The word for today is… chary (adjective): 1: discreetly cautious: such as a: hesitant and vigilant about dangers and risks b: slow to grant, accept, or expend 2 archaic : dear, treasured Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Chary’s Middle English predecessor, charri, meant “sorrowful,” a sense that harks back to the
The word for today is… vouchsafe (verb): 1a: to grant or furnish often in a gracious or condescending manner b: to give by way of reply 2: to grant as a privilege or special favour Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : In its Middle English form vouchen sauf meant "to grant,
The word for today is… immure (verb): 1a: to enclose within or as if within walls b: imprison 2: to build into a wall Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Like mural, immure comes from murus, a Latin noun that means "wall." Immurare, a Medieval Latin verb, was formed from
The word for today is… benign (adjective): 1a: of a mild type or character that does not threaten health or life, especially : not becoming cancerous b: having no significant effect : harmless 2: of a gentle disposition : gracious 3a: showing kindness and gentleness b: favourable, wholesome Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Benign
The word for today is… hew (verb): transitive verb 1: to cut with blows of a heavy cutting instrument 2: to cut down by blows of an axe 3: to give form or shape to with or as if with heavy cutting blows intransitive verb 1: to make cutting blows
The word for today is… snark (noun, verb): noun : an attitude or expression of mocking irreverence and sarcasm verb : to make an irreverent or sarcastic comment : to say something snarky Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Credit for snark is often given to Lewis Carroll, on the basis of his having written
The word for today is… influence (noun, verb): noun 1: the power or capacity of causing an effect in indirect or intangible ways : sway 2a: the act or power of producing an effect without apparent exertion of force or direct exercise of command b: corrupt interference with authority for personal
The word for today is… cynosure (noun): 1 capitalised : the northern constellation Ursa Minor, also : North Star 2: one that serves to direct or guide 3: a centre of attraction or attention Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Ancient mariners noted that all the stars in the heavens seemed to revolve around
The word for today is… penchant (noun): : a strong and continued inclination, broadly : liking Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : English has multiple p-words that imply a strong instinct or liking for something, including propensity and proclivity, but to keep things precise, penchant is the proper word for implying a pronounced, persistent
The word for today is… elucidate (verb): : to make lucid especially by explanation or analysis Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : In 1974, the discovery of a remarkably intact Australopithecus skeleton elucidated a key moment in human evolution. She was famously nicknamed Lucy in reference to the Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky
The word for today is… derelict (adjective, noun): adjective 1: abandoned especially by the owner or occupant, also : run-down 2: lacking a sense of duty : negligent noun 1 usually disparaging : a person who has no established residence and who wanders from place to place without lawful or visible means of
The word for today is… garble (verb, noun): verb 1a: to so alter or distort as to create a wrong impression or change the meaning b: to introduce textual error into (a message) by inaccurate encipherment, transmission, or decipherment 2: to sift impurities from 3 archaic : cull noun 1: an
The word for today is… protagonist (noun): 1a(1): the principal character in a literary work (such as a drama or story) (2): the leading actor or principal character in a television show, movie, book, etc. b: an active participant in an event 2: a leader, proponent, or supporter of
The word for today is… verisimilitude (noun): 1: the quality or state of being verisimilar - i.e. having the appearance of truth; probable or depicting realism (as in art or literature) 2: something verisimilar Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : From its roots, verisimilitude means basically "similarity to the truth&
The word for today is… de rigueur (adjective): : prescribed or required by fashion, etiquette, or custom : proper Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : de rigueur, is a direct borrowing from French where it means “out of strictness” or “according to strict etiquette.” Rigour is also what distinguishes de rigueur from a similar
The word for today is… neologism (noun): 1: a new word, usage, or expression 2 psychology : a new word that is coined especially by a person affected with schizophrenia and is meaningless except to the coiner, and is typically a combination of two existing words or a shortening or distortion
