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'I can read you like a book, baby!'

DEFINITION: v., To read a person's face and interpret what they are actually thinking, even if they are trying to conceal their true feelings. n., The skill of reading people's faces, especially micro-expressions.

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Verboticisms

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Faceseelity

Created by: Jabberwocky

Pronunciation: face/see/li/tee

Sentence: She had an uncanny faceseelity which made her everyone's favourite waitress. When you ordered the fruit salad she knew you really wanted the hot fudge sundae.

Etymology: face + see + facility

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Mugnacious

artr

Created by: artr

Pronunciation: məgnāshəs

Sentence: The more Jason sat in the traffic jam the more mugnacious he became. Nobody had any trouble telling how he felt.

Etymology: mug (face) + pugnacious (having the appearance of a willing fighter)

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Wiseguise

petaj

Created by: petaj

Pronunciation: wise guys

Sentence: Carl was no wiseguise. He could never tell what his girlfriend was thinking despite careful study of her expressions.

Etymology: wise (knowledgeable) + guise (face/expression) + wise guy (smarty pants)

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COMMENTS:

good one petaj - Jabberwocky, 2007-11-19: 12:10:00

Nice word! - OZZIEBOB, 2007-11-19: 16:15:00

Yup, very creative. - purpleartichokes, 2007-11-19: 18:14:00

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Visagenary

Created by: Nosila

Pronunciation: viz ah jen ari

Sentence: Victor had visagenary skills. His ability to tell whether or not a person was lying was legendary. This skill had stood him well through his life and was very handy when dealing with the children he taught in school. He taught them that the truth was their only option, because you could never tell who had this power besides him. It helped while dating (her lips were smiling but her eyes weren't...) And he could have been a human lie detector for the CIA or FBI or the police. Victor figured as long as he had the gift, he might as well earn some money with it. That's when he started on the Celebrity Poker circuit and won millions with his visagenary talents!

Etymology: Visage (the human face; the appearance conveyed by a person's face) & Visionary (a person with unusual powers of foresight,seeing ahead; knowing in advance; foreseeing)

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COMMENTS:

great word - Jabberwocky, 2008-10-16: 15:52:00

Excellent! - Mustang, 2008-10-16: 19:34:00

metrohumanx First-rate word, that. - metrohumanx, 2008-10-17: 07:47:00

Terrific - OZZIEBOB, 2008-10-19: 00:31:00

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Mugnous

Created by: OZZIEBOB

Pronunciation: Muhg-nouse

Sentence: It seems that even without someone speaking, but just thinking about speaking, Roxie was able to interpret their faciaguile and see through their emociopacity with ease. Call it prosoperspicacity or - in layman's language - mugnous, she could read others like an open book.

Etymology: Mug: n. face of a person:; vb: to mug - to make exaggerated facial expressions. 2. Prosoperspicacious: blend of prosopo (face)& perspicacious (penetrating mental vision or discernment)

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Obsenserate

Created by: mvandyke

Pronunciation: ob sense er ate

Sentence: Mark could easily 'obsenserate' Jeff's expression.

Etymology:

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Rosettaface

artr

Created by: artr

Pronunciation: rōˈzetə fās

Sentence: Crystal could never keep a secret. She had a real rosettaface. If there was a thought or emotion within her being, it was expressed on her face like a neon sign. Much as she might try she could not conceal her feelings. Even her goldfish had her pegged.

Etymology: Rosetta Stone (a key to some previously undecipherable mystery) + Face (the front part of a person's head from the forehead to the chin)

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COMMENTS:

metrohumanx Wonderfully arcane reference! Top-notch word! - metrohumanx, 2008-10-16: 06:04:00

another goodie artr - Jabberwocky, 2008-10-16: 15:59:00

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Corrictus

Created by: astorey

Pronunciation: core-ick-tus

Sentence: Suzanne was not known for her poker face, but when her best friend eagerly unzipped a garment bag to reveal a hideous maid of honor dress intended for Suzanne, she tried to hide her horror. In spite of the typical bride narcissism, Tory took one look at Suzanne's corrictus and started to cry.

Etymology: Correct + rictus, which means a facial expression that is an open-mouthed grimace.

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COMMENTS:

The poofy sleeves, the colour you least suit, the sheer unrewearability of the briddesmaid gown...why oh why do they do it? Do they really think an ugly bridesmaid outfit makes the bride look better??? Think again! - Nosila, 2008-10-17: 00:04:00

metrohumanx Quite jolly! - metrohumanx, 2008-10-17: 06:20:00

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Ekman

Created by: CDH167

Pronunciation: eck man

Sentence: I thought I could lie with a straight face, but when I got home, my wife totally ekmanned me.

Etymology: From Paul Ekman, the psychologist who discovered microexpressions.

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Tellepathy

MrDave2176

Created by: MrDave2176

Pronunciation: tel-EHP-ath-ee

Sentence: Maria's tellepathy was uncanny. She correctly read the disappointment on her son's face at his bag lunch options, and picked up on her husband's stress at his upcoming meeting. She tossed a candy bar into her son's lunch and spent a few extra seconds hugging her husband at the door to make things smoother.

Etymology: tell (the small nuances of behavior that poker players read in games) + (tel)epathy

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Comments:

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2007-11-19: 00:01:00
Today's definition was suggested by aigle101. Thank you aigle101! ~ James

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2007-11-19: 00:02:00
If you are interested in learning more about face reading and micro-expressions, check out The Naked Face. It's an article written by Malcolm Gladwell which originally appeared New Yorker magazine. ~ James

metrohumanx - 2008-10-16: 06:24:00
Clairvoyant wins lottery for second time!

artr artr - 2008-10-16: 19:13:00
Nobody ever really wants the fruit salad.:-)

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2010-03-12: 00:34:00
Today's definition was suggested by aigle101. Thank you aigle101. ~ James