gravid /GRAV-id/ - 1. pregnant 2. distended or full with eggs
Not a brand new word for me, but one I hadn't encountered in long enough that it took me a moment to recall it.
nostoc /NAH-'stahk/ - 1. any of a genus (Nostoc) of usually filamentous cyanobacteria that fix nitrogen
Today's Dictionary Devil puzzle gave it as any of a genus of blue-green algae that fix nitrogen. However, Wikipedia's article on cyanobacteria indicates that one of these two definitions is inaccurate, as algae contain membrane-bound organelles and bacteria do not. The Wikipedia entry for nostoc agrees with the definition linked above, as does an article at the Michigan State University Extension website, while Britannica agrees with the puzzle. I lack time to chase any further down this rabbit hole to nail this down definitively. Have at it, and feel free to leave a comment.
assonance /A-suh-nuhns/ - the use of words that have the same or very similar vowel sounds near one another (as in “summer fun” and “rise high in the bright sky”)
A less familiar word to me than gravid, but not entirely new, also from today's Dictionary Devil, which points out that it is often used in verse as an alternative to true rhyme.
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