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Magic: The Gathering is a game full of words. Language is a limited resource, and Wizards of the Coast has to be creative and careful when choosing what to name cards. The result is the use of a lot of words you don’t see a very often. What follows is a vocabulary quiz with ten of Magic's more interesting words. See if you can pick the correct definition for each.
Burgeon
There are a couple cards that use this word. Burgeoning was the first. More recently, the word came to the urban landscape of Ravnica.
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The correct answer is C: “to grow and expand rapidly: flourish.” It’s quite appropriate for green cards that ramp or allow you to play extra lands. I'm betting we will see the word expanding to more cards over time.
Clique
The Shadowmoor and Lorwyn blocks had their fair share of cliques, including Knacksaw Clique and Puppeteer Clique.
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The answer is A: “an exclusive circle or group of persons.” The full definition is "a narrow exclusive circle or group of persons; especially : one held together by common interests, views, or purposes." Apparently in Magic, it also means a group of faeries up to no good. Anybody who has survived high school probably knew this word—or can relate to it at least.
Dross
The word “dross” has appeared on ten different Magic cards, most recently Chancellor of the Dross, Dross Ripper, and Dross Hopper in the Scars of Mirrodin block.
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The correct answer is B: “Something that is base, trivial, or inferior.” The word has some interesting additional definitions. "The scum that forms on the surface of molten metal" seems appropriate for cards based in the world of Mirrodin (and later New Phyrexia). "Waste or foreign matter: impurity" is fitting for the involvement of the Phyrexians. Many of these cards very cleverly fit all three definitions. Bonus points for Wizards of the Coast wordsmiths.
Extirpate
That guy looks like he’s having a bad day. Clearly, being extirpated is unpleasant.
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The answer is A: “to destroy completely: wipe out.” The card wipes one particular card an opponent has played out of the game. Once again, the additional meanings of "to pull up by the root" and "to cut out by surgery" apply nearly as well. I think it's up to the player casting the spell to decide which fits his or her lingual needs best at the time.
Exsanguinate
This is a pretty awesome word. It is derived from sanguine, which appears on a few Magic cards, including Sanguine Guard and Sanguine Bond.
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If you chose A, you are correct. “Sanguine” means "consisting of or relating to blood," and the “ex” means "without; not including." The artwork is a bit misleading here, and B is a trick answer (sorry about that). I'm guessing the elf being run through by those Wolverine-style claws eventually loses all of his blood.
Fulgent
Only one card in Magic displays the word, though plenty more could be described as fulgent.
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B is for bright, and it’s also the correct answer. The art and flavor text do a great job of providing context for the meaning. Somebody cracked a thesaurus and looked up "bright" to ensure card name diversity for this one, and I'm glad he or she did. I think I'll look for excuses to say “fulgent” more in conversation.
Odious
There is a second card that includes “odious,” and it’s Stabwhisker the Odious, the legendary Rat Shaman, of course! That’s the flip side of Nezumi Shortfang of Kamigawa.
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While our troll example very likely smells horrible, the correct answer is C. Look at what he's doing to that poor rat! You know you hate him. The picture and flavor text once again do a great job of communicating the meaning of odious. This is another word that ought to see more day-to-day use.
Pernicious
This is a pretty well-known card, and I dare say it may be the first time quite a few people see it.
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The answer is C, and the card certainly is deadly and destructive to most things with a converted mana cost less than or equal to X. I'm not sure the art or flavor text gives much of a hint here, but it certainly caused many players to consult a dictionary.
Phthisis
This card wins for Best Real Word Lacking Vowels on a Magic Card.
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If you chose A, you were right! The card text is dominated by an explanation of the suspend mechanic, but the art does a nice job showing a progressing illness.
Pyrrhic
There is only one card with “pyrrhic” in Magic’s history.
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The answer is A. Creatures return to the graveyard with -1/-1 counters and "still bearing their mortal wounds," which seems like an excessive cost if you are one of the creatures I suppose.
Taiga
There are several good land vocabulary words in Magic, including “caldera” (Caldera Lake), “ziggurat” (Ancient Ziggurat), “cairn” (Graven Cairns), and “atoll” (Coral Atoll).
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The answer is C. The scenic nature of the artwork conveys the meaning of the word quite well.
These ten words are just a few of the thousands and thousands printed on Magic cards. What words have you learned from Magic? Thanks for reading!
Nick Vigabool
