Skip to content

David Theobald

The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… eradicate (verb): 1: to do away with as completely as if by pulling up by the roots 2: to pull up by the roots Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Given that eradicate first meant “to pull up by the roots,” it’s not surprising that the

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… factotum (noun): 1: a person having many diverse activities or responsibilities 2: a general servant Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : “Do everything!” That’s a tall order, but it is exactly what a factotum is expected to do. It’s also a literal translation of the

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… ingratiate (verb): : to gain favor or favorable acceptance for by deliberate effort —usually used with with Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : When you ingratiate yourself, you put yourself in someone’s good graces in order to gain their approval or favor. While the word ingratiate does

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… cahoot (noun): plural cahoots – informal : partnership, league – usually used in plural – usually used in phrase like in cahoots to describe people or groups working together or making plans together in secret Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Cahoot is used almost exclusively in the phrase “in cahoots,

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… laudable (adjective): : worthy of praise : commendable Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Laudable comes ultimately from Latin laud- or laus, meaning “praise,” as does laudatory. However, the two differ in meaning, and usage commentators warn against using them interchangeably. Laudable means “deserving praise” or “praiseworthy,” as in

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… vindicate (verb): 1a: to free from allegation or blame b(1): confirm, substantiate  (2): to provide justification or defense for : justify c: to protect from attack or encroachment : defend 2: avenge 3: to maintain a right to 4 obsolete : to set free : deliver Source : Merriam

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… proxy (noun): 1: the agency, function, or office of a deputy who acts as a substitute for another 2a: authority or power to act for another b: a document giving such authority specifically : a power of attorney authorizing a specified person to vote corporate stock

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… contretemps (noun): 1: an inopportune or embarrassing occurrence or situation 2: dispute, argument Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : When contretemps first appeared in English in the 1600s, it did so in the context of fencing: a contretemps was a thrust or pass made at the wrong

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… fresco (noun) 1: the art of painting on freshly spread moist lime plaster with water-based pigments 2: a painting executed in fresco Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Fresco is an ancient art, used as early as the Minoan civilization on Crete, but it reached the height

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… stultify (verb): 1a: to have a dulling or inhibiting effect on b: to impair, invalidate, or make ineffective : negate 2: to cause to appear or be stupid, foolish, or absurdly illogical 3 archaic : to allege or prove to be of unsound mind and hence not

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… foray (noun, verb): noun 1: a sudden or irregular invasion or attack for war or spoils : raid 2: an initial and often tentative attempt to do something in a new or different field or area of activity verb 1: to make a raid or brief

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… blizzard (noun): 1: a long severe snowstorm 2: an intensely strong cold wind filled with fine snow 3: an overwhelming rush or deluge Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The earliest recorded appearance of the word blizzard meaning “a severe snowstorm” was in the April 23, 1870

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… hiatus (noun): 1a: a break in or as if in a material object : gap     b biology : a gap or passage in an anatomical part or organ 2a: an interruption in time or continuity : break especially : a period when something (such as a program or activity)

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… tantamount (adjective): : equivalent in value, significance, or effect Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Although tantamount (from the Anglo-French phrase tant amunter, meaning “to amount to as much”) was used three different ways in the early 17th century—as a noun, verb, and adjective—the adjective form

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… rectify (verb): 1: to set right : remedy 2: to purify especially by repeated or fractional distillation – eg rectified alcohol 3: to correct by removing errors : adjust 4: to make (an alternating current) unidirectional Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : When you rectify something, you correct an error

Members Public
The BFD Word of the Day

The BFD Word of the Day

The word for today is… onerous (adjective): 1: involving, imposing, or constituting a burden : troublesome 2: having legal obligations that outweigh the advantages Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Onerous rolled into the English language during the 14th century, via Middle French, from the Latin adjective onerosus, “burdensome.” That word, in turn,

Members Public