Aphilophrenia

WHAT'S THAT??? Aphilophrenia is a feeling of being unloved. It is usually a fleeting feeling that does not last, but that is the word that describes it. It has Greek origins, 'a-philo' meaning not loved, and 'phrenia' meaning mental disorder

Flizzen

This word describes a manner of laughter, where the person laughs using every facial muscle. Frankly, I can't say that I have seen this happening because I don't even know how many facial muscles are there to check and tick off the boxes about how many muscles are being used! I know that I have laughed heartily at many a joke and even at the movies, where a particular scene is hilarious - remembering Mr Bean (Mr Rowan Atkinson)!

Shoeflower

Have you ever wondered why a Shoeflower is called so? It does not look like a shoe, nor does it have the colour of a shoe. I did and so researched this, and this is what I found: The shoe flower was used to polish shoes at one time. That is why it is called a Shoeflower.

Funnies

When I was young I believed that windmills in farmers' fields were used to keep the cows cool.
-Linda  

Mnemonics for words beginning with 'e', 'f' and 'g'

environment: "Lots of iron is in the environment."
escape: "It's essential to escape."
especially: "I especially enjoy ESP."
exceed: "Don't exceed the speed limit."
expensive: "Those pens were expensive."
familiar: "That liar looks familiar."
February: "Brr, it's cold in February."
generally: "The general is your ally."
grammar: "Bad grammar will mar your chances for a good job."

SImilé

No, that is not French for 'smile' - it is a Figure of Speech! Often when we make comparisons between two things of a different nature, to describe something, perhaps a person, a situation or an object. 
For example, we could say, while describing a fight, " Henry fought like a tiger". 
Another  example would be  "P.T. Usha ran like a gazelle" 
These figures of speech are introduced in a sentence by the adverbs: like, so, as, as...as. These similés, aid the readers' imagination and every author of repute has used them at some time or the other. 

Spindles

Today, I came across a new meaning for the word 'spindle', in the latest National Geographic August 2018 edition. There was this article on 'Sleep- Inside the new Science of Slumber' and it described an activity of our brains, which takes place in the cerebral cortex. This is the part of the brain that we use for thinking, language and generally of consciousness. These are half-second bursts of electrical activity that signify that we have entered the second phase of sleep.
Traditionally, spindles are "a straight spike usually made from wood in order to spin textile fibre into thread. There are parts of machines also called spindles.