Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 29, 2012 is: famish • \FAM-ish\  • verb 1 : to cause to suffer severely from hunger 2 : to suffer for lack of something necessary Examples: "Set him breast-deep in earth and famish him, / There let him stand and rave and cry for food." - From Act V, Scene iii of William Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus, 1593-94 "In northern Wisconsin, snow is like a col...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 28, 2012 is: hortative • \HOR-tuh-tiv\  • adjective : giving exhortation : serving to advise or warn Examples: The candidate's hortative style of speaking appealed to some voters but led others to dismiss him as a blowhard. "But it's important to remember that 'Jersey Shore' is on MTV, a youth-oriented cable channel that has a hortative streak: series...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 27, 2012 is: vapid • \VAP-id\  • adjective : lacking liveliness, tang, briskness, or force : flat, dull Examples: The movie was billed as a gripping political thriller but turned out to be a vapid film with a slow pace and a poorly written script. "It seems natural to conclude from all this vapid, buoyant patter that neither candidate has a plausible...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 26, 2012 is: sederunt • \suh-DEER-unt\  • noun : a prolonged sitting (as for discussion) Examples: "This letter is a report of a long sederunt ... at Davos Platz, Dec. 15, 1880." - From a letter by Robert Louis Stevenson, dated December 19, 1880 "A proposed schedule was passed, whereby (among other things) informal, job fair-style briefing groups will...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 25, 2012 is: numen • \NOO-mun\  • noun : a spiritual force or influence often identified with a natural object, phenomenon, or place Examples: We were in a village that had hardly changed in a thousand years, and we felt a numen that transcended earthly religions and human histories. "For the Technology Man, the Internet is the glue that holds our glo...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 24, 2012 is: obdurate • \AHB-duh-rut\  • adjective 1 a : stubbornly persistent in wrongdoing b : hardened in feelings 2 : resistant to persuasion or softening influences Examples: I pleaded with my boss for a second chance, explaining the unusual circumstances that had caused my tardiness, but he remained obdurate. "Even with a regime as obdurate as t...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 23, 2012 is: yahoo • \YAH-hoo\  • noun : a boorish, crass, or stupid person Examples: Henrietta had a few choice words for the yahoo who blocked her driveway with his pickup truck. "'The night watchman down there picked up something on a motion detector and looked around and saw these two yahoos trying to carry off a pretty good size chunk of bronze a...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 22, 2012 is: cloister • \KLOY-ster\  • verb : to confine in or as if in a cloister : to shut away from the world Examples: Julie declared that she was going to cloister herself and study as hard as she could until the exam. "Cloistered for debate prep at a resort in Williamsburg, Va., the president devoted his weekly radio and internet address to the...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 21, 2012 is: prestigious • \preh-STIJ-us\  • adjective : having an illustrious name or reputation : esteemed in general opinion Examples: She has become the youngest author ever to receive this prestigious literary award. "Check the results that year from the Great American Beer Festival, an annual Denver event widely seen as the nation's most prestig...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 20, 2012 is: tartar • \TAHR-ter\  • noun 1 : a person of irritable or violent temper 2 : one that proves to be unexpectedly formidable Examples: "Strange that one whom I have described hitherto as so timid and easily put upon should prove such a Tartar all of a sudden on the day of his marriage." - From Samuel Butler's 1903 autobiographical novel The...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 19, 2012 is: lambaste • \lam-BAYST\  • verb 1 : to assault violently : beat, whip 2 : to attack verbally : censure Examples: The coach loudly lambasted Danny in front of the whole team for showing up late yet again. "Even as Michigan lawmakers lambaste the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for not moving fast enough to develop a permanent plan to stop Asia...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 18, 2012 is: pertinacious • \per-tuh-NAY-shus\  • adjective 1 a : adhering resolutely to an opinion, purpose, or design b : perversely persistent 2 : stubbornly tenacious Examples: He has spent his entire adult life as a pertinacious and unwavering defender of civil rights. "The 22-year-old paraplegic hasn't let his life-changing accident slow him dow...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 17, 2012 is: misnomer • \miss-NOH-mer\  • noun 1 : the misnaming of a person in a legal instrument 2 a : a use of a wrong or inappropriate name b : a wrong name or inappropriate designation Examples: "International Airport" is something of a misnomer, since almost all of the arriving and departing planes fly short, commuter routes involving no border...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 16, 2012 is: ratiocination • \rat-ee-oh-suh-NAY-shun\  • noun 1 : the process of exact thinking : reasoning 2 : a reasoned train of thought Examples: "There was very little ratiocination involved; very little intellect came into play." - From Brad Meltzer's 2011 thriller The Inner Circle "The detective uses a method-whether it is science, some other r...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 15, 2012 is: unwieldy • \un-WEEL-dee\  • adjective : not easily managed, handled, or used (as because of bulk, weight, complexity, or awkwardness) : cumbersome Examples: The futon mattress was heavy and unwieldy, and the only effective way to move it was to slide it across the floor. "In the U.S., unwieldy, multimillion-dollar sports businesses are ho...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 14, 2012 is: watershed • \WAW-ter-shed\  • noun 1 a : a dividing ridge between drainage areas b : a region or area bounded peripherally by a divide and draining ultimately to a particular watercourse or body of water 2 : a crucial dividing point, line, or factor : turning point Examples: Historians generally agree that the battle was a watershed in th...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 13, 2012 is: eructation • \ih-ruk-TAY-shun\  • noun : an act or instance of belching Examples: Excessive eructation is a common side-effect of that particular medication. "Granted, American political campaigns since 1789 have often been vicious, with presidential candidates accused (usually falsely) of sins ranging from bigamy, bribery and drunkenness...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 12, 2012 is: biddable • \BID-uh-bul\  • adjective 1 : easily led, taught, or controlled : docile 2 : capable of being bid Examples: "The twins are well-behaved children, biddable, meek, neat about their clothes, and always mindful of the proprieties they have learned at summer hotels." - From Willa Cather's 1915 novel *The Song of the Lark * "The dogs...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 11, 2012 is: flotsam • \FLAHT-sum\  • noun 1 : floating wreckage of a ship or its cargo; broadly : floating debris 2 a : miscellaneous or unimportant material b : debris, remains Examples: The young couple's apartment was adorned with the flotsam and jetsam of thrift stores and yard sales. "A current moves at its own pace and pushes along whatever flo...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 10, 2012 is: dissemble • \dih-SEM-bul\  • verb 1 : to put on a false appearance : to conceal facts, intentions, or feelings under some pretense 2 : to hide (something) under a false appearance 3 : to put on the appearance of : simulate Examples: In order to stay on his bosses' good side, John dissembled about his intention to look for a new job at the...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 9, 2012 is: kaput • \kuh-PUT\  • adjective 1 : utterly finished, defeated, or destroyed 2 : unable to function : useless 3 : hopelessly outmoded Examples: Shortly after Richard retired as CEO, the firm went kaput. "We humans casually disrobed on social networks and pranced about, then one day caught sight of ourselves in the mirror and are now, egad,...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 8, 2012 is: stem-winder • \STEM-wyne-der\  • noun 1 : a stem-winding watch 2 : one that is first-rate of its kind; especially : a stirring speech Examples: Stuart is a stem-winder as a defense attorney. "In his 48-minute stem-winder Wednesday, the former president showed everyone why he's a master political communicator." - From an article by Linda Fe...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 7, 2012 is: comestible • \kuh-MESS-tuh-bul\  • adjective : edible Examples: The November issue of the magazine was filled with recipes for an old-fashioned Thanksgiving feast, including candied yams, homemade cranberry sauce, mincemeat pie, and other comestible delights. "This year's delegates (that's what people who attend the Oct. 25-29 [culinary] f...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 6, 2012 is: bugbear • \BUG-bair\  • noun 1 : an imaginary goblin or specter used to excite fear 2 a : an object or source of dread b : a continuing source of irritation : problem Examples: The biggest bugbear of the skiing business is a winter with no snow. "Smartphones are getting better all the time, but one area that's always been a little bit of a...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 5, 2012 is: gorgonize • \GOR-guh-nyze\  • verb : to have a paralyzing or mesmerizing effect on : stupefy, petrify Examples: Dave joked that his boss's angry glare could gorgonize an employee in mid-complaint. "Izzy asked Sol why he was willing to take us. She gave him a look that would gorgonize." - From W.S. Milner's 2001 book In Translation Did you...