Make Your Point > Archived Issues > LUCUBRATION

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connect today's word to others: Today's word, lucubration, shares a root with our words lucent, pellucid, and elucidate: they're all based on the Latin lucere. Could you explain what lucere means? And why we see it in each of those words? make your point with... "LUCUBRATION" This word is Latin for "work done by artificial light." Lucubration is the act of studying late at night. And because when you study or write all through the night, you might be creating something unbearably stuffy and academic, the word "lucubration" (or "lucubrations") also means "writing that's so stuffy and overly complicated that it seems like it was written over long late-night sessions." Pronunciation: LOO koo BRAY shun Part of speech: Noun. It's both countable ("these lucubrations") and uncountable ("such lucubration"). Other forms: You can lucubrate: "he lucubrated all week," "she's lucubrating in that column again, yawn!" If you do, you're a lucubrator. And although the adjective, lucubratory, is obsolete these days, why not bring it back? "I'm known for writing long, lucubratory, overly analytical emails." How to use it: Let's be honest: "lucubration" is a ridiculous word. So, we often use it playfully to be self-deprecating, or to lightheartedly suggest that some piece of writing is so lovingly written or so well written that it seems extremely scholarly: "It's so nice of you to fake an interest in my lucubrations." "His lucubrations are devoured all over the world." But "lucubration" can also be said with a sharp, mocking tone: "Nothing fills those dissertations but tiresome lucubration." Still, you'd be surprised how often you can put this ridiculous word to good use. Talk about someone's lucubrations, or lucubration(s) in general: the height of his lucubrations, the weight of her lucubrations, the mind-numbing dullness of their lucubrations; his lucubrations were finally published; I'm obliged to at least skim their lucubrations; we were forced to ponder the professor's lucubrations; the society is now accepting all manner of useless lucubration for online publication; her latest lucubrations are on the most ridiculous subject; let's avoid them in the elevator--they'll drone on about their lucubrations. Did you notice how I've focused so far only on the second meaning, not the first? It's because the second is much more common. But feel free to use the first: "Determined to become fluent in Korean, she renewed her lucubrations." examples: He fills my inbox with his philosophical lucubrations; I wish he'd use a journal. One of the book's middle chapters devolves into unreadable lucubration. Maybe the editor fell asleep there, too. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "lucubration" means when you can explain it without saying "burning the midnight oil" or "pedantry in print."  try it out: Fill in the blanks: "(A particular author) has been lucubrating for (a publication) for (a particular period of time)." Example: "Leon Hale has been lucubrating for the Houston Post and the Houston Chronicle for decades." before you review: Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first. This month, we're playing with some beautifully worded passages from the Bible as we recall words we've studied before. From our previous issue: "Don't d______ a bit to the right or the left; turn your feet away from evil." (Common English Bible, Proverbs, chapter 4, verse 27.) What's the missing word? It means "to go a different way, or to turn aside and take a different (often unexpected) path." Answer: deviate. Try this today: "W______ing bad people and throwing mud on good people are equally abhorrent to God." (The Message, Proverbs, chapter 17, verse 15.) What's the missing word? It means "to cover up how bad people (or things) really are and to try to make them seem more honest or more respectable." review today's word: 1. A close opposite of LUCUBRATIONS is A. ERUDITION. B. GOOD INTENTIONS. C. LOWBROW INTERNET ARTICLES. 2. This _____ must be another of her _____ lucubrations. A. charity auction .. altruistic B. hefty manuscript .. tiresome C. harebrained scheme .. doomed Answers are below. a final word: Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From Liesl's blog:    36 ways to study words.    Why we forget words, & how to remember them.    How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes. Answers to review questions: 1. C 2. B