whelm--Lucie

whelm  (hwlm, wlm)

tr.v. whelmed, whelm·ing, whelms

1. To cover with water; submerge.

2. To overwhelm

Whelmed by the ski-boats wake, Lucie sputtered to the surface and then tried to ski again.

genial--Gretchen and Dad

gen·ial ¹  (jnyl)

adj.

1. Having a pleasant or friendly disposition or manner. See Synonyms at gracious.

2. Conducive to life, growth, or comfort; mild: "the genial sunshine . . . saturating his miserable body with its warmth" (Jack London).


Gretchen is a genial young soul, and Dad is a genial old soul.

x--Sister Jen's Birthday word

x ¹ or X  (ks)

n. pl. x's or X's also xs or Xs

1. The 24th letter of the modern English alphabet.

2. Any of the speech sounds represented by the letter x.

3. The 24th in a series.

4. Something shaped like the letter X.

5. A mark inscribed to represent the signature of one who is unable to sign one's name.

6. An unknown or unnamed factor, thing, or person.

tr.v. x'd or X'd, x'ing or X'ing, x's or X's

1. To mark or sign with an X.

2. To delete, cancel, or obliterate with a series of X's. Often used with out.

Context
According to Roy Blount Jr. in his book Alphabetter Juice (which Sister Mary gave Sister Jen for Xmas), "x" is the shortest verb in the English language; the baseball word k and the work t, as in "teed off" are both generally used in the past tense.

perambulate--Gretchen

per·am·bu·late  (p-rmby-lt)

v. per·am·bu·lat·ed, per·am·bu·lat·ing, per·am·bu·lates

v.tr.

1. To walk through.

2. To inspect (an area) on foot.

v.intr.

To walk about; roam or stroll.

Gretchen perambulated about the park, stopping to do a little dance from time to time.

Addubitation--Dad

addubitation - The suggestion of a doubt

Dad's addubitation about Mary's facts sparked her ire, and she went off to prove him wrong.

detritus--Mom

de·tri·tus  (d-trts)

n. pl. detritus

1. Loose fragments or grains that have been worn away from rock.

2.

a. Disintegrated or eroded matter: the detritus of past civilizations.

b. Accumulated material; debris: "Poems, engravings, press releaseshe eagerly scrutinizes the detritus of fame" (Carlin Romano).

Weary of cleaning up Christmas detritus, Mom started the tradition of not wrapping Christmas gifts.

mnemonic--Ann

mne·mon·ic  (n-mnk)

adj.

Relating to, assisting, or intended to assist the memory.

n.

A device, such as a formula or rhyme, used as an aid in remembering.

The mnemonic FOIL (first, outer, inner, last) helps Ann's math students remember the order of operations.