Word - 52

IDEE FIXE \ee-day-FEEKS\ noun

: an idea that dominates one's mind especially for a prolonged period : obsession

Example sentence:
The fear that he was going to be fired became such an idee fixe for Toby that he could think of nothing else.

Did you know?

According to The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, the term "idee fixe" was coined by French composer Hector Berlioz in 1830, who used it to describe the principal theme of his Symphonie fantastique. That reference goes on to say that, at about the same time French, novelist Honore de Balzac used "idee fixe" in Gobseck to describe an obsessive idea. By 1836, Balzac's more generalized use of the term had carried over into English, where "idee fixe" was embraced as a clinical and literary term for a persistent preoccupation or delusional idea that dominates a person's mind. Nowadays "idee fixe" is also applied to milder and more pedestrian obsessions.

Word - 51

TREPIDATION \trep-uh-DAY-shun\ noun

: timorous uncertain agitation
: apprehension

Example sentence:
As she boarded the plane for her first flight, Corrine felt a mixture of trepidation and excitement.

Did you know?

If you've ever trembled with fright, you know something of both the sensation and etymology of "trepidation." The word "trepidation" comes from the Latin verb "trepidare," which means "to tremble." When "trepidation" first appeared in English in the early 1600s, it meant "tremulous motion" or "tremor." Around the same time, English speakers also started using the "nervous agitation" sense of "trepidation" that we use today.