Curio Cabinet / Word Curio

Word of the Day : September 26, 2020

emollient \ih-MAHL-yunt\ noun

Definition

: something that softens or soothes

Did You Know?

Emollient derives from t...

Word of the Day : September 25, 2020

translucent \trans-LOO-sunt\ adjective

Definition

1 : permitting the passage of light:

a : transmitting and diffusin...

Word of the Day : September 23, 2020

crabwise \KRAB-wyze\ adverb

Definition

1 : sideways

2 : in a sidling or cautiously indirect manner

Did You Know?

T...

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 6, 2016 is:

misanthrope • \MISS-un-throhp\  • noun

: a person who hates or distrusts humankind

Examples:

"The conventional image of Groucho [Marx] was that he was on the side of the little guy, and he spoke defiantly and insolently to powerful people and wealthy people. But my feeling is that Groucho was out to deflate everybody—that he was a thoroughgoing misanthrope ." — Lee Siegel, speaking on NPR, 23 Jan. 2016

"Many feared that we would become asocial creatures, misanthropes who would rather hide behind the safety of a screen than face the intimacy of a spoken conversation." — Jenna Wortham, The New York Times , 22 May 2016

Did you know?

The word misanthrope is human to the core—literally. One of its parents is the Greek noun anthrōpos , meaning "human being." Its other parent is the Greek verb misein , meaning "to hate." Misein also gave English misogamy ("a hatred of marriage"), misogyny ("hatred of women"), misology ("a hatred of argument, reasoning, or enlightenment"), and misoneism ("a hatred, fear, or intolerance of innovation or change"). Anthrōpos also joined forces with phil- (a combining form meaning "loving") to form the Greek ancestor of philanthropy ("active effort to help other people"). We also find anthrōpos when we delve into the foundations of the word anthropology .

Word of the Day : November 19, 2017

fervid \FER-vid\ adjective

Definition

1 : very hot : burning

2 : marked by often extreme intensity of feeling

Did Yo...

Word of the Day : November 18, 2017

belaud \bih-LAWD\ verb

Definition

: to praise usually to excess

Did You Know?

You may recognize the word laud (meani...

Word of the Day : November 17, 2017

jalousie \JAL-uh-see\ noun

Definition

1 : a blind with adjustable horizontal slats for admitting light and air while e...

Word of the Day : November 16, 2017

lollygag \LAH-lee-gag\ verb

Definition

: to spend time idly, aimlessly, or foolishly : dawdle

Did You Know?

You cert...

Word of the Day : November 15, 2017

proximity \prahk-SIM-uh-tee\ noun

Definition

: the quality or state of being proximate : closeness

Did You Know?

The...

Word of the Day : November 14, 2017

stellar \STEL-er\ adjective

Definition

1 a : of or relating to the stars : astral

b : composed of stars

2 : of or re...

Word of the Day : November 13, 2017

roué \roo-AY\ noun

Definition

: a man devoted to a life of sensual pleasure : rake

Did You Know?

Roué originated as ...

Word of the Day : November 12, 2017

shilly-shally \SHIL-ee-SHAL-ee\ verb

Definition

1 : to show hesitation or lack of decisiveness or resolution

2 : dawd...

Word of the Day : November 11, 2017

doughty \DOW-tee\ adjective

Definition

: marked by fearless resolution : valiant

Did You Know?

Doughty is a persever...

Word of the Day : November 10, 2017

pathos \PAY-thahss\ noun

Definition

1 : an element in experience or in artistic representation evoking pity or compass...

Word of the Day : November 9, 2017

cotton \KAH-tun\ verb

Definition

1 : to take a liking — used with to

2 : to come to understand — used with to or on to...

Word of the Day : November 8, 2017

mandarin \MAN-drin\ adjective

Definition

1 : of, relating to, or typical of a public official in the Chinese Empire of ...

Word of the Day : November 7, 2017

archetype \AHR-kih-type\ noun

Definition

1 : the original pattern or model of which all things of the same type are rep...

Word of the Day : November 6, 2017

esemplastic \ess-em-PLASS-tik\ adjective

Definition

: shaping or having the power to shape disparate things into a unif...

Word of the Day : November 5, 2017

parable \PAIR-uh-bul\ noun

Definition

: example; specifically : a usually short fictitious story that illustrates a mor...

Word of the Day : November 4, 2017

stridulate \STRIJ-uh-layt\ verb

Definition

: to make a shrill creaking noise by rubbing together special bodily structu...