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word | 1 Jul 2004 06:59

aphelion

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The Word of the Day for July 1 is:

aphelion   \af-EEL-yun\   noun
      : the point in the path of a celestial body (as a planet) 
that is farthest from the sun 

Example sentence:
     If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you might expect 
the earth to be closest to the sun in July, but in fact it is at 
aphelion then.

Did you know? 
     "Aphelion" and "perihelion" are troublesome terms. Which 
one means a planet is nearest the sun and which means it is 
farthest away? An etymology lesson may help you keep those words 
straight. Just remember that the "ap" of "aphelion" derives from 
a New Latin prefix that means "away from" (the mnemonic "'A' 
for 'away'" can help too); "peri-," on the other hand, 
means "near." And how are "aphelion" and "perihelion" related to 
the similar-looking astronomical pair, "apogee" and "perigee"? 
Etymology explains again. "Aphelion" and "perihelion" are based 
on the Greek word "helios," meaning "sun," while "apogee" 
and "perigee" are based on "gaia," meaning "earth." The first 
pair describes distance in relation to the sun, the second in
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word | 2 Jul 2004 06:59

firework

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The Word of the Day for July 2 is:

firework   \FYRE-werk\   noun
     1 : a device for producing a striking display by the 
combustion of explosive or flammable compositions
     2 plural : a display of fireworks
     3 plural  *a : a display of temper or intense conflict  b : 
a spectacular display

Example sentence:
     "More [divorcing] couples are considering mediation ... 
rather than hiring two lawyers who fight it out for their 
clients. The potential benefits are lower costs and  
fewer fireworks." (Mary Rowland, _The New York Times_, January 
15, 1995)

Did you know?
     The word "fireworks" burst upon the scene in the 1500s as a 
reference to military explosives (a sense that is now obsolete). 
These explosives were originally used as weapons, of course, but 
soon they were also being used in pyrotechnic displays 
celebrating victory or peace. By 1575 people were oohing and 
aahing over "fireworks shewed upon the water; the which were 
both strange and wel executed." Figurative uses have been
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word | 3 Jul 2004 06:59

primordial

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The Word of the Day for July 3 is:

primordial   \pry-MOR-dee-uhl\   adjective
    *1 a : first created or developed : primeval  b : existing 
in or persisting from the beginning (as of a solar system or 
universe)  c : earliest formed in the growth of an individual or 
organ : primitive
     2 : fundamental, primary

Example sentence:
     Theorists hold that the oceans and lakes of the early Earth 
served as a vast primordial soup whose rich blend of organic 
compounds nourished the first living organisms.

Did you know?
     The history of "primordial" began when the Latin 
words "primus" (meaning "first") and "ordiri" (meaning "to 
begin") came together to form "primordium," the Latin word 
for "origin." When it entered English in the 14th 
century, "primordial" was used in the general sense "primeval or 
primitive." Early on, there were hints that "primordial" would 
lend itself well to discussions of the earth's origins. Take, 
for instance, this passage from a 1398 translation of an 
encyclopedia called _On the Properties of Things_: "The virtu of
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word | 4 Jul 2004 06:59

comity

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The Word of the Day for July 4 is:

comity   \KAH-muh-tee\   noun 
     1 *a : friendly social atmosphere : social harmony  b : a 
loose widespread community based on common social institutions  
c : comity of nations 
     2 : avoidance of proselytizing members of another religious 
denomination 

Example sentence: 
     "A proper system of government, ... if it be founded in 
reason and comity, will be more likely to nourish in the minds 
of our youth the combined spirit of order and self-respect." 
(Thomas Jefferson, "Report of the Commissioners for the 
University of Virginia," August 4, 1818) 

Did you know? 
     "Our country soweth also in the field of our breasts many 
precious seeds, as ... honest behavior, affability, comity," 
wrote English clergyman Thomas Becon in 1543. Becon's use is the 
earliest documented appearance of "comity" -- a word derived 
from the Latin "comitas," meaning "courteousness" (and probably 
related to the Sanskrit word for "he smiles"). "Comity" is 
largely used in political and judicial contexts. Since
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word | 5 Jul 2004 06:59

grandee

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The Word of the Day for July 5 is:

grandee   \gran-DEE\   noun
     : a man of elevated rank or station 

Example sentence:
     When he returned home from the fund-raiser, Stephen 
couldn't help bragging a little about all the political grandees 
he'd met.

Did you know? 
     In Medieval Spain and Portugal the "grandes" ("great ones") 
were at the pinnacle of the ranks of nobles, rich and powerful. 
A grandee (as it came to be spelled in English) could wear a hat 
in the presence of the king and queen -- the height of 
privilege -- and he alone could address a letter directly to 
royalty. (Even Christopher Columbus had to direct his reports of 
the New World to an important noble at court, who read them to 
King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella.) Today, although the term is 
still applied to grandees of the blue-blooded sort, they are few 
and far between, and the title can be used for anyone of 
importance and influence anywhere (such as the "pin-striped 
grandees of London's financial district").
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word | 6 Jul 2004 06:59

fructify

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The Word of the Day for July 6 is:

fructify   \FRUK-tuh-fye\   verb
    *1: to bear fruit
     2: to make fruitful or productive

Example sentence:
     Fred is in a comfortable financial position these days, 
thanks to some investments that have recently begun to fructify.

Did you know?
     "Fructify" derives from the Middle English "fructifien" and 
ultimately from the Latin noun "fructus," meaning "fruit." When 
the word was first used in English in the 14th century, it 
literally referred to the actions of plants that bore fruit; 
later it was used transitively to refer to the action of making 
something fruitful, such as soil. The word also expanded to 
encompass a figurative sense of "fruit," and it is now more 
frequently used to refer to the giving forth of something in 
profit from something else (such as dividends from an 
investment). "Fructus" also gave us the name of the 
sugar "fructose," as well as "usufruct," which refers to the 
legal right to enjoy the fruits or profits of something that 
belongs to someone else.
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word | 7 Jul 2004 06:59

incommensurable

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The Word of the Day for July 7 is:

incommensurable   \in-kuh-MEN-suh-ruh-bul\   adjective
     : not commensurable;  broadly : lacking a basis of 
comparison in respect to a quality normally subject to comparison

Example sentence:
     "Our anxieties for you and Margaret and my anxieties for 
the success of my book ... are two so incommensurable things 
that they ought not of right to be brought together in one 
letter." (Robert Frost, _Letters_)

Did you know? 
     "Commensurable" means "having a common measure" 
or "corresponding in size, extent, amount, or degree." Its 
antonym "incommensurable" generally refers to things that are 
unlike and incompatible, sharing no common ground (as 
in "incommensurable theories"), or to things that are very 
disproportionate, often to the point of defying comparison 
("incommensurable crimes"). Both words entered English in the 
1500s and were originally used (as they still can be) for 
numbers that have or don't have a common divisor. They came to 
English by way of Middle French and Late Latin, ultimately 
deriving from Latin "mensura," meaning "measure." "Mensura" is
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word | 8 Jul 2004 06:59

lackadaisical

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The Word of the Day for July 8 is:

lackadaisical   \lak-uh-DAY-zih-kul\   adjective
     : lacking life, spirit, or zest : languid

Example sentence:
     Disgusted by his team's performance during their losing 
streak, the coach gave a lecture scolding them for their 
lackadaisical play.

Did you know?
     Alas, alack, there are times when life seems to be one 
unfortunate occurrence after another. We've all had days when 
nothing seemed to go right. When folks had one of those days 
back in the 17th century, they'd cry "Lackaday" to express their 
sorrow and disappointment. "Lackaday" was a shortened form of 
the expression "alack the day." In the mid-
1700s, "lackadaisical" was coined through addition of the 
suffix "-ical." The word "lackadaisy" also saw usage around that 
time as an interjection similar to "lackaday," and this word, 
though never as prevalent as "lackaday," might have influenced 
the coinage of "lackadaisical."
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word | 9 Jul 2004 06:59

haywire

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The Word of the Day for July 9 is:

haywire   \HAY-wyre\   adverb or adjective 
    *1 : being out of order or having gone wrong
     2 : emotionally or mentally upset or out of control

Example sentence: 
     The TV goes haywire every time we use the blender.

Did you know?
     The wire used in bailing hay -- haywire -- is often used in 
makeshift repairs. This hurried and temporary use of haywire 
gave rise to the adjective "haywire." When the adjective was 
first used in the early 20th century, it was primarily in the 
phrase "haywire outfit," which denoted originally a poorly 
equipped group of loggers and then anything that was flimsy or 
patched together. This led to a "hastily patched-up" sense, 
which, in turn, gave us the more commonly used meaning, "being 
out of order or having gone wrong." The "crazy" sense 
of "haywire" may have been suggested by the difficulty of 
handling the springy wire, its tendency to get tangled around 
legs, or the disorderly appearance of the temporary repair jobs 
for which it was used.
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word | 10 Jul 2004 06:59

commensal

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The Word of the Day for July 10 is:

commensal   \kuh-MEN-sul\   adjective 
     1 : of or relating to those who habitually eat together 
    *2 : living in a relationship in which one organism obtains 
food or other benefits from another without damaging or 
benefiting it

Example sentence:
     The commensal pearlfish can be found inside the sea 
cucumber, nibbling on the internal organs of the host (which, 
fortunately, has a unique capacity to regrow its internal 
anatomy).

Did you know?
     Commensal types, be they human or beast, often "break 
bread" together. When they do, they are reflecting the etymology 
of "commensal," which derives from the Latin prefix "com-," 
meaning "with, together, jointly" and the Latin 
adjective "mensalis," meaning "of the table." In its earliest 
English uses, "commensal" referred to people who ate together, 
but around 1870, biologists started using it for organisms that 
have no use for a four-piece table setting. Since then, the 
scientific sense has almost completely displaced the dining one.
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Gmane