The word for today is… melancholia (noun): 1 : severe depression characterized especially by profound sadness and despair 2 : a sad quality or mood Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Melancholia traces back to Greek melan- (“black, dark”) and chole (“bile”). Medical practitioners once adhered to the system of humors—bodily fluids that
The word for today is… alleviate (verb): 1 : to make (something, such as pain or suffering) more bearable b : to partially remove or correct (something undesirable) Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Alleviate comes from Latin levis, meaning “having little weight.” (Levis also gave rise to the English adjective light, as in
The word for today is… trivial (adjective): 1a : of little worth or importance b : relating to or being the mathematically simplest case specifically : characterized by having all variables equal to zero 2 : commonplace, ordinary Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Trivial comes from a Latin word meaning “crossroads”—that is, where three
The word for today is… riposte (noun): 1 : a fencer’s quick return thrust following a parry 2 : a retaliatory verbal sally : retort 3 : a retaliatory maneuver or measure Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :In the sport of fencing, a riposte is a counterattack made after successfully fending off one’s
The word for today is… crepuscular (adjective): 1 : of, relating to, or resembling twilight 2 : occurring or active during twilight Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :The early Romans had two words for the twilight. Crepusculum was favored by Roman writers for the half-light of evening, just after the sun sets;
The word for today is… adjudicate (verb): 1: to make an official decision about who is right in (a dispute) : to settle judicially 2: to act as judge Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Adjudicate, which is usually used to mean “to make an official decision about who is right in a
The word for today is… referendum (noun): 1a : the principle or practice of submitting to popular vote a measure passed on or proposed by a legislative body or by popular initiative b : a vote on a measure so submitted 2 : a diplomatic agent’s note asking for government instructions Source
The word for today is… perjury (noun): : the voluntary violation of an oath or vow either by swearing to what is untrue or by omission to do what has been promised under oath : false swearing Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :The prefix per- in Latin often meant “harmfully”. So witnesses who
The word for today is… epicentre (noun): 1 : the part of the earth’s surface directly above the focus of an earthquake 2 : centre Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :The meaning of epi- in epicentre is “over”, so the epicentre of an earthquake lies over the centre or “focus” of the
The word for today is… bellwether (noun): : one that takes the lead or initiative : leader Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :We usually think of sheep more as followers than leaders, but in a flock one sheep must lead the way. Long ago, it was common practice for shepherds to hang a
The word for today is… brackish (adjective): 1 : somewhat salty brackish water 2a : not appealing to the taste b : repulsive Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :When the word brackish first appeared in English in the 1500s, it simply meant “salty,” as did its Dutch parent brak. (English speakers also adopted the
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… patina (noun): 1a : a usually green film formed naturally on copper and bronze by long exposure or artificially (as by acids) and often valued aesthetically for its color b : a surface appearance of something grown beautiful especially with age or use 2 : an appearance or
The word for today is… nebulous (adjective): 1 : of, relating to, or resembling a nebula : nebular 2 : indistinct, vague Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Nebulous may sound other-worldly—after all, it’s related to nebula, which refers to a distant galaxy or an interstellar cloud of gas or dust—but
The word for today is… frolic (adjective, verb, noun): adjective : full of fun verb 1 : to amuse oneself : make merry 2 : to play and run about happily noun 1 : a playful or mischievous action 2a : an occasion or scene of fun b : fun, merriment Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Frolic is
The word for today is… menagerie (noun): 1a : a place where animals are kept and trained especially for exhibition b : a collection of wild or foreign animals kept especially for exhibition 2 : a varied mixture Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology :Back in the days of Middle French, ménagerie meant “the management
