Insipid

Adventures in Logophilia, Day 150:

insipid (adj)

Lacking taste or particular savor.  Dull.  Weak.  Think cream of wheat without brown sugar or watery coffee.  (Bleh!)  Applied to character, this is quite the potent word.

I once thought this was another synonym interchangeable with stupid or ridiculous, but I learned it pays to actually look up words I want to use!  

Cipher (j)

Adventures in Logophilia, Day 149:

cipher (n)

One my favorite words because it has so many facets.  This is what I call (& how I describe) the villains in my novel.

A cipher is:

1.) A secret or disguised way of writing, a code or a thing written in a cipher, or a key to such a cipher.

2.) A zero, or the figure 0.

3.) A person or thing of little or no importance, especially one who does the bidding of others and tends not to have a will (or identity) of their own.

4.) A monogram.

5.) The continuous note of a malfunctioning organ pipe.

I've also seen it spelled "cypher" but I believe this is atypical. 

Luciferin (j)

Adventures in Logophilia, Day 148:

luciferin (n)

Luciferin is the natural substance present in certain organisms that produce heatless light upon oxidation - like fireflies.  This is from the Latin word "lucifer" meaning "light-bearing," and, yes, is also the name of the Devil.  Ironic, no?

Unctuous (j)

Adventures in Logophilia, Day 147:

unctuous (adj)

Greasy, oily, smug.  Falsely earnest.  The cigarette-smoking man (The X-Files).  Thomas Barrow (Downton Abbey). The Master (Doctor Who). 

Repose (j)

Adventures in Logophilia, Day 146:

repose (n)

Repose is sleep, often used to mean eternal or heavenly rest.  It also means calm or peace in an absence of activity or movement.  Composure.  Poise.  

Juggernaut (j)

Adventures in Logophilia, Day 145:

juggernaut (n)

A juggernaut is an irresistible, crushing force, or (more militarily) an overwhelming force that crushes everything in its path (i. e. the Death Star).  In Britain, a juggernaut is a name for a large, heavy truck or lorry, what we call a semi.  Yes, I definitely concur with the last one after having seen footage of semis spinning on the ice and crashing into things.  Eek!

Homunculus (j)

Adventures in Logophilia - Day 144:

homunculus

Homunculus was the post-modern (17th century) term for a microscopic but fully formed being which would develop into a fetus.  Sort of a baby-seed.  The word more generally indicates a very small human or humanoid creature.