Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 9, 2009 is: otiose • \OH-shee-ohss\  • adjective 1 : producing no useful result : futile 2 : being at leisure : idle 3 : lacking use or effect : functionless Examples: "Half the streets are cobbled and half wide, empty, modern highways at whose pretentious crossings an occasional rickshaw waits for the otiose traffic lights to change to green." (Ian Flemin...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 8, 2009 is: aggrandize • \uh-GRAN-dyze\  • verb 1 : to increase or enlarge 2 : to praise highly 3 : to enhance the power, wealth, position, or reputation of Examples: The organization’s spokesperson seemed to be more interested in aggrandizing herself than in raising money for charity. Did you know? "Aggrandize" has enhanced the English vocabulary since th...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 7, 2009 is: oneiric • \oh-NYE-rik\  • adjective : of or relating to dreams : dreamy Examples: "Héberlé gives the film a wonderfully dreamlike patina, combining bright pastels and hard primary colors that mesh quite nicely with the directors' vaguely oneiric staging." (George Robinson, The New York Jewish Week, March 21, 2008) Did you know? The notion of us...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 6, 2009 is: embonpoint • \ahng-bohng-PWANG (the "ng" is never pronounced, but the vowels a\  • noun : plumpness of person : stoutness Examples: The judge was a man of stately embonpoint who walked with a heavy step as he entered the courtroom. Did you know? "Embonpoint" is most often used to describe people of heavy, but not unattractive, girth. It derives...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 5, 2009 is: brandish • \BRAN-dish\  • verb 1 : to shake or wave (as a weapon) menacingly 2 : to exhibit in an ostentatious or aggressive manner Examples: Protestors showed up on the steps of City Hall, brandishing a petition signed by 500 people demanding that the city not close the public skate park. Did you know? Most of the time when we encounter the wo...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 4, 2009 is: bombast • \BAHM-bast\  • noun : pretentious inflated speech or writing Examples: Laura complained that the editorial columns in her local newspaper were full of bombast and offered little in the way of intelligent opinion. Did you know? The original meaning of "bombast" (now obsolete) is "cotton or any soft fibrous material used as padding or s...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 3, 2009 is: hoary • \HOR-ee\  • adjective 1 : gray or white with or as if with age 2 : extremely old : ancient Examples: "In those days a multitude of delicate flowers and sprays of wild herbage had found a friendly soil in the hoary crevices...." (Henry James, Roderick Hudson) Did you know? "How to save the old that's worth saving ... is one of our greate...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 2, 2009 is: gadzookery • \gad-ZOO-kuh-ree\  • noun : the use of archaisms (as in a historical novel) Examples: Bridget’s novel, set in colonial Virginia, features an engaging and cohesive plot, but the dialogue contains so much gadzookery that it doesn’t sound realistic. Did you know? "Gadzooks . . . you astonish me!" cries Mr. Lenville in Charles Dickens'...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 1, 2009 is: sandbag • \SAND-bag\  • verb 1 : to bank, stop up, or weight with sandbags 2 a : to hit or stun with or as if with a sandbag b : to treat unfairly or harshly 3 : to conceal or misrepresent one's true position, potential, or intent especially in order to take advantage of Examples: Shortly after agreeing to place a wager on the match, I realized...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 30, 2009 is: dilatory • \DILL-uh-tor-ee\  • adjective 1 : tending or intended to cause delay 2 : characterized by procrastination : tardy Examples: The Senator's seemingly endless motions to adjourn were clearly dilatory. Did you know? Slow down. Set a leisurely pace. What's the hurry? If procrastination is your style, "dilatory" is the word for you. Tha...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 29, 2009 is: apathy • \AP-uh-thee\  • noun 1 : lack of feeling or emotion : impassiveness 2 : lack of interest or concern : indifference Examples: Every electoral season, editorials in the local newspaper complain about voter apathy and cynicism. Did you know? There's no reason to be uncaring about the origins of "apathy" -- though there is a clue to the...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 28, 2009 is: chirography • \kye-RAH-gruh-fee\  • noun 1 : handwriting, penmanship 2 : calligraphy Examples: As she leafed through her father's old book, Sheila noted that its margins were filled with annotations made in his distinct chirography. Did you know? Some might argue that handwriting is a dying art in this age of electronic communication. Nevert...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 27, 2009 is: inveterate • \in-VET-uh-rut\  • adjective 1 : firmly established by long persistence 2 : confirmed in a habit : habitual Examples: Since Ernie is an inveterate liar, we naturally didn’t believe him when he told us he’d met the movie star. Did you know? Like "veteran," "inveterate" ultimately comes from Latin "vetus," which means "old," and w...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 26, 2009 is: case-harden • \KAYS-hahr-dun\  • verb 1 : to harden (a ferrous alloy) so that the surface layer is harder than the interior 2 : to make callous or insensible Examples: All locks at the warehouse will be checked to ensure that they are case-hardened and in good working condition. Did you know? Although humans had learned how to case-harden wr...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 25, 2009 is: sententious • \sen-TEN-shus\  • adjective 1 : given to or abounding in aphoristic expression or excessive moralizing 2 : terse, aphoristic, or moralistic in expression Examples: The paper that Jed handed in to his teacher was not so much a research paper as a sententious manifesto denouncing globalization. Did you know? Nowadays, "sententiou...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 24, 2009 is: argosy • \AHR-guh-see\  • noun 1 : a large ship; especially : a large merchant ship 2 : a rich supply Examples: Uncle Ken is always armed with an argosy of jokes, and he keeps the family entertained for hours. Did you know? Looking at the first sense of "argosy," you might assume that this word is a close relative of "argonaut," but that isn...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 23, 2009 is: eidetic • \eye-DET-ik\  • adjective : marked by or involving extraordinarily accurate and vivid recall especially of visual images Examples: Thanks to her eidetic memory, Kirsten was able to recall every last detail of what happened that night, including what color dress she was wearing. Did you know? "Eidetic" is the technical adjective use...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 22, 2009 is: boilerplate • \BOY-ler-playt\  • noun 1 : syndicated material supplied especially to weekly newspapers in matrix or plate form 2 a : standardized text b : formulaic or hackneyed language 3 : tightly packed icy snow Examples: Most of the real estate contract was legal boilerplate. Did you know? In the days before computers, small, local newsp...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 21, 2009 is: besot • \bih-SAHT\  • verb 1 : infatuate 2 : to make dull or stupid; especially : to muddle with drunkenness Examples: Long besotted with the pretty file clerk who worked in his office, Keith finally worked up the nerve to ask her out to lunch. Did you know? "Besot" developed from a combination of the prefix "be-" ("to cause to be") and "sot...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 20, 2009 is: vicinity • \vuh-SIN-uh-tee\  • noun 1 : the quality or state of being near : proximity 2 : a surrounding area or district : neighborhood 3 : an approximate amount, extent, or degree Examples: There are several wonderful little stores in the vicinity of our new house. Did you know? "Vicinity" has its origins in the idea of neighborliness -- i...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 19, 2009 is: piebald • \PYE-bawld\  • adjective 1 : of different colors; especially : spotted or blotched with black and white 2 : composed of incongruous parts Examples: "From the waist down they affect a piebald, garage-sale look: old sweatpants, one-piece Cooperalls, hockey shorts and stockings of assorted colors and vintages." (Charles McGrath, New E...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 18, 2009 is: hoick • \HOIK\  • verb : to move or pull abruptly : yank Examples: When she noticed that her toddler's nose was running, Stacy quickly hoicked out a tissue from her purse. Did you know? Etymologists suspect that "hoick" is an alteration of the verb "hike," which is itself akin to "hitch." "Hike" entered the language during the first decade o...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 17, 2009 is: hue and cry • \HYOO-und-KRYE\  • noun 1 a : a loud outcry formerly used in the pursuit of one who is suspected of a crime b : the pursuit of a suspect or a written proclamation for the capture of a suspect 2 : a clamor of protest 3 : hubbub Examples: After the popular professor was fired by the college, students raised such a hue and cry on...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 16, 2009 is: biannual • \bye-AN-yuh-wul\  • adjective 1 : occurring twice a year 2 : occurring every two years Examples: The report recommended that we begin conducting a more frequent annual safety review rather than our current biannual review. Did you know? When we describe something as "biannual," we can mean either that it occurs twice a year or tha...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for April 15, 2009 is: slake • \SLAYK\  • verb 1 : satisfy, quench 2 : to cause (as lime) to heat and crumble by treatment with water : hydrate Examples: "What an unspeakable luxury it was to slake that thirst with the pure and limpid ice-water of the glacier!" (Mark Twain, A Tramp Abroad) Did you know? "Slake" is no slacker when it comes to obsolete and archaic m...