Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

word | 1 Jul 2006 06:50

sempiternal

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The Word of the Day for July 1 is:

sempiternal   \sem-pih-TER-nul\   adjective
      : of never-ending duration : eternal

Example sentence:
      The owner of the lost exotic bird made it clear that whoever found his pet would receive a handsome cash
reward as well as his sempiternal gratitude.

Did you know?
      Despite their similarities, "sempiternal" and "eternal" come from different roots. "Sempiternal" is
derived from the Late Latin "sempiternalis" and ultimately from "semper," Latin for "always." (You may
recognize "semper" as a key element in the motto of the U.S. Marine Corps: "semper fidelis," meaning
"always faithful.") "Eternal," on the other hand, is derived by way of Middle French and Middle English
from the Late Latin "aeternalis" and ultimately from "aevum," Latin for "age" or "eternity."
"Sempiternal" is much less common than "eternal," but some writers have found it useful. Ralph Waldo
Emerson, for example, wrote, "The one thing which we seek with insatiable desire is to forget
ourselves...to lose our sempiternal memory, and to do something without knowing how or why...."

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word | 2 Jul 2006 06:50

prepossessing

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The Word of the Day for July 2 is: 

prepossessing   \pree-puh-ZESS-ing\   adjective
     : tending to create a favorable impression : attractive

Example sentence:
     "Although it is not an especially prepossessing plant, it is one of my favorites." (Barbara J. Euser,
_Marin Independent Journal_, March 11, 2006)

Did you know?
     If you've heard of the word "unprepossessing," it probably comes as no surprise to you that there's also a
"prepossessing." You may not know, however, that both derive from the verb "prepossess," which is also
still used in English, although it's quite rare. When "prepossess" first appeared in print in English in
1614, it meant "to take previous possession of," but that sense is now obsolete. The adjective
"prepossessing" came into use approximately 30 years later, based on a later sense, "to influence
favorably beforehand." Someone or something that is prepossessing, therefore, makes a good first impression.

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word | 3 Jul 2006 06:50

tourbillion

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The Word of the Day for July 3 is:

tourbillion   \toor-BILL-yun\   noun
     1 : whirlwind  
    *2 : a vortex especially of a whirlwind or whirlpool

Example sentence:
     "In the history of any art there are unexpected eddies and tourbillions." (C. B. Cox, _The
Twentieth-Century Mind_)

Did you know?
     "Tourbillion" comes from the same root as "turbine" -- namely, the Latin word "turbo," meaning "top" (as in
a spinning object) or "whirlwind." "Tourbillion" has been used over time to refer to other spinning
objects besides an actual whirlwind. Among watchmaking enthusiasts, "tourbillion" is the name of a kind
of watch with a mechanism designed to compensate for the effects of gravity on its movement. Among
pyrotechnics fans, a tourbillion is a kind of firework having a spiral flight. The variety of meanings for
"tourbillion" is enough to make one's head spin!

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

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word | 4 Jul 2006 06:50

Yankee

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The Word of the Day for July 4 is:

Yankee \YANG-kee\ noun
1 a : a native or inhabitant of New England b : a native or inhabitant of the northern U.S.
*2 : a native or inhabitant of the U.S.

Example sentence:
"They mistake who assert that the Yankee has few amusements...and men and boys do not play so many games as
they do in England." (Henry David Thoreau, _Walden_)

Did you know?
Many etymologies have been proposed for "Yankee," but its origin is still uncertain. What we do know is that
in its earliest recorded use "Yankee" was a pejorative term for American colonials used by the British
military. The first evidence we have is in a letter written in 1758 by British General James Wolfe, who had a
very low opinion of the American troops assigned to him. We also have a report of British troops using the
term to abuse citizens of Boston. In 1775, however, after the battles of Lexington and Concord had shown
the colonials that they could stand up to British regulars, "Yankee" became suddenly respectable and the
colonials adopted the British pejorative in defiance. Ever since then, a derisive and a respectable use
of "Yankee" have existed side by side.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

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word | 5 Jul 2006 15:32

rife

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The Word of the Day for July 5 is: 

rife   \RYFE\   adjective
     1 : prevalent especially to an increasing degree 
     2 : abundant, common 
    *3 : copiously supplied : abounding -- usually used with "with"

Example sentence:
     The article was rife with grammatical and factual errors.

Did you know?
     English is rife with words that have Germanic connections, many of which have been handed down to us from Old
English. "Rife" is one of those words -- it's related to Middle Low German "rive," meaning "abundant." Not
a whole lot has changed with "rife" in its 900-year history. We continue to use the word, as we have since the
12th century, for negative things, especially those that are widespread or prevalent. Typical examples
are "shoplifting was rife" or "the city was rife with greed and corruption." "Rumors" and "speculation"
are also frequently described as "rife," as well. But "rife" can also be appropriately used, as it has been
for hundreds of years, for good or neutral things. For example, you might speak of "the summer garden, rife
with scents." 

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence. 

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word | 6 Jul 2006 06:50

paronomasia

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The Word of the Day for July 6 is:

paronomasia   \pair-uh-noh-MAY-zhee-uh\   noun 
     : a play on words : pun 

Example sentence: 
     Humorists claim that Harry Truman offered the delightful paronomasia "Missouri loves company" when he
invited a friend to join him in Independence, Missouri, for a home-cooked meal.

Did you know? 
     Puns (essentially, humorous uses of words to suggest more than one interpretation) have their share of
critics as well as fans. English philosopher-poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, for example, called puns
"the lowest form of wit." "Paronomasia," which derives from a Greek verb meaning "to call with a slight
change of name," can simply be a synonym of "pun." But it can also be used, somewhat playfully, to suggest an
uncontrollable urge to make puns (as if it were a dread disease, rather than harmless word play). For
example, in the July 6, 1980 _New York Times_, William Safire announced, "an epidemic of paronomasia has
raced around the world." And on January 1, 1989, Jerry Kobrin of _The Orange County Register_ resolved to
seek treatment "for a near-terminal case of paronomasia."

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word | 7 Jul 2006 06:50

razzmatazz

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The Word of the Day for July 7 is:

razzmatazz \raz-muh-TAZ\ noun
*1 : a confusing or colorful often gaudy action or display : razzle-dazzle
2 : inflated, involved, and often deliberately ambiguous language : double-talk
3 : vim, zing

Example sentence:
It was a rally like any other, perhaps, but amidst all the flag-waving and razzmatazz, we detected a
stronger than usual strain of genuine patriotic feeling.

Did you know?
Before early forms of "razzmatazz" entered English, "razzle-dazzle" appeared on the scene, and long
before "razzle-dazzle" there was simply "dazzle" (from "daze"). English speakers are fond of forming
new words through reduplication of a base word, usually with just a slight change of sound. Think of
"okey-dokey," "fuddy-duddy," "super-duper," "roly-poly," "fiddle-faddle," and "dilly-dally." A
hundred or so years ago, the spirit that prompted "razzle-dazzle" seems to have also inspired
"razzmatazz" shortly afterward. The coiners of "razzmatazz" may have had "jazz" in mind. Some of the
earliest turn-of-the century uses of "razzmatazz" refer to rag-time or early jazz styles. By the 40s,
we'd come round to the "razzle-dazzle" sense, though we still haven't completely settled on the
spelling. You might, for example, see "razzamatazz."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

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word | 8 Jul 2006 06:50

grubstake

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The Word of the Day for July 8 is:

grubstake   \GRUB-stayk\   verb
     : to provide with material assistance (as a loan) for launching an enterprise or for a person in difficult
circumstances 

Example sentence:
     "Hoping to turn the situation around in California, the state now grubstakes entrepreneurs to try their
hand at salvaging urban woods." (John Balzar, _Los Angeles Times_, March 8, 2004) 

Did you know?
     "Grubstake" is a linguistic nugget that was dug up during the famous California Gold Rush, which began in
1848. Sometime between the first stampede and the early 1860s, when the gold-seekers headed off to
Montana, prospectors combined "grub" ("food") and "stake," meaning "an interest or share in an
undertaking." At first "grubstake" was a noun, referring to any kind of loan or provisions that could be
finagled to make an undertaking possible (with the agreement that the "grubstaker" would get a cut of any
profits). By 1879, "grubstake" was also showing up as a verb meaning "to give someone a grubstake," and,
since at least 1937, it has been applied to other situations in which a generous benefactor comes through
with the funds. 

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word | 9 Jul 2006 06:50

requisite

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The Word of the Day for July 9 is: 

requisite   \REK-wuh-zit\   adjective
     : essential, necessary

Example sentence:
      The menu had all the requisite summer cookout offerings: hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, and
watermelon. 

Did you know?
     Acquiring an understanding of where today's word comes from won't require a formal inquiry. Without
question, the quest begins with Latin "quaerere," which means "to ask" and is an ancestor of a number of
English words, including "acquire," "require," "inquiry," "question," "quest," and, of course,
"requisite." From "quaerere" came "requirere," meaning "to ask again." Repeated requests can express a
need, and the past participle of "requirere," which is "requisitus," came to mean "needed" or
"necessary." The English language acquired "requisite" when it was adopted into Middle English back in
the 1400s.  

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word | 10 Jul 2006 06:50

fealty

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The Word of the Day for July 10 is:

fealty   \FEE-ul-tee\   noun 
     1 a : the fidelity of a vassal or feudal tenant to his lord  b : the obligation of such fidelity 
    *2 : intense fidelity 

Example sentence: 
     Out of fealty to his boss, who had hired him after no other employer would, Jesse stayed on with the
struggling company.

Did you know? 
     In 1626, Francis Bacon wrote, "Fealty is to take an oath upon a book, that he will be a faithful Tenant to the
King." That's a pretty accurate summary of the early meaning of "fealty." Early forms of the term were used
in Middle English around 1300, when they specifically designated the loyalty of a vassal to a lord.
Eventually, the meaning of the word broadened. Fealty can be paid to a country, a principle, or a leader of
any kind -- though the synonyms "fidelity" and "loyalty" are more commonly used. "Fealty" comes from the
Anglo-French word "feelte," or "fealte," which comes from the Latin "fidelitas," meaning "fidelity."
These words are ultimately derived from "fides," the Latin word for "faith." 

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

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