Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 3, 2009 is: pompadour • \PAHM-puh-dor\  • noun 1 a : a man's style of hairdressing in which the hair is combed into a high mound in front b : a woman's style of hairdressing in which the hair is brushed into a loose full roll around the face 2 : hair dressed in a pompadour Examples: The actress Katharine Hepburn is nearly as well known for her pompadour a...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 2, 2009 is: melee • \MAY-lay\  • noun : a confused struggle; especially : a hand-to-hand fight among several people Examples: The shoppers' voices grew tense as they argued over the last Cool Sally doll, and for a moment I feared that a melee might erupt. Did you know? "Fray," "donnybrook," "brawl," "fracas": there are many English words for confused and...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 1, 2009 is: tenebrous • \TEN-uh-brus\  • adjective 1 : shut off from the light : dark, murky 2 : hard to understand : obscure 3 : causing gloom Examples: "A zigzag line of windows … cuts up from the base of the building, bringing light into its once-tenebrous interior." (Philip Kennicott, The Washington Post, September 28, 2008) Did you know? "Tenebrous"...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 31, 2009 is: spurious • \SPYUR-ee-us\  • adjective 1 : of illegitimate birth 2 : not genuine : false Examples: Reid’s claim that his grandfather was friends with Mickey Mantle sounded spurious to me, and I didn't believe it until he showed me a photo of his grandfather alongside the legendary slugger. Did you know? The classical Latin adjective "spurius" s...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 30, 2009 is: subvention • \sub-VEN-shun\  • noun a : the provision of assistance or financial support: as b : endowment c : a subsidy from a government or foundation Examples: The earliest documented subvention for the museum was a grant from the federal government in 1853. Did you know? A subvention is a form of assistance, so it should come as no surpris...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 29, 2009 is: malinger • \muh-LING-gur\  • verb : to pretend or exaggerate incapacity or illness (as to avoid duty or work) Examples: The beautiful spring weather put Lynn in a mood to malinger, so she called in sick to work and headed to the park. Did you know? Do you know someone who always seems to develop an ailment when there's work to be done? Someone...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 28, 2009 is: eclogue • \ECK-log\  • noun : a poem in which shepherds converse Examples: "Be it in the appropriation of the goatherd or shepherd in the pastoral eclogue, or the neatly controlled terraces of the Georgics, the pastoral has always been an idyllicised representation of the rural world...." (John Kinsella, The Literary Review, January 2005) Did...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 27, 2009 is: jocund • \JAH-kund\  • adjective : marked by or suggestive of high spirits and lively mirthfulness Examples: I had heard that Perry had been in a sour mood lately, so I was surprised and relieved to discover that he was his usual jocund self when he met me for coffee. Did you know? Don't let the etymology of "jocund" play tricks on you. The wo...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 26, 2009 is: Philadelphia lawyer • \fill-uh-DELL-fee-uh-LAW-yer\  • noun : a lawyer knowledgeable in the most minute aspects of the law Examples: When they realized that their broker had cozened them to gain fatter commissions, Brad and Julia quickly hired a team of Philadelphia lawyers to comb through their financial contracts and file a lawsuit. Did you...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 25, 2009 is: obnubilate • \ahb-NOO-buh-layt\  • verb : becloud, obscure Examples: The essays include a significant amount of digression and extra commentary, all of which tends to obnubilate the author's main point. Did you know? The meaning of "obnubilate" becomes clearer when you know that its ancestors are the Latin terms "ob-" (meaning "in the way") an...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 24, 2009 is: destitute • \DESS-tuh-toot\  • adjective 1 : lacking something needed or desirable 2 : lacking possessions and resources; especially : suffering extreme poverty Examples: "He gave thanks for our food and comfort, and prayed for the poor and destitute in great cities, where the struggle for life was harder than it was here with us." (Willa Cath...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 23, 2009 is: manumit • \man-yuh-MIT\  • verb : to release from slavery Examples: After they were manumitted by the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865, millions of former slaves celebrated their newfound freedom. Did you know? To set someone free from captivity is in effect to release that person from the hand, or control, of the captor. You c...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 22, 2009 is: carrefour • \kair-uh-FOOR\  • noun 1 : crossroads 2 : square, plaza Examples: “The farmers as a rule preferred the open carrefour for their transactions, despite its inconvenient jostlings and the danger from crossing vehicles….” (Thomas Hardy, The Mayor of Casterbridge) Did you know? An interesting thing about "carrefour" is that even though...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 21, 2009 is: plenary • \PLEE-nuh-ree\  • adjective 1 : complete in every respect : absolute, unqualified 2 : fully attended or constituted by all entitled to be present Examples: The U.S. Congress has plenary power to pass laws regulating immigration and naturalization. Did you know? In the 14th century, the monk Robert of Brunne described a situation in w...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 20, 2009 is: deasil • \DEE-zil\  • adv : clockwise Examples: One pictograph shows a group of warriors dancing deasil around what appears to be a gigantic wild boar speared numerous times. Did you know? According to an old custom, you can bring someone good fortune by walking around the person clockwise three times while carrying a torch or candle. In Scott...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 19, 2009 is: posture • \PAHSS-cher\  • verb 1 : to strike a pose for effect 2 : to assume an artificial or pretended attitude : attitudinize Examples: Posturing as pro-worker, he won the support of the trade unions, only to cave in to big business almost the minute he got elected. Did you know? Can you guess which of the following come from the same Latin...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 18, 2009 is: cupidity • \kyoo-PID-uh-tee\  • noun 1 : inordinate desire for wealth : avarice, greed 2 : strong desire : lust Examples: "This time, developing-world economies far from the pinstriped epicentres of mass cupidity are suffering massive collateral damage as the global downturn cuts heavily into demand for their agricultural and resource commodit...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 17, 2009 is: domiciliary • \dah-muh-SILL-ee-air-ee\  • adjective a : of, relating to, or constituting a domicile: as b : provided or taking place in the home c : providing care and living space (as for disabled veterans) Examples: Citing the need to provide more assistance to the state's homeless veterans, the veterans home has asked the legislature to inc...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 16, 2009 is: repudiate • \rih-PYOO-dee-ayt\  • verb 1 : to refuse to have anything to do with : disown 2 : to refuse to acknowledge, accept, or pay Examples: The nation's president has unequivocally repudiated the arms treaty, and it is very probable that he has green-lighted the manufacturing of strategic nuclear weapons. Did you know? In Latin, the noun...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 15, 2009 is: scrupulous • \SKROO-pyuh-lus\  • adjective 1 : having moral integrity : acting in strict regard for what is considered right or proper 2 : punctiliously exact : painstaking Examples: In The House of Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne writes that it would be unseemly for Judge Pyncheon, a man "generally so scrupulous in his attire," to wear a st...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 14, 2009 is: bludge • \BLUJ\  • verb, chiefly Australia & New Zealand 1 : to avoid work or responsibility 2 : to get something from or live on another by imposing on hospitality or good nature : sponge Examples: "If I want to go to Rotto, I’ll catch the ferry or bludge a ride on the new boat of one of my commodity-boomed nouveau riche friends." (Phil Haber...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 13, 2009 is: calamari • \kah-luh-MAHR-ee\  • noun : squid used as food Examples: Ophelia tried fried calamari for the first time from a small seafood shack near the beach. Did you know? The word "calamari" was borrowed into English from 17th-century Italian, where it functioned as the plural of "calamaro" or "calamaio." The Italian word, in turn, comes fro...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 12, 2009 is: ulterior • \ul-TEER-ee-er\  • adjective 1 a : further, future b : more distant : remoter c : situated on the farther side : thither 2 : going beyond what is openly said or shown and especially what is proper Examples: "The poet, by an ulterior intellectual perception, gives [symbols] a power which makes their old use forgotten, and puts eyes,...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 11, 2009 is: whinge • \WINJ\  • verb : to complain fretfully : whine Examples: She urged her fellow workers to stop whinging about how they were victims of "the system" and to do something to change that system. Did you know? "Whinge" isn't just a spelling variant of "whine." "Whinge" and "whine" are actually entirely different words with separate historie...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 10, 2009 is: fidelity • \fuh-DELL-uh-tee\  • noun 1 : the quality or state of being faithful 2 : accuracy Examples: Jake's fidelity to his employer was severely tested when he received a tempting offer from another company. Did you know? You can have faith in "fidelity," which has existed in English since the 15th century; its etymological path winds back...