The word for today is… adversity (noun): : a state or instance of serious or continued difficulty or misfortune Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Adversity comes from Middle English adversite, meaning “opposition, hostility, misfortune, or hardship,” which itself is from Latin adversus, the source of adverse, which means “bad or unfavorable,” as
The word for today is… salient (adjective, noun): Source : Merriam -Webster adjective 1 : moving by leaps or springs : jumping 2 : jetting upward – a salient fountain 3a : projecting beyond a line, surface, or level b : standing out conspicuously noun : something (such as a promontory) that projects outward or upward from its
The word for today is… serendipity (noun): : the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Serendipity was first seen in 1754 and came from its possession by the heroes of the Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip. Serendipity and
The word for today is… exculpate (verb): : to clear from alleged fault or guilt Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Exculpate is the joining of the prefix ex-, meaning “not,” and the Latin noun culpa, meaning “blame.” Readers may be familiar with the Latin phrase mea culpa, which translates directly as “through
The word for today is… histrionic (adjective): 1 : deliberately affected : overly dramatic or emotional 2 : of or relating to actors, acting, or the theatre Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The term histrionic developed from histrio, Latin for “actor.” Something that is histrionic tends to remind one of the high drama of
The word for today is… convoluted (adjective): 1 : having convolutions 2 : involved, intricate Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Convoluted comes from Latin convolvere, meaning “to roll up, coil, or twist.” It is related to the verb convolute, meaning “to twist or coil.” Once something is twisted it can be literally and
The word for today is… malleable (adjective): 1 : capable of being extended or shaped by beating with a hammer or by the pressure of rollers 2a : capable of being altered or controlled by outside forces or influences b : having a capacity for adaptive change Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Malleable comes
The word for today is… palatable (adjective): 1 : agreeable to the palate or taste 2 : agreeable or acceptable to the mind Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Palatable comes from palate, a word for the roof of the mouth, which itself comes from Latin palatum. The palate was once thought of as
The word for today is… epilogue (noun): 1 : a concluding section that rounds out the design of a literary work 2a : a speech often in verse addressed to the audience by an actor at the end of a play b : the final scene of a play that comments on or
The word for today is… parsimonious (adjective): 1 : exhibiting or marked by parsimony – especially frugal to the point of stinginess 2 : sparing, restrained Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : English isn’t stingy when it comes to synonyms of parsimonious. Stingy, close, penurious, and miserly are a few terms that, like parsimonious,
The word for today is… inveigle (verb): 1 : to win over by wiles : entice 2 : to acquire by ingenuity or flattery Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Inveigle, a word that dates from the 16th century, refers to the act of using clever talk, trickery, or flattery either to persuade somebody to
The word for today is… gratify (verb): 1 : to be a source of or give pleasure or satisfaction to 2 : to give in to : indulge, satisfy 3 archaic : remunerate, reward Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : A gratifying experience is quietly pleasing or satisfying. But gratifying an impulse means giving in to
The word for today is… decimate (verb): 1 : to select by lot and kill every tenth man of 2 : to exact a tax of 10 percent from 3a : to reduce drastically especially in number b : to cause great destruction or harm to Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The connection between decimate
The word for today is… impetus (noun): 1a(1) : a driving force (2) : incentive, stimulus b : stimulation or encouragement resulting in increased activity 2 : the property possessed by a moving body in virtue of its mass and its motion Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Impetus comes from the Latin verb impetere,
The word for today is… specious (adjective): 1 : having a false look of truth or genuineness 2 : having deceptive attraction or allure 3 : obsolete : showy Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Specious comes from Latin speciosus, meaning “beautiful” or “plausible,” and Middle English speakers used it to mean “visually pleasing.” In time,
The word for today is… bastion (noun): 1 : a projecting part of a fortification 2 : a fortified area or position 3 : stronghold – as in sense 2, the last bastion of academic standards Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Bastion is related to bastille (a word now used as a general term for
