The word for today is… instigate (verb): : to goad or urge forward, provoke Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Instigate is often used as a synonym of incite (as in “hoodlums instigating violence”), but the two words differ slightly in their overall usage. Incite usually stresses an act of stirring something up
The word for today is… apotheosis (noun): 1a : the perfect form or example of something b : the highest or best part of something, peak 2 : elevation to divine status : deification Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Among the ancient Greeks, it was sometimes thought fitting—or simply handy, say if you wanted
The word for today is… eschew (verb): : to avoid habitually especially on moral or practical ground Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Eschew derives from the Anglo-French verb eschiver and is akin to the Old High German verb sciuhen (“to frighten off”), an ancestor of our word shy. In his famous
The word for today is… hegemony (noun): 1 : preponderant influence or authority over others, domination 2 : the social, cultural, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Hegemony comes to English from the Greek hegemonia, a noun formed from the verb hegeisthai (“to lead”), which
The word for today is… maundy (noun, often attributive): 1 : a ceremony of washing the feet of the poor on Maundy Thursday 2 : alms distributed in connection with the maundy ceremony or on Maundy Thursday – Maundy Money given by the British Monarch to chosen poor. Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Middle
The word for today is… vanguard (noun): 1 : the forefront of an action or movement 2 : the troops moving at the head of an army Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Vanguard comes from Anglo-French avantgarde, from avant, meaning “before,” and garde, “guard.” In medieval times, avantgarde referred to the troops
The word for today is… opportune (adjective): 1 : suitable or convenient for a particular occurrence 2 : occurring at an appropriate time Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Opportune comes from Latin opportunus, which can mean “favoring one’s needs,” “serviceable,” or “convenient.” The word is a combination of the prefix ob-, meaning
The word for today is… liaison (noun): 1 : a binding or thickening agent used in cooking 2a : a close bond or connection b : an illicit sexual relationship : affair 3a : communication for establishing and maintaining mutual understanding and cooperation (as between parts of an armed force) b : a person who establishes
The word for today is… historic (adjective): : historical – such as a : famous or important in history b : having great and lasting importance c : known or established in the past d : dating from or preserved from a past time or culture Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Historic and historical are both occasionally
The word for today is… mettlesome (adjective): full of mettle, spirited Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The 17th-century adjective mettlesome (popularly used of spirited horses) sometimes appeared as the variant metalsome. That’s not surprising. In the 16th century and for some time after, mettle was a variant spelling of
The word for today is… nefarious (adjective): : flagrantly wicked or impious : evil Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Vicious and villainous are two wicked synonyms of nefarious, and, like nefarious, both mean “highly reprehensible or offensive in character, nature, or conduct.” But these synonyms are not used in exactly the same way
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
