corp-, corpor-, corpus-

(Latin: body, bodies)

corpulency (s) (noun), corpulencies (pl)
An abnormal accumulation of body fat, usually 20% or more over an individual's ideal body weight which is associated with an increased risk of illness, disability, and death: Corpulency has become a serious problem in many countries because there are more and more people who are dangerously overweight.

Although the following cartoons are adjectives, they illustrate this noun entry.

Being excessively overweight.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Being extremely overweight.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
for a list of additional Mickey Bach illustrations.

corpulent (adjective), more corpulent, most corpulent
1. Descriptive of someone who is very overweight and so it refers to someone who has a very large and plump body: A corpulent person usually has an obesity that can be dangerous to his or her well-being.

As a very corpulent person, Effie was just too heavy for the motorboat that her husband was trying to navigate on the lake.

2. A formal word that describes an overweight person: If anyone is trying to be respectful when describing a fat man, he or she might refer to him as a corpulent gentleman.
A woman who is significantly over weight is too much for the small boat.
© ALL rights are reserved.

A man who is significantly over weight is too much for a small boat.
© ALL rights are reserved.

Go to this Word A Day Revisited Index
for a list of additional Mickey Bach illustrations.

corpulently (adverb), more corpulently, most corpulently
An example of someone who is very fat or over weight: After overeating for some weeks, Athena who was a skinny girl became corpulently bigger and heavier than other girls of her age.
corpulentness (s) (noun) (no plural)
The condition of having a large bulky or overweight body: Jimmy was accused of having a physical corpulentness or of being very chubby; especially, for someone who is only 10 years old.
corpus (s) (noun); corpora, corpouses (pl)
1. A collection of written texts, including the entire works of a particular author or a body of writing on a particular subject: The editor was reviewing Harry's corpus to see if his linguistic structures needed revisions before it would be published.
2. In anatomy, the main body or part of a structure in the body.
corpus callosum (s) (noun), copora callosa (pl)
A broad band of nerve fibers that join the two hemispheres or the left and right parts of the brain.
Corpus Christi (s) (noun), (no plural)
1. The body of Christ: A feast of the Roman Catholic Church commemorating the Eucharist and observed on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday.
2. Etymology: Latin, literally, "Body of Christ".
Corpus Christi, Texas (s) (noun), (no plural)
Corpus Christi from Latin: The "Body of Christ" is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas.
corpus delicti (s) (noun), corpora delicti (pl)
The facts and circumstances consisting of proof or evidence that a criminal act has been committed before anyone can be accused of a crime.
corpus iuris (juris) (pl) (noun)
Body of law or a compilation of laws; or the assembled laws, of a nation, state, etc.: The collected laws of a nation, state, or city are its corpus iuris.

Church law is corpus iuris canonici while civil law is corpus iuris civilis.

corpuscle (s) (noun), corpuscles (pl)
1. A small independent body; especially, a cell in blood or lymph.
2. A discrete particle, especially a photon.
3. A tiny piece of anything.
4. Etymology: from Latin corpusculum, "small body".
corpuscular (adjective), more corpuscular, most corpuscular
1. Pertaining to, or composed of unattached body cells, such as blood or lymph cells: A corpuscular cell is a very small body or element in an organism; especially, red or white cells in the blood of vertebrates.
2. A reference to rounded globular masses of cells; such as, the pressure receptors on certain nerve endings.
corsage (s) (noun), corsages (pl)
1. A small bouquet of flowers worn on a woman's dress or worn around her wrist to some formal occasion: Corsages were originally thought to be bring luck or to ward off evil spirits; however, it has become a customary practice and a demonstration of affection by a woman's companion.
cors, "body" and from Latin corpus, "body".
corselet (s) (noun). corselets (pl)
1. A woman's under garment and brassière.
2. Etymology: from Old French corslet which came from Latin, cors, "body".
corset (s) (noun), corsets (pl)
1. A woman's tightly fitting undergarment extending from below the chest to the hips, worn to shape the physical figure.
2. Etymology: from Latin corpus, "body".