Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

rapporteur
Wed, 20 Aug 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 20, 2008 is: rapporteur • \ra-por-TER\  • noun : a person who gives reports (as at a meeting of a learned society) Example sentence: The rapporteur compiled the available evidence into a report and presented it to the full committee. Did you know? "Rapporteur" was adopted into English in the early 16th century and is a descendant of the Middle French verb "rapporter," meaning "to bring back, report, or refer." Other descendants of "rapporter" in English include "rapportage" (a rare synonym of "reportage," in the sense of "writing intended to give an account of observed or documented events") and "rapport" ("harmonious relationship"). The words "report," "reporter," "reportage," etc., are also distant relatives of "rappouteur"; all can ultimately be traced back to the Latin prefix "re-," meaning "back, again, against," and the Latin word "portare," meaning "to carry."
beleaguer
Tue, 19 Aug 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 19, 2008 is: beleaguer • \bih-LEE-gur\  • verb 1 : besiege *2 : trouble, harass Example sentence: The new programming chief was hired to revamp the schedule for the network, which was consistently beleaguered by low ratings. Did you know? English speakers created "beleaguer" from the Dutch word "belegeren" in the 16th century. "[Military men] will not vouchsafe . . . to use our ancient terms belonging to matters of war, but do call a camp by the Dutch name," commented the English soldier and diplomat Sir John Smyth in 1590. The word for "camp" that he was referring to is "leaguer." That term in turn comes from Dutch "leger," which is one of the building blocks of "belegeren" (literally, "to camp around"). But neither "leaguer" nor "beleaguer" were in fact utterly foreign. Old English "leger," the source of our modern "lair," is related to the Dutch word. And the Old English "be-" ("about, around"), as seen in "besiege" and "beset," is related to the Dutch prefix "be-" in "belegeren." *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
metronome
Mon, 18 Aug 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 18, 2008 is: metronome • \MET-ruh-nohm\  • noun : an instrument designed to mark exact time by a regularly repeated tick Example sentence: After practicing the drums with a metronome, Lars had a better feel for tempo and kept time better. Did you know? The patent for the metronome was entered in 1816: "John Malzl [sic], of Poland-street, Middlesex, Machinist; for an instrument . . . which he denominates a Metronome, or musical time-keeper." The courts, however, later proved that the aforementioned Johann Maelzel copied a pendulum design of Dietrich Winkel, making Winkel the actual inventor. Nonetheless, Maelzel was the more successful marketer of the metronome and even has a notation named after him. The "M.M." in notations like "M.M. = 60" stands for "Maelzel's metronome" and indicates a tempo of 60 beats per minute or a beat per tick of the metronome as it ticks 60 times, in the case of our example. The name of the invention itself is based on the Greek words "metron," meaning "measure," and "nomos," meaning "law."
spavined
Sun, 17 Aug 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 17, 2008 is: spavined • \SPAV-ind\  • adjective 1 : affected with spavin *2 : old and decrepit : over-the-hill Example sentence: There is no point in expecting the spavined Arts Council to do more than sponsor the same stale events and shopworn fund-raisers. Did you know? "His horse [is] . . . troubled with the lampas, infected with the fashions, full of windgalls, sped with spavins. . . ." Petruchio's poor, decrepit horse in Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew is beset by just about every known equine malady, including a kind of swelling in the mouth (lampas), skin lesions (fashions), tumors on his fetlocks (windgalls), and bony enlargements on his hocks (spavins). The spavins alone can be enough to render a horse lame and useless. In the 17th century, "spavined" horses brought to mind other things that are obsolete, out-of-date, or long past their prime, and we began using the adjective figuratively. "Spavined" still serves a purpose, despite its age. It originated in Middle English as "spaveyned" and can be traced to the Middle French word for "spavin," which was "espavain." *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
farce
Sat, 16 Aug 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 16, 2008 is: farce • \FAHRSS\  • noun 1 : a light dramatic composition marked by broadly satirical comedy and improbable plot 2 : the broad humor characteristic of farce or pretense 3 a : ridiculous or empty show*b : mockery Example sentence: "No wonder we're late -- the management of traffic in this city is a farce!" Lyle complained. Did you know? When "farce" first appeared in English, it had to do with cookery, not comedy. In the 14th century, English adopted "farce" from Middle French, retaining its original meaning of "forcemeat" or "stuffing." The comedic sense of "farce" in English dates from the 16th century, when England imported a kind of knockabout comedy already popular in France. This dramatic genre had its origins in the 13th-century practice of augmenting, or "stuffing," Latin church texts with explanatory phrases. By the 15th century, a similar practice had arisen of inserting unscripted buffoonery into religious plays. Such farces -- which included clowning, acrobatics, reversal of social roles, and indecency -- soon developed into a distinct dramatic genre and spread rapidly in various forms throughout Europe. *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
innocuous
Fri, 15 Aug 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 15, 2008 is: innocuous • \ih-NAH-kyuh-wus\  • adjective 1 : producing no injury : harmless *2 : not likely to give offense or to arouse strong feelings or hostility : inoffensive, insipid Example sentence: Bella was surprised when her seemingly innocuous remark enraged her classmates. Did you know? "Innocuous" has harmful roots -- it comes to us from the Latin adjective "innocuus," which was formed by combining the negative prefix "in-" with a form of the verb "nocēre," meaning "to harm" or "to hurt." In addition, "nocēre" is related to the truly "harmful" words "noxious," "nocent," and even "nocuous." "Innocent" is from "nocēre" as well, although like "innocuous" it has the "in-" prefix negating the hurtful possibilities. "Innocuous" first appeared in print in 1598 with the clearly Latin-derived meaning "harmless or causing no injury" (as in "an innocuous gas"). The second sense is a metaphorical extension of the idea of injury, used to indicate that someone or something does not cause hurt feelings, or even strong feelings ("an innocuous book" or "innocuous issues," for example). *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

MedTerms Word of the Day

Junctional epidermolysis bullosa
Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Junctional epidermolysis bullosa: A blistering skin condition inherited in an autosomal recessive manner, due to mutation of a gene that normally promotes the formation of anchoring filaments (thread-like fibers) or hemidesmosomes (complex structures composed of many proteins). These structures anchor the epidermis to the underlying basement membrane. The defect leads to tissue separation and blistering in the upper part of the basement membrane. Junctional epidermolysis bullosa (JEB) is usually severe. In the most serious forms, large, ulcerated blisters on the face, trunk, and legs can be life-threatening due to complicated infections and loss of body fluid that leads to severe dehydration. Survival is also threatened by blisters that affect the esophagus, upper airway, stomach, intestines, and the urogenital system. Other signs found in both severe and mild forms of JEB include rough and thickened or absent fingernails and toenails; a thin appearance to the skin (called atrophic scarring); blisters on the scalp or loss of hair with scarring (scarring alopecia); malnutrition and anemia; growth retardation; involvement of soft tissue inside the mouth and nose; and poorly formed tooth enamel. See also: Epidermolysis bullosa. MedTerms (TM) is the Medical Dictionary of MedicineNet.com.We Bring Doctors' Knowledge To You

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