The word for today is… expiate (verb) – To make amends or reparation for; atone for. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : “Disaster shall fall upon you, which you will not be able to expiate.” That ominous biblical prophecy (Isaiah 47:11, RSV) shows that expiate was once involved in confronting the
The word for today is… deflagrate (verb) – To burn or cause to burn with great heat and intense light. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Deflagrate combines the Latin verb flagrare, meaning “to burn,” with the Latin prefix de-, meaning “down” or “away.” Flagrare is also an ancestor of such words
The word for today is… colloquy (noun) – 1. A conversation, especially a formal one. 2. A written dialogue. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Colloquy may make you think of colloquial, and there is indeed a connection between the two words. As a matter of fact, colloquy is the parent word
The word for today is… caduceus (noun) – 1. (a) A herald’s wand or staff, especially in ancient times. (b) Greek Mythology A winged staff with two serpents twined around it, carried by Hermes. 2. An insignia modeled on Hermes’s staff and used as the symbol of the medical
The word for today is… arboreal (adj) – 1. Relating to or resembling a tree. 2. Living in trees; arboreous. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Arbor, the Latin word for “tree,” has been a rich source of tree-related words in English, though a few are fairly rare. Some arbor descendants are
The word for today is… alienist (noun) – A physician who evaluates the competence of defendants to stand trial. A psychiatrist. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Alienist looks and sounds like it should mean “someone who studies aliens,” and in fact alienist and alien are related—both are ultimately derived from
The word for today is… solecism (noun) – 1. A nonstandard usage or grammatical construction. 2. A violation of etiquette. 3. An impropriety, mistake, or incongruity. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : The city of Soloi had a reputation for bad grammar. Located in Cilicia, an ancient coastal nation in Asia Minor,
The word for today is… seder (noun) – A ritual feast commemorating the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, held on the first night or first two nights of Passover. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Order and ritual are very important in the seder—so important that they are even reflected
The word for today is… pleonasm (noun) – 1. (a) The use of more words than are required to express an idea; redundancy. (b) An instance of pleonasm. 2. A superfluous word or phrase. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Pleonasm, which stems (via Late Latin) from the Greek verb pleonazein, meaning
The word for today is… permeate (verb) – 1. To pass through the openings or interstices of. 2. To spread or flow throughout; pervade. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : It’s no surprise that permeate means “to pass through something”—it was borrowed into English in the 17th century from Latin
The word for today is… plenary (adj) – 1. Complete in all respects; unlimited or full. 2. Fully attended by all qualified members. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : In the 14th century, the monk Robert of Brunne described a situation in which all the knights of King Arthur’s Round Table
The word for today is… pandiculation (noun) – 1. (Physiology) the act of stretching and yawning, esp on waking. 2. (Physiology) a yawn. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : Cat and dog owners who witness daily their pets’ methodical body stretching upon awakening might wonder if there is a word to describe
The word for today is… maverick (noun) – 1. A person who shows independence of thought and action, especially by refusing to adhere to the policies of a group to which he or she belongs. 2. An unbranded range animal, especially a calf that has become separated from its mother, traditionally
The word for today is… loon (noun) – 1. Any of several fish-eating diving birds of the genus Gavia of northern regions, having a short tail, webbed feet, and a laughlike cry. 2. A person who is foolish or crazy. 3. informal a simple-minded or stupid person 4. (dialect Northeast Scotland)
The word for today is… laissez-faire (noun) – 1. An economic doctrine that opposes governmental regulation of or interference in commerce beyond the minimum necessary for a free-enterprise system to operate according to its own economic laws. 2. Noninterference in the affairs of others. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : The French
The word for today is… incarcerate (verb) – 1. To put in a prison or jail. 2. To shut in; confine. Source : The Free Dictionary Etymology : A criminal sentenced to incarceration may wish their debt to society could be canceled; such a wistful felon might be surprised to learn that incarcerate
