Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 17, 2008 is:

incandescent • \in-kun-DESS-unt\  • adjective
1 a : white, glowing, or luminous with intense heat*b : marked by brilliance especially of expressionc : characterized by glowing zeal : ardent 2 a : of, relating to, or being light produced by incandescenceb : producing light by incandescence

Example sentence:
The professor was dazzled by Tia's incandescent prose, which was infinitely more sophisticated than that of the other students in the introductory history course.

Did you know?
"Incandescent" came into the English language toward the end of the 18th century, at a time when scientific experiments involving heat and light were being conducted on an increasingly frequent basis. An object that glowed at a high temperature (such as a piece of coal) was "incandescent." By the mid-1800s, the incandescent lamp -- a.k.a. the "lightbulb" -- had been invented; it contains a filament which gives off light when heated by an electric current. "Incandescent" is the modern offspring of a much older parent, the Latin verb "candēre," meaning "to glow." Centuries earlier, the word for another source of light, "candle," was also derived from "candēre."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 16, 2008 is:

puckish • \PUCK-ish\  • adjective
: impish, whimsical

Example sentence:
Ellen found Gabe's puckish antics quite appealing when they first started dating, but now she wishes he would be more serious.

Did you know?
We know Puck as "that merry wanderer of the night," the shape-changing, maiden-frightening, mischief-sowing henchman to the king of the fairies in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. The Bard drew on English folklore in casting his character, but the traditional Puck was more malicious than the Shakespearean imp; he was an evil spirit or demon. In medieval England, this nasty hobgoblin was known as the "puke" or "pouke," names related to the Old Norse "pūki," meaning "devil." But it was the Bard's characterization that stuck, and by the time the adjective "puckish" started appearing regularly in English texts in the late 1800s the association was one of impishness, not evil.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 15, 2008 is:

titivate • \TIH-tuh-vayt\  • verb
: to make or become smart or spruce

Example sentence:
"Work could undoubtedly be done on the show to titivate it for Broadway -- but the score will remain a problem, if not a liability." (Clive Barnes, The New York Post, August 13, 2000)

Did you know?
"Titivate," "spruce," "smarten," and "spiff" all mean "to make a person or thing neater or more attractive." "Titivate" often refers to making small additions or alterations in attire ("titivate the costume with sequins and other accessories") and can also be used figuratively, as in our example sentence. "Spruce up" is sometimes used for cosmetic changes or renovations that give the appearance of newness ("spruce up the house with new shutters and fresh paint before trying to sell it"). "Smarten up" and "spiff up" both mean to improve in appearance often by making more neat or stylish ("the tailor smartened up the suit with minor alterations"; "he needed some time to spiff himself up for the party"). The origins of "titivate" are uncertain, but it may have been formed from the English words "tidy" and "renovate."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 14, 2008 is:

foursquare • \FOR-SKWAIR\  • adjective
1 : square *2 : marked by boldness and conviction : forthright

Example sentence:
The governor has been foursquare in his support for the education bill.

Did you know?
Early English speakers liked to use "foursquare" to describe a rectangle with four equal sides, even though they could also say it was simply "square." They also used "three-square" to describe a triangle with equal sides, "five-square" for "having five equal sides," "six-square" as an alternative to "hexagonal," and "eight-square" for "octagonal." Eventually "foursquare" also developed a second sense, which is used to describe persons and things that stand out "squarely" and forthrightly. One can now speak of "foursquare citizens" and "a foursquare response." "Foursquare" can also be an adverb meaning "solidly" or "forthrightly."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 13, 2008 is:

attitudinize • \at-uh-TOO-duh-nyze\  • verb
: to assume an affected mental attitude : pose

Example sentence:
"She kept her position; she seemed absorbed in the view. 'Is she posing -- is she attitudinizing for my benefit?' Longueville asked of himself." (Henry James, Confidence)

Did you know?
The English word "attitude" was first used in the 17th century to describe the posture of a sculptured or painted figure. The word was borrowed from French and formed from the Italian word "attitudine," meaning "aptitude" or "natural tendency." By the early 18th century, "attitude" was also being used for the posture a person assumed for a specific purpose. And by mid-century, "attitudinarians," people who study and practice attitudes, were being talked about. The verb "attitudinize" followed in 1784.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 12, 2008 is:

iconoclast • \eye-KAH-nuh-klast\  • noun
1 : a person who destroys religious images or opposes their veneration *2 : a person who attacks settled beliefs or institutions

Example sentence:
Susan's irreverent opinion of Shakespeare made her an iconoclast in the eyes of many of her fellow English majors.

Did you know?
"Iconoclast" is a word that often shows up on vocabulary lists and College Board tests. How will you remember the meaning of this vocabulary-boosting term? If you already know the word "icon," you're halfway there. An "icon" is a picture that represents something, and is often a religious image. "Icon" comes from the Greek "eikōn," which is from "eikenai," meaning "to resemble." "Iconoclast" comes to us by way of Medieval Latin from Middle Greek "eikonoklastēs," which joins "eikōn" with a form of the word "klan," meaning "to break." "Iconoclast" literally means "image destroyer."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 11, 2008 is:

treacle • \TREE-kul\  • noun
1 : a medicinal compound formerly in wide use as a remedy against poison 2 a chiefly British : molassesb : a blend of molasses, invert sugar, and corn syrup used as syrup *3 : something (as a tone of voice) heavily sweet and cloying

Example sentence:
The film is engaging for about an hour, but then it nose-dives into sentimental treacle and never recovers.

Did you know?
The long history of "treacle" begins in ancient Greece. The Greek word "thēriakos," meaning "of a wild animal," came from "thērion" ("wild animal"). Since wild animals are often known to bite, these words gave rise to "thēriakē," meaning "antidote against a poisonous bite." Latin borrowed "thēriakē" as "theriaca," and the word eventually entered Anglo-French -- and then Middle English -- as "triacle." The senses of "treacle" that refer to molasses developed from the earlier "antidote" sense. The "molasses" sense, in turn, was extended to give us a word for things excessively sweet or sentimental.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 10, 2008 is:

livid • \LIV-id\  • adjective
1 : discolored by bruising : black-and-blue 2 : ashen, pallid 3 : reddish *4 : very angry : enraged

Example sentence:
"When my mother caught me sneaking in after midnight, she was livid," Manny reported.

Did you know?
"Livid" has a colorful history. The Latin adjective "lividus" means "dull, grayish, or leaden blue." From this came the French "livide" and eventually the English "livid," which was used to describe flesh discolored by a bruise when it was first recorded in the early 17th century. A slight extension of meaning gave it the sense "ashen or pallid," as used in describing a corpse. "Livid" eventually came to be used in this sense to characterize the complexion of a person pale with anger ("livid with rage"). From this meaning came two new senses in the 20th century. One was "reddish," as one is as likely to become red with anger as pale; the other was simply "angry" or "furious," the most common sense of the word today.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 09, 2008 is:

chockablock • \CHAH-kuh-blahk\  • adjective
1 : brought close together *2 : very full

Example sentence:
Chandra's tiny apartment is chockablock with fabric, yarn, and other craft supplies.

Did you know?
"Chockablock" started out as a nautical term. A block is a metal or wooden case with one or more pulleys inside. Sometimes, two or more blocks are used (as part of a rope and pulley system called a "block and tackle") to provide a mechanical advantage -- as, for example, when hoisting a sail on a traditional sailing ship. When the rope is pulled as far as it will go, the blocks are tight together and are said to be "chockablock." Non-nautical types associated the "chock" in "chockablock" with "chock-full," which goes back to Middle English "chokkefull," meaning "full to the limit" (a figurative use of "full to choking"). We thus gave "chockablock" the additional meaning "filled up." "Chockablock" can also be an adverb meaning "as close or as completely as possible," as in "families living chockablock" or the seemingly redundant "chockablock full."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 08, 2008 is:

scavenger • \SKAV-un-jer\  • noun
*1 : one who collects or salvages garbage or junk 2 : an organism that typically feeds on refuse or carrion

Example sentence:
Scavengers took the broken lamp that I left on the curb last night.

Did you know?
You might guess that "scavenger" is a derivative of "scavenge," but the reverse is actually true; "scavenger" is the older word, first appearing in English in 1530, and the back-formation "scavenge" came into English in the mid-17th century. "Scavenger" is an alteration of the earlier "scavager," itself from Anglo-French "scawageour," meaning "collector of scavage." In medieval times, "scavage" was a tax levied by towns and cities on goods put up for sale by nonresidents, in order to provide resident merchants with a competitive advantage. The officers in charge of collecting this tax were later made responsible for keeping streets clean, and that's how "scavenger" came to refer to a public sanitation employee in Great Britain before acquiring its current sense referring to a person who salvages discarded items.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 07, 2008 is:

beau geste • \boh-ZHEST\  • noun
*1 : a graceful or magnanimous gesture 2 : an ingratiating conciliatory gesture

Example sentence:
Rather than compete against his best friend for the scholarship, Brayden gallantly stepped aside, a beau geste that Anthony never forgot.

Did you know?
"Beau geste" is a phrase borrowed from French; the literal translation is "beautiful gesture." Beau Geste is also the title of a 1924 novel by Percival Christopher Wren, featuring three English brothers who join the French Foreign Legion to repair their family honor. The novel spawned several film versions, including one starring Gary Cooper. Wren didn't invent the phrase "beau geste," which first appeared in print in 1900, but the publicity surrounding the novel and subsequent films likely contributed to the expression's popularity.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.