- Today's Word
Abibliophobia
[uh-bib-lee-uh-FOH-bee-uh]
Definition
- (noun) The fear of running out of reading material. It’s a playful term used to describe the anxiety or distress some avid readers feel when they don’t have a book (or e-reader) readily available or when they’re nearing the end of their current read without another lined up.
Example
Sarah’s abibliophobia led her to always carry at least two books in her bag, just in case she finished one while out and about.
Fun Fact
While not a clinically recognized phobia, “abibliophobia” is a neologism created by combining the prefix “a-” (meaning “without”), “biblio-” (relating to books), and “-phobia” (fear). It’s a humorous term that resonates with book lovers and highlights the importance of reading in some people’s lives.
(adjective) Showy and cheap in appearance; flashy in a way that suggests low quality or poor taste.
The hotel lobby was all tawdry glamour — gold-painted fixtures, velvet ropes, and crystal chandeliers that turned out to be plastic on closer inspection.
Tawdry is one of English’s most remarkable etymological stories — it derives directly from St. Audrey, a 7th century Anglo-Saxon queen who died of a throat tumor she believed was divine punishment for her youthful vanity in wearing elaborate necklaces. At the annual St. Audrey’s Fair held in her honor on the Isle of Ely, cheap lace necklaces were sold as souvenirs — called “St. Audrey’s lace,” which over time was slurred into “tawdry lace,” and eventually just tawdry. A queen’s dying regret became an adjective for everything she once loved.