Word of the Week (WOW) is a weekly challenge created by Heena Rathore P. It’s a fun way to improve vocabulary by learning new words every week. To participate, simply do a post with your word and leave the link as a comment on Heena’s WOW post for this week (above link). It’s a nice post to do and will give you some practice with a dictionary, of which there are several online. Illustrations are not necessary, but it’s up to you.
Next week I’ll be looking for a word beginning with o.
Here is my WOW for this week: 
Word: Nefarious
Pronunciation: ne·far·i·ous [ni-fair-ee-uh s] (nə-fâr′ē-əs)
Audio link for pronunciation: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/nefarious
Part of Speech: Adjective Adverb: nefariously Noun: nefariousness
Meaning: extremely wicked or villainous; iniquitous 
Synonyms:
flagitious, heinous, infamous, vile, atrocious, execrable, sinful, base, shameful, depraved, unethical, impious
Antonyms: good, honest, just, noble, upright, honourable, decent, ethical, virtuous
Word Origin: C 17 from Latin nefarious from nefās unlawful deed, from nē not + fās divine law
Use in a Sentence:
1. Martha scrutinised her husband’s new colleague, convinced there was something nefarious about him.
2. Police had been alerted to the fact that the nefarious casino boss had been recently released from prison and had returned to the town.
3. It is a great pity that such a wonderful tool as the Internet can be used for so many nefarious purposes.
If you’d like to check out more interesting words then visit Heena’s page:
Millie Thom 
You are very non-nefarious, Millie.
Thank you for your faith in my honest and upright nature, Ann. (Just thought I’d get a couple of antonyms in there!) I’ll be back from Spain by next week, so things might get back to normal. 🙂
She sat on the dewy grass, amid blossoming jonquils, and craned her neck to look at the wannish sky, where nary a nefarious cloud could be found.
I love the quote, but confess I don’t know where it’s from … Is it another one from Don Quixote? Please, do enlighten me! Wherever it’s from, it uses the word nefarious very well, so thank you for that. 🙂
If there’s no attribution it’s from my overworked and underappreciated mind…
Still, Cervantes must have used the Spanish equivalent of the word somewhere… which brings us to next Word of the Week: quixotic.
And what better place to start using the word while you are still in Spain.
Well, I appreciate your overworked mind! Those couple of sentences were so appropriate! As for using the word quixotic, that’s an excellent idea. I’m going through the alphabet, and will be doing ‘O’ next week. So,’ Q’ will be in two weeks’ time. Thank you for that little tip! I’ll be back in England late Thursday, so I’ll start catching up on one or two posts I’ve missed.
I so agree with you on point three. It’s a great illustration too 😀 Leenna
I’m glad you like point three, Leena. I thought it was the best sentence example of the three I wrote. And, sadly, so true. 🙂
Great word. And this one is one I like! 🙂
Thanks, Bekki. I like this word, too, and have used it about certain characters in my books. 🙂
🙂
Excellent! 🙂 Hope all is well with you this week, Bekki. I’ll catch up with some of the posts I’ve missed when I get home.
Yes, thank you, it is. Hope you’re good too. It was bank holiday here in the UK yesterday, so feels like the week has only just begun. Hope you enjoy my new posts.
I’ll be sure to read them, but probably not until I’m home. We won’t be back until 11 pm Thursday, so it could be on Friday. 🙂
Where are you off to? Or have missed a post that tells me. Just catching up with heaps I’ve not read yet.
I should have posted one on Seville last night, but the Internet was so slow and wouldn’t upload my pictures, so I’ll have to try again tonight. That will probably be the last while I’m here. Cordoba – which should have been tonight – may have to wait till I’m back. Still, it makes a great change from writing flash fiction!
Excellent! Look forward to seeing your posts about your travels.
I enjoyed reading this and learning about this new word. I have heard the word before, and now know how to use it. Thank you!
Thanks, PJ. It can be a useful word to use about certain villainous characters. 🙂
Yes, I saw that it was a word used for those with nefarious character. LOL!!
Hi, PJ. I’m still in Spain at the moment, so I’ve only just got round to replying to comments. I should be back to normal on my blog next week. All I can do while I’m here is post about the wonderful places we visit. Hope all is well with you. 🙂
Thanks for letting me know Millie. I am glad you and your husband are enjoying Spain! Sounds wonderful. 🙂
It’s a great experience, PJ. I’ve been to Spain twice before, but both times to the Costa Dorada, much further north. We’ve come to Andalucia purely for the history, and it is really wonderful for that! 🙂
It sounds amazing! Enjoy your holiday.
Ah ha. Like Dr Nefarious in the movie Despicable Me!!
Now, that is a great example! I wish I’d thought of it myself! Thanks, Rachel. 🙂
I’ve never heard of this word before “Nefarious”….It sounds a bit fancy to me even though it represents something negative 😛 Thank you Millie! ❤
It is not as widely used as evil or wicked, Khloe, but it does add a little more interest when describing particularly villainous characters. Thank you for liking my post. 🙂
I got it now… thank you for the detailed explanation!!! 😉 You’re welcome Millie 😉 I do it enjoy it a lot ❤
Nefarious — always one of my favorites! I may have to join this exercise!
Hi, Griff. I’m pleased you share my liking of this word. And, as for joining in this challenge, I’m sure Heena (who runs it) will be delighted. There are a lot of great words to pick from. I’ve been going through the alphabet with mine, but you don’t have to do that. I just fancied the idea! I like to find good illustrations, too, but you don’t have to do that, either.
Anyway, Thanks for the nice comment. Much appreciated.
It sounds like a word with latin roots… And I can I have a few persons if it comes to use it to describe them
Best wishes dear Millie. Aquileana 😀
Thank you, Aquileana. 🙂