One of the things I often do as I'm reading a novel or short story is keep track of words whose definitions I do not know or that I find interesting. Either way, these interesting words are ones I feel might be of use in my own writing. That, and it's good to expand one's vocabulary every once in a while.
This latest round of interesting words comes from Richard Kadrey's Sandman Slim.
alembic: An apparatus consisting of two vessels connected by a tube, formerly used for distilling liquids.
doubloon: A gold coin formerly used in Spain and Spanish America.
drachma: An ancient Greek silver coin.
gendarme: Originally, in France, a man-at-arms; a knight or cavalier armed at all points and commanding a troop; afterward, a member of a company or corps of cavalry; a cavalryman: sometimes also used for soldier in general.
mugwort: Any of several aromatic plants of the genus Artemisia, especially A. vulgaris,native to Eurasia and sometimes used as a condiment.
orrery: A mechanical model of the solar system.
ossuary: A container or receptacle, such as an urn or a vault, for holding the bones of the dead.
zoetrope: An optical toy, in which figures made to revolve on the inside of a cylinder, and viewed through slits in its circumference, appear like a single figure passing through a series of natural motions as if animated or mechanically moved.
Join my reader's group and get The Hall of Riddles (An Alchemancer Prequel), an exclusive story for subscribers only, and The Killing Knife (Tales of the Assassin Without a Name #1-3) as a welcome gift.