Thursday, February 19, 2009

Adopting a Vocabulary

Over at SaveTheWords.org, you can help return an archaic word to circulation. Many fun words are available for "adoption" — all you have to do is sign up, choose from many available words, and agree to use the word in your daily life as often as you can.

I adopted the word xenization, the fact of being a stranger, which describes me to a T when I step into an auto parts store.

SaveTheWords.org is apparently somehow affiliated with the OED, though I couldn't find a link to it at the OED site. What's worse, the site is in a temporary state of apanthropinization — withdrawal from the human world.

But when the site gets up and running, I encourage you to check it out, if only window shop through the words up for adoption. For a logophile, it can be a lot like watching the puppies in a pet store window, only you don't have to worry about doggie mills. If you're feeling super-loquacious, adopt a word. Adopt two. Hell, you could become the Angelina Jolie of archaic vocabulary!