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What's the Word: RUBESCENT

pronunciation: [roo-BES-ənt]

 

Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Latin, 18th century

 

Meaning:

1. Reddening; blushing.

 

Example:

"My fair skin means I turn rubescent at the slightest hint of embarrassment."

"Sugar maple leaves turn rubescent in the fall."

 

About Rubescent

“Rubescent” is based on the Latin “rubescens,” meaning “I am reddening.”

 

Did you Know?

Blushing, the experience of rubescent skin, is something many people experience with embarrassment, although there are many emotions that can cause flushed cheeks. There is no concrete explanation of the relationship between embarrassment and rubescent skin, but scientists believe blushing may be an involuntary demonstration to others during awkward moments — making it a sort of physiological apology. Others believe embarrassment triggers the fight-flight-freeze response, meaning a person who freezes still gets the adrenaline and raised heart rate they would have needed for fight or flight, and this is visible on their rubescent face.

 

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What's the Word: LAPIDARY

pronunciation: [LAP-ih-der-ee]

 

Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Middle English, 14th century

 

Meaning:

1. Relating to stone and gems and the work involved in engraving, cutting, or polishing.

2. (Of language) Engraved on or suitable for engraving on stone and therefore elegant and concise.

 

Example:

"The jewelry box contained a small but impressive display of Suzanne’s lapidary obsession."

"The jeweler learned the lapidary arts from his father and grandfather before him."

 

About Lapidary

“Lapidary” is based on the Middle English “lapidarie,” meaning “stone.” This is based on the Latin “lapidārius,” meaning “of stones.”

 

Did you Know?

“Lapidary” is based on the Latin “lapidārius,” meaning “of stones,” but it is also related to the Latin “lapis,” meaning “stone.” This term is still associated with the semiprecious stone lapis lazuli, which is a vivid and striking blue color. During the Middle Ages, lapis lazuli was ground into ultramarine, an expensive deep-blue pigment that was used throughout the Renaissance in oil paintings and frescoes, notably on Johannes Vermeer’s painting “Girl With a Pearl Earring.”

 

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What's the Word: COMPEER

pronunciation: [kəm-PEER]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Middle English, 15th century

 

Meaning:

1. A person of equal rank, status, or ability.

 

Example:

"The company founder met her lawyer in New York along with his compeer from a firm in Los Angeles to discuss moving the head office to the West Coast."

"Richard was a compeer of my mother’s from her office, but I had no idea he’d once been famous as a folk singer."

 

About Compeer

“Compeer” is based on the Middle English “comper,” from the Latin “compater,” meaning “first cousin” or “good friend.”

 

Did you Know?

“Compeer” is a term with many equivalents, most notably the Spanish “compadre,” meaning “friend or companion”; the Sicilian “cumpari,” meaning “buddy”; and the modern American term “goombah.” This last term, meaning “pal” or “associate,” is the product of English speakers mishearing the Southern Italian pronunciation of “cumpari,” which does not emphasize the final syllable. “Goombah” has a close relative in Peru, Chile, and Argentina, where “cumpa” means “buddy.” The English “compeer” builds on the Middle English “comper” by adding the term “peer,” so that the term denotes a close companion of equal standing.

 

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What's the Word: HECTARE

pronunciation: [HEK-tair]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: French, 19th century

 

Meaning:

1. A metric unit of square measure, equal to 100 ares (which equals 2.471 acres or 10,000 square meters).

 

Example:

"A hectare is equivalent to two U.S. football fields aligned vertically."

"Along with the house, Megan inherited an operating 3-hectare beet farm."

 

About Hectare

“Hectare” is a loanword from French, where it was created by merging the ancient Greek “ἑκατόν” (“hekatón,” meaning “hundred”) with “are,” from the Latin for “piece of level ground” (“area”). In English, “are” is a historical unit of measure equivalent to 100 square meters.

 

Did you Know?

A hectare is equal to 10,000 square meters or 2.471 acres, but that’s not an easy measurement to visualize. Here's a better way to understand it: An American football field is roughly half a hectare, so a hectare is like two football fields side by side, with no room in the middle for fans, concessions, or sidelines. Bringing the stadium into the equation changes things. While its football field is only half a hectare, Michigan Stadium at the University of Michigan (nicknamed “The Big House”) occupies more than 5 hectares in total.

 

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What's the Word: GLEBE

pronunciation: [gleeb]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 14th century

 

Meaning:

1. Land; fields.

2. A piece of land serving as part of a clergyman's benefice and providing income.

 

Example:

"The community maintains the glebe behind the old church in the same state it has always been in."

"This neighborhood is called “Glebe,” but it’s been over a century since the town was built on the original glebe."

 

About Glebe

“Glebe” is a loanword from Old French, where it was based on the Latin “glaeba,” meaning “lump of earth.”

 

Did you Know?

In its earliest forms, “glebe” simply described soil or cultivated farmland; however, it was also used in the 14th century as a term for church lands, or land set aside for the clergyman overseeing the church. As a result, “Glebe” is a commonly occurring place name. Across Ireland, there are more than 100 towns named “Glebe,” and similarly named towns, villages, suburbs, and neighborhoods are found across Canada, Barbados, and Australia.

 

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What's the Word: SISYPHEAN

pronunciation: [sis-ə-FEE-ən]

 

Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Latin, 17th century

 

Meaning:

1. Denoting or relating to a task that can never be completed.

 

Example:

"Trying to keep my cats from getting into the bag of treats feels like a Sisyphean challenge."

"Beach cleanup days can feel Sisyphean, but preserving the ecosystem is a worthwhile project."

 

About Sisyphean

“Sisyphean” is adapted from the name “Sisyphus,” based on the ancient Greek “Σίσυφος” (“Sísuphos”).

 

Did you Know?

According to ancient Greek myth, Sisyphus was said to have cheated death twice, which made Hades — the god of the dead — angry. To punish Sisyphus, Hades sentenced him to spend eternity rolling an enormous stone to the top of a hill, only to have it roll down to the bottom again. For hundreds of years, the adjective “Sisyphean” has described tasks and labors that feel futile, endless, incessant, and frustrating — even those on a much smaller scale than those of the Greek gods. Keeping one's sock drawer organized may be a Sisyphean endeavor, for example.

 

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What's the Word: OPPIDAN

pronunciation: [OP-ih-dən]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 16th century

 

Meaning:

1. A resident of a town.

 

Example:

"Our car broke down on the outskirts of town, but an oppidan saw our lights and came to help us."

"The lake is largely unknown, except by a few oppidans of the nearby town who hike the surrounding trails."

 

About Oppidan

“Oppidan” is based on the Latin “oppidānus” (meaning “townspeople”), from the term “oppidum” (meaning “town”).

 

Did you Know?

The word “oppidan” can be used as a noun or an adjective to refer to a resident of a town, but historically it had a very specific usage in English boarding schools. Dating back to the 16th century at Eton College, an oppidan was a student who boarded in town rather than at the school itself. At Westminster School, an oppidan lived with his family in Westminster rather than at the school. The common theme here is that the oppidan lived in town.

 

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What's the Word: PALUDAL

pronunciation: [pə-LOOD-l]

 

Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Latin, 19th century

 

Meaning:

1. (Of a plant, animal, or soil) Living or occurring in a marshy habitat.

 

Example:

"Ducks generally prefer to nest in a paludal area."

"At the base of the hill was a paludal spot full of bulrushes."

 

About Paluda

“Paludal” is based on the Latin “palus,” meaning “marsh.”

 

Did you Know?

When “paludal” was coined in the early 19th century, it didn’t describe marshes or swamps or the creatures that live in them. Rather, it was used as a medical adjective to describe malaria, which was often contracted in swamps. However, because the term was based on a Latin root referring directly to marshes, over time “paludal” has come to describe anything to do with marshes and marshy habitats, and is no longer a medical term at all. In modern use, “paludal” describes plants and animals native to marshy habitats.

 

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What's the Word: EMMETROPIA

pronunciation: [em-ih-TROH-pee-ə]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 19th century

 

Meaning:

1. The normal condition of the eye.

 

Example:

"The ophthalmologist told Lesley she had emmetropia and wouldn’t need glasses."

"Emmetropia is a prerequisite for a number of jobs, including firefighter and air traffic controller."

 

About Emmetropia

“Emmetropia” was coined by joining the ancient Greek “ἔμμετρος” (“émmetros,” meaning “in measure”) with the suffix‎ “-opia” (meaning “vision”).

 

Did you Know?

Pioneering Dutch ophthalmologist Franciscus Donders coined the term “emmetropia” in the mid-19th century to describe a state of perfect vision in the eye. Today, perfectly clear vision is a condition for a variety of jobs, most notably in aviation. While standards vary from country to country, and between commercial and military pilots, a general rule of thumb is that pilots must have 20/20 vision (meaning they can see clearly and accurately from a distance of 20 feet). Pilots need not have emmetropia naturally, however — in the U.S. and many other countries, pilots can wear corrective eyewear to achieve 20/20 vision.

 

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What's the Word: LUFF

pronunciation: [luhf]

 

Part of speech: verb
Origin: Old French, 13th century

 

Meaning:

1. Steer a yacht nearer the wind.

2. Obstruct (an opponent in yacht racing) by sailing closer to the wind.

 

Example:

"The ship luffed up as it turned out to sea."

"Unfortunately, the most direct route home required us to luff up."

 

About Luff

“Luff” is based on the Old French “lof,” likely based on the Middle Dutch “loef,” meaning “the windward side of a sail.”

 

Did you Know?

Over its long history in English, “luff” has meant many things, including a noun that referred to the edge of a sail closest to the wind. This is connected to “luff” as a verb, which usually appears as a phrasal verb with “up” (“to luff up”), describing the action of turning a sailing ship into the wind. Luffing up is a difficult sailing technique that risks sapping the ship of its power, but it's sometimes necessary to make a direct trip.

 

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What's the Word: CONCINNITY

pronunciation: [kən-SIN-ih-tee]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 16th century

 

Meaning:

1. The skillful and harmonious arrangement or fitting together of the different parts of something.

2. Studied elegance of literary or artistic style.

 

Example:

"The combined effect of the performances, stage sets, and dazzling lighting made the Broadway show a model of concinnity."

"Masha seeks out art that displays a complex concinnity of African influences."

 

About Concinnity

“Concinnity” is based on the Latin “concinnitās” (meaning “skillfully put together”).

 

Did you Know?

Year after year, critics rate the 1972 film “The Godfather” as one of the finest movies ever made. Perhaps its concinnity elevates Francis Ford Coppola’s classic film above all other gangster movies. The film's masterful script contains memorable and easily quotable lines, and it’s also legendarily well acted by Marlon Brando, as the titular Godfather, and Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, and James Caan, among others. The film is carefully shot to exude a unique aesthetic that creates a world of its own — and the soundtrack is likewise notably memorable. The concinnity of these forces is at the root of the success of “The Godfather.”

 

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What's the Word: OYEZ

pronunciation: [OH-yay]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Anglo-Norman, 15th century

 

Meaning:

1. A call given by a court officer, or formerly by public criers, typically repeated two or three times to command silence and attention, as before court is in session.

 

Example:

"After the court officer made her oyez, the crowd fell silent."

"The continuing tradition of the oyez is one of the rituals built into some judicial systems."

 

About Oyez

“Oyez” is based on the Anglo-Norman “oyez,” a commandment “to hear.” This was based on the Latin “audīre,” also meaning “to hear.”

 

Did you Know?

In many federal and state courts across the United States, as well as the Supreme Court, sessions still begin with an oyez, in which an officer of the court calls the public to attention with a cry of “Oyez! Oyez! Oyez!” This tradition dates back to the 17th century (the word itself is older), when English law courts allowed arguments in both English and Law French, an Anglo-Norman language popular with medieval aristocrats. “Oyez” was Law French’s equivalent for “hear ye,” and even as Law French has long become a relic of history, many U.S. courts still carry on the oyez tradition.

 

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What's the Word: ARGLE-BARGLE

pronunciation: [ahr-gəl-BAHR-gəl]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Scots, 19th century

 

Meaning:

1. Copious but meaningless talk or writing; nonsense.

 

Example:

"The instructions for setting up my home-theater system are 48 pages of argle-bargle."

"When I’m nervous, I talk constantly, but it’s all argle-bargle."

 

About Argle-Bargle

“Argle-bargle” is based on the Scots word “argle,” possibly a mispronunciation of “argue” and meaning the same. The Scots expression “argy-bargy” is a variation.

 

Did you Know?

Like “whoopsy-daisy” or “hurly-burly,” “argle-bargle” is an example of rhyming reduplication — when a new word is created by repeating a word or adding a second similar-sounding word. “Argle-bargle” was based on the Scots word “argle,” meaning “argue,” but it took on the meaning of a verbal argument. Over time, “argle-bargle” went from describing a multiparty argument to an expression of disdain for a copious volume of words that don’t say much of anything at all.

 

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What's the Word: REDE

pronunciation: [reed]

 

Part of speech: verb
Origin: Old English, 13th century

 

Meaning:

1. Advise (someone).

2. Interpret (a riddle or dream).

 

Example:

"The commencement speaker closed his speech with the final piece of advice, "I rede you to use your knowledge to always inspire others.""

"I try to write down my dreams as soon as I wake up so that I can rede them later."

 

About Rede

“Rede” is based on the Old English “rǣdan” (meaning “to advise”).

 

Did you Know?

With the meaning of “to advise (someone),” the verb “rede” is fairly archaic. Its usage is almost exclusively as an infinitive: “I rede you to read the instructions before you begin.” There’s a secondary verb definition meaning “to interpret a dream,” but that has almost disappeared from usage. The noun form of “rede” is perhaps more recognizable, but people may not realize they’re using it. When someone asks, “What’s your read/rede on the situation?” they may be intending to use “read,” asking for your take, but they could also be using “rede” and want your counsel.

 

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What's the Word: NUGACITY

pronunciation: [noo-GAS-ih-tee]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Latin, 16th century

 

Meaning:

1. Triviality or frivolity.

2. A trivial or frivolous thing or idea.

 

Example:

"It may be a nugacity, but I enjoy buying flowers for myself every week."

"If you’re struggling with your budget, review your expenses to find any nugacities you can cut."

 

About Nugacity

“Nugacity” is based on the Latin “nugacitas,” meaning “trifling.”

 

Did you Know?

As a word, “nugacity” is easy to define as “frivolity,” but nugacities themselves are often in the eye of the beholder. For decades, video games were viewed as nugacities with no deeper value beyond the entertainment they offered. However, research has shown that video games can help teach players hand-eye coordination, problem solving, and pattern recognition. Many such hobbies that seem like nugacities on the surface end up having longer-term benefits.

 

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What's the Word: GUERDON

pronunciation: [GUR-dn]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Old French, 15th century

 

Meaning:

1. A reward or recompense.

 

Example:

"As a guerdon for his excellent grades, my brother got to go to Six Flags."

"Doris Lessing received the 2007 Nobel Prize in literature as a guerdon for her body of novels exploring the human experience."

 

About Guerdon

“Guerdon” is a loanword from Old French, where it meant “recompense.”

 

Did you Know?

“Guerdon” comes directly from the French, but the French word “guerdon” bears close resemblance to “widarlōn” in Old High German and “wiþerlēan” in Old English — both meaning “reward.” Because the word “reward” also existed, “guerdon” became more frequently used in English as a literary or poetic synonym, including in the works of Chaucer, Shakespeare, and Tennyson, among others. As a result, “guerdon” is used almost exclusively as a poetic term that emphasizes the importance of the reward.

 

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What's the Word: PALFREY

pronunciation: [PAWL-free]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: Anglo-Norman, 13th century

 

Meaning:

1. A docile horse used for ordinary riding.

 

Example:

"For my first riding experience, I steered clear of the jumpy-looking horses and chose a palfrey."

"My grandfather kept a stable of palfreys, and my cousins offered guided trail rides to tourists."

 

About Palfrey

“Palfrey” is from the Anglo-Norman “palefrei,” meaning “steed.” This was based on the Latin “paraverēdus,” meaning “spare horse.”

 

Did you Know?

During the Middle Ages, palfreys were among the most expensive horses because they offered a smooth and comfortable ride that would be endurable over long-distance journeys. What set palfreys apart from other horses was that rather than trot, they traveled with a lighter and more balanced step called an “amble.” Many types of horses were palfreys — the term did not describe a breed of horse but rather the ease of their steps on the ground, particularly during voyages that could range from days to months. As European roads improved, and travelers shifted to carriages, palfreys became less desirable and their value declined. However, the term “palfrey” still refers to an even-tempered horse good for riding.

 

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What's the Word: ABDITIVE

pronunciation: [AB-dih-tiv]

 

Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Latin, 18th century

 

Meaning:

1. Capable of hiding or concealing.

 

Example:

"The babysitter found the toddler under the abditive tablecloth during the game of hide-and-seek."

"The decorative screen serves an abditive function to block off the messy parts of our living room."

 

About Abditive

“Abditive” is based on the Latin “abditīvus,” meaning “separated from,” which is based on “abdō,” meaning “hide.”

 

Did you Know?

There’s a growing trend in home renovation — abditive spaces, or hidden nooks and concealed features. An example might be a dog “room” underneath a staircase, or a pantry hidden behind a secret wall panel. Other abditive spaces are less sneaky, and more subtle — a large blackboard, artwork, or mirror at the end of a hall might obscure a functional door into a room or closet.

 

 

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What's the Word: TOURBILLON

pronunciation: [TOOR-bil-yən]

 

Part of speech: noun
Origin: French, 15th century

 

Meaning:

1. Any part of a machine with a spiral movement.

2. A whirlwind.

 

Example:

"This antique watch has a tourbillon that prevents gravity from throwing off its timing."

"Watches featuring tourbillon movements can easily cost more than $10,000."

 

About Tourbillon

“Tourbillon” is a French loanword meaning “whirlwind.”

 

Did you Know?

A “tourbillon” is a complicated piece of miniature machinery often present in the world’s most expensive watches. This spiral machinery was developed to counteract the various shifts in balance and gravitational angle that can affect the functionality of a watch. Tourbillons made watches accurate even on the wrists of the most vigorously arm-waving folks. The science of timekeeping has evolved to create mechanical watches that remain accurate without the need for a tourbillon, but the finicky engineering is still present in many luxury watches.

 

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What's the Word: ZENZIC

pronunciation: [ZEN-zik]

 

Part of speech: adjective
Origin: Latin, 16th century

 

Meaning:

1. Relating to the square of a number.

 

Example:

"We expected maybe 20 people at the party but were overwhelmed when it seemed like a zenzic number of guests showed up."

"Since there are 12 reports to compile each month, the total number of reports in a year is the zenzic of 12."

 

About Zenzic

“Zenzic” is based on a mixture of the Latin “census” (meaning “a register”) and the German “zins” (meaning “interest”).

 

Did you Know?

In mathematics, a “square” is a number multiplied by itself (the square of 2 is 4, for example). But there’s a fancier word to describe the simple concept. “Zenzic” is an adjective that means “relating to the square of a number,” but this word can be expanded exponentially itself. “Zenzizenzic” means “to the fourth power,” “zenzizenzizenzic” brings it to the eighth power, and “zenzizenzizenzizenzike” takes a number to the 16th power. (The "-ike" ending is an alternate spelling — it comes from the 1557 book the term first appeared in, in which "square nombers are called Zenzikes.")

 

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