The word for today is… chagrin (noun, verb): noun : disquietude or distress of mind caused by humiliation, disappointment, or failure verb : to vex or unsettle by disappointing or humiliating Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Despite what its second syllable may lead one to believe, chagrin has nothing to do with grinning
The word for today is… disparage (verb): 1: to belittle the importance or value of (someone or something) : to speak slightingly about (someone or something) 2: to lower (someone or something) in rank or reputation : degrade Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : In Middle English, to "disparage" someone meant causing
The word for today is… rationale (noun): 1: an explanation of controlling principles of opinion, belief, practice, or phenomena 2: an underlying reason : basis Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Rationale comes from Latin ratio, meaning "reason," and rationalis, "endowed with reason." Ratio is reasonably familiar as an
The word for today is… moil (verb,noun): verb 1: to work hard : drudge 2: to be in continuous agitation : churn, swirl noun 1: hard work : drudgery 2: confusion, turmoil Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Moil may mean "to work hard" but its origins are the opposite of hard;
The word for today is… pre-eminent (adjective): : having paramount rank, dignity, or importance : outstanding, supreme Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : What is noteworthy about the following sentence? "Mont Blanc is a prominent eminence on the Alpine landscape." You very likely recognised two words that are closely related to pre-eminent:
The word for today is… impervious (adjective): 1a: not allowing entrance or passage : impenetrable b: not capable of being damaged or harmed 2: not capable of being affected or disturbed Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The Latin ancestor of impervious is impervius, which adds the prefix im-, meaning “not,” to pervius,
The word for today is… apotropaic (adjective): : designed to avert evil Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Apotropaic is a literal descriptor for things believed to protect against evil. Apotropaic motifs can be found throughout history, from carvings of Greek Gorgons to charms worn to repel the evil eye. The word apotropaic
The word for today is… fester (verb, noun): verb 1: to generate pus 2: putrefy, rot 3a: to cause increasing poisoning, irritation, or bitterness : rankle b: to undergo or exist in a state of progressive deterioration noun : a suppurating sore : pustule Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Both noun and verb forms
The word for today is… uncanny (adjective): 1a: seeming to have a supernatural character or origin : eerie, mysterious b: being beyond what is normal or expected : suggesting superhuman or supernatural powers 2 chiefly Scotland : severe, punishing Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Uncanny describes that which unsettles us, such as disquieting observations,
The word for today is… percolate (verb): 1a: to cause (a solvent) to pass through a permeable substance (such as a powdered drug) especially for extracting a soluble constituent b: to prepare (coffee) in a percolator 2: to be diffused through : penetrate Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Percolate comes from a
The word for today is… craven (adjective): 1: lacking the least bit of courage : contemptibly fainthearted 2 archaic : defeated, vanquished Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Craven and its synonyms dastardly and pusillanimous are all basically fancy words for "cowardly." Craven suggests extreme defeatism and complete lack of resistance. One
The word for today is… traduce (verb): 1: to expose to shame or blame by means of falsehood and misrepresentation 2: violate, betray Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Traduce is one of a number of English synonyms that you can choose when you need a word that means "to injure
The word for today is… baroque (adjective, noun): adjective 1 art : of, relating to, or having the characteristics of a style of artistic expression prevalent especially in the 17th century that is marked generally by use of complex forms, bold ornamentation, and the juxtaposition of contrasting elements often conveying a
The word for today is… imprecate (verb): : to invoke evil on : curse Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : A word that refers to wishing evil upon someone has its roots in praying, but imprecate ultimately derives from the Latin verb precari, meaning "to pray, ask, or entreat." Precari is also
The word for today is… nosegay (noun): : a small bunch of flowers : posy Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Nosegay is a homegrown word—that is, it originated in English. 15th-century Middle English speakers joined nose (which meant then what it does today) with gay (which, at the time, meant "ornament&
The word for today is… sleuth (noun, verb): noun : detective intransitive verb : to act as a detective : search for information transitive verb : to search for and discover Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : "They were the footprints of a gigantic hound!" Those canine tracks in Arthur Conan Doyle's
