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The ordinary-sized words are for everyone, but the big ones are especially for children.



Friday, 10 May 2013

Word To Use Today: limivorous.

Something carnivorous eats meat, something insectivorous eats...

...but you know all that.

The only exception to the -vorous rule, as far as I know, is that some herbivorous humans (who tend, as you will have noticed, to call themselves vegetarians) eat...well, more or less everything, really.

Will steak be all right?

No, I'm a vegetarian, could I have some chicken?

Crab sandwich?

Not for me, thanks, I'm vegetarian. I'll have the prawn mayonnaise.

Which, of course makes them omnivorous, as well as hypocrites and extremely annoying.

Anyway, limivorous, anyone?

Well, it's one of those words to make us glad to be human.

Yes, someone limivorous feeds on...

 ...mud.

I mean, lovely.

Still, it's a useful word for describing some invertebrates:

Earthworms

Earthworms by Petr Kratochvil
 
as well, of course, as certain journalists.

Word To Use Today: limivorous. This word comes from the Latin līmus, which means mud and vorāre to swallow up.
 

1 comment:

  1. When I was studying, I worked briefly with a man who ran a business supplying and operating spit-roasts to corporate events. He would moan and moan and moan at also having to provide a vegetarian option (usually some shop-bought quiches), especially when "vegetarians" would queue up anyway and say to him 'But I will have a bit of chicken!'

    And that's a lovely word : o )

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