After a somewhat humiliating attempt at doing one of my sister’s crossword puzzles (I didn’t get that gene), I decided that maybe I should start doing them regularly. There is a daily free newspaper in Boston that has crossword puzzle that’s more my speed. Got to start somewhere. I learned three new words yesterday. Here they are (from the Apple dictionary).

pert

adjective

1. (of a girl or young woman) sexually attractive because lively or saucy : a pert Belgian actress.
2. (of a bodily feature or garment) attractive because neat and jaunty : she had a pert nose and deep blue eyes.
3. (of a young person or their speech or behavior) impudent : no need to be pert, miss.
4. another term for PEART .

dross

noun

1. something regarded as worthless; rubbish : there are bargains if you have the patience to sift through the dross.
2. foreign matter, dregs, or mineral waste, in particular scum formed on the surface of molten metal.

codger

noun, often derogatory

1. an elderly man, esp. one who is old-fashioned or eccentric : old codgers always harp on about yesteryear.