Opopanax

Opopanax got all of our mind marbles rattling and resulted in some quirky meanings on the blog. The real meaning, however, is pretty ordinary. It's a gum resin used to make perfume, among other things. I much prefer the meanings provided on the blog. Voters chose Sophie 8's meaning as the favourite this time. Well done, Sophie.

Gharry

A gharry is an Indian carriage which is usually horse-drawn and plies for hire. I guess some of the Indian bloggers out there probably knew that one. I particularly liked the meaning suggested by Floribunda and so did the voters. Well done, Floribunda. Welcome back!

Kourbash

A kourbash is nothing to do with food - despite the wonderful meanings dreamed up by our contributors today. It's actually a whip used for punishment in Turkey and Egypt. Voters preferred the entry from Madame C who described kourbash as the Polish equivalent of Greek plate breaking - only it's glasses that get broken. Good thinking Madame C.

Graupel

Graupel is actually snow pellets. We won't be seeing any graupel here this Christmas as it's almost summer in New Zealand - although I believe graupel was forecast for the South Island this week. I was pleased to see some more word imps join the fray again today. Greta and Molly Malone shared first place in the voting. Great to have you both back!

Imbricated

When something is imbricated, it's overlapping in a regular pattern. That could be a word that's worth keeping up my sleeve for future reference. The meaning dreamed up by Shari was chosen by the voters. Well done, Shari.

Contumacy

Contumacy is obstinate resistance to authority. Sonnjea B's suggestion that contumacy is an affliction suffered by bookworms was the favourite amongst pollsters. Thanks again, Sonnjea!

Arsis

In reality, arsis has a very odd meaning. Make of it what you will: originally it was the unaccented or shorter part of the foot of a verse. Now, however, it is the accented or longer part of the foot of a verse. So, somehow, the meaning of arsis has done a complete about turn to mean the opposite of what it meant originally. Very peculiar. The meaning invented by Ponderlicious was the favourite among the voters and, also, much easier to understand.

Haruspex

I'm back from school camp - tired and happy. And I'm back with a wonderful word for your edification - or maybe just your education. Haruspex. It sounds like a friendly enough kind of word, but it has a dark side. A haruspex was an Ancient Roman priest who practised divination by inspecting animal entrails. The precursor to tea leaves one presumes. Jude's invented meaning was chosen by the voters as the best of the bunch. Well done, Jude. I like it too. And yes, I'll keep an eye out for those emails!

Kylix

A kylix is really a tall stemmed, shallow drinking cup with two handles which was used in Ancient Greece. I'm finally back from an exhausting time at camp and have made the blog a priority over emptying bags and doing laundry, you'll be pleased to know. Ali and Eve's Lungs share the honours with the voters this time. Well done, you two.

Odalisque

An odalisque is actually a female slave or a concubine in a harem. I loved the suggestions for an alternative meaning and the one I loved most was the favourite on the poll too. It was from Squishy Mama, who said it's the way you feel after a good odal. I need one about now.

Fuliginous

Fuliginous means sooty. Simple, isn't it? In a strange coincidence, yesterday we had visitors for pancakes who brought with them a cute little dog called Sooty. Sooty is a dachshund chihuahua cross. But I digress. Shari and Angelfeet were joint winners in the poll. Well done, you two.

Euripus

A euripus is really a sea channel with turbulent currents. Sonnjea B's suggestion that Euripus is the hero of a Greek tragedy won the most votes. Well done again, Sonnjea.

Nullifidian

A nullifidian is really a sceptic with no religious beliefs. It was interesting to see the way most of the meanings you sent in overlapped each other today. Sara's meaning attracted the most votes, and I liked it best too. Well done Sara.

Maigre

Maigre really means not containing meat or meat juices. One of my friends who reads the blog emailed me today to say it's also a French word meaning not containing much fat, in reference to meat or a slender person. So there you go. I checked on dictionary.com and it also mentioned a European fish as another meaning for maigre. Aren't we all learning a lot? Well done to Vicki B and Greta who tied with the highest number of votes on the poll.

Bunraku

Bunraku is traditional Japanese puppet theatre. Lots of clever people thought it was something Japanese. Well done. There were some very funny guesses for this one but Annika Rose's boomerang thingy was a clear winner. Sounds like she could market them quite successfully too!

Deodand

Believe it or not! A deodand is an object which caused the death of a person and has been confiscated by the crown to be used for charitable purposes. I presume they wiped the blood off first. That has to be the spookiest real meaning I've found so far. Thanks for your impressive guesses. No one came close, but that's hardly surprising. I like Ali's meaning far more and so did the voters. Well done, Ali.

Feria

A feria is actually a religious term referring to a day when no feasts are observed. So quite an ordinary day really. Today, for example, was a feria in our household. The guesses on the blog today, however, were far from ordinary. The winner was Amalia. Thanks everyone.

Pharisaical

The real meaning of pharisaical is hypocritically self-righteous. Not something I'd like on my CV. Some of this week's entries were quite close to the real meaning of pharisaical. The voters picked Clare's meaning as the best this time round. Congratulations, Clare. Very imaginative.

Jorum

A jorum is a large drinking bowl. In fact, that's the way I like my latte. And my moccacino, for that matter. So perhaps I'll ask for a jorum of latte next time I'm in a cafe. Sonnjea B, word imp extraordinaire, got the most votes for her picture of a jorum as a group of people at a jousting match. Well done, Sonnjea.

Effulgent

Effulgent means radiant. So, in theory, Charlotte's Web could have featured effulgent instead of radiant. But perhaps it doesn't have quite the same ring. Voters chose Billie's meaning - always good to see someone new to the game Billie. Well done.

Panegyric

Oddly enough, panegyric is a synonym for encomium. If that sentence sounds bizarre to you, perhaps you haven't been playing the game long enough. Or maybe too long! It's a eulogy. Well done to all today's word imps. Shari's entry received the most votes. I'm glad, because I loved her idea that a panegyric was my double from a parallel universe. I would find a double very useful.

Vellicate

To vellicate really means to twitch. I don't think any of your meanings came close to the truth but, fortunately, that's not the point of the game. Thanks for coming up with wonderful, quirky meanings yet again. The voters chose the rather scary meaning of Madame C who described a vellicate as someone who eats jelly babies head first.

Quotidian

Quotidian actually means recurring daily. It also means commonplace or trivial. You all excelled yourselves with your made up meanings for this word. I enjoyed reading them. The voting was even between Molly Malone and Cynthia Bostwick. So, well done to you both! I agree with the voters' analysis.

Umbrageous

Umbrageous is an old word for shady. Thanks for the superb meanings from our dedicated band of word imps. Sonnjea B's entry describing umbrageous as the opposite of courageous was the favourite with the voters.

Cordwainer

A cordwainer is really a shoemaker. I thought the meanings suggested by visitors to the blog were much more interesting than that, though. The one that got the most votes was the wonderful description of corduroy from Next Stop Oregon, including "cordwainers" and "cordmonders".

Opsimath

An opsimath is actually a person who learns late in life. Sounds like a good word to describe me with my newfound blogging skills. Thanks for joining in with your suggested meanings. Voters picked the entry of Eve's Lungs who linked opsimath with foresight.

Farinaceous

Farinaceous refers to anything containing flour, meal or starch. As well as the usual variety of meanings, there was some interesting banter between participants in the blog. Nothing too farinaceous, but getting a bit personal in plACEs. I liked Ali's meaning - especially from a newcomer. The voters chose Reese's entry which described farinaceous as deep and brooding. Well done, Reese.

Martinet

A martinet is a strict disciplinarian, named after Jean Martinet, 17th century French army officer. Madame C's description was the winner. She described a martinet as the fastening on a farthingale. Thanks to everyone for their wonderful descriptions.