Words, Words, Words

Read the entire list of words below. Choose at least three of the words to use them as titles. Then write the poems. Post them to your blog by the end of the period.

archipelago (ar-kah-PEL-ah-go) — 1. a large group of islands. 2. a sea, such as the Aegean, containing a large number of scattered islands

cacophony (kah-KOF-ah-nee) — 1. jarring, discordant sound; dissonance. 2. the use of harsh or discordant sounds in literary composition

caterwaul (KAT-er-wol) — 1. to utter long wailing cries, as cats in rutting time. 2. to utter a similar sound; howl or screech. 3. to quarrel like cats

conundrum (kah-NUN-drum) — 1. a riddle in which a fanciful question is answered by a pun. 2. a paradoxical, insoluble, or difficult problem; a dilemma

frangipani (fran-jah-PAN-ee) — 1. any of various tropical American deciduous shrubs or trees of the genus Plumeria, having milky sap and showy, fragrant, funnel-shaped, variously colored flowers. Also called temple tree. 2. a perfume derived from or similar in scent to the flowers of one of these shrubs or trees. 3. also fran·gi·pane (FRAN-jah-pan) a creamy pastry filling flavored with almonds

jocularity (JOK-yah-lar-i-tee) — joking speech or behavior

kismet (KIZ-met) — fate; fortune

loam (LOM) 1. soil composed of a mixture of sand, clay, silt, and organic matter. 2. a mixture of moist clay and sand, and often straw, used especially in making bricks and foundry molds

megalomaniac (meg-ah-lo-MAN-ee-ak) — 1. a person with a psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence. 2. a person who has an obsession with grandiose or extravagant things or actions

necromancy (NEK-roh-man-see) — 1. the practice of supposedly communicating with the spirits of the dead in order to predict the future. 2. black magic; sorcery. 3. magic qualities

phalanges (pha-LAN-jeez) — a bone of a finger or toe

rambunctious (ram-BUNGK-shes) boisterous and disorderly

ricochet (RIC-ah-shay) — to rebound

sarcophagus (sar-KOF-ah-ges) — an above-ground stone coffin, often inscribed or decorated with sculpture

sprocket (SPROK-it) — 1. any of various toothlike projections arranged on a wheel rim to engage the links of a chain. 2. a cylinder with a toothed rim that engages in the perforations of photographic or movie film to pull it through a camera or projector

usurp (yoo-SURP) — 1. to seize and hold (the power or rights of another, for example) by force and without legal authority. 2. to take over or occupy without right

undulation (un-jah-LAY-shen) — movement in waves; a wavy, curving form or outline

vertigo (VUR-ti-go) — 1. the sensation of dizziness; an instance of such a sensation. 2. a confused, disoriented state of mind


Homework: Create a list of words that you like. You must have at least 25 words on your list.