Lost Words

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Via Mutantfrog and Ralph Luker, I found the Compendium of Lost Words, OED entries which have fallen out of use. Here are my nominations for "words we need now more than ever (except the last one)." I have replaced the original sample sentences with ones more relevant to modern life, to give a sense of just how useful these words might be.

• A through E
• agonarch n 1656 -1656
  judge of a contest or activity
  I've often wondered how I could get a job as a Reality TV agonarch.
• aquabib n 1731-1883
  water-drinker
  Since I gave up coffee, I've become a boring aquabib, but my seltzer budget has skyrocketed.
• caprizant adj 1730 -1736
  of the pulse, uneven or irregular
  Syncopation in music is much more fun than caprizant EKGs.
• circuland n 1821 -1821
  that which is to be circulated
  Most of what we call "memes" -- internet quizzes and the like -- we really should call "circulands" because they're not just free-floating ideas but are deliberately spread by "tagging."

• F through M
• hymnicide n 1862 -1862
  killing of hymns through alterations
  Modern churches seem to have no alternative to hymnicide, as newer liturgical music is often even worse than modifications to older stuff.
• jobler n 1662 -1662
  one who does small jobs
  One of the problems of academia is over-production of PhDs, leading to a proliferation of joblers.
• modernicide n 1774 -1774
  killing or killer of modern people
  Many anti-intellectual movements -- Khmer Rouge, jihadists, etc. -- engage in modernicide as policy.

• N through R
• odynometer n 1889 -1893
  instrument for measuring pain
  Without an odynometer, doctors must rely on patients' subjective reporting.
  
• phlyarologist n 1867 -1867
  one who talks nonsense
  So many bloggers are phlyarologists that I fear for the future of humanity.
  
• pudify v 1656 -1656
  to cause to be ashamed
  Though he had a respectable professional identity, he knew the revelation of his "sex-life/weight-loss" blog would pudify him.

• S through Z
• quibbleism n 1836 -1836
  practice of quibbling
  Among bloggers, many heated debates devolve into quibbleism, particularly linguistic.
  
• schismarch n 1657 -1657
  founder of a schism
  There are no mediocre schismarchs, I think: either they are wildly successful and their followers venerate them for generations, or they are short-lived, pitiable failures.
• speustic adj 1656 -1658
  made or baked in haste
  Much of my cooking is speustic, and modern prefabricated food and cooking ingredients make it easier than ever.
• stagma n 1681 -1820
  any distilled liquor
  Though we are a long way past legal Temperance, and beer and wine are common accompaniments to food, there is still a stigma to stagma, particularly unmixed.
• tortiloquy n 1656 -1656
  crooked speech
  The trick to political speechwriting is to clothe tortiloquy in hallowed images and insulate promises with conditions.
• uglyography n 1804 -1834
  bad handwriting; poor spelling
  My policy is to take off points for uglyography only when it thoroughly obscures the meaning of the text.
• vampirarchy n 1823 -1823
  set of rulers comparable to vampires
  I think vampirarchy is a much better description for our current administration than kleptocracy, because it is something inherent in their nature, rather than a character flaw, which is draining us dry.
• venialia n 1654 -1654
  minor sins or offences
  We have replaced the traditional venalia -- dishonesty, cupidity, lechery -- with modern flaws such as "failure to diet," "impolitic expression" and "slow responder to electronic communications."
• weequashing n 1888 -1902
  spearing of fish or eels by torchlight from canoes
  I suspect that weequashing is today more common among Pacific Island cultures than it is among Atlantic coastal communities.