Make Your Point > Archived Issues > PETRICHOR
Send Make Your Point issues straight to your inbox.
pronounce
PETRICHOR:
Say it "PET ruh core."
To hear it, click here.
connect this word to others:
A high five to John, who told me his favorite word is petrichor. And, high fives all around to the approximate dozen of you who've done the same over the years.
Why have I waited so long to give petrichor its own issue? Well, it's such a specific word that I knew I'd have a rough time finding natural, unglossed examples of it. (Unglossed, meaning, the writer just used the word and then moved on, without stopping to explain what it means.)
The same reason delayed me for years from writing about the incredible term esprit de l'escalier, French for "spirit of the staircase." Can you recall what it means to be struck by this spirit? If you're not sure, give it a click.
definition:
When you breathe in that wonderful smell that rises up from the ground during and after a rainfall, you can call it petrichor.
It literally means "mystical essence of rock."
In Greek myths, the gods don't have blood but rather "ichor" in their veins, a magical fluid. So, "ichor" can mean "a kind of mystical fluid or essence." (Say "ichor" as either "EYE core" or "ICK er.")
In 1964, the Australian researchers Isabel Bear and Dick Thomas combined "ichor" with the Greek word for "rock" to make the word "petrichor."
In the journal Nature, they wrote:
"Many natural dry clays and soils evolve a peculiar and characteristic odour when breathed on, or moistened with water... This odour is most widely recognized and is frequently associated with the first rains after a period of drought... The diverse nature of the host materials has led us to propose the name 'petrichor' for this apparently unique odour which can be regarded as an 'ichor' or 'tenuous essence' derived from rock or stone."
So, we can thank them for giving us "petrichor," a beautiful word for a beautiful smell.
grammatical bits:
Part of speech:
Noun, the uncountable kind: "We breathe in the petrichor;" "Petrichor comes from atmospheric haze (Canadian Geographic)."
Other forms:
None. As far as I can tell, dictionaries don't recognize any adjective forms.
So, let's invent some. Since the noun "ichor" has the adjective forms "ichorose," "ichorous," and "ichorescent," I'll suggest we use any of these: "petrichorose," "petrichorous," and "petrichorescent."
how to use it:
"Petrichor" is rare, but beautiful and beloved. Its tone is both scientific and mystical.
Most of the time, when you bump into it in text, the writer has glossed it: defined it right there in the text. For example, here's Scientific American: "There's a name popularly ascribed to this range of post-precipitation scents: petrichor." And here's the L. A. Times: "The artist has a new show of small paintings inspired by petrichor, the smell of dry earth as it is pelted with rain." And the New Yorker: "Logan speaks like a laid-back chemist, using words like 'petrichor,' the earthy scent produced when rain falls on dry soil."
So when you use "petrichor," you can gloss it, too--or just let your reader figure it out from context: "As the rains finally began, we stepped onto the porch, breathing in the petrichor."
examples:
"Moderate or light rain on dry soil is the recipe for petrichor."
— James Gorman, New York Times, 26 January 2015
"Some biologists suspect that petrichor running into waterways acts as a cue to freshwater fish, signaling spawning time."
— Daisy Yuhas, Scientific American, 18 July 2012
has this page helped you understand "petrichor"?
study it:
Explain the meaning of "petrichor" without saying "post-rain scent" or "wet rock aroma."
try it out:
Fill in the blank: "Petrichor transports me to the memory of _____."
Example: "Petrichor transports me to the memory of playing happily in the grass with my sisters, not caring that our church dresses were getting wet, knowing we could soon get rid of them and put on comfy jeans."
before you review, play:
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
Our game for this month is MYP Wordles!
You're likely familiar with the popular new game Wordle, created by Josh Wardle and recently purchased by the New York Times. You can play the real Wordle each day here.
It's fun, simple, and addictive. You try to guess the five-letter word. Each time you guess, you see how close you are: a green box means you've gotten the right letter in the right spot; a yellow box means you've gotten a letter that's in the word but in the wrong spot; a gray box means you've guessed a letter that isn't in the word at all.
There's only one real Wordle every day. But luckily for us, the good folks at StriveMath.com have created a copycat Wordle tool, so you can play as many Wordles as you want, and even create and share your own.
So, in each issue this month, try the MYP Wordle linked below. The answer will be a word we've studied. I'll give a series of hints that you can reveal if you choose to. If you can't figure out the answer, you can let the puzzle reveal it, or you can scroll all the way down. Enjoy!
Click here to play today's MYP Wordle.
If you need some hints, highlight the hidden white text below.
The letter it starts with is… K
The vowels it includes are… just E
The part of speech is… verb
The definition is… to announce something (or indicate it) as if by ringing a slow, sad bell
review this word:
1.
A near opposite of PETRICHOR could be
A. BOGGY STENCH.
B. FLORAL AROMA.
C. ANTISEPTIC SMELL.
2.
The game _____ takes place on the aptly-named planet Petrichor V.
A. Salamander
B. Risk of Rain 2
C. Disaster Report
a final word:
I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words.
From my blog:
On vocabulary...
36 ways to study words.
Why we forget words, & how to remember them.
How to use sophisticated words without being awkward.
On writing...
How to improve any sentence.
How to motivate our kids to write.
How to stop procrastinating and start writing.
How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count.
From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.
A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.
A high five to John, who told me his favorite word is petrichor. And, high fives all around to the approximate dozen of you who've done the same over the years.
When you breathe in that wonderful smell that rises up from the ground during and after a rainfall, you can call it petrichor.
Part of speech:
"Petrichor" is rare, but beautiful and beloved. Its tone is both scientific and mystical.
"Moderate or light rain on dry soil is the recipe for petrichor."
Explain the meaning of "petrichor" without saying "post-rain scent" or "wet rock aroma."
Fill in the blank: "Petrichor transports me to the memory of _____."
Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.
I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. |