A personal lexicon of unusual, archaic, scientific, and otherwise interesting words encountered in reading. Browse other letters from the Dictionary catalog.
| Word | Definition |
|---|---|
| kelp | any of various brown, often very large seaweeds, ashes used as a source of potash and iodine. |
| ken | perception; understanding |
| Kern, Jerome | 1885-1945. American composer of musicals and songs. |
| kibitz | intr.v. to look on and offer unwanted, usually meddlesome advice to others; to chat; converse. |
| kilter | n. good condition; proper form |
| kin selection | selection in favor not necessarily of the individual but of relatives carrying the same gene; may be favored by behavior such as altruism. |
| kingfisher | bird with crested head, long stout beak, short tail and brilliant coloration |
| kiosk | a small open pavilion, newsstand or booth; cylindrical structure on which advertisements are posted |
| kit and caboodle | the whole collection or lot |
| kitsch | n. art or artwork characterized by sentimental, often pretentious bad taste; the aesthetic or mentality in which such art is conceived or appreciated; culture or civilization in a degraded state of sentimentality and vulgarity; adj. |
| kiwi | wingless, flightless bird |
| kludge | n. a system, esp. a computer system that is constituted of poorly matched elements originally intended for other applications; v. |
| klutz | a clumsy person; a person regarded as stupid |
| Knothole | a hole in a piece of lumber where a knot has dropped out or been removed |
| koan | a riddle in the form of a paradox used in Zen Buddhism as an aid to meditation and a means of gaining intuitive knowledge. |
| koodoo/kudu | striped African antelope |
| kook | crazy or eccentric (person) |
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