Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 16, 2024 is: debacle • \dee-BAH-kul\  • noun Debacle is usually used synonymously with fiasco to mean “a complete failure.” It can also refer to a great disaster (though typically not one that causes significant suffering or loss). // After the debacle of his first novel, he had trouble getting a publisher for his next book. // The state has made a great deal of progress in recovering from its economic debacle. See the entry > Examples: “Earlier this year, on an Amtrak train from Northern Virginia to Sanford, Florida, passengers repeatedly called the police during the train’s 20-hour delay. ‘For those of you that are calling the police,’ the conductor had to announce, ‘we are not holding you hostage.’ That debacle was caused by a freight train ahead of them, which had crashed into an empty car parked on the tracks in rural South Carolina. Nothing you can do about that. A train just has to wait un

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 15, 2024 is: wane • \WAYN\  • verb To wane is to become smaller or less, or in other words, to decrease in size, extent, or degree. // The national scandal caused her popularity to wane. See the entry > Examples: “In 2023, Royal Caribbean's bookings hit an all-time high ahead of the launch of its newest ship, the Icon of the Seas. Interest has yet to wane: The three strongest booking weeks in the company’s history were at the start of 2024 and ‘wave season,’ when cruise lines typically roll out flashy discounts to incentivize reservations.” — Brittany Chang, Business Insider, 20 Mar. 2024 Did you know? In her book Braiding Sweetgrass, scientist Robin Wall Kimmerer, an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, recounts some of the stories of her people surrounding Windigos, fearsome, shrieking monsters that prey on human flesh: “The Windigo is most powerful in the Hungry Ti

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 14, 2024 is: caveat • \KAV-ee-aht\  • noun A caveat is an explanation or warning that should be remembered when you are doing or thinking about something. In legal contexts, caveat refers to a notice to a court or judicial officer to suspend a proceeding until the opposition can be heard. // All investment advice should come with a caveat: the stock market is impossible to predict with absolute accuracy. See the entry > Examples: "The report details the percentage of students who graduate within four years from when they first enroll in ninth grade. Still, there are caveats to the numbers. For one, students who leave the district after their freshman year to be home-schooled or enroll in private schools aren't included in the calculation." — Sommer Brugal, The Treasure Coast News (Palm Beach, Florida), 7 Jan. 2021 Did you know? You may be familiar with the old saying caveat emptor,

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 13, 2024 is: instigate • \IN-stuh-gayt\  • verb To instigate something is to cause it to happen or begin by urging or goading others. Instigate is a synonym of provoke. // The pair was accused of instigating a plot to oust the newly elected mayor. See the entry > Examples: "The image of John, Paul, George and Ringo waving from the top steps of Pan Am Yankee Clipper flight 101 at 1.20pm on 7 February 1964 is among the most iconic in rock'n'roll history. … That aeroplane steps photo was pivotal in instigating a dynamic in rock music whereby boys played guitars to the wild adulation of girls, a misguided social 'norm' that became so deeply embedded in the music industry that we're only now beginning to untangle it." — Mark Beaumont, The Independent (London), 7 Feb. 2024 Did you know? It's time to investigate the true meaning of instigate. Instigate is often used as a synonym of incite

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 12, 2024 is: torrid • \TOR-id\  • adjective Torrid can be used to describe something that is literally hot (such as a region near the Earth’s equator) or figuratively hot (such as a romance). // The tabloids were relentless in covering every minor detail of the celebrity couple’s torrid affair. See the entry > Examples: “Chinese cities such as Chongqing, a southwestern metropolis known for its torrid summers, have for years used their air raid tunnels as public cooling centers.” — The Associated Press, 7 July 2023 Did you know? Hot, steamy, sultry: English is full of words that do double-duty in describing thirst traps both literal (as in the tropics) and figurative (as in, well, thirst traps). Torrid comes from the Latin verb torrēre, which means “to burn” or “to parch” and is an ancestor of our word toast. (Despite its dry implications, torrēre is also an ancestor of torrent, as

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 11, 2024 is: zhuzh • \ZHUZH (the U is as in PUSH)\  • verb To zhuzh something up is to improve its flavor or appearance by way of a small improvement, adjustment, or addition. // He likes to zhuzh up his outfits with brightly-colored ties. See the entry > Examples: “Ever since my sister introduced me to this life-changing condiment, I’ve slathered [chili crisp] on pretty much everything I could think of—from roasted vegetables and noodles to seafood and popcorn. … That deep savory flavor comes from ingredients like fermented black bean, shallots, mushroom powder, ginger, and seaweed, so it’s no wonder it’s become my go-to pantry staple when I want to zhuzh up my dinner in a matter of seconds.” — Britt Ross, quoted on BuzzFeed, 17 Feb. 2024 Did you know? Zhuzh (alternatively spelled zhoosh) has an onomatopoetic ring to it: it resembles other sound-effect words, such as whoosh or zo

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 10, 2024 is: bogart • \BOH-gahrt\  • verb To bogart something is to use or consume it without sharing. // Nelson advised his friends not to bogart all the snacks before the rest of the party guests arrived. See the entry > Examples: "Producers of individual shows should not be allowed to shape any content but their own; otherwise, the telecast winds up being hijacked by beamed-in celebrities singing songs from terrible musicals no one’s yet seen. And as for those stage-swarming investors? Let’s ban them too. The awards they bogart belong to the authors." — Jesse Green, The New York Times, 2 June 2021 Did you know? The legendary film actor Humphrey Bogart was known for playing a range of tough characters in a series of films throughout the 1940s and 1950s, including The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, and The African Queen. The men he portrayed often possessed a cool, hardened exterior

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 9, 2024 is: grudging • \GRUH-jing\  • adjective Grudging is an adjective used to describe something that is said, done, or given unwillingly or reluctantly. It can also describe someone who is unwilling or reluctant to do something. // Her theories have begun to win grudging acceptance in the scientific community. // A number of his former critics have become grudging admirers. See the entry > Examples: “‘I’m impressed,’ said Mati, grudging admiration in her tone. ‘It isn’t just a pretty name and expensive ingredients. I can never make something this tasty.’” — Ken Liu, The Veiled Throne, 2022 Did you know? The English language has been carrying a grudge for a long time—since the 13th century to be exact, when it took the Anglo-French verb grucher/grucer and made it grucchen/grudgen. Both words meant “to grumble and complain” (and if their shared definition, combined with their sp

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 8, 2024 is: reputation • \rep-yuh-TAY-shun\  • noun A reputation is the common opinion that people have about someone or something. Reputation can also refer to a positive position that someone or something has in public esteem or regard. // She's earned a reputation as a first-class playwright. // Investors feared that the scandal had damaged the company's reputation beyond repair. See the entry > Examples: "Menton [France] was once a leading lemon-growing region in Europe, with a global reputation and exports as far as the United States and Russia in the 18th century." — Barbara Surk and Daniel Cole, Quartz, 2 Apr. 2024 Did you know? An esteemed word in English, reputation rose to fame during the 14th century and ultimately traces back to the Latin verb reputare, meaning "to take into consideration" or "to think over." Reputare is itself a coupling of the well-known "again" pre

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 7, 2024 is: extemporize • \ik-STEM-puh-ryze\  • verb To extemporize means to do something extemporaneously—in other words, to improvise. // A good talk show host must be able to extemporize when interviews don’t go as planned. See the entry > Examples: “The president was fast on his feet. Sensing an opportunity to extemporize, he looked around the chamber, pleased.” — Robin Abcarian, The Los Angeles Times, 12 Feb. 2023 Did you know? Let’s dive into the essence of extemporize by exploring its origins. (We’ll try not to bore you with too many extraneous details.) To extemporize is to say or do something off-the-cuff; extemporize was coined by adding the suffix -ize to the Latin phrase ex tempore, meaning “on impulse” or “on the spur of the moment.” (Incidentally, ex tempore was also borrowed wholesale into English with the meaning “in an extemporaneous manner.”) Other descendants of