Word of the Day

Pelagic is an adjective that means related to the open sea. The Greek word pelagos (pell A jose) means ‘of the sea.’ Our word of the day sailed into the English language in the mid 17th century where it’s often used to describe locations on the open sea. Example: All those years of living in Nebraska made me forget how much I loved our pelagic home growing up. Living on the open sea on an Island w...

Prodrome is a noun that refers to an early symptom indicating the onset of a disease or illness. The Latin prefix P-R-O means ‘before,’ while the Greek word ‘dromos’ (DRO mose) means ‘running.’ This combination gives us a word that suggests an indication of something before it actually takes place. Here’s an example: I was afraid that my sore throat was a prodrome of some kind of illness, but I so...

Nidus is a noun that refers to a place or situation in which something develops or is fostered. Our word of the day comes directly from Latin where it means ‘nest.’ In the late 17th century, nidus nested itself in the English language and is today often used in medicine to refer to a place in which bacteria have multiplied. But it’s also used simply to refer to a place of development. My old neigh...

Expeditious is an adjective that means done with speed and efficiency. Our word of the day comes from the Latin word expedire (eks ped ARE ay) which means ‘to liberate.’ By the late 15th century, its definition had shifted to its current meaning. It may be helpful to think of expeditious as a synonym of words like ‘swift’ and ‘prompt.’ Here’s an example: While I can’t say I was a fan of the food t...

Judder is a verb that means to shake something with force. The origin of our word of the day is unclear, but its birth seems to have been imitative, meaning the word may have been word with somebody imitating the sound of something being juddered. Here’s an example: Ellie, an old 1991 El Dorado, was a magnificent car. After a while, you had to judder the keys in the ignition to get her to start, b...

Maraud is a verb that means to roam in search of things to steal. Coming almost directly from the French word for ‘rogue,’ our word of the day, along with the more common variation ‘marauder,’ was imported into English in the late 17th century. Here’s an example of maraud in use: Is it just me or are kid’s Halloween costumes getting scarier every year? Last year, when I checked out the group gathe...

Odium is a noun that refers to a general or widespread hatred or disgust directed toward someone. Our word of the day comes directly from latin. In the early 17th century, it was imported into English and is used less commonly used than its close relative, ‘odious.’ Here’s an example of odium’s use: I don’t understand the hatred people in my neighborhood have for my next-door-neighbor Chuck’s lawn...

Scenester is a noun that refers to a person associated with a particular social scene. Scene, the root word of scenester comes from the Greek word skene (SKI nee) which means ‘tent’ or ‘stage’. It’s often used as a slang term to refer to a given social setting. A person frequently spotted in a particular ‘scene’ can be called a scenester. Here’s an example. Watching my favorite bands over the year...

Lavation is a noun that refers to the act of cleaning. Our word of the day comes from the Latin word ‘lavare,’ (la VAR ay) which means ‘to wash.’ Just like its close relative lavatory, it entered English in the 15th century, bringing with it the same basic meaning. It’s not hard to get a pet poodle into the bathtub, but getting them to use soap is a little more complicated. It’s a good thing, lava...

Bibliopole is a noun that refers to one who buys or sells books. The Greek word biblion (BIB lee on) means ‘book,’ and it shows up as a prefix in such English words as ‘bibliophile’ and ‘bibliography.’ With our word of the day, it is combined with the Greek word ‘polein,’ (POE leen) which means ‘to sell.’ Here’s an example of bibliopole in use: There may not be as many bookstores as there used to...

Supervene is a verb that means to occur later as an additional event. The basis of our word of the day is provided by the Latin prefix ‘super,’ (SOO per) which means ‘in addition,’ and ‘venire (ven EAR ay) which means ‘come.’ Simply put, when something supervenes, it comes later in a particular event, and in a way that changes the situation. Here’s an example: The first half of the game was a fast...

Amendatory is an adjective that means used to fix or amend. The root word of amendatory, amend, comes from the Latin word amender (AH men dare) which means ‘to fix.’ If something is amendatory it is designed to correct or repair something. The new parking policy may seem like a pain, but its intention is amendatory. It was designed to correct the problem of having too many cars in the lot at one t...

Pernancy is a noun that refers to the taking or receiving of profit or rent. The Latin word Prehendere (pren DARE ay) provides the basis for our word of the day. It means ‘to seize or take.’ Its distant offspring, pernancy has a more specific meaning, referring to the seizing or taking of profit or rent. When my landlord visited last night, I had no idea his visit was motivated by pernancy. It tur...

Extramural is an adjective that means outside the walls or boundaries of a town, college or institution. Our word of the day combines the Latin word muros (MOO ros) which means ‘walls,’ with the prefix ‘extra’ (EKS trah) which means ‘outside.’ Anything outside a given location or region is considered extramural. Here’s an example: The office manager has often encouraged extramural hobbies as long...

Retinue is a noun that refers to a group of advisers or assistants accompanying in important person. Coming from an Anglo-French word retinir (ret uh NEAR) our word of the day’s relationship with the English language goes all the way back to the 14th century. Retinue could be thought of as a synonym of entourage. Here’s an example: The governor’s retinue recommended he stop into the local tavern —...

Fulgor is an adjective that means dazzling brightness. Our word of the day comes from the Latin word fulgare (full GAR ay) which means ‘to shine.’ Maintaining the same basic meaning after centuries, fulgor today can be used as an adjective that describes brightness. Here’s an example: Driving down I-94 this morning, the fulgor that greeted me was nearly blinding. If I’d been prepared for such extr...

Froward is an adjective that means contrary or difficult to deal with. Derived from an Old English word that means ‘leading away from,’ froward is the kind of word that is never used as a compliment. Here’s an example: As a kid, I had a tendency to be froward. While the other kids could be herded to the lunchroom, I was contrary enough to demand a trip to a four star restaurant for lunch.

Horripilation is a noun that refers to the erection of hairs on the skin due to cold, fear or excitement. As you might guess, our word of the day is related to the word horror. Both words emanate from the Latin word horrere (hor AIR ay) which means ‘to tremble or shudder.’ When a person’s hair or skin rises up slightly as a result of being horrified, they’re experiencing horripilation.

Larp is a noun that refers to a game played in real life in which players portray characters. Larp is an acronym that stands for live action role-playing. It reached the English language in the 1990s. Here’s an example of larp in use: I was in a state of panic when I left my home this morning to see a bunch of aliens attacking my son and daughter. My kids had a big laugh when they revealed to me t...

Retcon is a verb that means ‘to revise an aspect of a fictional work.’ A recent addition to the English language, retcon emerged in the 1980s as an abbreviation for the words ‘retroactive community.’ Mostly used as a verb, it may also be used as a noun to refer to the act of making a revision to a fictional work. Here’s an example of the word used both a noun and a verb: I noticed a retcon in the...

Fortean is an adjective that means related to paranormal phenomena. Our word of the day comes from a writer an early 20th century writer and researcher named Charles Fort whose chief interest was the paranormal. By the 1970s, his name became a word to describe anything related to such phenomena. Here’s an example: At first, I thought that weird disappearance of my phone was explained by some Forte...

Quell is a verb that means to put an end to something. Our word of the day comes from the Old English word cwellan (KWELL an) which means ‘to kill.’ Its linguistic offspring quell was absorbed into English in the 13th century with a less lethal definition. It simply means to stop or end something. When I heard that racket coming from the living room, my immediate impulse was to scream for somebody...

Copernican is an adjective that means very important or paradigm-shifting. Nicolas Copernicus was a 15th century astronomer who first observed that the planets revolved around the sun. Because this discovery was so significant, we use the word Copernican to describe highly important discoveries or innovations. For example: My great grandfather made key discoveries about marine animals off the coas...

Cantrip is a noun that refers to a trick or a mischievous act. The origin of our word of the day is unknown, but we do know it entered English in the late 16th century from Scottish. Here’s an example if its use: When I saw a fresh plate of blueberry muffins on the breakfast table, I should have known it was a cantrip played by my son. Only a mind as mischievous of his could have tricked me into m...

Ovoid is an adjective that means egg-shaped. It is also a noun that refers to an egg-shaped body object.. Entering English in the 19th century, ovoid comes from the Latin word ovum (OH voom) which means ‘egg.’ Here’s an example of ovoid used as an adjective: Sometimes extreme hunger can impair your thinking. The other day I was so hungry that when I spotted an ovoid container on the kitchen counte...