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Friday, 29 March 2019

Word To Use Today: lipophilicity.

There's a spring in the feet of some words, and a perfect example is the word lipophilicity.

(My British dictionary recommends that the first syllable rhymes with dip, which makes the whole thing particularly elegant: lipophilicity. Isn't it beautiful?)

Lipophilicity is the state of having an affinity for lipids - in other words, something that has lipophilicity really likes fat.

Now, just how obliging a word is that? Not only does the word lipophilicity cause a sentence to ripple like a zephyr ruffling a mountain stream, but it adds a certain dignity to our natural human instinct to stuff ourselves with doughnuts and fried chicken.

I think it might be going to become one of my very favourite words.

Word To Use Today: lipophilicity. The lipo- bit comes from the Greek word lipos, which means fat. The rest is to do with the Greek word philos, which means loving.






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