\ ˌdi-fə-ˌne-ˈstrā-shən \ Noun The act of throwing someone out of a window From Latin de- “down from” + fenestra “window” The infamous defenestration of Prague marked the beginning of

\ ˈpe-trə-ˌkȯr \ Noun A pleasant smell that frequently accompanies the first rain after a long period of warm, dry weather From Greek petros “stone” + ichor “the fluid that

\ ˌper-ə-pə-ˈte-tik \ Adjective Traveling from place to place, especially working or based in various places for relatively short periods From Greek peripatētikos “given to walking about,” from peripatein “to

\ ˈäb-fə-ˌskāt \ Verb To render obscure, unclear, or unintelligible From Latin obfuscatus, past participle of obfuscare “to darken,” from ob- “over” + fuscare “to make dark” The politician’s speech

\ ˌlab-ə-ˈrin-thīn \ Adjective Complicated; highly convoluted From Latin labyrinthus, from Greek laburinthos, referring to the labyrinth of Crete in mythology The investigation took detectives down a labyrinthine path of

\ ˈsän-dər \ Noun The realization that each passerby has a life as vivid and complex as your own Coined by John Koenig in “The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows” Walking

\ i-ˈfe-mə-rəs \ Noun A table or data file giving the calculated positions of celestial bodies at regular intervals From Greek ephēmeris, meaning “diary, calendar” from epi- (upon) + hēmera

\ i-ˈne-fə-bəl \ Adjective Too great or extreme to be expressed in words From Latin ineffabilis, meaning “unutterable,” from in- (not) + effabilis (able to be spoken) The beauty of

\ ˈhal-sē-ən \ Adjective Denoting a period of time in the past that was idyllically happy and peaceful From Latin halcyon, via Greek alkyōn, a mythical bird identified with the

\ kwik-ˈsä-tik \ Adjective Exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and impractical From the character Don Quixote in the novel by Miguel de Cervantes His quixotic quest to build a utopia seemed destined