(pie-AK-yuh-luh-tiv) was coined by T.S. Eliot for his poem “Mr. Eliot’s Sunday Morning Service.” Derived from the Latin for “appease, purify, expiate,” it refers to atonement or reparation – e.g., for a sin or crime.
From the poem:
Volte-face (vawlt’uh-FAHS) is a reversal in policy or opinion; an about-face. As used by Edmund William Gosse in Some Diversions of a Man of Letters: “We have had in France an example of volte-face in taste…
To decoct (dih-KAHKT) is to extract the essence of something by boiling it down, concentrating it. As used by William F. Buckley, Jr.: “Norman Mailer decocts matters of the first philosophical magnitude from…
The provenance (PRAH-vuh-nuntz) of a work of art – from the French for “to come from” – is a record of its ownership. It is used to confirm the piece’s authenticity and value. As I used it today: “Suzanne…
Chemically, the litmus (LIT-mus) test is used to determine whether a substance is acidic or alkaline. The test is performed by placing a small sample onto red or blue litmus paper. Red paper turns blue when…
Peripeteia (noun) – Peripeteia (per-uh-pih-TAYE-uh) is a literary term that refers to a turning point in the plot; an unexpected reversal of fortune. Example: the sudden change in Oedipus Rex’s situation when…