The Death of Fissiparous and Other Words: A Dictionary of Words & Phrases on the Verge of Extinction

libation

lai-BAY-shuhn

noun

an alcohol beverage; ceremonial drinking

1953Jim ThompsonSavage NightYou look like you might be able to use a small libation, Mr. Bigelow.1967Poul AndersonEutopiaSolemnly, they poured a libation before they drank.1990Piers AnthonyFirefly'Here—I have brought wherewithal for a libation.' He reached behind him and brought out a hip flask.1996Ann RuleA Fever in the HeartKenny Marino had invited three girls to come to his parents' home that night for Tequila Sunrises, a curious Christmas libation.

Labels: Ann Rule, Jim Thompson, Piers Anthony, Poul Anderson

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Entry By: CJ Cooney
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confabulate

kawn-FAB-yoo-layt

verb

chat; chitchat; to shoot the breeze; to substitute imaginary memories for real; to create false memories

1897Eliot GregoryWorldly Ways and BywaysShe does not break the thread of a conversation by irrelevant questions or confabulate in an undertone with the servants.1910Louis Joseph VanceThe Fortune HunterLater, having displayed him on the streets in witness to his good faith, Roland spent the evening with Mr. Burnham mysteriously confabulating behind closed doors in the hotel.1996Ann RuleA Fever in the HeartThere was a question about whether he was confabulating taking a real event and rewriting it so that it emerged in a manner favorable to him.2003James PattersonThe Lake HouseUnlike some children her age, Max doesn't confabulate and she doesn't lie.

Labels: Ann Rule, Eliot Gregory, James Patterson, Louis Joseph Vance

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Entry By: CJ Cooney
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