Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 1, 2007 is: nuance • \NOO-ahnss\  • noun 1 : a subtle distinction or variation 2 : a subtle quality : nicety 3 : sensibility to, awareness of, or ability to express delicate shadings (as of meaning, feeling, or value) Examples: Because she wanted to set her novel in New England, the author spent three months in New Hampshire learning the nuances of th...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 30, 2007 is: snowbird • \SNOH-berd\  • noun 1 : any of several birds (as a junco or fieldfare) seen chiefly in winter 2 : one who travels to warm climes for the winter Examples: Now that they are retired, the Crawfords have become snowbirds, closing up their New England home each winter and heading south. Did you know? "Snowbird" has been in use since...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 29, 2007 is: favonian • \fuh-VOH-nee-un\  • adjective : of or relating to the west wind : mild Examples: A favonian wind blew across the plains, a welcome sign of spring's imminent arrival. Did you know? In "Ode to the West Wind," poet Percy Bysshe Shelley called the "wild West Wind" the "breath of Autumn's being." But according to Greco-Roman traditi...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 28, 2007 is: adversity • \ad-VER-suh-tee\  • noun : a state, condition, or instance of serious or continued difficulty or adverse fortune Examples: The movie is about a group of determined mountain climbers who triumph in the face of adversity. Did you know? "Adversity," "mischance," "misfortune," and "mishap" all suggest difficulty of one sort or ano...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 27, 2007 is: clairvoyant • \klair-VOI-unt\  • adjective 1 : having the ability to see beyond the range of ordinary perception 2 : of or relating to the power or faculty of discerning objects not present to the senses Examples: Minna has such an uncanny ability to predict which books will be bestsellers, I'd swear she's clairvoyant. Did you know? In Fr...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 26, 2007 is: lares and penates • \LAIR-eez-end-puh-NAY-teez\  • noun 1 : household gods 2 : personal or household effects Examples: "Well, Mr. F., his wife, children, mother and stepdaddy, along with his lares and penates, moved out of here forever on a pick-up last Tuesday." (Flannery O'Connor, Letter, June 1, 1957) Did you know? The phrase "lares an...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 25, 2007 is: anent • \uh-NENT\  • preposition : about, concerning Examples: "Anent the article about the recent political scandal: we've heard enough already!" began Jamil's letter to the editor. Did you know? "Anent" looks like a rather old-fashioned word. It is, in fact, very old (an earlier sense of the word can be found in Beowulf, from approximat...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 24, 2007 is: minatory • \MIN-uh-tor-ee\  • adjective : having a menacing quality : threatening Examples: Jordan wanted to tell the teacher who had written the note, but the class bully's minatory glare convinced her it would be safer to keep quiet. Did you know? Knowing that "minatory" means "threatening," can you take a guess at a related word? If yo...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 23, 2007 is: cotton • \KAH-tun\  • verb 1 : to take a liking -- used with to 2 : to come to understand -- used with to or on to Examples: It took fans a while to cotton to the changes in the championship series, but they now love the new play-off format. Did you know? The noun "cotton" first appeared in English around 700 years ago. It comes, via Angl...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 22, 2007 is: victual • \VIT-ul\  • noun 1 : food usable by people 2 : supplies of food : provisions Examples: The small grocery on the corner sells meat, bread, fruit, and other victuals at prices that rival those of the big supermarkets. Did you know? If you're hungry for the story behind "victual," get ready to dig into a rich and fulfilling history...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 21, 2007 is: mulct • \MULKT\  • verb 1 : to punish by a fine 2 a : to defraud especially of money : swindle b : to obtain by fraud, duress, or theft Examples: Francis was finally barred from the securities industry when it was discovered he'd been mulcting investors for years. Did you know? A fine assessed as a penalty for an infraction is generally c...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 20, 2007 is: skulduggery • \skull-DUG-uh-ree\  • noun : underhanded or unscrupulous behavior; also : a devious device or trick Examples: The investigation uncovered that the company had falsified their records, along with other sorts of financial skulduggery. Did you know? "Skulduggery," which can also be spelled "skullduggery," was first documented i...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 19, 2007 is: besmirch • \bih-SMERCH\  • verb : sully, soil Examples: In order to besmirch the reputation of his opponent, Clay made sure to bring up the subject of the senator's tax troubles during their first debate. Did you know? Since the prefix "be-" in "besmirch" means "to make or cause to be," when you besmirch something, you cause it to have a...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 18, 2007 is: lenitive • \LEN-uh-tiv\  • adjective : alleviating pain or harshness : soothing Examples: Ryan's mother insisted that a steaming cup of herbal tea would have a lenitive effect on his stomachache. Did you know? "Lenitive" first appeared in English in the 15th century. It derived from the Latin verb "lenire" ("to soften or soothe"), which w...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 17, 2007 is: ashram • \AHSH-rum\  • noun 1 : a secluded dwelling of a Hindu sage; also : the group of disciples instructed there 2 : a religious retreat Examples: Susan took a semester off from school in order to practice meditation and yoga at an ashram. Did you know? "Ashram" first appeared in English in the early 1900s and gained traction after Ind...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 16, 2007 is: chuck-will's-widow • \chuck-willz-WID-oh\  • noun : a nightjar (Caprimulgus carolinensis) of the southeastern United States Examples: It was a cool, still night, and we could hear a chuck-will's-widow calling from over the hill. Did you know? The chuck-will's-widow is a nocturnal bird that can be found in the swamps, rocky uplands, and pi...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 15, 2007 is: williwaw • \WILL-ih-waw\  • noun 1 a : a sudden violent gust of cold land air common along mountainous coasts of high latitudes b : a sudden violent wind 2 : a violent commotion Examples: The sailors had all heard stories of ships capsized by the williwaws that plagued the strait. Did you know? In 1900, Captain Joshua Slocum described wil...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 14, 2007 is: denegation • \den-ih-GAY-shun\  • noun : denial Examples: "The defendant's actions," the lawyer argued, "led to the denegation of my client's rights as a citizen." Did you know? Even if we didn't provide you with a definition, you might guess the meaning of "denegation" from the "negation" part. Both words are ultimately derived from the...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 13, 2007 is: transpicuous • \tran-SPIK-yuh-wus\  • adjective : clearly seen through or understood Examples: Although the reporter claimed to be merely curious, her motives were quite transpicuous; it was clear that she was hunting a story. Did you know? "Transpicuous" is derived from the Latin word "transpicere," meaning "to look through." "Transpicer...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 12, 2007 is: war story • \WOR-STOR-ee\  • noun : a story of a memorable personal experience typically involving an element of danger, hardship, or adventure Examples: The two truckers swapped war stories about driving semitrailers over icy mountain passes and through congested cities. Did you know? People have been telling stories about real wars sinc...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 11, 2007 is: commove • \kuh-MOOV\  • verb 1 : to move violently : agitate 2 : to rouse intense feeling in : excite to passion Examples: "He who has seen the sea commoved with a great hurricane, thinks of it very differently from him who has seen it only in a calm." (R.L. Stevenson, The Silverado Squatters) Did you know? Eighteenth-century English lexi...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 10, 2007 is: peripeteia • \pair-uh-puh-TEE-uh\  • noun : a sudden or unexpected reversal of circumstances or situation especially in a literary work Examples: In the last act of the play, the king's decision to avenge his brother leads to a peripeteia that leaves him bereft of his throne and his family. Did you know? "Peripeteia" comes from Greek, in...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 9, 2007 is: octothorpe • \AHK-tuh-thorp\  • noun : the symbol # Examples: Barry noticed the pound sign on the telephone and remarked about how much the octothorpe resembled a tic-tac-toe grid. Did you know? Stories abound about who first called the # sign an "octothorpe" (which can also be spelled "octothorp"). Most of those tales link the name to var...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 8, 2007 is: fungible • \FUN-juh-bul\  • adjective 1 : being of such a nature that one part or quantity may be replaced by another equal part or quantity in the satisfaction of an obligation 2 : interchangeable 3 : flexible Examples: Jessica believes her unique skill set makes her an indispensable member of the company rather than just one of many fung...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 7, 2007 is: mollify • \MAH-luh-fye\  • verb 1 : to soothe in temper or disposition : appease 2 : to reduce the rigidity of : soften 3 : to reduce in intensity : assuage, temper Examples: The clerk tried his best to mollify the irate customer. Did you know? "Mollify," "pacify," "appease," and "placate" all mean "to ease the anger or disturbance of," al...