I've been listening to Claire Messoud's "The Emporer's Children" in preparation for my book group next week. It's a delightful book, written the way I would have written it: jumping around from character to character and time to time to tell the story completely.
Ms. Messoud used a word—unfamiliar to me—several times. Then this morning I read the word somewhere again.
The word? Ineffable.
Isn't that the coolest word? Not necessarily its meaning, which is "indefineable", too sacred for words, cannot or should not be expressed in spoken word.
I just love the sound of it. It could be code for a curse word. You could use it in polite company and no one would know what you really meant, that you were verbally thumbing your nose at the offending persons or his offending ideas.
My favorite word is duck. Well, with an "f" instead of a "d". I love it as the inserted syllable. That diamond is educkingnormous. Your new house is induckingcredible. Yes, you can say ineffingcredible and have virtually the same meaning. But think about using ineffable. Maybe only those members of the Professional Organization of English Majors (thanks, Garrison Keillor, for this wonderful imaginary league) would catch your meaning, would know the definition of the word.
"That diamond is ineffable." "Your new house is ineffable."
I'll do another post soon on my list of favorite words. But for right now, "ineffable" is right up there at the top.
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