Word of the Day

Beleaguer is a verb that means to beset with difficulties. Our word of the day derives from the Dutch word for ‘lay down’ or ‘camp.’ Over time, its meaning has shifted to mean ‘to lay siege to,’ as in: We hope the military isn’t hear to beleaguer the city. It would be horrible if they laid siege to our lovely town.

Gangly is an adjective that means tall and awkward. Our word of the day comes from the word gang, which originated in Scottish and referred to motion, as in saying: ‘gang to bed.’ The way someone might say ‘go to bed.’ This word evolved into the adjective ‘gangly.’ A tall person of clumsy motions would be considered gangly, for example: It surprised met hat Richard turned out to be such an amazing...

Crux is a noun that refers to the central or most important part. Our word of the day comes directly from the Latin word for ‘the cross.’ It’s not clear how it evolved into its present meaning, but it is now used to refer to the most important part of a particular matter. Rex and Regina came from very different cultural background, but I wouldn’t say those differences were the crux of their disagr...

Cavil is a verb that means to make petty or unnecessary objections. Our word of the day’s origin is from the Latin word cavilla (Ka VEEL ah) which means ‘mockery.’ Caviling something is not quite the same as mocking it. Instead it is making petty observations in objection to something. Those who opposed the education bill caviled at the cost. This kind of petty objection has a way of stopping...

Purport is a verb that means to claim. Our word of the day comes from Middle English and means ‘to carry.’ The word’s meaning has shifted over the years and now means ‘to make a claim’ — often a false claim.’ I repeated heard Sally purport a knowledge of French culture. But it was later discovered that she doesn’t know a chocolate souffle from an Edgar Degas.

Cadre is a noun that refers to a small group of people in a particular field. The latin word quadrus (KWAD roos) refers to a ‘square.’ The meaning of the word shifted over to time to mean ‘a small group of specialized people.’ If it weren’t for a cadre of skilled scientists, our country would have been doomed in the early 20th century. Sometimes all it takes a tiny group to save us all.

Panjandrum is a noun that refers to a person who claims to have great influence. The strange origin or our word of the day begins with an 18th century playwright named Samuel Foote, who simply made up the word as a test of memory for an actor friend of his. Decades later the word came to refer to a person claiming to be a great importance. Horace can come across as something of a panjandrum. He st...

Indefatigable is an adjective that means incapable of being fatigued. The root word of indefatigable is ‘fatigue’ a word that means ‘to feel tired or exhausted.’ Its origin is from the Latin word ‘fatigare,’ (fah tee GAR ay) which means ‘to weary’ or ‘tire out.’ Our word of the day simply describes a person that cannot be ‘tired out.’ Our indefatigable secretary Doris deserves a great deal of cred...

Myriad is a noun that refers to an extremely great number. Our word of the day is derived from the Greek word myrios (MEER ee ose) which refers to the number ten thousand. Over time this evolved into a reference to any extremely large number. Myriad can sometimes be used as an adjective that basically has the same meaning. As a noun we would say: Chuck had a myriad of options when he graduated fro...

Weal is a noun that refers to well-being. Our word of the day’s similarity to the word ‘wealth’ is no coincidence. Both have the same Old English origin and their meaning is related to well-being. But weal is a broader term that refers to a person’s best interest, while wealth usually pertains specifically to financial status. For example: I was concerned about Melissa’s weal when she mentioned no...

Draconian is an adjective that means excessively harsh. Our word of the day comes from a 7th Century Athenian legislator known for his harsh laws. The word retains its same basic meaning today. For example: the draconian approach to law enforcement, isn’t always the best. It may cause people to comply, but having citizens living in fear of punishment is not the best path to a compassionate society...

Augur is a verb that means to predict a good or bad outcome. Our word of the day comes from the Middle English word for ‘a diviner.’ More recently, it’s come to mean ‘predict an outcome.’ I struck out three times at softball practice today — and I was the best batter on the team. That doesn’t augur well for our upcoming game on Saturday.

Resile is a verb that means to abandon a position or course of action. The Latin word salire (sa LEER ay) means ’to jump.’ When combined with the prefix R-E, we get a word that means ‘to jump back’ or to abandon a previous plan. James knew that his idea for launching the company had failed, but the problem was that he couldn’t resile from the idea. I’m sure if there had been any way to abandon it...

Conterminous is an adjective that means sharing a common boundary. The Latin word terminus (TEAR me noos) means ‘border.’ When combined with the Latin prefix C-O-N, we get a word that means ‘sharing a border.’ Two things are regarded as conterminous if they share a common boundary. I’ve been to all forty-eight states that are conterminous with each other in the US. Someday, I hope to visit Alaska...

Lope is a verb that means to travel at an easy pace with long strides. Our word of the day gets its origin from the Middle English word for ‘leap.’ It is best used when referring to someone moving at a casual, leisurely pace. As a kid, I would lope through those open fields for hours, taking long, easy strides — until I heard those rattlesnakes in the bushes and I took faster, less easy strides in...

Sobriquet is a noun that refers to a nickname. Our word of the day comes directly from the French word for nickname. Its origin borrows a little from Latin and refers to a ‘tap under the chin,’ as in a ‘jest’ or a ‘quip.’ After his performance at the karaoke party, Michael earned the sobriquet ‘Sinatra.’ His rendition of Strangers in the Night was so perfect, that no other nickname could apply.

Philistine is a noun that refers to a person who lacks appreciation of culture. The original Philistines of the Bible were a tribe of people who were portrayed as crude and warlike. By the early 19th century, the term had come to refer to anyone who was perceived as uncultured or unsophisticated. When my professor friends come over for a visit, I usually make sure I have copies of books laying aro...

Diurnal is an adjective that means happening durning the daylight hours. Our word of the day comes from the Latin word dies (DYE ess) which simply means ‘day.’ Diurnal usually refers to the ‘the daytime’ as opposed to night. The older I get, the more diurnal my lifestyle becomes. I have most of my fun when the sun is out shining, but the minute night falls, I’m drowsy and ready for bed.

Insufflate is a verb that means to blow to breathe something in. The Latin word insufflare (in sue FLAR ay) means ‘to breath.’ Our word of the day has originated from this and come to refer to the act of blowing into something. The patient mentioned that they couldn’t insufflate enough to blow out the candles on a birthday cake. When the act of blowing is this difficult it suggests severe damage t...

Natter is a verb that means to talk about unimportant matters. It can also be used as a noun to describe casual and leisurely conversation. The origin of our word of the day is unclear, but it seems to have taken life in an imitative manner, meaning the word ‘natter’ came to be through people imitating the sound of incessant small talk. Brenda doesn’t talk much at work, but when she’s around frien...

Parkour is a noun that refers to the sport of moving through an environment while negotiating objects. Coming directly from the French word for ‘route’ or ‘course,’ our word of the day refers to a sport that has gained popularity very recently. It involves rapidly running and jumping through difficult terrain, usually in a crowded, urban environment. I would love to participate in parkour som...

Melange is a noun that refers to a mixture of different elements. Our word of the day comes directly from the French word that means ‘a mixture’ or ‘medley.’ Melange is a synonym of ‘assortment,’ but it specifically means a mix of thing things that don’t ordinarily go together. For example: My dad’s record collection was a pretty strange melange. He had records by The Rolling Stones, MC Hammer and...

Dogsbody is a noun that refers to a person tasked with menial work. Our word of the day began as a term used in the British navy for pudding. It has come to refer to a person who has a tedious, unpleasant job. I was a dogsbody for my first year at the television station. I got people’s coffee, answered phones and did other tasks nobody else wanted to do.

Sempiternal is an adjective that means seeming to last forever. The Latin word semper (SEM per) means forever. Our word of the day has the same basic meaning. For me, old westerns have a sempiternal quality to them. As far as I’m concerned, they will be great for all eternity.

Iota is a noun that refers to a very small quantity. Our word of the day gets its name from the ninth letter of the Greek alphabet. And because iota is also the smallest letter, it came to refer to something extremely small. Charles may have pretended to care about his cousin’s misfortune, but when Devon needed his help, he didn’t do one iota to assist him.