A flibbertigibbet is “a silly flighty person.” It is a word of onomatopoeic origins, created from sounds meant to resemble idle chatter.

Is the word in caps meant to be an insult or a compliment?

Before we went to her house, Hannah told us her aunt was a FLIBBERTIGIBBET.

Originating from Yiddish and Late Hebrew, maven means “one who is experienced or knowledgeable.”

People who worked with him generally considered Deshaun a computer MAVEN.

Synonymous with traitor and collaborator, quisling comes from Vidkun Quisling, a Norwegian army officer who encouraged Adolf Hitler to occupy Norway.

During the war, Tony’s grandpa earned a reputation as a QUISLING.

Magnanimity is “loftiness of spirit enabling one to bear trouble calmly, to disdain meanness and pettiness, and to display a noble generosity.”

The billionaire’s MAGNANIMINITY was a frequent topic on social media.

Urbane means “notably polite or polished in manner” and comes from the same root word as urban (“of, relating to, characteristic of, or constituting a city”).

Darla thought her daughter’s new boyfriend was certainly URBANE.

Reprobate was originally used in religious contexts, but now it can be used to describe anyone who is “an unprincipled or depraved person.”

Kelly reconnected with her old friend and was surprised she’d become a REPROBATE.

Ornery means “having an irritable disposition” or “difficult to deal with or control.” The word comes from ordinary and was used to describe things that were common or of inferior quality. Later it came to mean “lazy” and became associated with being easily agitated.

Yasmin was ORNERY when it came to schoolwork.

Callipygian means “having shapely buttocks.”

The marble statue had a CALLIPYGIAN quality.

Dulcet means “pleasing to the ear,” as well as “sweet to the taste,” and can be applied to most things generally pleasing, such as a smile.

Oscar could hear his wife’s DULCET tones emanating from the shower.

As well as being a type of crisp tart apple, pippin means “a highly admired or very admirable person or thing.”

Sam was next at the podium and delivered a PIPPIN of a speech.

Prodigal means “characterized by profuse or wasteful expenditure” and is perhaps best known for its use in the Bible story about the Prodigal Son, which describes a wayward son’s lavish lifestyle.

Amy was PRODIGAL when it came to clothing.

Pulchritude is defined as “physical comeliness,” and pulchritudinous can be a colorful (if slightly obscure) way of describing someone or something as beautiful.

Everyone in town knew Sue and Andy had PULCHRITUDE children.

Here's a fun take on a vocabulary quiz. Is this obscure word an insult? Or a compliment? Let's begin 🤓