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 A rhinoceros?  Afraid not...

Last Christmas, a particularly thoughtful friend - and someone who knows my philological weakness very well indeed - presented me with a book called Foyle's Philavery.  A philavery is a list of unusual words and this one was compiled by Christopher Foyle, who is the grandson of William Foyle, co-founder of the wonderful Foyle's bookshop on London's Charing Cross Road.

This philavery has had to wait its turn amongst my heaving shelves of unread books - until now.  Over the last few days, I've gotten into the habit of flicking methodically through a few of its pages each morning with my coffee and porridge; and I've only just reached the end of A.

This is a small selection of some of the words that have appealed to me most, either because of their innate loveliness - alula, mmmmmmmm - or their surprising definitions - who'd have thought that there would be a 'proper' word for 'having no arsehole'?

And who even knew that there was a disease that affected the roots of turnips?

abada
a rhinoceros

abliguration
extravagant expenditure on food and drink

acarology
the study of mites and ticks

acerebral

lacking a brain; or lacking intelligence or intellectual abilities

acidulous

slightly sour in taste; or rather sharp or caustic in speech

acrasial

excessive; intemperate; irregular; disordered

agonic
having or making no angle

agrypnia
wakefulness; sleeplessness

alliaceous
relating to alliums - onions, leeks, chives, garlic

alula
a group of small feathers that grow on the first digit of the wings of some birds

amburry
a spongy tumour or wart on horses or oxen
a disease affecting the roots of turnips

aproctous

having no anus 

autumny
like autumn

axiopisty
the quality that makes something or someone worthy of trust

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