Category Archives: word

Pronounced: NAY-t(uh)nt, adj Notes: Another word that I guessed incorrectly (very much so!) Yesterday’s word The word pathography is “a biography that focuses on the negative” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments I tried to be smart when trying to figure out what our word meant: I knowContinue reading “natant”

Pronounced: puh-THOG-ruh-fee, noun Notes: Not what I thought it was Yesterday’s word The word usufruct is First usage Our word came into English in the early to mid-1600s Background / Comments I wrote yesterday that we have “kind of” seen this word before because the word of the day for 18 Oct 2023 was fructuousContinue reading “pathography”

Pronounced: YOU-zuh-frukt, noun Notes: We’ve seen this before (kind of) Yesterday’s word The word sinecure is “a position in which one is paid for little or no work” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments When I was in high school (a long time ago), I subscribed to ElleryContinue reading “usufruct”

Pronounced: SIGH-ni-kyoor (alt: SIN-ih-kyoor), noun Notes: I’ve read this word, and got a general idea from context. Do you know it? Yesterday’s word The word effulgence means “radiant splendor; brilliance” First usage Our word came into English in the 1600s Background / Comments When I first glanced at our word, I swapped the “u” andContinue reading “sinecure”

Pronounced: ih-FULL-gen(t)s, noun Notes: I transposed a couple of letters and had the totally wrong meaning Yesterday’s word The word laissez-aller means “unrestrained freedom” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments I believe that unrestrained freedom is a very bad thing; we need some kind of check on ourContinue reading “effulgence”

Pronounced: less-ay-ah-LAY, noun Notes: Also spelled laisser-aller; a new word to me Yesterday’s word The word halcyon means First usage Our word came into English in the mid- to late 1300s Background / Comment I knew the third definition above, but certainly not the first one. However, the background of the word makes sense: InContinue reading “laissez-aller”

Pronounced: HAL-see-uhn, adj Notes: There are multiple definitions; I knew one of them Yesterday’s phrase The phrase de rigueur means “required by fashion, custom, or etiquette” First usage Our phrase came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments I know I have read this phrase; I think it was in one of the LordContinue reading “halcyon”

Pronounced: duh-ree-GURR, adj Notes: The phrase is familiar to me, but I didn’t know the meaning Yesterday’s word The word chin-wag means “conversation; chat” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1800s Background / Comments Our word is an informal British word (perhaps slang): I don’t believe I’ve heard or read itContinue reading “de rigueur”

Pronounced: (as it looks), noun Notes: This may be as easy one Yesterday’s word The word politesse means “formal politeness or courtesy” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1600s Background / Comments Like me, you may not be familiar with our word, but you could probably guess the meaning. It cameContinue reading “chin-wag”

Pronounced: pol-ih-TESS (alt: poe-lee-TESS), noun Notes: You might be able to guess the meaning of this word Yesterday’s word The word esemplastic means “shaping or having the power to shape disparate things into a unified whole” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1800s Background / Comments I was very surprised toContinue reading “politesse”