Etymology, entomology, superficial and superfluous - ah, and don't forget supercilious

I've heard them all, as in "Don't you want to know the entomology of that word?"  Huh?  No, ma'am, I don't.  I'd much rather know what its etymology is!

Entomology (n) is the study of insects.  Etymology the study of the origin of words. 

Superficial is not the same as superfluous or the same - or even similar to - supercilious. 

Superficial (adj) means concerning surface, the crust of something, the outer shell, anything that's only skin deep (Paris Hilton?), as in "Her new boyfriend is truly superficial," implying that he's an airhead (there are those who would have preferred that I use girlfriend, but this is an equal opportunity blog).  Superficial also describes a physical characteristic, as in "The superficial layers of Mars may contain some evidence of water."  Very simply, superficial is the opposite of deep, physically or emotionally.

Superfluous (adj) means excessive, extra, unnecessary, unneeded, as in, "She doused herself with another superfluous spray of perfume before returning to the table."

Ah, then, there's supercilious (adj), a nose-up-in-the-air haughtiness, snobbism.  Here I can break down the word into its components for clarity: "super" over, from the Latin superciliosus, meaning eyebrow.  A supercilious fellow is one who looks down his nose with raised eyebrows at his degenerate audience.  It is an unpleasant arrogance, disdain of people who think they are better than anyone else. 

Maggie Smith has played that well on several occasions.  Think the supercilious art dealer, or the demanding schoolteacher.