Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 29, 2014 is: chivy • \CHIV-ee\ • verb 1 : to tease or annoy with persistent petty attacks 2 : to move or obtain by small maneuvers Examples: She watched her little brother as he chivied an olive from the jar with his fingers. "After chivvying a batch [of whirligig beetles] into a food storage box, Lemann, manager of animal and visitor programs [at the Audubon Insectarium], sniffed his fingers. The beetles emit a chemical to deter predators, but they're no stink bugs: 'It smells like sour apple candy. I love it.'" - Janet McConnaughey, Associated Press State and Local Wire, October 8, 2012 Did you know? "Chivy," which is also spelled "chivvy," became established in our language in the early 20th century and at first meant "to harass or chase." Early usage examples are of people chivying a chicken around to catch it and of a person chivying around food that is frying. The word itself is from the British noun of the same spelling meaning "chase" or "hunt." The noun is believed to be derived from "Chevy Chase"-a term for "chase" or "confusion" that is taken from the name of a ballad describing the 1388 battle of Otterburn between the Scottish and English. (A "chase" in this context is an unenclosed tract of land in England that is used as a game preserve.) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 28, 2014 is: gadabout • \GAD-uh-bout\ • noun : a person who goes from place to place in social activity Examples: When you're a gadabout like Liz, who knows just about everyone, you have no problem getting invited to all of the best parties. "Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston star as an undead European gadabout and a reclusive Detroit rocker who reignite their centuries-old love affair." - Good Times Weekly (Florida), May 23, 2014 Did you know? If you had to pick the insect most closely related to a "gadabout," you might wryly guess the "social butterfly." But there's another bug that's commonly heard buzzing around discussions of "gadabout"-the gadfly. "Gadfly" is a term used for any of a number of winged pests (such as horseflies) that bite or annoy livestock. Since gadflies are known for their nasty bite, it's not surprising that they are named after a sharp chisel or pointed bar used by miners to loosen rock and ore called a "gad." But, although a gadabout's gossip can bite, "gadfly" doesn’t have any clear etymological relation to "gadabout," which traces back to the Middle English verb "gadden," meaning "to wander without a specific aim or purpose." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 27, 2014 is: sophomoric • \sahf-MOR-ik\ • adjective 1 : conceited and overconfident of knowledge but poorly informed and immature 2 : of, relating to, or characteristic of a sophomore Examples: Judd's behavior at the party was sophomoric, but I've seen a more mature side to him in other settings. "[T]his central character that I ended up playing … is a guy who's had his feelings hurt. He elects to try to fix his problem by crashing a kids' spelling bee. That has some relevance in his revenge scenario.… His execution of that, though, is pretty sophomoric…." - Jason Bateman, National Public Radio, March 17, 2014 Did you know? Sophomores get a bad rap. A lot of people seem to think they're foolish (no matter what they do), when they know they're pretty wise. The history of the words "sophomore" and "sophomoric" (which developed from "sophomore") proves that it has always been tough to be a sophomore. Those words probably come from a combination of the Greek terms "sophos" (which means "wise") and "mōros" (which means "foolish"). But sophomores can take comfort in the fact that some very impressive words, including "philosopher" and "sophisticated," are also related to "sophos." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 26, 2014 is: fracking • \FRACK-ing\ • noun : the injection of fluid into shale beds at high pressure in order to free up petroleum resources (such as oil or natural gas) Examples: "In New Jersey, Governor Chris Christie set an example in August when he vetoed a bill that would permanently ban fracking, then approved a one-year moratorium so his state could consider the results of federal studies." - ScientificAmerican.com, October 12, 2011 "Nationally, the transport of oil by rail is on a steep upward trajectory, largely due to fracking in North Dakota and drilling in Canada's Alberta tar sands." - Jayni Foley Hein, Grand Forks Herald, May 25, 2014 Did you know? Hydraulic fracturing is a technique in which a liquid is injected under high pressure into a well in order to create tiny fissures in the rock deep beneath the earth which then allow gas and oil to flow into the well. The term "hydraulic fracturing" is first known to have appeared in print in a 1948 issue of Oil & Gas Journal. A 1953 issue of the same journal also contains the earliest known print use of "fracking." The word "fracking" (sometimes spelled "fraccing" or "fracing," particularly by those in the gas and oil industries) was created by shortening "fracturing." The addition of the "k" brings the word into conformity with the inflected forms of similar English words ending in a vowel plus "c," such as "shellacking," "panicking," and "frolicking." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 25, 2014 is: evince • \ih-VINSS\ • verb 1 : to constitute outward evidence of 2 : to display clearly : reveal Examples: Melanie evinced an interest in art at an early age, so no one was surprised when she grew up to be an award-winning illustrator. "You have to make it easy for your customer to buy-as evinced by another example from my trip through Italy." - Dorie Clark, Forbes, May 27, 2014 Did you know? Let us conquer any uncertainty you may have about the history of "evince." It derives from Latin "evincere," meaning "to vanquish" or "to win a point," and can be further traced to "vincere," Latin for "to conquer." In the early 1600s, "evince" was sometimes used in the senses "to subdue" or "to convict of error," meanings evincing the influence of its Latin ancestors. It was also sometimes used as a synonym of its cousin "convince," but that sense is now obsolete. One early meaning, "to constitute evidence of," has hung on, however, and in the 1800s it was joined by another sense, "to reveal." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 24, 2014 is: mufti • \MUFF-tee\ • noun : ordinary dress as distinguished from that denoting an occupation or station; especially : civilian clothes when worn by a person in the armed forces Examples: Maureen's family is thankful to have her at home, dressed comfortably in mufti, after a six-month tour of duty overseas. "The opening was a swelling National Anthem performed by a brass choir of soldiers from Fort Huachuca's 62nd Army Band…. Some members of the brass choir also performed with the symphony, doing double duty, one in uniform and the other in mufti." - Bill Hess, Sierra Vista Herald, October 31, 2013 Did you know? In the Islamic tradition, a mufti is a professional jurist who interprets Muslim law. When religious muftis were portrayed on the English stage in the early 19th century, they typically wore costumes that included a dressing gown and a tasseled smoking cap, an outfit that some felt resembled the clothing preferred by the off-duty military officers of the day. The clothing sense of "mufti," which first appeared in English around that same time, is thought to have developed out of this association of stage costume and civilian clothing. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 23, 2014 is: hashtag • \HASH-tag\ • noun : a word or phrase preceded by the symbol # that classifies or categorizes the accompanying text (such as a tweet) Examples: Jessica used the hashtag #parenting to share ideas, advice, and stories with other moms online. "On Twitter, the #blessed hashtag may still prompt some genuine sentiment ("blessed to have such a supportive family behind me") but more often than not it is blatantly self-promotional ("#blessed to be in 3rd place at the Webbys... please vote now!"), surreptitiously braggy, or just plain absurd (Tim Tebow's Twitter bio is just the single word)." - Jessica Bennett, New York Times, May 2, 2014 Did you know? Social media has made the hashtag a ubiquitous part of Internet culture, starting with Twitter and expanding to other sites. Originally designed for categorizing posts, the hashtag can now be a tool for a supplementary coy or witty comment (e.g., #awkward). The word "tag" can mean "a word or phrase used for description or identification." "Hash" is short for "hash mark," a term for what we more commonly call a pound sign (and, less commonly, an octothorp). The "hash" in "hash mark" is probably an alteration of "hatch," a term for the crisscrossing of lines (as when adding shading to a drawing). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 22, 2014 is: gauntlet • \GAWNT-lut\ • noun 1 : a glove worn with medieval armor to protect the hand 2 : any of various protective gloves used especially in industry 3 : an open challenge (as to combat) - used in phrases like throw down the gauntlet 4 : a dress glove extending above the wrist Examples: After dinner, Roger threw down the gauntlet and challenged his brother to a game of basketball out in the driveway. "Democratic challengers are throwing down the gauntlet in Virginia's 5th District for the chance to face off with Republican incumbent Rep. Robert Hurt." - The Daily Progress (Charlottesville, Virginia), March 11, 2014 Did you know? "Gauntlet" comes from Middle French "gantelet," the diminutive of "gant," meaning "glove." (The "gauntlet" that means "severe trial," "ordeal," or "double file of armed men" is a different word that originates from Old Swedish "gata," meaning "road," and "lop," meaning "course.") "To throw down the gauntlet" means "to issue an open challenge." "To pick up the gauntlet" means "to accept an open challenge." These figurative phrases come from the conventions of medieval combat. The gauntlet was the glove of a suit of armor. To challenge someone to combat, a knight would throw his glove at another knight's feet. The second knight would take it up if he intended to accept the challenge, in which case a jousting match might ensue. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 21, 2014 is: oblivion • \uh-BLIV-ee-un\ • noun 1 : the fact or condition of forgetting or having forgotten; especially : the condition of being oblivious 2 a : the condition or state of being forgotten or unknown b : the state of being destroyed Examples: After driving for 10 hours with the events of the past few days running repeatedly through her mind, Elyse was looking forward to the oblivion of sleep. "Remember those dire warnings about how climate change might raise sea levels, mess up global ocean currents and generally screw us all over? Well, the wait for disaster to strike may soon be at an end-as a vast chunk of ice gets ready to release its hold on the Antarctic continent and slide into sweet oceanic oblivion." - Ben Gilliland, Metro (United Kingdom), May 19, 2014 Did you know? "Oblivion" was derived via Middle English and Anglo-French from Latin "oblivisci," which means "to forget." This form may have stemmed from combining "ob-" ("in the way") and "levis" ("smooth"). In the past, "oblivion" has been used in reference to the River Lethe, which according to Greek myth flowed through the Underworld and induced a state of forgetfulness in anyone who drank its water. Among those who have used the word this way is the poet John Milton, who wrote in Paradise Lost, "Farr off from these a slow and silent stream, Lethe the River of Oblivion roules Her watrie Labyrinth." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 20, 2014 is: saturnine • \SAT-er-nyne\ • adjective 1 : born under or influenced by the planet Saturn 2 a : cold and steady in mood : slow to act or change b : gloomy, surly c : sardonic Examples: Kevin's saturnine personality made his friends hesitant to invite him to parties, since he never seemed to have a good time at them. "Cuomo has one additional liability: his deeply creased face and saturnine look that bears a resemblance to the portraits of a Venetian Doge plotting the next battle with the Saracens." - Michael Brenner, The Huffington Post, May 19, 2014 Did you know? Eeyore is saturnine. The gloomy, cynical character of A. A. Milne's gray donkey typifies the personality type the ancient Romans ascribed to individuals born when the planet Saturn was rising in the heavens. Both the name of the planet and today's featured adjective derive from the name of the Roman god of agriculture, who was often depicted as a bent old man with a stern, sluggish, and sullen nature. The Latin name for Saturn was "Saturnus," which is assumed to have yielded the word "Saturninus" (meaning "of Saturn") in Medieval Latin; that form was adapted to create English "saturnine" in the 15th century. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 19, 2014 is: turducken • \ter-DUCK-un\ • noun : a boneless chicken stuffed into a boneless duck stuffed into a boneless turkey Examples: For your next dinner party, you might want to take a shot at making turducken. "Mike has adjusted his plans for fabled menus, taking into account the ages-and foibles-of his guests. The fabulous standing rib roast and turducken of years past will be replaced by something plainer." - Sally Friedman, Northeast Times (Philadelphia), January 1, 2014 Did you know? You can probably guess the origins of "turducken" just by looking at the word; it is a portmanteau (a word whose form is derived from a blending of two or more distinct other words) created by combining the words "turkey," "duck," and "chicken," and the dish does indeed incorporate all three varieties of fowl. "Turducken" was first noted in print in 1982, although it may have been in use before that. The dish is a cousin of ballotine, a less familiar food item consisting of deboned meat, poultry, or fish stuffed with seasoned meats or vegetables, rolled and tied into a bundle shape, and usually braised. (The word "ballotine" derives from the French word for "bundle.") See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 18, 2014 is: diffident • \DIF-uh-dunt\ • adjective 1 : hesitant in acting or speaking through lack of self-confidence 2 : reserved, unassertive Examples: Always diffident and soft-spoken, Tony did not raise any objection when the cashier overcharged him for his purchase. "You could call Mudhoney the reluctant, begrudging forefathers of grunge, and Nirvana their equally diffident progeny." - Jason Bracelin, Las Vegas Review-Journal, April 10, 2014 Did you know? "Diffident" and "confident" are antonyms, but both have a lot to do with how much trust you have in yourself. Etymology reveals the role that that underlying trust plays in the two terms. "Confident" and "diffident" both trace back to the Latin verb "fidere," which means "to trust." "Diffident" arose from a combination of "fidere" and the prefix "dis-," meaning "the absence of," and it has been used to refer to individuals lacking in self-trust since the 15th century. "Confident" arose from "confidere," a term created by combining "fidere" with the intensifying prefix "con-." That term has been used for self-trusting folks since at least the late 16th century. By the way, "fidere" puts the trust in several other English words too, including "fidelity" and "fiduciary." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 17, 2014 is: incongruous • \in-KAHN-gruh-wus\ • adjective a : lacking congruity: as b : not harmonious : incompatible c : not conforming : disagreeing d : inconsistent within itself Examples: The sight of a horse and carriage amongst the cars on the road was a bit incongruous. "The main issue is the game's incongruous mix of low-brow presentation and incredibly clever action; each seems to betray the other, but you won't have long to analyze that rift." - Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, May 14, 2014 Did you know? "Incongruous" is a spin-off of its antonym, "congruous," which means "in agreement, harmony, or correspondence." Etymologists are in agreement about the origin of both words; they trace to the Latin verb "congruere," which means "to come together" or "to agree." The dates of the words' first uses in English match up pretty well, too. The first known use of "congruous" dates from 1599, and the earliest print appearance of "incongruous" dates from 1611. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 16, 2014 is: matriculate • \muh-TRIK-yuh-layt\ • verb : to enroll as a member of a body and especially of a college or university Examples: A spokesperson for the college said the school is expected to matriculate approximately 1,000 students for the fall semester. "Work joined Symphony in the Valley at the tender age of nine and continued to perform with them before matriculating at Juilliard." - Beth Slater, Aspen Daily News, May 9, 2014 Did you know? Anybody who has had basic Latin knows that "alma mater," a fancy term for the school you attended, comes from a phrase that means "fostering mother." If "mater" is "mother," then "matriculate" probably has something to do with a school nurturing you just like good old mom, right? Not exactly. If you go back far enough, "matriculate" is distantly related to the Latin "mater," but its maternal associations were lost long ago. It is more closely related to Late Latin "matricula," which means "public roll or register," and it has more to do with being enrolled than being mothered. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 15, 2014 is: poutine • \poo-TEEN\ • noun : a dish of French fries covered with brown gravy and cheese curds - chiefly Canadian Examples: Although classic poutine is a simple marriage of French fries, gravy, and cheese curds, the dish has inspired ethnic variations with different combinations of meats and sauces. "A 2007 Canadian TV documentary named poutine the 10th greatest Canadian invention of all time. Insulin (No. 1), the artificial pacemaker (No. 6) and the electric wheelchair (No. 9) all outranked poutine, which seems appropriate considering you might need all three at some point should you consume a regular diet of poutine." - Michael Nagrant, Chicago Tribune, April 17, 2014 Did you know? Although the earliest evidence of the word "poutine" in an English publication is from 1982, historical accounts of the dish itself date to several decades earlier when someone had the brilliant idea to add rural Quebec's much-loved fresh cheese curds to (also much-loved) French fries. Whether the gravy came a few years later or was present ab ovo is disputed. Also unclear is the origin of the word by which the dish is known. Some assert that "poutine" is related to the English word "pudding," but a more popular etymology is that it's from a Quebecois slang word meaning "mess." The dish has in recent years been making inroads on American menus. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 14, 2014 is: antebellum • \an-tih-BEL-um\ • adjective : existing before a war; especially : existing before the Civil War Examples: A guided tour through this old Mississippi mansion, built in the early 1800s, gives you an idea of what life was like in the antebellum South. "From the windows of Laurel Hill, one of eight antebellum homes and businesses among the 11 sites on the 2014 Tour of Homes in Franklin, Tenn., women watched the brave advance of Confederate troops in November 1864…." - Kay Campbell, AL.com, May 12, 2014 Did you know? "Antebellum" means "before the war," but it wasn’t widely associated with the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865) until after that conflict was over. The word comes from the Latin phrase "ante bellum" (literally, "before the war"), and its earliest known print appearance in English dates back to the 1840s. The term's earliest known association with the Civil War is found in an 1862 diary entry: "Her face was as placid and unmoved as in antebellum days." The author of that line, Mary Boykin Miller Chesnut, recorded her observations of life during the Civil War in A Diary from Dixie, often while accompanying her husband, an officer in the Confederate army, on his missions. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 13, 2014 is: freegan • \FREE-gun\ • noun : an activist who scavenges for free food (as in waste receptacles at stores and restaurants) as a means of reducing consumption of resources Examples: Josh is a vocal anti-consumerist who lives as a freegan and works to develop community gardens in urban settings. "Sarah is ambitious and disciplined, and she lies to her boyfriend that she's off to Dubai on assignment when she's actually hopping U.S. freight trains, Dumpster diving and hanging with freegans in order to track down the elusive anarchist collective." - Claudia Puig, Detroit Free Press, June 14, 2013 Did you know? "Freegan" is a blend of the adjective "free" (in the sense of "not costing or charging anything") and "vegan," which developed in the mid-20th century to denote a vegetarian who not only avoids meat but other animal products, such as eggs and dairy, as well. While freegans are not necessarily vegans, the portmanteau "freegan" was likely influenced by the fact that both vegans and freegans often see their diets as an expression of anti-consumerism, concern for the impact of food production on the environment, and concern over the ethics of using animals for food. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 12, 2014 is: stoic • \STOH-ik\ • noun : one apparently or professedly indifferent to pleasure or pain Examples: Stoic that she is, Edra finished the marathon despite a painful pulled tendon in her knee. "Pitchers can be stoics. They usually say not getting a win because of offensive shortcomings does not bother them." - Gerry Fraley, Dallas Morning News, May 4, 2014 Did you know? Zeno of Citium, born in Cyprus in the 4th century B.C.E., traveled to Athens while a young man and studied with the important philosophers of the day, among them two influential Cynics. He eventually arrived at his own philosophy and began teaching at a public hall called the Stoa Poikile. Zeno's philosophy, Stoicism, took its name from the hall where he taught, and it preached self-control, fortitude, and justice; passion was seen as the cause of all evil. By the 14th century, English speakers had adopted the word "stoic" as a general term for anyone who could face adversity calmly and without excess emotion. By the 15th century, we'd also begun using it as an adjective meaning "not affected by or showing passion or feeling." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 11, 2014 is: crowdfunding • \KROWD-fun-ding\ • noun : the practice of soliciting financial contributions from a large number of people especially from the online community Examples: "Facebook and Twitter, Square and Dropbox? Old news. Our series 'The Next Big Thing You Missed' looks at the newest ideas poised to remake tech-everything from musical crowdfunding to fresh markets that work like the Apple Store." - Wired, February 2014 "In the age of digital storefronts like Etsy and crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter, inventors and designers can go from an idea to high demand for their product in very little time." - Zoë Schlanger, Newsweek, May 16, 2014 Did you know? "Crowdsourcing" and "crowdfunding" are two words that have recently found their way into the crowded pool of English. "Crowdsourcing," which typically refers to the practice of soliciting services, ideas, or content from a large group of people online, was coined by Jeff Howe in a 2006 article in Wired, and "crowdfunding" was created by entrepreneur Michael Sullivan in that same year. Both words conceptualize "the crowd" as a vast online community from which something needed may be obtained. In crowdsourcing, the crowd is called upon for needed assistance or information. A well-known use of crowdsourcing is Wikipedia, whose content is the result of various contributors. Crowdfunding, on the other hand, involves a more specific request: the crowd is solicited for financial contributions to a particular venture or cause, such as a film project or cancer research. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 10, 2014 is: ambrosia • \am-BROH-zhee-uh\ • noun 1 a : the food of the Greek and Roman gods b : the ointment or perfume of the gods 2 : something extremely pleasing to taste or smell 3 : a dessert made of oranges and shredded coconut Examples: The company drew criticism for advertising the children's medicine as if it were ambrosia. "The pork loin was animal ambrosia nestled tenderly in great gravy. My taste buds treasure the memory…." - Tony Stein, The Virginian-Pilot, April 20, 2014 Did you know? "Ambrosia" literally means "immortality" in Greek; it is derived from the Greek word "ambrotos" ("immortal"), which combines the prefix "a-" (meaning "not") with "mbrotos" ("mortal"). In Greek and Roman mythology, only the immortals-gods and goddesses-could eat ambrosia. Those mythological gods and goddesses also drank "nectar," the original sense of which refers to the "drink of the gods." "Nectar" (in Greek, "nektar") may have implied immortality as well; "nektar" is believed to have carried the literal meaning "overcoming death." While the ambrosia of the gods implied immortality, we mere mortals use "ambrosia" in reference to things that just taste or smell especially delicious. Similarly, "nectar" can now simply mean "something delicious to drink." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 9, 2014 is: faze • \FAYZ\ • verb : to disturb the composure of : disconcert, daunt Examples: My grandfather was a stolid individual who was not easily fazed by life's troubles. "Those comments might faze some players, but Lee's optimism was a trademark the past three seasons at USC and his happy-go-lucky attitude persisted even while analysts raised doubts." - Scott Wolf, Whittier Daily News (California), May 6, 2014 Did you know? "Faze" is a youngster among English words, relatively speaking; it first appeared in English in the early 1800s. That may not seem especially young, but consider that when "faze" first showed up in print in English, the works of Shakespeare were already over 200 years old, the works of Chaucer over 400 years old, and the Old English epic Beowulf was at least 800 years old. "Faze" is an alteration of the now-rare verb "feeze," which has the obsolete sense "to drive (someone or something) away" and which, by the 1400s, was also being used with the meaning "to frighten or put into a state of alarm." "Feeze" ("fesen" in Middle English and "fēsian" in Old English) is first known to have appeared in print in the late 800s, making it older than even the oldest extant copy of Beowulf in manuscript. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 8, 2014 is: contestation • \kahn-tess-TAY-shun\ • noun : controversy, debate Examples: The location of the new high school has been a recurrent item of contestation at town meetings. "Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke told reporters the division of the [Nelson Mandela] estate … had been accepted by Mandela's family earlier on Monday with no contestation so far." - Miami Times (Florida), February 5, 2014 Did you know? If you guessed that "contestation" is somehow connected to "contest," you're right. They're linked both through meaning and through etymology. "Contest" can be a verb meaning "to dispute," and "contestation" essentially means "an act, instance, or state of contesting." Both words can be traced to the Latin verb "contestari," meaning "to call to witness." "Contestari" itself comes from "testis," a Latin noun meaning "witness," which is also the source of "attest" ("to bear witness to"), "testify" ("to bear witness"), and "testimony" ("a declaration made by a witness"), among others. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 7, 2014 is: totem • \TOH-tum\ • noun 1 : an animal or plant serving as the emblem of a family or clan; also : a representation of such an object 2 : a revered emblem or symbol : a person or thing that represents an idea Examples: All five members of the family are talented singers, so it might be appropriate that their totem animal is the canary. "This sense of the safe-deposit box as a totem of responsible security inspired me to rent a box myself shortly after the birth of our first child…." - Eric Zorn, Chicago Tribune, April 25, 2014 Did you know? "Totem" comes to us from Ojibwa, an Algonquian language spoken by an American Indian people from the regions around Lake Superior. The most basic form of the word in Ojibwa is believed to be "ote," but 18th-century English speakers encountered it as "ototeman" ("his totem"), which became our word "totem." In its most specific sense, "totem" refers to an emblematic depiction of an animal or plant that gives a family or clan its name and that often serves as a reminder of its ancestry. The term is also used broadly for any thing or person having particular emblematic or symbolic importance. The related adjective "totemic" describes something that serves as a totem, that depicts totems ("totemic basketry," for example), or that has the nature of a totem. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 6, 2014 is: perdure • \per-DUR\ • verb : to continue to exist : last Examples: The artist's influence perdures in the themes and stylistic choices of his students. "Wells brings the reader into the drama of multi-generational families, of friendships that perdure ... of relationships that grow as hardships and challenges color life." - Fran Salone-Pelletier, The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, North Carolina), August 1, 2012 Did you know? "Perdure" may be an unfamiliar word for many of our readers, but those who suspect they see hints of its ancestry in the more familiar synonym "endure" are correct. "Perdure" was borrowed into Middle English from Anglo-French and traces back to the Latin verb "perdurare," meaning "to continue." "Perdurare," in turn, was formed by combining the intensifying prefix "per-" with the verb "durare," meaning "to last." "Durare" is also an ancestor of the English words "endure," "durable," "indurate," and "during," among others. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 5, 2014 is: sound • \SOUND\ • adjective 1 a : free from disease, injury, defect, or error b : in good condition : solid and strong 2 : showing good judgment 3 : complete or thorough b of sleep : deep and restful Examples: The ideal candidate for the position is a proven leader who can make sound decisions and carry out a creative vision. "All submitted works must be structurally sound enough to withstand some handling, touching, and possible physical stress." - The Herald (New Britain, Connecticut), May 11, 2014 Did you know? English contains several "sound" homographs, all with distinct histories. For example, the "sound" that means "something heard" descends from Latin "sonus" ("sound"), whereas the "sound" that means "to measure the depth of water" traces to Old French "sonde" ("sounding line"). Today's word, however, is the contemporary form of Old English's "gesund." "Gesund" is related to several words in other languages, such as Old Saxon "gisund" ("sound"), Old Frisian "sund" ("fresh, unharmed, healthy"), and Gothic "swinths" ("sound" or "healthy"). Another relative is Old High German's "gisunt" ("healthy"), which led to modern German's "gesund," the root of "gesundheit." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 4, 2014 is: zowie • \ZOW-ee\ • interjection : - used to express astonishment or admiration especially in response to something sudden or speedy Examples: Did you see the race? Zowie! That was some fast bicycling! "Zowie! It's almost February of your junior year! Can you believe it? Because college admissions officers are super-interested in this particular year, think about ways you can really shine in academics and extracurricular activities." - Marjorie Hansen Shaevitz, The Huffington Post, January 28, 2014 Did you know? The word "zowie" was inspired by the sound of a speeding vehicle-a new phenomenon when the word entered the lexicon in 1902, the year before the Ford Motor Company sold its first car. It wasn't until the 1930s and 40s, though, that "zowie" really picked up the pace. "Zowie" isn't one of a kind. The British interjection "pip-pip," used to say "goodbye," dates to around the same time and is thought to be imitative of a bicycle or car horn. And "toodle-oo" (a word that sees some use on the American side of the Atlantic though it is more common in British English) shares the same meaning and hypothetical origin. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 3, 2014 is: charlatan • \SHAHR-luh-tun\ • noun 1 : a pretender to medical skill : quack 2 : one making usually showy pretenses to knowledge or ability : fraud, faker Examples: Even though the psychic seemed to know a lot of information about Irving's life, Irving was still convinced that the guy was a charlatan who made some lucky guesses. "I've been reading the tabloids for 40 years! ... And I've been fascinated by charlatans and fakers and sociopaths for as long as I've been alive." - Jean Hanff Korelitz, quoted in Newsday (New York), April 6, 2014 Did you know? In medieval times, people claiming medical skills they did not have roamed throughout Italy, selling "medicine" that was often completely without worth. Many of these pretenders reputedly came from a village called Cerreto, and as a result, "cerretano" (meaning "inhabitant of Cerreto") became an epithet for a quack physician. In addition, these frauds used a practiced patter to attract customers, rather like the chatter of a circus barker. The Italian word for "chatter" is "ciarlare," and chattering was so associated with the "cerretano" that the spelling of the word shifted to "ciarlatano." By the early 17th century, we had anglicized the Italian word to "charlatan" and adopted it as our own. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 2, 2014 is: augur • \AW-gur\ • verb 1 : to foretell (something) or to predict the future especially from omens 2 : to give promise of : presage Examples: The state's new first-time home-buyer program augurs a healthy jump in home sales this year. "The good news for our area in 2015 is that El Niños usually translate into milder winters for those in the northern part of the United States. It also augurs well for drought-stricken California, which will have a 60 percent chance of double its average rainfall. " - The Daily Star (Oneonta, New York), March 12, 2014 Did you know? Auguring is what augurs did in ancient Rome. These were official diviners whose function it was, not to foretell the future, but to divine whether the gods approved of a proposed undertaking, such as a military move. These augurs did so by various means, among them observing the behavior of birds and examining the intestines of sacrificed animals. Nowadays, the intransitive verb sense of "foretell" is often used with an adverb, such as "well," as in our second example above. "Augur" comes from Latin and is related to the Latin verb "augēre," which means "to increase" and is the source of "augment," "auction," and "author." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 1, 2014 is: palmy • \PAH-mee\ • adjective 1 : marked by prosperity : flourishing 2 : abounding in or bearing palms Examples: "In Beaufort Road was a house, occupied in its palmier days, by Mr Shorthouse, a manufacturer of acids." - J.R.R. Tolkien, letter, July 1964 "The place is 101 years old so they're selling tradition hard these days, staging balloon races and a Moto GP motorcycle event because that's what they did back in the palmy days of William Howard Taft." - Ben Smith, Fort Wayne Journal Gazette, May 29, 2010 Did you know? The palm branch has traditionally been used as a symbol of victory. It is no wonder then that the word "palm" came to mean "victory" or "triumph" in the late 14th century, thanks to the likes of Geoffrey Chaucer. Centuries later, Shakespeare would employ "palm" to create a new synonym for "triumphant" or "flourishing." His coinage is found in the tragedy Hamlet when the character Horatio speaks of the "palmy state of Rome / A little ere the mightiest Julius fell." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 31, 2014 is: gamut • \GAM-ut\ • noun 1 : the whole series of recognized musical notes 2 : an entire range or series Examples: "The films offered at Kauai's Hawaii Ocean Film Festival run the gamut from sports to science." - Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi, Honolulu Star, August 16, 2009 "The popular program is held during school vacation week and again during summer. The curriculum is comprehensive-while age-appropriate-and runs the gamut from animal population control to cultivating compassion for all creatures." - Ann M. Efimetz, Virginia Gazette, April 12, 2014 Did you know? To get the lowdown on "gamut," we have to dive to the bottom of a musical scale developed by 11th-century musician and monk Guido of Arezzo. Guido called the first line of his bass staff "gamma" and the first note in his scale "ut," which meant that "gamma ut" was the term for a note written on the first staff line. In time, "gamma ut" underwent a shortening to "gamut" but climbed the scale of meaning. It expanded to cover all the notes of Guido's scale, then all the notes in the range of an instrument, and, eventually, an entire range of any sort. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 30, 2014 is: diktat • \dik-TAHT\ • noun 1 : a harsh settlement unilaterally imposed (as on a defeated nation) 2 : decree, order Examples: The company president issued a diktat that employees may not wear jeans to work. "In the past month, opposition-party mayors of San Cristobal and San Diego have been ousted and imprisoned by judicial decisions based on government diktats." - Henrique Capriles-Radonski, The Wall Street Journal, April 14, 2014 Did you know? In "diktat" you might recognize the English word "dictate." Both words derive from Latin "dictare" ("to assert" or "to dictate"), a form of "dicere" ("to say"). "Diktat" passed through German where it meant "something dictated." "Dictate" can mean both "to speak words aloud to be transcribed" and "to issue a command or injunction," the sense of the word that gave us "dictator." Germans, beginning with Prince Wilhelm, used "diktat" in a negative way to refer to the Treaty of Versailles, the document ending World War I. Today "diktat" can be used as a critical term for even minor regulations felt to be unfair or authoritarian. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 29, 2014 is: motley • \MAHT-lee\ • adjective 1 : variegated in color 2 : composed of diverse often incongruous elements Examples: Lenny went to the medieval festival dressed in the bright motley garb of a court jester. "The detention of the monitors instantly raised the stakes in an already fraught drama pitting the Ukrainian government against motley bands of separatists who have overtaken city halls across the country's eastern half." - Griff Witte, The Washington Post, April 27, 2014 Did you know? "Motley" made its debut as an English adjective in the 14th century, but etymologists aren't completely sure where it came from. Many think it probably derived from the Middle English "mot," meaning "mote" or "speck." The word is also used as a noun identifying a multicolored fabric, a garment made from such a fabric, or-perhaps the best known sense of all-the fool who often wore such outfits in the European courts of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 28, 2014 is: toxophilite • \tahk-SAH-fuh-lyte\ • noun : a person fond of or expert at archery Examples: "With this weekend's smashing debut of the movie Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen's power with a bow and arrow has made toxophilites (archery-lovers) of us all." - Rebecca J. Rosen, Atlantic Online, March 26, 2012 "Behold, the archer! Perhaps there is no more heroic pose known to man ... [a]nd perhaps there is no other weapon as romantic, as toxophilites will tell you." - Mark Holmberg, WTVR CBS 6, November 27, 2013 Did you know? "Toxophilite" became established in the language as the name for a late 18th-century English archery society. The word derives from Greek "toxon," which referred to both a bow and arrow, and "philos," meaning "loving." Today, "toxophilite" is a rarely used word but often occurs in vocabulary games and puzzles and in spelling bees. A more ubiquitous descendant of "toxon" is "toxic." "Toxic" is an anglicization of Latin's word for "poison," "toxicum," which originally meant "poison for arrows" and is a borrowing from Greek "toxikon," meaning "arrow." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 27, 2014 is: bricolage • \bree-koh-LAHZH\ • noun : construction (as of a sculpture or a structure of ideas) achieved by using whatever comes to hand; also : something constructed in this way Examples: Knowing that the motor was assembled from a hasty bricolage of junk parts, Raphael had little hope that it would run effectively. "Hustad reconstructs the past through a bricolage of interviews, letters, newspaper articles, Bible verses, prayers and anecdotes…." - From a book review by Justin St. Germain in The New York Times, March 23, 2014 Did you know? According to French social anthropologist Claude Lévi-Strauss, the artist "shapes the beautiful and useful out of the dump heap of human life." Lévi-Strauss compared this artistic process to the work of a handyman who solves technical or mechanical problems with whatever materials are available. He referred to that process of making do as "bricolage," a term derived from the French verb "bricoler" (meaning "to putter about") and related to "bricoleur," the French name for a jack-of-all-trades. "Bricolage" made its way from French to English during the 1960s, and it is now used for everything from the creative uses of leftovers ("culinary bricolage") to the cobbling together of disparate computer parts ("technical bricolage"). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 26, 2014 is: stonewall • \STOHN-wawl\ • verb 1 : to be uncooperative, obstructive, or evasive 2 : to refuse to comply or cooperate with Examples: The company's executives stonewalled the investigation at every turn. "I think they're stonewalling because there seems to be a lack of leadership on their side as to how to respond to these serious allegations." - Ivo Labar, quoted in a column by Heather Knight in the San Francisco Chronicle, April 12, 2014 Did you know? The earliest English "stonewalls" were literal; they were walls made from stone. Because a stone wall can be difficult to surmount, English speakers began using "stonewall" figuratively for things or people who either were persistent and enduring or who presented an obstacle as formidable as a stone wall. (Those figurative senses earned American Confederate Civil War General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson his nickname.) Then, in the late 1800s, cricket players began using "stonewall" as a verb in reference to a batter's defensive blocking of balls. Around the same time, "stonewall" found its way into political slang as a synonym of "filibuster." There is also a chiefly British sense of "to engage in obstructive parliamentary debate or delaying tactics." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 25, 2014 is: spume • \SPYOOM\ • noun : frothy matter on liquids : foam, scum Examples: The spume and sea spray from the rising tide made the rocks along the beach slick and treacherous. "The ship yawns and yaws with each enormous wave that pounds the side of the boat, sending a cloud of spume and spray high into the air." - From an article by Ben Fogle in The Sunday Telegraph (London), January 12, 2014 Did you know? "Spume" is a word for froth or foam that has been a part of the English lexicon for more than 600 years. An early example is found in a 14th-century quotation from the English poet John Gower: "She set a cauldron on the fire … and let it boil in such a plight, till that she saw the spume [was] white." "Spume" was borrowed from Anglo-French "espume" or "spume," and can be traced further back to Latin "spuma." "Spuma" is also akin to Old English "fām," a word that is the ancestor of the current English word "foam," a synonym of "spume." Another relative of "spuma" is "pumex," the Latin word for pumice, a volcanic rock with a somewhat foamy appearance that is formed from rapidly cooling, frothy lava. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 24, 2014 is: kickshaw • \KIK-shaw\ • noun 1 : a fancy dish : delicacy 2 : a showy trifle : trinket Examples: The display case was filled with costume jewelry and various kickshaws from the 1920s. "Mitra's Chocolates on Military Rd in Spit Junction is a haven for sweet-toothed connoisseurs, with a smorgasbord of fine-quality, hand-crafted kickshaws that tempt the eyes as well as the taste buds." - From an article by Emma Page in Mosman & Lower North Shore Daily (Australia), March 25, 2010 Did you know? "Kickshaw" began its career in the late 16th century as a borrowing from French "quelque chose"-literally, "something." In line with the French pronunciation of the day, the "l" was dropped and the word was anglicized as "kickshaws" or "kickshoes." English speakers soon forgot about the word's French origin and, by taking "kickshaws" as plural, created the new singular noun "kickshaw." These days, you are most likely to encounter "kickshaw" in historical contexts or quotations from older sources. For example, the following sentence from a 2008 article in The Republican (Springfield, Massachusetts) described a 19th century meal: "Dinner would begin with 'kickshaws,' appetizers such as breadsticks, dips, spreads, olives, celery and oysters." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 23, 2014 is: preterit • \PRET-uh-rut\ • noun : past tense Examples: While the past tense form of "sneak" is traditionally "sneaked," the alternate preterit "snuck" is increasingly common. "The next chapter introduces Elwin Cross Jr., a professor of linguistics at Marasmus State College…. He's in his 50s, directionless, nearing a point in his life when 'what is becomes what was and all the other verbs defining your existence go slumping into the preterite….'" - From a review of Jonathan Miles' Want Not by Dave Eggers in the New York Times, November 10, 2013 Did you know? The original form of today's word, which dates to Middle English, has no final "e," but "preterite," as it appears in our second example, is another accepted styling of the word. Like many technical linguistic terms, "preterit" is ultimately Latin in origin: it comes from "praeter," meaning "beyond, past, by." (This meaning is also apparent in the now-archaic adjectival use of "preterit" to mean "bygone" or "former.") Another word from "praeter" is "preternatural," from the Latin phrase "praeter naturam," meaning "beyond nature." That word is typically used to describe what is so unusual or extraordinary as to seem outside of what can be accounted for by nature. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 22, 2014 is: speculate • \SPEK-yuh-layt\ • verb 1 a : to meditate on or ponder a subject : reflect b : to think or theorize about something in which evidence is too slight for certainty to be reached 2 : to assume a business risk in hope of gain; especially : to buy or sell in expectation of profiting from market fluctuations Examples: Mia's abrupt firing caused her coworkers to speculate endlessly about what she might have done wrong. "In fact, he refused to comment when asked whether any negotiations even have been held recently. He also would not speculate on the odds of a pre-trial settlement."- From an article by Roger Phillips in The Record (Stockton, California), May 1, 2014 Did you know? "Speculate" was adopted into English in the late 16th century from Latin "speculatus," the past participle of the verb "speculari," which means "to spy out" or "to examine." "Speculari," in turn, derives from "specula," meaning "lookout post," and ultimately from the Latin verb "specere," meaning "to look (at)." Other conspicuous descendants of "specere" are "inspect" and "suspect." Some less obvious descendants are the words "despise," "species," "specimen," and, as you may have speculated, "conspicuous." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 21, 2014 is: offal • \AW-ful\ • noun 1 a : the waste or by-product of a process: as b : trimmings of a hide c : the by-products of milling used especially for stock feeds d : the viscera and trimmings of a butchered animal removed in dressing : the edible parts of a slaughter animal other than skeletal muscle 2 : rubbish Examples: The city's offal-strewn alleyways were often a haven for stray dogs and vermin. "The menu continues to stick to a general theme of upscale bar food, but it has more wild game on it, and offal." - From an article by Sarah Blaskovich in The Dallas Morning News, April 11, 2014 Did you know? In its original sense, "offal" refers to something that has fallen or been cast away from some process of preparation or manufacture, and it has been used to describe such things as the stalks and dust from tobacco leaves, the less valuable portions of an animal hide, the by-products of milling grain, and the viscera and trimmings of a butchered animal. The word "offal," however, is not an etymological cast-off, but is an English original that arose in the late 14th century as a combination of "of" (the Middle English spelling of "off") and "fall," aptly naming that which "falls off" or is cast aside from something else. Since the late 16th century, "offal" has also been used as a synonym for "trash," "garbage," and "rubbish." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 20, 2014 is: amiable • \AY-mee-uh-bul\ • adjective 1 : generally agreeable 2 : being friendly, sociable, and congenial Examples: "Aside from being amiable, Mickey Mouse has no discernible personality of any kind, yet he has captivated the world, appeared in hundreds of films, and sold billions of dollars' worth of merchandise." - R. L. Stine, quoted in The Atlantic, March 19, 2014 "In person, … he was amiable and just plain funny as he discussed everything from the growing appeal of TV for movie actors to playing a character that's 'sort of God and the Devil wrapped into one.'" - From an article by Jeanne Jakle in the San Antonio Express-News, April 13, 2014 Did you know? "Amiable" derives from the Late Latin adjective "amicabilis," meaning "friendly," which in turn comes from the Latin word for "friend" and can ultimately be traced back to "amare," meaning "to love." When "amiable" was adopted into English in the 14th century, it meant "pleasing" or "admirable," but that sense is now obsolete. The current, familiar senses of "generally agreeable" ("an amiable movie") and "friendly and sociable" came centuries later. "Amare" has also given English speakers such words as "amative" and "amorous" (both meaning "strongly moved by love"), "amour" ("a usually illicit love affair"), and even "amateur" (which originally meant "admirer"). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 19, 2014 is: mélange • \may-LAHNZH\ • noun : a mixture often of incongruous elements Examples: We encountered a mélange of architectural styles as we strolled through the neighborhood. "Crisp and white as a chef’s toque, the newest artwork at the Culinary Institute of America made its debut last month as the perfect backdrop for commencement snapshots. Graduates and family members almost instinctively posed before the mural, a sculptural mélange of food-related words and objects."- From an article by David W. Dunlap in the New York Times, April 15, 2014 Did you know? "Mélange" was added to the mixture of English back in the 1600s. It derives from the Middle French verb "mesler," which means "to mix." "Mélange" is actually one of several French contributions to the English body of words for miscellaneous mixtures. "Pastiche" (meaning "a composition made up of selections of different works," or broadly, "a disorderly mixture, hodgepodge") is borrowed from French, and "medley" and "potpourri" have roots in French, too. There's also the lesser known "gallimaufry" (meaning "hodgepodge"), which comes from the Middle French "galimafree" (meaning "stew"). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 18, 2014 is: sully • \SUL-ee\ • verb : to make soiled or tarnished : defile Examples: The mayor worried that the latest scandal had hopelessly sullied his good name. "The bank's reputation was sullied when its former chairman … was caught on tape in November discussing an alleged drug purchase." - From an article by Max Colchester in the Wall Street Journal, April 11, 2014 Did you know? The spelling of today's word has shifted several times since it was "sylian" in Old-English, but its meaning has remained essentially the same: "to soil." If you're looking for other words that mean "to soil," you can try out "befoul," "besmirch," "blacken," "foul," "grime," "stain," or simply "dirty." You might wonder if the English word "sullen" (meaning "gloomy or morose") is a relative of "sully," and the answer is no. "Sullen" traces back by way of Anglo- and Old French to Latin "solus," meaning "alone." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 17, 2014 is: sartorial • \sahr-TOR-ee-ul\ • adjective : of or relating to a tailor or tailored clothes; broadly : of or relating to clothes Examples: Since Daniel was well-known for his impeccable sartorial taste, I asked him for help in upgrading my own wardrobe. "Her truck, specializing in clothes for plus-size women, is one of the mobile fashion retailers-the sartorial cousins to food trucks-that have taken to Washington area streets over the past year and a half." - From an article by Stephanie Merry in The Washington Post, April 16, 2014 Did you know? It's easy to uncover the root of "sartorial." Just strip off the suffix "-ial" and you discover the Latin noun "sartor," meaning "tailor" (literally, "one who patches or mends"). Sartorial splendor has been the stuff of voguish magazines for years, and even "sartor" itself has occasionally proven fashionable, as it did in 1843, when Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote of "coats whose memory turns the sartor pale," or in the 1870 title The Sartor, or British journal of cutting, clothing, and fashion. "Sartorial" has been in style with English speakers since at least 1823. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 16, 2014 is: bijou • \BEE-zhoo\ • noun 1 : a small dainty usually ornamental piece of delicate workmanship : jewel 2 : something delicate, elegant, or highly prized Examples: Bijoux from around the world will be on exhibit and later auctioned off. "Bauble Bar has loads of gorgeous bijoux that won't break the bank…. The Radiant Orchid Collar Necklace is among my favorites…." - From an article by Gretta Monahan in the Boston Herald, January 23, 2014 Did you know? "Bijou" (which can be pluralized as either "bijoux" or "bijous") has adorned English since the late 17th century. We borrowed it from French, but the word ultimately traces to Breton, a Celtic language (one closely related to Cornish and Welsh) spoken by inhabitants of the Brittany region of northwest France. Our modern English word derives from Breton "bizou," which means "ring." That history makes "bijou" a rare gem in English because, although the Breton people occupied part of England for many years before they were pushed into France by the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th and 6th centuries, very few Breton-derived words remain in our language. (Another Breton descendant is "menhir," a term for a kind of monolith.) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 15, 2014 is: shinplaster • \SHIN-plass-ter\ • noun 1 : a piece of privately issued paper currency; especially : one poorly secured and depreciated in value 2 : a piece of paper money in denominations of less than one dollar Examples: It was the same during the Civil War when the government again turned to the printing press to finance the war. So-called 'greenbacks' … and 'shinplasters,' paper 5-, 10-, 25- and 50-cent pieces, were printed by the thousands to help pay Union soldiers and relieve a coin shortage caused by hoarding." - From an article by John Schmeltzer in the Chicago Tribune, May 12, 1995 "'Some Canadians consider the penny more of a nuisance than a useful coin,' the budget documents said. And so the coin will go the way of the old 25-cent shinplaster." - From an article by John Ward of The Canadian Press, March 29, 2012 Did you know? In the past, "shinplaster" referred to a small, square patch of paper that was used as a plaster in treating sore legs. In 19th-century America, the term "shinplaster" was applied to another paper Band-Aid fix: the privately-issued, poorly-secured notes substituted for the coins withdrawn from current circulation. The lexical currency of "shinplaster" spiked when it began being used for the paper money in denominations of less than a dollar-a.k.a. "fractional currency"-issued by the United States government after the depression of 1837 and during the Civil War. In 1870, the U.S.'s neighbor to the north, Canada, issued its own shinplaster, a 25-cent note, which fell into disuse in the early 20th century. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 14, 2014 is: eidetic • \eye-DET-ik\ • adjective : marked by or involving extraordinarily accurate and vivid recall especially of visual images Examples: Thanks to her eidetic memory, Kirsten was able to recall every last detail of what happened that night, including the colors of each person's outfit. "Jason Bateman, making his feature directing debut after directing episodes of his 'Arrested Development' series, plays an adult who uses a loophole to enter a spelling bee and whose eidetic memory all but guarantees he will win if he chooses." - From a movie review by Duane Dudek in the Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee), March 27, 2014 Did you know? "Eidetic" is the technical adjective used to describe what we more commonly call a photographic memory. The word ultimately derives from the Greek noun "eidos," meaning "form." The ability of certain individuals to recall images, sounds, or events with uncanny accuracy is a subject of fascination for researchers in the field of psychology. Among notable people who were reputed to have eidetic memories is the late television comic Jackie Gleason, who reportedly was able to memorize an entire half-hour script in a single reading. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 13, 2014 is: yokel • \YOH-kul\ • noun : a naive or gullible inhabitant of a rural area or small town Examples: The yokels at the gas station looked at us funny when we walked in, but they were friendly and obliging when we asked them for directions. "Who stumbles across him but the thugs that ransacked the house Rick was staying in just a few episodes ago. They surround him and attempt to rob him of his crossbow (and the vest - 'I like them wings' one yokel says), but Daryl manages to bloody the leader's nose and aim his crossbow at him, forcing them all into a standoff." - From an episode recap by Nicole Pesce on the New York Daily News's Channel Surfer blog, March 24, 2014 Did you know? The origins of "yokel" are uncertain, but it might have come from the dialectal English word "yokel," meaning "green woodpecker." Other words for supposedly naive country folk are "chawbacon" (from "chaw," meaning "chew," and "bacon"), "hayseed" (which has obvious connections to country life), and "clodhopper" (indicating a clumsy, heavy-footed rustic). But city slickers don't always have the last word: rural folk have had their share of labels for city-dwellers too. One simple example from current use is the often disparaging use of the adjective "citified." A more colorful (albeit historical) example is "cockney," which literally means "cock's egg," or more broadly "misshapen egg." In the past, this word often designated a spoiled or foppish townsman-as opposed to the sturdy countryman, that is. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 12, 2014 is: snivel • \SNIV-ul\ • verb 1 : to run at the nose 2 : to snuff mucus up the nose audibly : snuffle 3 : to cry or whine with snuffling 4 : to speak or act in a whining, sniffling, tearful, or weakly emotional manner Examples: Mom told Jenny to stop sniveling about how mistreated she was and just do her chores. "Clearly director Alan Taylor, whose previous work has mostly been in classy series television (lately, 'Game of Thrones' and 'Boardwalk Empire'), likes this character best, because he snivels most." - From a movie review by Michael Phillips in The Baltimore Sun, November 8, 2013 Did you know? There's never been anything pretty about sniveling. "Snivel," which originally meant simply "to have a runny nose," was probably "snyflan" in Old English. It's likely related to "sniffle," not surprisingly, and also to an Old English word for mucus, "snofl." It's even related to the Middle Dutch word for a cold, "snof," and the Old Norse word for "snout," which is "snoppa." There's also a connection to "nan," a Greek verb meaning "flow." Nowadays, we mostly use "snivel," as we have since the 1600s, to refer to self-pitying whining, whether or not such sniveling is accompanied by unchecked nasal flow. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 11, 2014 is: abrupt • \uh-BRUPT\ • adjective 1 a : characterized by or involving action or change without preparation or warning : unexpected b : unceremoniously curt c : lacking smoothness or continuity 2 : giving the impression of being cut or broken off; especially : involving a sudden steep rise or drop Examples: Although Kevin liked working at the auto dealership, his abrupt manner of speaking made him a poor match for a job in customer service. "Investigators are combing a remote area of the Indian Ocean for possible debris from missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, but the mystery around its abrupt disappearance grows with each passing day." - From an article by Ginger Adams Otis in the Daily News (New York), March 23, 2014 Did you know? We'll break it to you gently: "abrupt" first appeared in English in the 16th century and can be traced back to a combination in Latin of the prefix "ab-" and the verb "rumpere," which means "to break." "Rumpere" forms the basis for several other words in English that suggest a kind of breaking, including "interrupt," "rupture," and "bankrupt." Whether being used to describe a style of speaking that seems rudely short (as in "an abrupt answer"), something with a severe rise or drop (as in "abrupt changes in temperature"), or something that seems rash and sudden (as in "an abrupt decision to quit college"), "abrupt" implies a kind of jarring unexpectedness that catches people off guard. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.