Word of the Day

Construal is a noun that means interpretation. Our word of the day comes from the Latin word construere (con stru WHERE ay) meaning, ‘to build.’ When we construe something we care analyzing how it is built. This also applies to the way a sentence or phrase is built. After the mayor’s speech, he was immediately worried about the construal of his words, and for good reason. The way those words were...

Ideation is a noun that refers to the formation of ideas or concepts. The word idea comes directly from Greek, meaning ‘to see.’ Our word of the day is derived from this and means to ‘form or create’ ideas. I was often stunned by the creative power of those in the marketing department. They were amazingly good at the ideation of mind-blowing concepts.

Suffuse is a verb that means to pour or spread through. The latin word suffus (SUE foos) means ‘poured into.’ When we suffuse something, we spread or pour it in. The word can be used literally or metaphorically. Here’s an example: Our hope was to suffuse the audience with the joy of our music. But we would have probably needed better music to accomplish that goal.

Macaronic is an adjective that means composed of a mixture of languages. Our word of the day is related to the word macaroni, the Italian dish that combines various foods.  In a similar way, a macaronic use of language combines many languages. Our limited understanding of Portuguese caused our band to write many macaronic songs that combined English with Portuguese for our Brazilian audience.

Subsidiary is an adjective that means less important to but related to. The Latin word subsidere means ‘to sit below.’ When something is deemed subsidiary, it is regarded as less important that other things. Check out this example: With winter approaching, I needed some hot cocoa as well as brand new skis. But those needs were subsidiary to getting a car so I wouldn’t have to walk to work in the f...

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Flagitious is an adjective that means criminal or villainous. The Latin word flagitium (fla JEE tomb) is a noun that refers to ‘shameful crime.’ Our word of the day is an adjective to describe individuals involved in shameful crime. Here’s an example of flagitious in use: Andy’s weird behavior made us suspect he was a flagitious person. But after close examination, he was a very nice guy and we we...

Cavernous is an adjective that means very large. A cavern is usually understood as a large cave. Its roots in the Latin language reveal that it evolved from the word cavus (KAH voose) which means ‘hollow.’ The cavernous lodging for us was much larger than we needed for a family of three. In fact it was so huge, we could have easily housed twenty people there.

Purview is a noun that refers to the scope of influence or concerns. Coming from late Middle English with the original meaning of ‘foreseen,’ our word of the day’s use has shifted over the years. It is now used to refer to someone’s range of experience or their ‘view.’ Here’s an example: Terry was outside of his purview when he gave us medical advice. Looking back, we might have been better off se...

Hamartia is a noun that refers to a fatal flaw. Our word of the day comes directly from Greek. Hamarta was used by the Greeks to describe the tragic downfall of a here in a story. More recently it may be used more broadly. Here’s an example: After the team's initial success, Eric’s ego seemed to be his Hamarta. This has been the fatal flaw of many great athletes in the past.

Fantasticate is a verb that means to make something seem fanciful. Our word of the day is derived from the word fantasy, which comes from the Greek word phantasia (FAWN toss yah). When we fantasticate something, we make it more fantastic or more like a fantasy. The events that unfolded that night were strange, but nowhere near as surreal and fanciful as Helen made them seem. As a writer of fantasy...

Churl is a noun that refers to an impolite, mean-spirited person. Coming from Old English, our word of the day is generally used as an insult. It sometimes means ‘a miser’ or ‘cheap person.’ Or it can simply refer to someone who isn’t polite. Only a churl could ruin the birthday party of a ten-year-old with impolite behavior. But leave it to the grown-ups to spoil the fun.

Exigency is a noun that refers to an urgent need or demand. The Latin word exigere (eggs uh JEER ay) means ‘to enforce.’ Our word of the day entered English in the late 16th century, as a noun that referred to ‘a dire need.’ A mistake by my landlord created an exigency for my plumber. Poor plumbing can often make for urgent situations.

Aoristic is an adjective that means indefinite or indeterminate. The Greek word aoristos (OUR ee stose) means ‘vague’ or ‘indefinite.’ Aoristic is often used in grammar to describe an unqualified past tense of a verb without reference to duration or completion of the action. But it can also be used more broadly, to mean anything unclear. Here’s an example: Many found Sid’s behavior that night...

Catechize is a verb that means to instruct through questions and answers. The Greek word Katekhein (COT ay kine) means to ‘to instruct’ or ‘to make someone hear.’ The word later evolved into catechize, which was often used in a religious context. Today the word can be used in any situation where someone is instructing through questions and answers. If you catechize new employees, I find that train...

Biddable is an adjective that means easily lead or controlled. The word ‘bid’ is of unclear origin, but it means ‘to offer.’ A biddable person is very willing to offer their service or help. Debra didn’t care for her new job. She had the feeling they were seeking someone one biddable, someone willing to do whatever anyone asked for any reason.

Umbrageous is an adjective that means inclined to take offense easily. Our word of the day is loosely related to the word umbrella, which comes from the Latin word umbra (OOM bruh) meaning ‘shadow.’ This word also referred to a ‘ground for suspicion’ or ‘offense.’ When someone has taken umbrage with something, we mean, they are offended. An umbrageous person is very apt to take offense. Our umbrag...

Lout is a noun that refers to an uncouth or aggressive person. Our word of the day is of German origin. It entered the English language in the mid 16th century and since then is almost never used in a flattering context. Here’s an example: Only a lout like Steve could make a mess of the office party. You’d have to be really aggressive and cruel to ruin a lovely gathering like that.

Florilegium is a noun that refers to a volume of writing. The Latin prefix F-L-O-R has given birth to many words likes ‘flower’ and ‘florist.’ Its path to becoming the origin of a word for a collection of books began with the word legere (lay JARE ay) with means ‘gather.’ A florilegium once referred to a collection of books about flowers and later meant a collection of any books. Here’s an example...

Eggcorn is a noun that refers to a word or phrase that results from a mishearing. Our word of the day is a very recent addition to English, entering in the early 21st century. It came about by people mishearing the word acorn and instead thinking the word was eggcorn. Everyday language is full of such mistakes. Here’s an example of it in use: For years, I heard the phrase ‘for all intents and purp...

Echt is an adjective that means authentic and typical. It can also be used as an adverb that means authentically or typically. Coming directly from the German word for real, our word of the day has maintained the same basic meaning after being imported into English. Here is an example of echt in use. Those crowds at our early shows were placed there by our management to make it seem that we w...

Enshrine is a verb that means to preserve and cherish as sacred. The latin word scrinium (screen ee OOM) refers to ‘a chest for books.’ In later years a shrine became a word for a holy place that held sacred items. Enshrine is a verb that is often used metaphorically to refer to the process of treating something as if it were sacred. Here’s an example: The rights we were fighting for have since be...

Jouissance is a noun that refers to physical or intellectual pleasure. The French word juir (ghweere) means ‘to enjoy.’ From this our word of the day has come to enter English. Here’s an example of it in use: I could see the joy on my daughter’s face when I took her to the circus. She clearly took delight in seeing all that joyous activity.

Multifarious is an adjective that means ‘of many types. ‘ The Latin multifarius (mool tee FAR ee oose) was imported into English in the Late 16th century and has maintained the same basic meaning of ‘derived of various types.’ The reasons for our project’s failure were many. The multifarious disasters that took place would take too long to list.