Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 10, 2008 is: lothario • \loh-THAIR-ee-oh\  • noun : a man whose chief interest is seducing women Examples: Marie denounced her ex-boyfriend as a conniving lothario who liked to play the field but who had no interest in making a real commitment. Did you know? "Lothario" comes from The Fair Penitent (1703), a tragedy by Nicholas Rowe. In the play, Lotha...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 9, 2008 is: derelict • \DAIR-uh-likt\  • adjective 1 : abandoned especially by the owner or occupant : run-down 2 : lacking a sense of duty : negligent Examples: In letting the children stay up late into the night, watching television, the babysitter was derelict in her duty. Did you know? The Latin verb "relinquere" left behind a few English derivati...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 8, 2008 is: carpaccio • \kar-PAH-chee-oh\  • noun : thinly sliced raw meat or fish served with a sauce -- often used postpositively Examples: "Though the menu is large, stick with the steaks and the beef carpaccio at this sleek, airy restaurant." (The San Francisco Chronicle, July 31, 2008) Did you know? Carpaccio is not the only dish named after a pe...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 7, 2008 is: officinal • \uh-FISS-uh-nul\  • adjective : tending or used to cure disease or relieve pain : medicinal Examples: The officinal properties of the plant, recently discovered in the Amazon rain forest, are still being studied. Did you know? "Officinal" is a word applied in medicine to plants and herbs that are used in medicinal preparations....

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 6, 2008 is: jurisprudence • \joor-us-PROO-dunss\  • noun 1 : the science or philosophy of law 2 a : a system or body of law b : the course of court decisions 3 : a department of law Examples: A basic premise of American jurisprudence is that a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Did you know? "For a farewell to our juris...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 5, 2008 is: golem • \GOH-lum\  • noun 1 : an artificial being in Hebrew folklore endowed with life 2 : someone or something resembling a golem Examples: With the flick of a switch, the scientist brought life to his creation, then watched with awe as the golem rose from the table. Did you know? The Hebrew ancestor of the word "golem" meant "shapeless m...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 4, 2008 is: ineffable • \in-EFF-uh-bul\  • adjective 1 a : incapable of being expressed in words : indescribable b : unspeakable 2 : not to be uttered : taboo Examples: Ed felt an ineffable joy at the sight of his son walking toward him from the plane. Did you know? "Every tone was a testimony against slavery, and a prayer to God for deliverance from...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 3, 2008 is: dragoon • \druh-GOON\  • verb 1 : to subjugate or persecute by harsh use of troops 2 : to force into submission or compliance especially by violent measures Examples: Boys of all ages were taken from their families and dragooned into fighting for the rebel armies. Did you know? A dragoon was a mounted European infantryman of the 17th and 1...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 2, 2008 is: prolix • \proh-LIKS\  • adjective 1 : unduly prolonged or drawn out : too long 2 : marked by or using an excess of words Examples: Legal writing is not always prolix; after all, the word “brief” refers to a legal document, and most judges demand that briefs be brief. Did you know? There's no way to talk about "prolix" without being redunda...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 1, 2008 is: alienist • \AY-lee-uh-nist\  • noun : psychiatrist Examples: Julius Wagner von Jauregg was a gifted alienist and neurologist who was awarded the 1927 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine. Did you know? "Alienist" looks and sounds like it should mean "someone who studies aliens," and in fact "alienist" and "alien" are related -- both are...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 30, 2008 is: tenacious • \tuh-NAY-shus\  • adjective 1 a : not easily pulled apart : cohesive b : tending to adhere or cling especially to another substance 2 a : persistent in maintaining, adhering to, or seeking something valued or desired b : retaining knowledge easily Examples: Eugene's tenacious auditioning finally paid off when he landed the par...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 29, 2008 is: domicile • \DAH-muh-syle or DOH-muh-syle\  • noun 1 : a dwelling place : place of residence : home 2 a : a person's fixed, permanent, and principal home for legal purposes b : the place where a corporation is actually or officially established Examples: “One evening Tess and Clare were obliged to sit indoors keeping house, all the other o...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 28, 2008 is: chawbacon • \CHAW-bay-kun\  • noun : bumpkin, hick Examples: Larry has been living in the city for almost a year, but he’s still as much of a chawbacon as the day he left the farm. Did you know? “Chaw” is an alteration of “chew” that is still used in some English dialects, especially in rural areas. Cured pork, or bacon, was a staple of s...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 27, 2008 is: accentuate • \ak-SEN-shu-wayt\  • verb : accent, emphasize; also : intensify Examples: Job-seekers are encouraged to accentuate their most valuable skills and experience, and to downplay any gaps in their work history. Did you know? When you "accentuate" something, you put an "accent" (or emphasis) on it. So it will come as no surprise to...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 26, 2008 is: hypaethral • \hye-PEETH-rul\  • adjective 1 : having a roofless central space 2 : open to the sky Examples: During our tour of Egypt, we visited the hypaethral temple of Philae, which was dismantled and relocated after the construction of a dam caused its original site to be submersed. Did you know? Ancient Roman architect and engineer Vi...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 25, 2008 is: litany • \LIH-tuh-nee\  • noun 1 : a prayer consisting of a series of invocations and supplications by the leader with alternate responses by the congregation 2 a : a resonant or repetitive chant b : a usually lengthy recitation or enumeration c : a sizable series or set Examples: The student offered the usual litany of excuses for being...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 24, 2008 is: reticent • \RET-uh-sunt\  • adj 1 : inclined to be silent or uncommunicative in speech : reserved 2 : restrained in expression, presentation, or appearance 3 : reluctant Examples: Unlike the chatty, gregarious protagonists of his novel, the author is quite reticent in public. Did you know? "Reticent" first appeared about 170 years ago, bu...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 23, 2008 is: lodestar • \LOHD-star\  • 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. Did you know? The literal, albeit archaic, meaning of “lodestar” is “a star that leads or guides; especially : the North Star.” (The...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 22, 2008 is: onus • \OH-nuss\  • noun 1 : burden 2 : a disagreeable necessity : obligation 3 : blame Examples: Everyone else on the overworked staff was relieved when the onus of handling the new project fell to Cindy. Did you know? Understanding the etymology of "onus" is not at all burdensome; it's as simple as knowing that English borrowed the word...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 21, 2008 is: non sequitur • \NAHN-SEK-wuh-ter\  • noun 1 : an inference that does not follow from the premises 2 : a statement (as a response) that does not follow logically from or is not clearly related to anything previously said Examples: The professor's lecture was a jumble of non sequiturs and irrelevant observations. Did you know? In Latin, "no...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 20, 2008 is: gravid • \GRAV-id\  • adjective 1 : pregnant 2 : distended with or full of eggs Examples: “The film is about the world of mixed martial arts, a subject gravid with possibilities.” (Allen Barra, The New York Sun, April 29, 2008) Did you know? "Gravid" comes from Latin "gravis," meaning “heavy.” It can refer to a female who is literally pre...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 19, 2008 is: deportment • \dih-PORT-munt\  • noun : the manner in which one conducts oneself : behavior Examples: The school expects students to dress in proper attire and maintain a respectful level of deportment throughout the day. Did you know? "Deportment" evolved from the verb "deport," meaning "to behave especially in accord with a code," which...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 18, 2008 is: blithesome • \BLYTHE-sum\  • adj : gay, merry Examples: In The Gilded Age: A Tale of To-Day, Mark Twain's Laura, who had been struck by love, wondered why she had never before noticed "how blithesome the world was." Did you know? "Blithesome" comes from "blithe," a word that has been a part of English since before the 12th century. "Blith...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 17, 2008 is: prehension • \pree-HEN-shun\  • noun 1 : the act of taking hold, seizing, or grasping 2 : mental understanding : comprehension 3 : apprehension by the senses Examples: The new surgery claims to offer an increase in hand prehension and successful use of the hand after a nerve transplant. Did you know? It's easy to grasp the origins of "pre...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 16, 2008 is: effigy • \EFF-uh-jee\  • noun : an image or representation especially of a person; especially : a crude figure representing a hated person. Examples: A giant effigy is set ablaze at the climax of the annual Burning Man festival in Black Rock Desert, Nevada. Did you know? An earlier sense of “effigy” is “a likeness of a person shaped out o...