Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 10, 2012 is: lenticular • \len-TIK-yuh-ler\  • adjective 1 : having the shape of a double-convex lens 2 : of or relating to a lens 3 : provided with or utilizing lenticules Examples: Amateur astronomers might be interested in what the observatory markets as the "largest lenticular telescope on Earth." "Recently installed in the tunnel was a lenticular...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 9, 2012 is: viand • \VYE-und\  • noun 1 : an item of food; especially : a choice or tasty dish 2 : provisions, food Examples: "The family sat down to table, and a frugal meal of cold viands was deposited before them." - From Thomas Hardy’s novel Tess of the d’Urbervilles, 1891 "While living in the South's grand old Charleston, S.C., my Yankee roots sti...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 8, 2012 is: illustrious • \ih-LUSS-tree-us\  • adjective : notably or brilliantly outstanding because of dignity or achievements or actions : eminent Examples: During the ceremony, the illustrious star of stage and screen was presented with a lifetime achievement award. "Born in 1843 to a wealthy, intellectual Boston family, Marian (Clover) Hooper move...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 7, 2012 is: memento • \muh-MEN-toh\  • noun : something that serves to warn or remind; also : souvenir Examples: The attic is filled with mementos of Julie's basketball career-awards, newspaper clippings, team photographs, her old uniform. "All season long Michel Hazanavicius and Bérénice Bejo, the husband-and-wife writer-director and star of 'The Arti...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 6, 2012 is: conjecture • \kun-JEK-cher\  • verb 1 : to arrive at or deduce by surmise or guesswork : guess 2 : to form a supposition or inference Examples: Some scientists have conjectured that the distant planet could sustain life. "[Kim Kardashian's] changing wardrobe, everyone conjectured, must be Kanye's influence-he's a bona fide designer these da...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 5, 2012 is: devoir • \duh-VWAHR\  • noun 1 : duty, responsibility 2 : a usually formal act of civility or respect Examples: "The Grand Master, having allowed the apology of Albert Malvoisin, commanded the herald to stand forth and do his devoir." - From Sir Walter Scott's 1819 novel Ivanhoe "Our feet are always faithful, never fickle. Now, don't contra...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 4, 2012 is: seriocomic • \seer-ee-oh-KAH-mik\  • adjective : having a mixture of the serious and the comic Examples: The intergenerational meal was a seriocomic affair, with the younger generation refereeing the jabs their elders hurled at one another while trying to keep the youngest generation from getting a true sense of just what was going on. "Ins...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 3, 2012 is: placate • \PLAY-kayt\  • verb : to soothe or mollify especially by concessions : to calm the anger or bitterness of Examples: In an effort to placate the angry customer, the store manager replaced the defective product with a more expensive model at no extra charge. "He said he supported the septic tank tax but voted against it to placate t...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 2, 2012 is: fourth estate • \FORTH-ih-STAYT\  • noun : the public press Examples: "We should all be concerned," the senator asserted, "about the plight of newspapers and the consequences of a weakened fourth estate on our democracy." "As someone firmly entrenched in the fourth estate, I am not too agreeable to most censoring, and would fight such impos...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 1, 2012 is: excoriate • \ek-SKOR-ee-ayt\  • verb 1 : to wear off the skin of : abrade 2 : to censure scathingly Examples: "Every blow that shakes it will serve to harden it against a future stroke; as constant labour thickens the skin of the hand, and strengthens its muscles instead of wasting them away: so that a day of arduous toil, that might excori...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 30, 2012 is: bombinate • \BAHM-buh-nayt\  • verb : buzz, drone Examples: The only sounds Jared could hear in the office that night were those of his own typing and the air conditioner bombinating. "Time passes in Suttree, but nothing and no one develops-excepting, perhaps, time itself in its running out. People fart around, they raise a little local...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 29, 2012 is: elegiac • \el-uh-JYE-ak\  • adjective 1 a : of, relating to, or consisting of two dactylic hexameter lines the second of which lacks the arsis in the third and sixth feet b : of or relating to the period in Greece about the seventh century B.C. when poetry written in such couplets flourished 2 : of, relating to, or comprising elegy or an...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 28, 2012 is: dearth • \DERTH\  • noun 1 : scarcity that makes dear; specifically : famine 2 : an inadequate supply : lack Examples: Teri had forgotten to bring a book, and the dearth of reading material in her uncle's house had her visiting the town library the first morning of her stay. "This wryly funny take on the classic ghost story, with its tri...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 27, 2012 is: festinate • \FESS-tuh-nut\  • adjective : hasty Examples: "I assure you," said the Ambassador, "I am all too aware of the dangers inherent in a festinate decision." "Novell's proxy servers, caching and firewalls may not be such utter failures, but growth in crowded fields dominated by companies with better track records is just as illuso...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 26, 2012 is: interrobang • \in-TAIR-uh-bang\  • noun : a punctuation mark ‽ designed for use especially at the end of an exclamatory rhetorical question Examples: The essay was peppered with interrobangs and exclamation points, communicating-intentionally or not-an incredulity and outrage that didn't feel very hospitable. "Inevitably, however, you'll...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 25, 2012 is: hypothecate • \hye-PAH-thuh-kayt\  • verb : to make an assumption for the sake of argument : hypothesize Examples: The students hypothecated that plants under observation would have different reactions when exposed to artificial light versus natural light. "'Can someone hypothecate where Scotland and Yorkshire would rank in the medal tab...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 24, 2012 is: kitsch • \KITCH\  • noun 1 : something that appeals to popular or lowbrow taste and is often of poor quality 2 : a tacky or lowbrow quality or condition Examples: The "country store" seemed to sell mostly cheaply made kitsch and other tacky memorabilia. "Across the board there was a welcome absence of kitsch." - From a review by Guy Treb...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 23, 2012 is: forsooth • \fer-SOOTH\  • adverb : in truth : indeed - often used to imply contempt or doubt Examples: "Yes, forsooth, I will hold my tongue; so your face bids me, though you say nothing." - From Shakespeare's King Lear, Act I, Scene iv "Forsooth, your kids aren't into Shakespeare? They will be once they see the Rebel Shakespeare Company...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 22, 2012 is: emolument • \ih-MAHL-yuh-munt\  • noun : the returns arising from office or employment usually in the form of compensation or perquisites Examples: James has contributed countless volunteer hours to the organization and continues to refuse any emolument for his work. "For her first six years Johnson, though serving full-time on the court...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 21, 2012 is: orphic • \OR-fik\  • adjective 1 : of or relating to Orpheus or the rites or doctrines ascribed to him 2 : of, relating to, being, or resembling an oracle : oracular, mystic 3 : fascinating, entrancing Examples: "'No summer ever came back, and no two summers ever were alike,' said I, with a degree of Orphic wisdom that astonished myself....

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 20, 2012 is: rebuff • \rih-BUFF\  • verb : to reject or criticize sharply Examples: I offered my sister several helpful suggestions, but she rebuffed them all. "A Nevada Legislative Committee studying the state's consolidated tax system agreed with its technical working group and rebuffed a request by the City of Fernley for a larger share of the C-T...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 19, 2012 is: tincture • \TINK-cher\  • noun 1 : color, tint 2 a : a characteristic quality : case b : a slight admixture : trace 3 : a solution of a medicinal substance in an alcoholic solvent Examples: The herbalist offered to mix up a tincture that would cure Katie's headaches. "A popular home-remedy suggestion making the rounds in Amish circles sa...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 18, 2012 is: volatile • \VAH-luh-tul\  • adjective 1 : readily vaporizable at a relatively low temperature 2 : tending to erupt into violence : explosive 3 : characterized by or subject to rapid or unexpected change Examples: The country's unsteady economy is due to volatile global markets and the new government's rash economic reforms. "Beef prices,...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 17, 2012 is: futhark • \FOO-thahrk\  • noun : any of several alphabets used by the Germanic peoples from about the 3d to the 13th centuries - called also the runic alphabet Examples: The people used futhark, which was divided into three families of eight signs each. Did you know? The word "futhark" describes an alphabet originally of 24 and later of...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for September 16, 2012 is: mercurial • \mer-KYUR-ee-ul\  • adjective 1 : characterized by rapid and unpredictable changeableness of mood 2 : of, relating to, containing, or caused by mercury Examples: "Uncle Chris felt a touch of embarrassment. It occurred to him that he had been betrayed by his mercurial temperament into an attitude which, considering the circums...