Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 1, 2017 is: hard-boiled • \HAHRD-BOYLD\  • adjective 1 a : devoid of sentimentality : tough b : of, relating to, or being a detective story featuring a tough unsentimental protagonist and a matter-of-fact attitude towards violence 2 : hardheaded, practical Examples: The young tycoon proved that to be successful in the cutthroat world of business you n...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 31, 2017 is: kibitzer • \KIB-it-ser\  • noun : one who looks on and often offers unwanted advice or comment; broadly : one who offers opinions Examples: It wasn't long after they bought their house that Dana and Regan heard from kibitzers in the neighborhood offering tips on design and remodeling. "'Bill [Clinton] can't help himself from giving advice....

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 30, 2017 is: fastidious • \fass-TID-ee-us\  • adjective 1 a : having high and often capricious standards : difficult to please b : showing or demanding excessive delicacy or care c : reflecting a meticulous, sensitive, or demanding attitude 2 : having complex nutritional requirements Examples: "I may have thrown in a little thing here or there, but I'm...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 29, 2017 is: macerate • \MASS-uh-rayt\  • verb 1 : to cause to waste away by or as if by excessive fasting 2 : to soften by steeping or soaking so as to separate the parts Examples: "Absinthe is made by macerating herbs and spices … with the grand wormwood (Artemisia absinthium) that gives the drink its name." — Julia Reed, Newsweek, 12 Apr. 2010 "Choo...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 28, 2017 is: dander • \DAN-der\  • noun 1 : dandruff; specifically : minute scales from hair, feathers, or skin that may be allergenic 2 : anger, temper Examples: Farrah liked dogs, but she couldn't own one because she was allergic to pet dander. "If you had to start a new Western state from scratch and you got to choose a natural landmark that would b...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 27, 2017 is: omnibus • \AHM-nih-bus\  • adjective 1 : of, relating to, or providing for many things at once 2 : containing or including many items Examples: "Michael Counts … invites you on a blind date with 17 playwrights. They have taken over the Lower East Side club Fat Baby for this immersive, omnibus evening, which features an array of [one-act pl...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 26, 2017 is: barbican • \BAR-bih-kun\  • noun : an outer defensive work; especially : a tower at a gate or bridge Examples: "He heard the voices of the sentries in the barbican as they conversed with the newcomers." — Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Mad King, 1926 "The result is an honest-to-goodness fairy-tale castle that sits perched on a hilltop, guarding...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 25, 2017 is: ab ovo • \ab-OH-voh\  • adverb : from the beginning Examples: "Given Arthur's fondness for approaching a problem ab ovo, without reference to previous results, and adding to it a certain obscurity of presentation that even I, who knew him well, had found disturbing, it was a wonder that he had done as well as he had." — Charles Sheffield,...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 24, 2017 is: uncouth • \un-KOOTH\  • adjective 1 : strange or clumsy in shape or appearance : outlandish 2 : lacking in polish and grace : rugged 3 : awkward and uncultivated in appearance, manner, or behavior : rude Examples: "Increasingly, consumers are turning to mints and breath-freshening strips that don't come with gum's social baggage—namely, ho...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 23, 2017 is: sanction • \SANK-shun\  • verb 1 : to make valid or binding usually by a formal procedure (such as ratification) 2 : to give effective or authoritative approval or consent to Examples: Because he was using equipment that was not sanctioned by league officials, Jared was disqualified from the competition. "Villanova University this summer w...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 22, 2017 is: vanguard • \VAN-gahrd\  • noun 1 : the troops moving at the head of an army 2 : the forefront of an action or movement Examples: The general received a report from scouts in the vanguard that the swampy terrain was not passable. "Students have long been at the vanguard of South Korea's robust history of protest, drawing on deep-rooted Conf...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 21, 2017 is: xylography • \zye-LAH-gruh-fee\  • noun : the art of making engravings on wood especially for printing Examples: Xylography attracted the attention of early modernists, including Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky. "[Angelo] Aversa relished the way that xylography moved from inspiration to wood selection to pencil drawing to ink drawing to...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 20, 2017 is: tenet • \TEN-ut\  • noun : a principle, belief, or doctrine generally held to be true; especially : one held in common by members of an organization, movement, or profession Examples: According to many, the first tenet of real estate is that location is fundamental to determining the value of a property. "A basic tenet of [Frank Lloyd] Wri...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 19, 2017 is: whimsical • \WIM-zih-kul\  • adjective 1 : full of, actuated by, or exhibiting capricious or eccentric and often sudden ideas or turns of the mind : relating to whims 2 a : resulting from or characterized by whim or caprice; especially : lightly fanciful b : subject to erratic behavior or unpredictable change Examples: "In 2008, she decide...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 18, 2017 is: raiment • \RAY-munt\  • noun : clothing, garments Examples: "On their arrival the station was lively with straw-hatted young men, welcoming young girls who bore a remarkable family likeness to their welcomers, and who were dressed up in the brightest and lightest of raiment." — Thomas Hardy, Jude the Obscure, 1895 "A deepest navy cashmere...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 17, 2017 is: abstemious • \ab-STEE-mee-us\  • adjective : marked by restraint especially in the consumption of food or alcohol; also : reflecting such restraint Examples: Allie's midlife heart attack opened her eyes to the importance of taking care of her body and turned her to a more abstemious and healthful lifestyle. "He is so abstemious that he onc...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 16, 2017 is: paladin • \PAL-uh-din\  • noun 1 : a trusted military leader (as for a medieval prince) 2 : a leading champion of a cause Examples: The prince summoned the paladin to commend him for his actions in battle. "This collection of stories by one of England's best novelists is both playful and serious in the manner of Laurence Sterne, the 18th-c...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 15, 2017 is: cantankerous • \kan-TANK-uh-rus\  • adjective : difficult or irritating to deal with Examples: "[Kenneth] Lonergan's brow was furrowed, and he was speaking, as he often does, in a low, growling mumble.… Among his theatre and movie-industry peers, he is famous for being famously cantankerous." — Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 7 Nov. 2016 "Fa...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 14, 2017 is: neologism • \nee-AH-luh-jiz-um\  • noun 1 : a new word, usage, or expression 2 : (psychology) a new word that is coined especially by a person affected with schizophrenia and is meaningless except to the coiner Examples: The novelist's latest book is peppered with numerous slang words and neologisms that might not be familiar to some reade...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 13, 2017 is: effrontery • \ih-FRUN-tuh-ree\  • noun : shameless boldness : insolence Examples: Holly could not believe the effrontery of the student who asked that her grade be changed even though she had completed little of the coursework. "'I [Amanda Seyfried] once made a pecan pie for a guy I was dating, and we had a nice meal … with friends, and th...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 12, 2017 is: lachrymose • \LAK-ruh-mohss\  • adjective 1 : given to tears or weeping : tearful 2 : tending to cause tears : mournful Examples: "… [Art] Garfunkel has always been partial to lachrymose sentiment. Listen, for instance, to his 1979 hit Bright Eyes, a song that targets the tear duct … and here summed up the tone of the evening." — Patrick S...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 11, 2017 is: gambol • \GAM-bul\  • verb : to skip about in play : frisk, frolic Examples: From her cabana, Candace watched her three children gambol in the ocean waves. "… Canandaigua has now joined the list of communities … where jittery citizens have reported the appearance of scary clowns. A few instances have involved real people gamboling in publi...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 10, 2017 is: jitney • \JIT-nee\  • noun 1 : a small bus that carries passengers over a regular route on a flexible schedule 2 : an unlicensed taxicab Examples: After doing some shopping along the boardwalk, we boarded a jitney whose route took us back to our hotel. "Another option, especially if you're staying along Cable Beach or areas west, is to hop...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 9, 2017 is: immutable • \ih-MYOO-tuh-bul\  • adjective : not capable of or susceptible to change Examples: "There's an immutable attraction between fingers and potato chips, making resistance, as the saying goes, futile." — Michele Henry, The Toronto Star, 30 Nov. 2016 "Like much of the American heartland, the summertime landscape in Iowa's Webster Cou...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 8, 2017 is: haberdasher • \HAB-er-dash-er\  • noun 1 : (British) a dealer in notions (such as needles, thread, buttons, etc.) 2 : a dealer in men's clothing and accessories Examples: Mr. Watson planned to visit the haberdasher during the week to buy some new shirts for his wardrobe. "There was a time when downtown St. Louis was known for its clothing a...