Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 8, 2014 is: cataract • \KAT-uh-rakt\  • noun 1 : a clouding of the lens of the eye or of its surrounding transparent membrane that obstructs the passage of light 2 a : waterfall; especially : a large one over a precipice b : steep rapids in a river c : downpour, flood Examples: "Kale contains tons of beta-carotene and lutein which can ward off blindness an...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 7, 2014 is: lionize • \LYE-uh-nyze\  • verb : to treat as an object of great interest or importance Examples: In his letter to the editor, Jeremy denounced the mass media's tendency to lionize accused murderers. "More than a music hall, the beloved nightclub in the space now occupied by The Social was a pop-culture salon. It was the place to see musicians...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 6, 2014 is: gist • \JIST\  • noun 1 : the ground of a legal action 2 : the main point or part : essence Examples: I didn't catch every word, but I heard enough to get the gist of the conversation. "If you have seen the animated children's movie Balto, you know the gist of the Iditarod story; however, there is more to the story than a mysterious wolf/dog wh...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 5, 2014 is: scavenger • \SKAV-un-jer\  • noun 1 a : one that scavenges: as b : a garbage collector c : a junk collector 2 : an organism that typically feeds on refuse or carrion Examples: The owners of the new antique shop are ace scavengers whose skills were honed during college trash-picking outings. "Hunters have long provided wildlife scavengers with f...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 4, 2014 is: risible • \RIZZ-uh-bul\  • adjective 1 a : capable of laughing b : disposed to laugh 2 : arousing or provoking laughter; especially : laughable 3 : associated with, relating to, or used in laughter Examples: Megan's friends teased her for the risible notion that one day she'd find a unicorn lurking in her yard. "[The director] has a strong comm...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 3, 2014 is: escapade • \ESS-kuh-payd\  • noun : a usually adventurous action that runs counter to approved or conventional conduct Examples: Her latest film is a screwball comedy depicting the calamitous escapades of two men who stow away on a cruise ship. "Based on the popular comic strip Little Orphan Annie, created by Harold Gray, 'Annie' portrays the e...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 2, 2014 is: peach • \PEECH\  • verb 1 : to inform against : betray 2 : to turn informer : blab Examples: Debbie peached on her friends the moment the teacher demanded to know the truth about the prank. "They'll think his lordship, or perhaps his brother, peached on them.” - From Grace Burrowes' 2013 historical romance Gabriel: Lord of Regrets Did you know?...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 1, 2014 is: aplomb • \uh-PLAHM\  • noun : complete and confident composure or self-assurance : poise Examples: On her first day as a teacher, June handled herself with aplomb, keeping the class engaged and focused. "The ample chamber orchestra under Boyagian played with zest and aplomb." - From a concert review by Zachary Lewis in The Plain Dealer (Clevela...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 30, 2014 is: svelte • \SVELT\  • adjective 1 a : slender, lithe b : having even and smooth lines : sleek 2 : urbane, suave Examples: The actress stepped onto the red carpet looking svelte in a figure-hugging dress. "A trim, more svelte typeface on federal documents would slash the government's ink expenses and could save taxpayers more than $100 million...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 29, 2014 is: fiscal • \FISS-kul\  • adjective 1 : of or relating to taxation, public revenues, or public debt 2 : of or relating to financial matters Examples: The governor was harshly criticized by his opponent for not showing more fiscal restraint during the slow economic recovery. "Let's remember that fiscal policy, or rather the financial management...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 28, 2014 is: bonnyclabber • \BAH-nee-klab-er\  • noun : sour milk that has thickened or curdled Examples: When Grandma was a little girl, one of her jobs was to feed the bonnyclabber to the chickens. "Robert Hale of Beverly, Massachusetts, washed up at the Cyr place in 1731. After a meal of bonnyclabber (a curdled milk dish akin to yogurt), fish, soup, a...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 27, 2014 is: inkhorn • \INK-horn\  • adjective : ostentatiously learned : pedantic Examples: Richard's use of inkhorn terminology in his paper didn't impress his professor, whereas simple language demonstrating a clear understanding of the material would have done the trick. "It was not until the 18th century that dictionary-makers began to include every...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 26, 2014 is: mangle • \MANG-gul\  • verb 1 : to injure with deep disfiguring wounds by cutting, tearing, or crushing 2 : to spoil, injure, or make incoherent especially through ineptitude Examples: The band thoroughly mangled their cover of the classic rock anthem. "When Sanchez was put into that preseason game against the Giants in the fourth quarter in...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 25, 2014 is: truckle • \TRUK-ul\  • verb : to act in a subservient manner : submit Examples: Duane eventually lost his job because he was unwilling to truckle to his managers and participate in their often illegal schemes. "An ever-increasing number of residents are increasingly angry at the City's truckling to business interests.…" - From an article by...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 24, 2014 is: fissiparous • \fih-SIP-uh-rus\  • adjective 1 : tending to break up into parts 2 : creating disunity or dissension : divisive Examples: The election for class president had a fissiparous effect on the school as students took sides for their favorite candidate. "In Calvinism: A History, D.G. Hart … shows how Protestantism's fissiparous nature...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 23, 2014 is: bas-relief • \bah-rih-LEEF\  • noun : sculptural relief in which the projection from the surrounding surface is slight and no part of the modeled form is undercut; also : sculpture executed in bas-relief Examples: Jamal admired the bas-reliefs carved into the walls of the ancient Assyrian palace. "Nearly 50 people … came to the unveiling on...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 22, 2014 is: cock-a-hoop • \kah-kuh-HOOP\  • adjective 1 : triumphantly boastful : exulting 2 : awry Examples: The driver's pit crew was cock-a-hoop as they watched her cross the finish line to victory lane. "The cock-a-hoop pride and sensitivity of these former colonials were mere annoyances, almost impossible to take seriously for a nation with a world...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 21, 2014 is: minutia • \muh-NOO-shee-uh\  • noun : a minute or minor detail Examples: The self-help book said it was easy to get bogged down in the minutiae of everyday life and fail to notice important opportunities. "Jackson, though, is smart enough to hire people to figure out salary caps and contract minutia." - From a column by Tim Dahlberg via the...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 20, 2014 is: cockamamy • \kah-kuh-MAY-mee\  • adjective : ridiculous, incredible Examples: Ted missed the meeting again, phoning the receptionist with some cockamamy excuse. "Colin Farrell is good in this time-traveling romance, but it's tastefully cockamamie and increasingly gloppy." - From a movie listing in The Hartford Courant (Connecticut), February...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 19, 2014 is: oblige • \uh-BLYJE\  • verb 1 : to constrain by physical, moral, or legal force or by the exigencies of circumstance 2 a : to earn the gratitude of b : to do a favor for or do something as a favor Examples: "The state's highest court Monday ruled that Long Island guitar-string maker D'Addario & Co. is not obliged to pay $227,000 in interest...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 18, 2014 is: lodestar • \LOHD-stahr\  • noun : one that serves as an inspiration, model, or guide Examples: When she started her own business, Melinda used her father's motto-"Trust your instincts"-as her lodestar. "For a generation of computer programmers, astrophysicists and other scientists, Mr. Munroe and his online comic, xkcd, have been lodestars."...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 17, 2014 is: oneiric • \oh-NYE-rik\  • adjective : of or relating to dreams : dreamy Examples: The paintings, filled with fantastical imagery conjured by the artist's imagination, have a compellingly oneiric quality. "Most of the actors here are double and triple cast, and if they barely differentiate among their roles, that just adds to the oneiric effe...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 16, 2014 is: utopia • \yoo-TOH-pee-uh\  • noun : an impractical scheme for social improvement Examples: To some people, gated communities are visions of Utopia-safe, quiet, and out of the way. "Peninsula Players has entertained generations of audiences since it was founded in 1935 by a brother-and-sister team, Caroline and Richard Fisher, who dreamed of...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 15, 2014 is: Walter Mitty • \WAWL-ter-MIT-ee\  • noun : a commonplace unadventurous person who seeks escape from reality through daydreaming Examples: Alan is a Walter Mitty who loves to read travel books but rarely ventures beyond the limits of his own small town. "Ralphie eventually has to resort to his own Walter Mitty-esque flights of fancy to deal w...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 14, 2014 is: madeleine • \MAD-uh-lun\  • noun 1 : a small rich shell-shaped cake 2 : one that evokes a memory Examples: "The evening started with wine and snacks, which included house-made charcuterie, cheese, and cornbread madeleines-the latter, I thought, a clever mashup of French and US traditions…." - From an article by Tom Philpott on MotherJones.co...