flair

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 30, 2013 is: flair • \FLAIR\  • noun 1 : a skill or instinctive ability to appreciate or make good use of something : talent; also : inclination, tendency 2 : a uniquely attractive quality : style Examples: From an early age, Martin has demonstrated a real flair for drawing and painting. "Lise de la Salle played the exuberant piano flourishes with flair and was also the fine soloist in Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A." - From an article by James R. Oestreich in The New York Times, July 30, 2013 Did you know? In the 14th century, if someone told you that you had "flair" (or "flayre" as it was then commonly spelled), you might very well take offense! This is because in Middle English "flayre" meant "an odor." The word derived from the Old French verb "flairer" ("to give off an odor"), which came in turn from Late Latin "flagrare," itself an alteration of "fragrare." (The English words "fragrant" and "fragrance" also derive from "fragrare.") The "odor" sense of "flair" fell out of use, but in the 19th century English speakers once again borrowed "flair" from the French-this time (influenced by the Modern French use of the word for the sense of smell) to indicate a discriminating sense or instinctive discernment. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.