Res judicata - a matter finally decided on its merits by a court having competent jurisdiction and not subject to litigation again between the same parties

Ultra vires - beyond the scope or in excess of legal power or authority

Hope this helps. Do tag me, or send me a link to your writing if it does. I would love to read your work!

More: Latin Phrases ⚜ Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Worldbuilding Vocabulary

Abeyance:  When the audience temporarily suspends their questions about made-up words or worldbuilding details with the implicit understanding that they will be answered later in the story.

Absorption:  The two-way street wherein the audience is immersed in the created world and is picking up the author’s metaphoric building blocks to recreate the concept in their head.

Acculturation:  When an adult assimilates into another culture.

Additive:  When something has been added to a secondary world, usually in the form of magic or fantasy species.

Affinity:  A kinship pattern wherein the familial bond is based upon marriage.

Aggregate Inconsistencies:  When audiences pick up internal inconsistencies not within the same story but from multiple sources within the shared universe.

Anachronism:  Details that do not conform to their time period or culture.

Analogue Culture: Real-life cultures that the creator emulates in their work and then applies their fantasy conceits to.

Ancestor Worship:  The belief that deceased ancestors still exist, are still a part of the family, and can intervene within the living world on their descendants’ behalf.

Animism:  The belief that all objects, creatures, and places are imbued with a spiritual essence.

Apex Predator:  The predator at the top of a food web that no other creature naturally feeds upon. Two apex predators cannot exist in the same niche.

Apologetics:  In worldbuilding, the attempt to explain inconsistencies in terms of existing canon.

Appropriated Culture:  Using a culture as a whole that the creator is not a member of. Different from an analogue culture in that the analogue is changed by the creator and used respectfully.

Artifacts:  In worldbuilding, the observable ways a culture behaves due to their cultural worldview. This can include politics, economics, religion, education, arts, humanities, and linguistics, along with many other cultural norms.

Ascendant:  In worldbuilding, a world that the magic is increasing in power and influence.

Assimilation:  When an individual rejects their original culture and adopts the cultural norms and beliefs of the dominant culture.

Author Authority:  When an author demonstrates expert-level knowledge in a field to their audience.

Author Worldview:  What Mark J. P. Wolf calls “not only the ideas and ideologies of the world’s inhabitants, but also those which the author is expressing through the world’s structure of events.”

Autocracy:  A government in which supreme power concentrates in the hands of one individual or polity.

Avatar:  The embodiment of a deity in another form, usually humanoid.

B-C

Bible:  In the field of television writing, a series guidebook that usually includes the pitch, character descriptions, a synopsis, as well as worldbuilding details.

Biome:  The vegetation and animals that exists within a region. Terrestrial biomes include: forest (tropical, temperate, or boreal), grassland, desert, and tundra.

Black Box:  In information processing, when a system is viewed in terms of its inputs and outputs without any understanding as to its internal workings.

Bottom-Up:  In design, where the granular, base elements of the system are created first, then grouping them together into larger constructs over and over until a pattern forms. Also known as “pantsing” in writing and worldbuilding because the creator is building by the seat of their pants.

Callback:  From standup comedy where the punchline in a joke used earlier in the set is alluded to again, eliciting another laugh from the reframing of what was already familiar.

Canon:  The core doctrine for the world when conflicting information arises. Usually what the original creator made takes canonical precedence over subsequent additions. 

Capitalism:  The economic system wherein individuals own the means of production.

Chekhov's Gun:  Often understood to mean that something must be introduced previously if it will have significance later in a narrative, but meant by the playwright that nothing should be included in the story that is not completely necessary. 

Climate:  The temperature and rainfall in regions over approximately 30 years. Classified as tropical (high temperature and high precipitation), dry (high temperature and low precipitation), temperate (mid temperature and mid precipitation), continental (in the center of large continents with warm summers and cold winters), and polar (low temperatures and low precipitation).

Commercial Fiction:  The style of fiction that includes all genre fiction, the aim of which is entertainment. Often fast-paced and plot-driven.

Compelling:  One of the four Cs of worldbuilding, which deals with how well the core concept and subsequent details maintain audience interest.

Complete:  One of the four Cs of worldbuilding, which deals with the sense that the world is lived in, has a sense of history, and continues on even when the story ends.

Complexity Creep:  When material gradually grows in complexity over its lifetime, raising the bar of entry for new people experiencing the material for the first time.

Conceits:  Where a story deviates from reality. Usually the focus of the fiction by being what the author intends on exploring in their works.

Conlanguage:  A constructed language created specifically for a story world.

Consanguinity:  A kinship pattern wherein the familial bond is based upon a shared genetic lineage.

Consistent:  One of the four Cs of worldbuilding, which deals with how well the material maintains its own internal logic as established by the fantasy conceits.

Constructed World:  A fictional world that does not exist but was created by someone.

Continuity:  A gestalt term for perception where the mind fills in obvious blanks to make a unified whole.

Convergent Evolution:  When two or more species develop analogous features to deal with their environment.

Co-Residency:  A kinship pattern wherein the familial bond is based upon shared space.

Cosmology:  The study of mapping the universe and our place in it.

Cost:  In worldbuilding, when a character must risk or sacrifice something for magic to take effect.

Creative:  One of the four Cs of worldbuilding, which deals with how and to what extent the constructed world deviates from the real world.

Credibility Threshold:  Where worldbuilding details must only appear plausible to a general audience rather than demonstrating expert-level knowledge.

Cultural Identity:  An individual’s self-concept as distinct from others based upon nationality, ethnicity, social class, generation, and locality.

Cultural Universals:  Traits, patterns, and institutions prevalent throughout humankind.

Customs:  Informal rules of behavior that people take part in without thinking about it.

D-F

Deity:  The most powerful of metaphysical entities, deities often exist in pantheons, have thematic powers based upon their roles, and few weaknesses or limitations.

Descendent:  In terms of magic, the idea that the most powerful magics are from ages past and that magic is on the decline in terms of power and influence.

Despotism:  An economic system wherein an individual or institution controls the laws and resources of an area.

Deus Ex Machina:  A plot device in which an unexpected power, event, or deity intervenes to save a hopeless situation. 

Differentiation:  When one culture forms part of their identity by contrasting themselves with another nearby culture.

Divergent:  When the creator alters something in the development of the world but it remains very similar to the real world in every detail but this fantasy conceit. For instance, a world that resembles our own but made up of anthropomorphic animals instead of humans.

Divine:  The belief that something is of, from, or like a god.

Democracy:  A government in which the people elect a governing body in some fashion.

Early Adoption:  When an inventor or culture creates a technology long before their analogue culture did in the real world.

Easter Egg:  A hidden message, image, or feature that is meant to be hunted for within the material.

Economics:  The study of production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.

Education:  A form of socialization in which we teach the youth what they need to know to become functioning members of society.

Effective Worldbuilding:  When (a) the immersive state is never disrupted for the audience, or when (b) the immersive state is disrupted with a positive result.

Element X:  N. K. Jemisin’s concept of when fantasy elements diverge from the real world. Similar to fantasy conceits.

Emic:  An account of a cultural idea, concept, behavior, or belief documented as if from within the culture.

Empires:  Multinational states with political hegemony over other ethnicities, cultures, or nations.

Encyclopedic Impulse:  The consumer’s desire to know everything about the world or the author’s desire to expound upon all the worldbuilding details.

Ephemera:  Transitionary materials that are not meant to exist for long term, such as advertisements, diary entries, letters, posters, and the like.

Ethnicity:  A group that identifies with each other based on presumed similarities such as a shared language, ancestry, history, society, or social treatment within an area. Ethnicities are not dependent upon, but are often associated with, certain taxonomic traits or physiological similarities within those groups.

Etic:  When cultural ideas, concepts, behaviors, or beliefs are documented from outside the cultural milieu as a passive observer with an eye for similarities between all cultures

Exsecting:  When the creator removes something that exists in the real world from the created world.

Extrapolation:  In worldbuilding, the belief that any fantasy conceit should be followed to its natural conclusion.

Face Validity:  When worldbuilding detail appears believable upon immediate examination. See Credibility Threshold.

Fan Service:  Material included in a story that serves no narrative purpose other than to please fans.

Fantasy Conceit:  What the creator intends to explore in the world, it is where the constructed world deviates from the real world, usually in the form of geography, biology, physics, metaphysics, technology, or culture.

Fantasy Function:  When analogue cultures are filtered through fantasy conceits to populate the created world with its output details.

Fetishes:  Items imbued with cultural significance and power.

First Principles:  Core belief and value systems within a culture that are often unconscious until confronted.

Flavor Text:  Texts within stories, video games, role-playing games, and action figures that add depth by providing a sense of history but do not alter the game mechanics or story in a substantial way.

Feudalism:  An economic system wherein there is a division between the lords that protect the vassals that work the land in exchange for protection.

Four Cs of Worldbuilding:  See Creative, Complete, Consistent, and Compelling.

G-L

Gender:  A social construct of how cultures differentiate the sexes.

Generalist:  When every individual in a society has the same basic job, which is providing their daily caloric intake. A staple of hunter and gatherers and in contrast to specialists.

Generation:  A social cohort group based around the period in which children grow up, become adults, and bear children of their own. Because of this shared timeframe and significant events in their lives, generations often share a similar worldview within the general culture.

Genre Expectation:  The qualities audiences expect of their genres to be considered successful, i.e. is the thriller thrilling or the romance romantic. For fantasy and science fiction, the genre expectation is worldbuilding.

Goldilocks Zone:  The habitable zone around a star where the temperature is right for water to exist in liquid form. 

Group:  Two or more individuals who share a collective sense of unity via interacting with each other because of shared similar characteristics.

Habitat:  The ecosystem or ecological community creatures exist in.

Handwave:  A writing term for explaining crucial events dismissively with minimal details.

Handwavium:  As opposed to the handwave, when everything else in the imagined world fits logically together with the exception of the fantasy conceit, which the audience must then accept to continue on with the story.

Hard Deduction:  When there is no narrator and no character bringing the worldbuilding details to the audience’s attention, who must then piece together the world rules based upon the provided details alone.

Hard Impart:  When information is imparted to the audience through narrative text, usually through the narrator or the internal thoughts of characters.

Hero Props:  Items that are necessary for a scene to take place, making them integral to the story.

Heroic Theory of Invention:  When inventors and discoverers of scientific developments are treated as solitary geniuses rather than products of good luck or a part of a team.

High-Concept:  A term from the film industry meaning an idea needs lots of background details, usually compiled from the worldbuilding, to be explained for the core concept to be compelling.

Hybrid:  (a) In biology, a living thing bred together from two different species, which is not able to produce its own viable offspring. (b) A method the author can employ to get details across to the audience in which it appears they are using a hard or soft impart, but the audience deduces are not correct, which then casts provided information into doubt and adds new nuance.

Iceberg Theory:  The theory proffered by Hemingway that so long as the author is aware of the underlying ideas, they can cut away anything from the story and it will still make sense. Usually interpreted to mean one only needs to reveal 10% of worldbuilding details or backstory.

Illusion of Completeness:  The sense that the world is complete and that all questions can be answered within it rather than the creator explicitly spelling out all the details.

Immersion:  The altered state in which the audience feels they are physically present in a non-physical world.

Ineffective Worldbuilding:  When worldbuilding details become obvious to the consumer, thus breaking the sense of immersion and reminding them of the real world. This can be caused by internal inconsistencies or from reality incursions.

Info Dump:  A sudden overwhelming quantity of backstory or background information supplied in a short timeframe.

Info Dump Equity:  The idea that an author should not reveal worldbuilding information until the audience craves it, thus being able to deliver an info dump without anyone complaining.

In-Group:  The other people an individual identifies with. While they may not share the exact worldview, they share the same first principles in understanding the world around them.

Innovation:  The drive for change, usually technological, but also socially.

Inside-Out:  How audiences process worldbuilding details, in that they pertain to the immediate understanding of the scene, which are then pieced together into an understanding of the world.

Inspired Worldbuilding:  The top form of worldbuilding, which invites additional audience interaction via their imagination after the story has concluded.

Institutions:  Stable organizations of individuals formed for a shared purpose, usually by performing specific, reoccurring patterns of behavior.

Integration:  When an individual adopts the cultural norms and beliefs of the dominant culture while still retaining their original culture.

Interconnection:  When the threads of worldbuilding are tied together cohesively. Part of Sanderson’s third law of magic systems.

Interquel:  Stories set in an existing world but that do not connect with the original story.

Intraquel:  Stories set in an existing world that fill in gaps in the existing story.

Kinship:  How social relationships organize into groups, roles, and families. Usually consisting of consanguinity, affinity, or co-residency.

Limitations:  Checks put upon magical powers, usually in the form of weaknesses and costs. Sanderson maintains in his second law that limitations are more dramatically important than powers.

Linguistics:  The study of languages.

Literary Fiction:  The style of fiction that aims for awards, considers itself art, focuses on the prose, and is usually slowly paced.

Locality:  The small-scale community in which the individuals in a group grew up, usually comprising of a town, neighborhood, or block, which differentiates them from others in the surrounding area.

M-O

Macroworldbuilding:  The first of the stages N. K. Jemisin breaks her worldbuilding process into, which consists of planet, continents, climate, and ecology.

Magic:  Change wrought through unnatural means.

Magic Point Systems:  Magic systems where the casters have a set amount of energy, usually referred to as mana, to spend on their effects.

Magical Thinking:  The belief people can affect change the world around them through thoughts and behaviors.

Mana:  A frequent generalized term for the finite resource magic users spend on their magical effects.

Marginalization:  When an individual rejects both their original culture and the dominant culture.

Mary Sue/ Marty Sue:  Originally a created character for fanfic who has no flaws and is inserted into interactions with the canonical characters. Now an insult leveled at characters consumers don’t like, usually claiming they are overly capable and without flaws.

Masquerade:  A term taking from the World of Darkness RPG wherein the existence of magic is hidden from the general populous.

Metaphysics:  In worldbuilding, dealing with deities, spirits, cosmology, and the afterlife. In essence, creatures and locations that do not abide by understandings of biology or physics.

Microworldbuilding:  The second of the stages N. K. Jemisin breaks her worldbuilding process into, which consists of species, morphology, raciation, acculturation, power, and role.

Monotheism:  The belief in a single deity only.

Mystery Box:  The theory proffered by JJ Abrams that mystery drives audience interest, which will keep them invested in a story so long as they are promised elucidation later.

Mythopeia:  Constructed mythologies, lores, and histories within created worlds.

Nationality:  How an individual relates to their state. A component of cultural identity.

Nominal Change:  A superficial change in the secondary world that contributes nothing to the worldbuilding.

Norms:  What is considered acceptable group behavior and what people should and should not do in their social surroundings.

Oligarchy:  A government in which power rests in a small group of people like the nobility, wealthy, or religious leaders.

One-Off:  An intentional inconsistency meant to highlight the aberration as separate from the established worldbuilding.

Out-Group:  Those that do not share the same collective worldview, which are often mistrusted or viewed with outright hostility.

Overlaid Worlds:  Constructed worlds with real-world locations but with the addition of fantasy elements.

P-R

Pantheon:  A categorization of collected deities based upon the culture that worships them

Pantsers:  Creators who build or write without a clear outcome in mind. See Bottom-Up.

Pidgin Language:  A grammatically simplified language used for trade that comprises vocabularies drawn from numerous languages.

Planet of Hats:  The trope of treating a species or world as monolithic and with one defining trait.

Planners:  Worldbuilders or writers who have a clear plan once they start creating. See Top-Down.

Politics:  The decision-making process within groups and individuals involving power structures.

Polytheism:  The belief of multiple gods, usually inhabiting a pantheon.

Porcelain Argument:  In worldbuilding, the belief that technology stagnates at the level at which magic or a fantasy conceit is introduced.

Portal Fantasy:  A subgenre in which the characters from the real world travel to a secondary world.

Prequel:  Stories set in an existing world that precede the original story. They do not need to connect to the original story but often do.

Primary Sexual Characteristics:  The sex organs used in reproduction.

Primary World:  The real world in which we all reside and draw our experience from.

Prime Mover:  A conceit that cannot be removed without the story world falling apart.

Profane:  Something that is religiously blasphemous or obscene.

Prologue:  An opening sequence in a narrative that establishes background details to create context, clarification, and miscellaneous information for the audience

Promise of the Premise:  The term coined by Blake Snyder for the point in the story when the setup is complete and it examines its core conceits. An author breaks the promise of the premise when the story is not about the promised core concepts.

Pull Factors:  Factors that draw immigrants to an area.

Purple Prose:  Descriptions that becomes overly ornate and extravagant, to the point they break the sense of immersion by drawing attention to themselves.

Push Factors:  Factors that drive immigrants out of an area.

Race:  (a) In biology, a grouping of populations below the level of subspecies, and is rather imprecise in distinguishing the differences between them. (b) In the fantasy genre, usually understood to mean “species.”

Racial Attributes:  The assumption that any one fantasy race shares not only certain abilities like flight or the capacity to speak with animals, but certain demeanors, temperaments, and biases.

Reality Incursions:  When the outside world interjects itself into the created fantasy experience to remind the consumer that this is indeed a made-up world. They usually occur when the consumer has expert knowledge in a field that is not depicted correctly in the narrative.

Reciprocity:  When people respond to actions with similar actions. This can be positive, as in the exchanging of gifts, or negative, as with punitive eye-for-an-eye punishments for crimes.

Relativism:  The belief there is no real objective universal truth and that we base all understanding upon perception and consideration.

Religion:  The cultural system of behaviors, morals, ethics, and worldview in which humans deal with supernatural, metaphysical, and spiritual conceptions.

Retcon:  Short for “retroactive continuity,” the term comes from comic books when previous canon or facts are ignored or contradicted so as to assimilate new stories or understandings in current storylines.

Reverberations and Repercussions:  The understanding that any change within a world creates many expected and unexpected changes to the whole.

Rituals:  Formal customs often involving gestures, words, and objects performed in a traditional sequence.

Rule of Cool:  The understanding that the audience’s willing suspension of disbelief for a given element is directly proportional to its level of ��coolness.”

Rule of Law:  The idea that laws extend to the lawmakers as well as the general populous.

Rule of Three:  In worldbuilding, the concept coined by Randy Ellefson in which an author should alter at least three components of a trope to make it their own.

S

Saturation:  Mark J. P. Wolf’s term for when there are simply too many details for the audience to fully absorb, which he maintains makes the world stronger since it invites the audience to reexperience the material again and again to glean something new each time.

Scarcity:  When people put higher value on rare things and assign lesser value to things in abundance.

Secondary Sexual Characteristics:  The distinguishing traits that distinguish the sexes, such as human males’ facial hair or females’ breasts.

Secondary World:  A created world that does not exist.

Selection:  In biology, the preferential survival and reproduction or elimination of individuals with certain traits. Can be either artificial, natural, positive, or negative.

Separation:  When an individual rejects the dominant culture in favor of preserving their original culture, which often leads to minority enclaves within the dominant culture

Sequel:  Stories set in an existing world that follow the original story. They do not need to connect to the original story but often do.

Set Piece:  An iconic scene that exemplifies the story even though it might not actually be necessary to the story itself.

Shamanism:  The belief that specific individuals have access to and influence over the spiritual realm, usually derived by ritual and entering altered states.

Show Don't Tell:  The understanding that the audience prefers to experience the worldbuilding details and storytelling events in action rather than having them explained.

Smeerp:  Unnecessarily renaming something to make it seem exotic. Derived from James Blish’s sarcastic use of the term when describing rabbits.

Smeerp Hole:  When one seemingly minor change contributes to a whole slew of other changes on the author’s part that add little to the audience experience as a whole.

Social Class:  The hierarchal social stratification of groups, usually manifesting as upper, middle, and lower classes.

Socialism:  The economic system in which the workers or government own and manage the means of production.

Socialization:  The process in which a group passes on the worldviews, norms, and customs to their children.

Soft Deduction:  When a character with knowledge of the worldbuilding takes action based upon specific information to get the worldbuilding rules across to the audience.

Soft Impart:  Information presented to the audience not through narrative text but through a trustworthy side character or source. Can often come about from an overheard conversation or explanation from another character.

Specialization:  The divisions of labor and creation of occupations when the population does not individually have to account for their daily caloric intake. As opposed to generalist.

Species:  A group of living creatures capable of exchanging genetic material and producing viable offspring.

Speculative Fiction:  An umbrella term for fiction that inject elements into the story that do not exist in the real world. Fantasy, science fiction, horror, historical fiction, alternative history, and dystopian and utopian fiction are just a few genres that qualify as speculative fiction.

Spotlighted/Lampshaded:  A potentially troublesome concept or idea that is intentionally brought to the audience’s attention before it becomes problematic to highlight that it is intended as a fantasy conceit rather than an accidental anachronism.

Stasis:  The drive to maintain the current order, be it social, political, or technological.

States:  Organized governments overseeing a specific territory that can interact with other states.

Streamlining:  Part of Sanderson’s third law of magic in which worldbuilding details should be accounted for by already existing fantasy conceits instead of creating whole new conceits.

Suspension of Disbelief:  When an audience makes a choice to suspend their critical faculties to allow for a patently unreal concept to be considered logical for the sake of entertainment.

T-W

Taming:  When an animal has been taught to tolerate human presence. As opposed to domestication.

Technobabble:  When a character spouts a number of details to establish their expert credentials in the field. Technobabble is not meant to be understood by either the audience or the other characters, only to establish the character’s authority on the subject.

Terra De Facto:  The implicit understanding that anything that is not accounted for by a fantasy conceit must therefore abide by the rules of the primary world.

Terrain:  The vertical and horizontal proportions of land masses, which includes how high it is above sea level and at what slope.

Theocracy:  A government where the religious leaders and practices control the laws in addition to the religious norms and rituals.

Toehold Details:  Descriptors that specifically trigger the assumption of an analogue culture and time period, and therefore help the audience to mentally populate the scene.

Top-Down:  In design, when the underlying idea or system is formed on a grand scale, then with all subsequent subsystems being added and refined until everything is mapped out. Also referred to as “planner” or “engineer” when it comes to writing or worldbuilding. 

Totems:  Imbued emblems representing a group of people tied to a specific spirit.

Transmedial:  When a story or world exists in multiple mediums.  

Tropes:  Reoccurring motifs, images, plots, and characterization that exist within a genre.

Unchanged:  When the creator does not use a particular fantasy conceit and leaves their created world the same as the real world in regards to this fantasy conceit. See Terra De Facto.

Unobtanium:  In engineering, the term used for materials or technologies that do not yet exist but will one day solve current problems. Frequently used in science fiction worldbuilding.

Upmarket Fiction:  The style of fiction that aims for creating discussion. It often blends literary and commercial fiction, deals with universal themes, has accessible language, and is character-driven.

Weakness:  Limiting factors that diminish the power or the person using it. Part of Sanderson’s second law of magic.

Worldbuilding Capital:  Time and mental energy sunk into a world, which is why authors frequently reuse the existing world instead of forming a new one for subsequent stories.

Worldbuilding Kudzu:  When too many worldbuilding choke out the pertinent information by sheer volume, thus disrupting immersion.

Worldview:   How a society or individual orients their knowledge and point of view towards the world. This includes philosophy, fundamentals, existential postulates, values and ethics, ideology, and attitude. It encompasses the concept of why the world works the way it does and the “correct” way to act within it.

Worship:  The act of religious devotion towards a deity or ideal.

Source ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some European Renaissance Art Vocabulary

for your next poem/story

Acanthus - A prickly plant with large leaves; used as ornament in ancient Greece and the Renaissance.

Altarpiece - A religious painting composed of one or several compartments or panels; intended to stand on or hang above an altar.

Apocrypha - Literally, things that are “hidden.” The Apocrypha are not universally accepted as official scripture and are excluded from the old and new Testaments.

Blue - The color of the sky. In Christian painting, it symbolizes Heaven. Mary, known as the Queen of Heaven, wears a blue mantle. Blue pigment was derived from either the mineral azurite, a copper carbonate mineral, or ultramarine, made from lapis lazuli. The latter was very costly.

Burin - A pointed tool used to engrave lines into a metal plate that is used for printmaking. Ink applied to the plate will sink into the engraved lines and transfer to the paper.

Cartouche - An ornament in the shape of a scroll with ends folded back.

Coffered - “Divided in squares,” usually refers to a popular Renaissance ceiling treatment that used recessed squares.

Coat of Arms - A heraldic device identifying a person, family, or institution of the nobility.

Confraternity - An assembly of lay persons dedicated to strict religious observances.

Cronice - A horizontal band that crowns the top of a building.

Cuirass - A piece of close-fitting armor for protecting the chest and back.

Damascened - Metalwork ornamented with an inlaid design.

Diptych - A painting, usually an altarpiece, made up of two hinged panels. A triptych has three hinged panels.

Doge - The chief justice in the republics of Venice and Genoa.

Embossed - Metal that is hammered, molded, or carved so as to create a bulge or an image in relief.

Engraving - A process used by printmakers who cut grooves or pits into a wood block or metal plate with a sharp tool called a burin. When the plate is inked, the printer’s ink sinks into the grooves; then the plate is wiped, to remove the ink from the smooth areas. The inked plate is pressed against damp paper by running both between two heavy rollers. The pressure forces the softened paper into the grooves to pull out the ink, which we see as lines.

Entablature - The part of the building that is above the columns, encompassing the architrave, the frieze, and the cornice. This element was first found in Greek architecture.

Foreground - The part of the painted image that appears closest to the viewer, usually the lower area of the painting or other composition. The background, usually the upper area of the painting, appears to be farther back. The middle ground is everything in between.

Gold - A symbol of pure light, the heavenly element in which God lives.

Grotesque - A type of decoration found on Roman wall paintings that we reexcavated in the sixteenth century, especially in Nero’s Golden House. The wall paintings were found in underground caves called “grottoes,” thus, the newly discovered ornamentation was called “grotesque.” These wall decorations featured motifs characterized by imaginative, organic connections between disparate elements, including human figures, animals, insects, and birds, mythological and other fantastic beasts, architectural and plant elements.

Source ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

A Few More Art-Related Vocabulary

Lacquer: Any of a variety of clear or colored liquid coating substances that dries to a hard, durable finish, which can be further polished.

Leading lines: Actual or implied lines within an image that lead the viewer’s eye to another point in the image, or occasionally, out of the image.

Mammoth plate: A large glass plate measuring up to 18 x 22 inches, which is made sensitive to light and is used to make prints.

Marquetry: Numerous small pieces of wood or other materials that fit together like a puzzle and are applied to the surfaces of furniture. Marquetry patterns may be scenic, floral, abstract, or arabesque.

Medium (plural: mediums or media): (a) A material or technique used by an artist to produce a work of art, and (b) the adhesive that carries paint’s pigments.

Milliner: A person who designs, makes, trims, or sells women’s hats.

Negative: An image in which the colors, tones, and highlights are the reverse of those in the original subject. The film negative can be used to make a positive print.

Neoclassicism: The style of the Enlightenment in which artists focused on accounts of filial or national devotion, fidelity, and courage and sought to revive the ideal of classical Greece and Rome in architecture, sculpture, painting, and the decorative arts.

Nonrenewable resource: Natural resource that exists in a fixed amount and is being used up faster than it can be made by nature.

Orientalism: Refers to the imitation or depiction of aspects of Eastern cultures in the West by writers, designers, and artists.

Overmantel: An ornamental panel or structure above a mantelpiece (the protruding, often decorative shelf over a fireplace).

Painterly: Characterized by qualities of color, stroke, or texture perceived as distinctive to the art of painting, especially the rendering of forms and images in terms of color or tonal relations rather than of contour or line.

Pastels (also, fabricated chalks): Dry drawing media made from powdered pigments combined with nongreasy binders.

Patron: A person or group that supports artists or writers, especially by giving money.

Perspective: In art, a technique of depicting objects to convey the appearance of distance or depth on a flat surface. It is part of a mathematical system for representing three-dimensional objects and space on a two-dimensional surface by means of intersecting lines that radiate from one point (one-point perspective), two points (two-point perspective), or several points on a horizon line as perceived by an imagined viewer.

Photographic essay: A story illustrated through photographs, which may or may not be accompanied by text.

Phrygian [FRI-jee-an] cap (also, liberty cap): A soft, red, conical cap with the top pulled forward, worn in antiquity by the inhabitants of Phrygia, a region of central Anatolia. In the visual arts, it represents freedom and the pursuit of liberty.

Pinhole camera: A basic form of camera, usually the size of a shoe box, with a tiny hole for the opening and no lens. Light passes through the hole to form an inverted image on the film emulsion (suspension of one liquid in another).

Point of view: The place from which the viewer sees the landscape, or the place where the artist or photographer was sitting or standing when the picture was made.

Porcelain: A durable, fine-grained, nonporous, and usually translucent white ceramic ware that consists essentially of kaolin, quartz, and feldspar and is fired at high temperatures.

Source ⚜ More: Word Lists ⚜ Part 1 2

[hellw0rldpeace]

More Art-Related Vocabulary

Abstract Expressionist: An artistic movement of the mid-20th century emphasizing an artist’s freedom to express attitudes and emotions, usually through nonrealistic means.

Age of Exploration (also, Age of Discovery): From the early 15th century to the early 17th century, European ships traveled around the world in search of new trading routes, lands, and partners to supply an ever-growing European market.

Albumen silver print: A photograph made using a process that was prevalent until the 1890s. The paper is coated with albumen (egg whites), and the image is created using a solution of silver salts.

Brayer: A hand roller used for applying ink to relief printing blocks or occasionally for the direct application of paint or ink to a surface.

Caricature: A representation in either literature or visual art that includes a ridiculous distortion or exaggeration of body parts or physical characteristics to create a comic or gross imitation.

Ceramics: Vessels of clay made by using a variety of shaping techniques and then hardening or firing the clay with heat at a high temperature.

Chasing: A term encompassing two processes in metalworking: (a) modeling decorative patterns on a hand-shaped sheet-metal surface using punches applied to the front, and (b) finishing and refining a cast sculpture.

Classical: Describes a prime example of quality or “ideal” beauty. It often refers to the culture, art, literature, or ideals of the ancient Greek or Roman world, especially that of Greece in the 4th and 5th centuries B.C.

Collage: An art form and technique in which pre-existing materials or objects are arranged and attached as part of a two-dimensional surface.

Color palette: (a) A set of colors that makes up an image or animation, and (b) the group of colors available to be used to create an image.

Composition: The process of arranging artistic elements into specific relationships to create an art object.

Daguerreotype: An early method of photography produced on a silver plate or a silver-covered copper plate made sensitive to light.

Exoticism: Fascination with and exploration and representation of unfamiliar cultures and customs through the lens of a European way of thinking, especially in the 19th century.

Expressionism: A style of art inspired by an artist’s subjective feelings rather than objective or realistic depictions based on observation. Expressionism as a movement is mainly associated with early 20th century German artists interested in exploring the spiritual and emotional aspects of human existence.

Gelatin silver print: A photograph made through a chemical process in which a negative is printed on a surface coated with an emulsion of gelatin (an animal protein) containing light-sensitive silver salts.

Illuminated manuscript: Comes from the Latin words illuminare (to throw light upon, lighten, or brighten), manus (hand), and scriptus from the verb scribere (to write). A handwritten book, usually made from specially prepared animal skins, in which richly colored and sometimes gilded decorations, such as borders and illustrations, accompany the text.

Illuminator: A craftsman or artist who specializes in the art of painting and adorning manuscripts with decorations.

Impressionist: Referring to the style or theories of Impressionism, a theory or practice in painting in which objects are depicted by applying dabs or strokes of primary unmixed colors in order to evoke reflected light. Impressionism was developed by French painters in the late 19th century.

Inking plate: A flat surface used for rolling ink out in preparation for applying ink to a plate or block.

Inscription: A historical, religious, or other kind of record that is cut, impressed, painted, or written on stone, brick, metal, or other hard surface.

Source Art Vocabulary pt. 1

More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Art Vocabulary

Abstract - Simplified, intended to capture an aspect or essence of an object or idea rather than to represent reality.

Amber - Tree resin that has become a fossil. It is semi-transparent and gem-like. Amber is used in jewelry today as it has been for thousands of years.

Amulet - Object, organic or inorganic, believed to provide protection and turn away bad luck. Amulets were often worn as jewelry in antiquity.

Anneal - To heat metal to make it soft and pliable.

Black-figure - Technique of vase painting developed in Greece in the 7th and 6th centuries BCE and adopted by the Etruscans. Figures are painted on a reddish clay vase in black silhouette and details are then cut away with a sharp point down to the red below. Sometimes artists added additional colors, especially purple-red and white.

Bronze Disease - Corrosion of a bronze object that cannot be permanently stabilized. Without special care, an object with bronze disease will continue to corrode.

Bust - Portrait of a person including the head and neck, and sometimes the shoulders and part of the chest.

Cameo Glass - Glass produced by layering two or more colors of glass. Generally, an upper layer of white stood out against a contrasting lower background, usually blue.

Cameo Stone - Hard stone, such as agate, naturally layered with bands of color. Artists took advantage of the layers to carve figures or decoration from an upper layer (or more than one), leaving a background layer of a different color.

Cast - To make in a mold from liquid metal. A cast object can be hollow or solid.

Chasing - Technique of adding definition and details to an image or design on metal from the front using blunt and sharp tools.

Conservator (of antiquities) - Professional responsible for preserving ancient objects and materials. Conservators usually have a general knowledge of chemistry and of ancient art-making practices and are often specialists in one material. Among many other responsibilities, they conduct technical and historical research and oversee preventive care such as climate control.

Contrapposto - (”opposite” in Italian) Pose of a standing figure with most of the weight on one leg and the other bent. This causes hips, shoulders, and head to shift in order to balance the body. One arm is often higher and one lower.

Emery - Hard, dense rock rich in corundum, found easily on the Cycladic Islands. A powerful abrasive for grinding and smoothing other stones.

Encaustic - Technique of painting using colored pigments mixed with wax. The waxy mixture was worked with a tiny spatula.

Gild - To apply a thin layer of gold foil or liquid gold (gilt) to create the look of solid gold.

Iconography - Study of and use in art of repeated images with symbolic meaning.

Incise - To press or cut into a surface (stone, metal, clay, wood) with a sharp tool to write text or create fine curving and linear details.

Inlay - To decorate an object by inserting a piece of another material into it so that it is even with the original surface.

Low Relief - Method of carving figures or designs into a surface so that they are raised slightly above a flat background.

Mosaic - Technique and type of artwork. The technique is to arrange cubes of stone, glass, and ceramic to form patterns and pictures in cement, usually on a floor. The artwork is the final story or decoration made of cubes.

Mummification - Process of preserving a body by drying it. The Egyptians removed internal organs and put natron, a natural mineral mixture, on and inside the body. This absorbed moisture and prevented decay.

Palmette - Stylized palm leaf used as decoration in ancient Greek and Roman art and architecture.

Pentelic - From Mount Pentelicus, near Athens. An adjective that mostly refers to the beautiful white Greek marble marble in its quarries.

Portrait - Image of a person, usually the head and face. Some portraits include part of the chest or show the whole body. The image may closely resemble a person or emphasize, idealize, or invent characteristics.

Repoussé - Technique of raising the outline of a design on metal by repeatedly heating and softening the metal and pushing the desired shapes into it from the back with a blunt tool.

Sarcophagus/Sarcophagi (pl) - Stone coffin, often decorated on the sides with mythological scenes carved in relief, sometimes with the image of the deceased person or couple on the lid. Used in Imperial Roman times from the early 100s into the 400s CE.

Stele/Stelai (pl) - Upright stone or wooden slab or pillar used to honor a person or mark a place. Often an inscribed grave marker or a boundary stone. (Also called stela/stelae.)

Syncretism - Blending of elements of different cultures, often resulting in new imagery or new interpretations.

Tessera/tesserae (pl) - Pieces of stone or other hard materials cut into squares or cubes to make mosaic art.

More: Word Lists ⚜ pt. 2

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Weather-related Vocabulary

for your next poem/story

Barometer - an instrument for determining the pressure of the atmosphere and hence for assisting in forecasting weather and for determining altitude

Blizzard - a long severe snowstorm; an intensely strong cold wind filled with fine snow

Breezy - swept by breezes (i.e., a light gentle wind)

Chilly - noticeably cold; chilling

Clear - cloudless

Cloudy - overcast with clouds

Cold front - an advancing edge of a cold air mass

Flurry - a gust of wind; a brief light snowfall

Fog - vapor condensed to fine particles of water suspended in the lower atmosphere that differs from cloud only in being near the ground

Forecast - to calculate or predict (some future event or condition) usually as a result of study and analysis of available pertinent data; especially: to predict (weather conditions) on the basis of correlated meteorological

Global warming - an increase in the earth's atmospheric and oceanic temperatures widely predicted to occur due to an increase in the greenhouse effect resulting especially from pollution

Gust - a sudden brief rush of wind

Hail - precipitation in the form of small balls or lumps usually consisting of concentric layers of clear ice and compact snow

Hazy - made dim or cloudy by or as if by fine dust, smoke, or light vapor in the air; obscured by or as if by haze

Heat - to become warm or hot

High-pressure - having or involving a high or comparatively high pressure especially greatly exceeding that of the atmosphere; having a high barometric pressure

Humid - containing or characterized by perceptible moisture especially to the point of being oppressive

Humidity - a moderate degree of wetness especially of the atmosphere

Hurricane - a tropical cyclone with winds of 74 miles (119 kilometers) per hour or greater that is usually accompanied by rain, thunder, and lightning, and that sometimes moves into temperate latitudes

Lightning - the flashing of light produced by a discharge of atmospheric electricity

Muggy - being warm, damp, and close

Overcast - clouded over

Pollution - the action of polluting, especially: the action of making an environment unsuitable or unsafe for use by introducing man-made waste

Pour - to rain hard

Precipitation - something precipitated, such as a deposit on the earth of hail, mist, rain, sleet, or snow

Rain - water falling in drops condensed from vapor in the atmosphere

Shower - a fall of rain of short duration

Smog - a fog made heavier and darker by smoke and chemical fumes

If any of these words make their way into your next poem/story, please tag me, or send me a link. I would love to read them!

Sources: 1 2 ⚜ More: Word Lists ⚜ Air/Wind ⚜ Temperature

[hellw0rldpeace]

More Geology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story (pt. 2)

Luster - The reflection of light from the surface of a mineral, described by its quality and intensity.

Microcrystalline - Describes a rock texture consisting of crystals visible only with a microscope.

Moonmilk - A soft, white, initially deformable deposit that occurs on the walls of caves.

Nuée ardente - A swiftly flowing, turbulent, sometimes incandescent gaseous cloud erupted from a volcano, containing ash and other pyroclastic materials in its lower part.

Orogeny - A mountain-building event.

Parabolic dune - Crescent-shaped dune with horns or arms that point upwind.

Perlitic - Describes the texture of glassy volcanic rocks characterized by numerous curving cracks roughly concentric around closely spaced centers.

Permafrost - Any soil, subsoil, or other surficial deposit, or even bedrock, occurring in arctic, subarctic, and alpine regions at a variable depth beneath Earth’'s surface in which a temperature below freezing has existed continuously for a long time (from two years to tens of thousands of years).

Phreatic - Of or relating to groundwater.

Phreatophyte - A deeply rooted plant that obtains water from the water table or through the overlying capillary fringe.

Pictograph - A picture painted on a rock by primitive peoples.

Pillow lava - A general term for lavas displaying pillow structures and considered to have formed in a subaqueous environment; such lava is usually basaltic or andesitic.

Pluvial - Describes a geologic process or feature resulting from rain.

Reservoir - An artificial or natural storage place for water, such as a lake, pond, or aquifer, from which the water may be withdrawn for such purposes as irrigation, municipal water supply, or flood control.

Roundstone - Any naturally rounded rock fragment larger than a sand grain.

Schistose - Describes a rock displaying schistosity, or foliation, which imparts a silky sheen.

Scour - The powerful and concentrated clearing and digging action of flowing water, air, or ice.

Strand plain - A shore built seaward by waves and currents, extending continuously for some distance along the coast.

Tree mold - A cylindrical hollow in a lava flow formed by the envelopment of a tree by the flow, solidification of the lava in contact with the tree, and disappearance of the tree by burning and subsequent removal of the charcoal and ash. The inside of the mold preserves the surficial features of the tree.

Vitreous - Having the luster and appearance of glass.

Source ⚜ Part 1 ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Geology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story (pt. 1)

Abyssal plain - A flat region of the deep ocean floor.

Aeolian - Describes materials formed, eroded, or deposited by or related to the action of wind.

Braided stream - A sediment-clogged stream that forms multiple channels that divide and rejoin.

Colluvium - A general term applied to loose and incoherent deposits, usually at the foot of a slope or cliff and brought there chiefly by gravity.

Conchoidal - Resembling the curve of a conch shell and used to describe a smoothly curved surface on a rock or mineral; characteristic of quartz and obsidian.

Devitrification - Conversion of glass to crystalline material.

Dune - A low mound or ridge of sediment, usually sand, deposited by the wind.

Ephemeral lake - A short-lived lake.

Estuary - The seaward end or tidal mouth of a river where freshwater and seawater mix.

Euhedral - A grain bounded by perfect crystal faces; well-formed.

Fenestral - Having openings or transparent areas in a rock.

Fluvial - Of or pertaining to a river or rivers.

Friable - Describes a rock or mineral that is easily crumbled.

Granoblastic - Describes the texture of a metamorphic rock in which recrystallization formed crystals of nearly the same size in all directions.

Hermatypic - Describes a type of reef-building coral that is incapable of adjusting to conditions lacking sunlight.

Hot spring - A thermal spring whose temperature is above that of the human body.

Isthmus - A narrow strip or neck of land, bordered on both sides by water, connecting two larger land areas.

Lacustrine - Describes a process, feature, or organism pertaining to, produced by, or inhabiting a lake.

Lithify - To change to stone, or to petrify; especially to consolidate from a loose sediment to solid rock.

Lunar tide - The part of the tide caused solely by the tide-producing force of the Moon.

Source ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Gemology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story (pt. 3)

Gemology—the scientific study of gemstones

Colored Stones - This refers to all gemstones other than diamonds, regardless of their color. This term replaces the traditional distinction between "precious and semi-precious" stones.

Color Zoning - A phenomenon that occurs in many types of gem rough, where the color isn't evenly dispersed throughout the body of the stone but occurs in pockets or layers instead. The stone can have zones of lighter, darker, or different colors.

Diamond - One of two classifications of gemstones. Diamonds come in all colors, including black and white, but regardless of color they are still classified as diamonds, not as colored stones.

Fashioning - The process of cutting and polishing facets on diamonds.

Flaws - Any imperfections in gems, like visible cleavage planes or inclusions such as veils, fractures, gas or liquid bubbles, etc. If the flaw breaks the surface of the stone, it's called a surface flaw.

Half-Light - The edge of an incandescent bulb's reflection on a polished facet. Direct reflection can obscure defects on the surface of a polished facet. Only when the edge of the light reflection appears to pass the surface of the stone do some defects finally become visible.

Haloes - Disc shaped fractures, sometimes showing two or four lobes, due to strain generated at crystal inclusions e.g. zircon haloes in sapphire.

Healed fractures - Fractures occurring either during or after crystal growth which have filled with liquid and later partially healed, leaving liquid remnants or negative crystals. Healed fractures take characteristic forms in various gemstones e.g. rippled fractures in amethyst, fingerprints or feathers in sapphire and ruby.

Lapidary - The cutting of stones other than diamond.

Sources: 1 2 3 ⚜ More: Word Lists ⚜ Gemology

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Gemology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story (pt. 2)

Gemology—the scientific study of gemstones

Clarity - The grading of a gemstone is based on the presence or absence of inclusions. The fewer inclusions, the better a gemstone’s clarity grade.

Crown - Located above the girdle or at the top of a cut stone, the crown faces up and is in plain view when the gem is arranged in a setting.

Culet - The bottom quadrant or point on a stone with a pavilion that ends in a single point; a bottom facet cut parallel to the girdle on a stone with an otherwise pointed bottom, initially intended to prevent chipping.

Diaphaneity - The general term to describe the transmittance of light through an object. The 3 typical classifications are transparency, translucency, and opacity.

Diffusion treatment - A treatment used to alter the color of a gemstone (mostly sapphires).

Dispersion - The separation of white light into the component colors of the visible spectrum.

Facet - A flat surface on a stone or other media.

Girdle - The line created where the crown and pavilion facets meet, or the series of facets that separate the crown and pavilion facets.

Pavilion - The part of the stone below the girdle, otherwise the bottom portion of the stone.

Sectile - Capable of being cut as into slices or shavings.

Table - A facet on the crown, usually parallel to the girdle. In cases when the girdle isn't a straight line, the table is typically at 90° to the stone's center axis.

Tavernier rule - A method of gemvalue calculation. Price increases by the square of weight of stones. Now obsolete.

Veinstone - Any mineral other than metal which occurs in a vein (i.e., a crack, crevice, or fissure, filled, or practically filled, with mineral matter).

Wisps - Whitish wisp-like fractures resembling thin wind-blown clouds. Occur in some synthetic emerald but never in the genuine.

Youstone - An old English term for jade.

Sources: 1 2 3

More: On Gemology ⚜ Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Gemology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story (pt. 1)

Gemology—the scientific study of gemstones

Acicular - crystals that have a "needle-like" form

Adamantine - the highest classification of surface lustre or reflectivity which may be shown by a gemstone (e.g. in faceted diamond)

Adularescence - a billowing flow of whitish or bluish colors that seem to float along the surface

Allochromatic - a gemstone is allochromatic when it is colorless in its pure state

Aventurescence - specular reflections or spangles of light reflected from plate-like inclusions as a stone is rotated

Baroque - gem materials having an irregular shape e.g. baroque pearls

Botryoidal - interlocking, rounded masses that sometimes look like grapes or bubbles resulting from radiating masses of fibrous crystals

Carat - a unit of weight for gemstones. There are five metric carats to the gram.

Chatoyancy - the cat’s-eye-like phenomenon caused by light reflecting from tiny fiber-like inclusions within a gem. The "eye" is seen at right angles to the direction of the inclusions. Stones must be cut en cabochon to see this effect.

Fluorescence - the emission of visible light by a gemstone when exposed to a light source whose light we normally cannot see

Idiochromatic - a gemstone is idiochromatic when the element causing its color is an essential part its chemical composition. For example, iron, which is an intrinsic part of the chemical makeup of peridot, is the cause of its green color.

Lapidary - the art of working with stone and gems which includes engraving, cutting, and polishing

Opalescence - a reflection of a milky or pearly light from a gem's interior, sometimes used as a synonym for iridescence.

Orange peel - a surface appearance resembling the outer skin of an orange. This is sometimes seen in plastic and glass simulants and should be observed in reflected light.

Phantom crystal - also known as "ghost crystal", they occur in quartz when there is an interruption in the growth cycle. It appears like a faint crystal within a crystal.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

A-Z Dictionary of Esoteric Terminology

for your next poem/story (pt. 1)

Esoteric—designed for or understood by the specially initiated alone; may refer to the occult

Affenicum - a word for soul

Barakah - soul power; a blessing bestowed by a holy person

Cthonian - something associated with the earth and the underworld

Deity - the personification of some force or concept of great magnitude; a being embodying the essence or entirety of an aspect of existence

Egrigor - a thought form created by will and visualization

Fana - a Sufi term meaning "becoming absorbed in God"

Godhead - divine Nature or Essence; the source of all emanation and manifestation, of which all deities are but aspects or facets

Host - from the Latin hostia, meaning "a sacrificial victim"

Ineffable name - a name for God which either must not or cannot be spoken

Jnana - literally "primordial knowing"; wisdom; the activity of enlightenment; knowing, which transcends all dualistic conception; perfect intuition

Kalpa - the longest describable span of time

Libation - the act of pouring a liquid on a symbolic figure of a deity, or on the ground

Mania - a Roman goddess of the dead who ruled over the lares and manes in the underworld; she is sometimes called the "Mother of Ghosts"

Neti - literally, "not this, not that"; it refers to the idea that the supreme godhead is transcendent and cannot be described or understood

Occult - from Latin occuiere, "to cover up"; not revealed; secret; mysterious

Pantheon - from Greek pantheios, "of all gods"; the arrangement or hierarchy of deities and spirits within a particular system

Qlippoth - literally "shells"; usually described as a plane/s containing demons, negative or disintegrating spirits, elementals, and the degenerating shells of the dead

Rapport - resonance; an interface relationship involving energy exchange such as the relationship between hypnotist and subject, control and medium, or object and psychometrist

Sandarace - an alchemical term for the fiery form of Spirit

Thaumaturgy - miracle working; magic used to make overt changes in the material world

Unction - ceremonial anointment with oil; sometimes performed as an act of consecration; also used in rites for the severely ill or dying, as in the case of extreme unction; in ceremonial magic, unction is often used as a symbol of the quest for initiation, or the dedication (consecration) of the magician to enlightenment

Vac - literally "speech" or "word"; cosmic reason or pattern, somewhat similar to the Greek idea of Logos

Wic - an Old English word meaning "to bend, to twist, or to wiggle"; a very old term for the practice of magic; also had been translated as "to weave, or to know"

Xeni Nephidei - spirits who delight to reveal to people the hidden properties of nature

Yaksha - a nature spirit which resides in a tree, usually regarded as female; are said to accompany Kubera, the god of wealth

Zen - a system of mental stillness originating in India, where it was known as dhyana; the goal is to permit experience by direct perception or intuition

Source ⚜ More: Word Lists

[hellw0rldpeace]

Some Ecology Vocabulary

for your next poem/story

Autotroph - Any organism that is able to manufacture its own food; derive energy from inorganic sources (light or inorganic chemical reactions)

Benthic - Organisms that live on the bottom of the ocean

Biome - A community of plants & animals that occupy a distinct region; defined by climate and dominant vegetation: tundra, desert, grassland & forest; can be subdivided, i.e. boreal, temperate, tropical forests

Boreal forest - (also called Taiga) Largest terrestrial biome, characterized by having very cold winters and coniferous forests

Dessication - Mummification

Detritus - Accumulated organic debris from dead organisms

Detrivore - Any organism which obtains most of its nutrients from the detritus in an ecosystem

Disturbance - An event that alters the ecosystem, i.e. the plant community and possibly the physical environment; natural disturbances include fire, landslides, windthrow, insects, disease, etc. Levels of Disturbance:

Tree-level: affects single trees or small groups of trees

Stand-level: affecting large groups (many hectares) of trees (insect epidemic, hurricane, logging, wildfire)

Site-level: affecting the physical environment is a dramatic way that all life is lost and a new soil environment is created (lavaflow, glacier, landslide)

Planet-level: affecting the planet as a whole (big meteor, death star...)

Frugivore - Animal which primarily eats fruit

Groundwater - Water found underground as a result of rainfall, ice and snow melt, submerged rivers, lakes, and springs. This water often carries minerals. These minerals can accumulate in the remains of buried organisms and eventually cause fossilization.

Halophile - Organism which lives in areas of high salt concentration. These organisms must have special adaptations to permit them to survive under these conditions.

Limnology - The study of river system ecology and life

Orographic Lift - Occurs when an air mass moves over a mountain range, air cools, drops precipitation, then as air moves down the lee side it warms and creates a rain shadow

Pelagic - Organisms that swim through the ocean, and may rise to the surface, or sink to the bottom

Rain shadow - The dry region on the leeward side of a mountain range, where rainfall is noticeably less than on the windward side

Riparian - Having to do with the edges of streams or rivers

Saprophyte - Organism which feeds on dead and decaying organisms, allowing the nutrients to be recycled into the ecosystem. Fungi and bacteria are two groups with many important saprophytes.

Silvics - The study of the life history, characteristics and ecology of forest trees

Tolerance - The capacity/ability of an organism to endure (survive, withstand) adverse effects from unfavourable environmental conditions; the opposite of sensitivity

Upwelling - The raising of benthic nutrients to the surface waters. This occurs in regions where the flow of water brings currents of differing temperatures together, and increases productivity of the ecosystem.

Xeric - Describes an environment or habitat with little moisture; dry to very dry

Sources: 1 2 ⚜ More: Word Lists