Word of the Day

Burnish is a verb that means to polish or shine. The French word brun (brahh) means brown. Our word of the day came about with the French word for brown was turned into a verb, meaning to ‘shine something until it became brown.’ Those old trophies in my dad’s closet look pretty worn out now, but after I burnish them, they’ll look as good as new.

Consanguinity is a noun that means close relationship or connection. Our word of the day’s first three letters C-O-N is a prefix meaning ‘with’ or ‘together.’  sanguineus (san GWEEN ee oos) on the other hand is the Latin word for ‘blood.’ When combined, they mean ‘from the same blood’ or from a common ancestor. After years of research, we discovered the consanguinity between the King and his...

Piquant is an adjective that means having a pleasantly sharp or spicy taste. Piquant is a direct loan from our French friends. The word piquer (PEE kay) means ‘stinging or prickling.’ When the word shifted into English, its meaning shifted along with it. Now piquant had come to mean ‘pleasantly stinging.’ For context, something like mustard might be described as piquant, but not, say cornbread. I...

Wayfaring is an adjective that means (of a person) traveling on foot. Derived from the Old English words ‘way’ and ‘fare’ wayfaring has been around since the 14th century. It has a literary sound to it, but don’t be intimidated. It sounds right at home when used in a historical context. In Medieval times, wayfaring peoples often visited villages across the river. For many of them, walking was thei...

Olfactory is an adjective that means related to the sense of smell. The Latin word olfacere (ol fah CHAIR ay) meant ‘to smell.’ Coming direction from this origin is our word of the day which refers to anything related to the sense of smell. When Kari told me she didn’t smell anything unusual in the stockroom, I began to wonder if her olfactory skills were okay. I could smell the strange smell in t...

Trouvaille is a noun that means a lucky find. Our word of the day comes to us directly from the French word trouver (true VAY) meaning ‘find.’ But a trouvaille is lucky, which in some cases means something found that wasn’t being looked for. The old book I found at the yard sale turned out to be quite a trouvaille. I later discovered it was worth thousands of dollars.

Eleemosynary is an adjective that means related to charity. The Greek word eleimosýni (el lee Moe SEE nee) means alms or charity. From there we get our word of the day which may refer to charity in a neutral sense or it may mean ‘dependent on charity.’ The church’s eleemosynary work is usually taken care of during the summer. There’s something about that warm weather that puts people in a charitab...

Mien is a noun that means a person's appearance or manner. Mien originated in Middle French, where it meant “appearance” or “facial expression.” As the word shifted to modern English, its spelling changed a little, but its definition is roughly the same. A person’s mien is basically a reference to their manner — physically and otherwise. I could somehow tell that Andrew wasn’t guilty of the crimes...

Effigy is a noun that refers to a sculpture or a model of a person. Our word of the day began with the Latin effingere (EFF in jare ay) meaning ‘to shape.’ In time effigy came to refer something being shaped, namely a sculpture designed to resemble something else. Don’t get me wrong, I like the statue, it just doesn’t resemble the General as it was intended to. It’s lovely, but as an effigy, it ha...

Cachet is a noun that means prestige or the state of being respected or admired. The Latin word for ‘constrain’  or ‘press’ is (co act TEAR ay). As our word of the day evolved through French it came to refer to a ‘stamp’ or ‘seal’ — as in a stamp or seal of approval. My big sale on Monday earned me lots of cachet in the office. From that point on, I had the respect and admiration of all the s...

Harlequin is an adjective that means of varied colors. Based on an obsolete French word, harlequin got its name from the leader of a legendary troop of demon horsemen. Soon it became a name used for a character in traditional pantomime. A harlequin was usually masked and dressed in a diamond-patterned costume. Its flamboyant, colorful costume gave birth to the word harlequin as an adjective that m...

Ensconce is a verb that means to establish or settle something in a comfortable place. The Latin word for hide is abscondere (ab SKON dere ay), but our word of the day isn’t strictly a synonym of hide. When someone or something is ensconced in a comfortable place, it is not necessarily done in secret. I enjoyed my job at the recording studio. I felt that for the first time in my life, I was making...

Miasma is a noun that means an unpleasant smell or vapor. Our word of the day has been around since the Mid-17th century, but its roots go back to the Greeks. Defilement in Greek is mólynsi moe EES ee). Keep in mind that while miasma means unpleasant smell, it usually represents more than just your ordinary bad smell. The miasma coming from the dumpster outside was a clue that there were dangerous...

Abditory is a noun that refers to a hiding place. The Latin word abdit refers to a storage room. An abditory, more specifically refers to a place for hiding things. When I told Scott about the room in the back, I had no idea he would use it as an abditory. But you wouldn’t believe the things I found in there.

Afflated is an adjective that means inspired, especially by spiritual or divine means. Our word of the day’s earliest record use is from 19th century poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning. The word afflate — meaning ‘blow up’ as in something done to a balloon — had already been in use, but in Barrett’s hands, the word took on a new spiritual meaning. I love gospel music. After spending a few hours liste...

Timbre is a noun that refers to the quality of a musical sound or voice. The Greek word tumpanon (TOOM pan on) means drum, but as tumpanon has evolved into timbre, its meaning has expanded to refer to any kind of sound. You could think of a timbre as a person or thing’s unique sound. It had been years since I’ve talked to my old history, and yet I recognized Mrs. Hatch’s timbre right away.

Bequest is a noun that means legacy. The origin of bequest combines the Middle English word for ‘about’ and the Old English word for ‘speech.’ This is also the origin of the word bequeath, meaning to ‘pass something along in one’s will.’ You can think of a bequest as that which gets bequeathed — either literally or figuratively. My grandfather was a man of immense talents. But because he didn’t ma...

Remontant is an adjective that means blooming more than once a season. The French word remonter (RAY mon tay) means ‘coming up again.’ That’s the origin of our word of the day that refers to a plant that blooms multiple times a season. When I saw those lovely plants rise up for the third time this year, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. I soon realized the plant was remontant.

Amalgam is a noun that refers to a mixture or blend. The Greek word malaktikos (mal ACT ee kose) means emollient. From here, the word evolved into something referring to a mixture or blend. My book featured a number of different sources. You might say it’s an amalgam of stories, and unconfirmed rumors by members of the band.

Apotheosis is a noun that means the highest point of development. Our word of the day comes indirectly from the Ancient Greeks who had the interesting habit of ‘granting’ someone in your bloodline god status. Apparently this was so common, there was a word for it. That word is our word of the day, apotheosis and its literal translation was “making into a god.”  The word’s meaning has evolved...

Confluence is a noun that means an act or process of merging.  The original meaning of confluence stems referred to a joining of rivers. With that in mind, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the word came from a Latin word confluere (co flew AIR ay) meaning ‘flow together.’ This is helpful to know whether using confluence in the old sense or in a sense such as: the conference was thrilling...

Orotund is an adjective that means resonant and imposing. Rotund, meaning round, has roughly the same origin of orotund. Both words come from the Latin rotundum (ro TOON doom) meaning rounded. In the case of our word of the day, it refers to the shape of a rounded mouth when making resonant sounds.  I’ve been told I should be an opera singer. I guess I have a very orutund voice. 

Otiose is an adjective that means serving no practical purpose. The Latin word otiosus (oh tee OH soos) meaning leasure, provides the origin of our word of the day. If behavior is otiose, it serves no purpose.  I always wondered why Jimmy would have a beer before completing his assignment. I soon learned that his pre-assignment drinking was purely otiose.

Frippery is a noun that means unnecessary or ornamental in architecture, dress or language.  The French word Fripere (FREE pair ee) refers to old or second hand clothes. As our word of the day evolved, it became a word for unnecessary ornament — in clothing as well as other areas, such as architecture.  Desmond is a nice guy, but his frippery can get a little annoying. He can’t say ‘good...

Propagate is a verb that means to spread or promote a theory or idea widely.  The origins of our word of the day are firmly rooted in horticulture. The Latin word propagare (pro puh GAR ay) means to set a small shoot or twig cut for planting or grafting.’ The word was borrowed into the English in the late 16th century, and its earliest uses referred to the reproduction of plants or animals.&n...