Words of the Day

Just a quick catch up on interesting words of the day from Dictionary.com:


Word of the Day for Tuesday, August 21, 2007

indurate \IN-dur-it; -dyur-\, adjective:

1. Physically or morally hardened; unfeeling; stubborn.
2. To make hard; to harden.
3. To harden against; to make hardy; to habituate.
4. To make hardened; to make callous or stubborn.
5. To establish; to fix firmly.
6. To grow hard; to harden.
7. To become established or fixed.

This one has always been one of my faves, just because it so closely resembles 'masturbate' (phonetically) and therefore sounds naughty even though it's not:

Word of the Day for Saturday, August 18, 2007

masticate \MAS-tih-kayt\, transitive verb:

1. To grind or crush with or as if with the teeth in preparation for swallowing and digestion; to chew; as, "to masticate food."
2. To crush or knead (rubber, for example) into a pulp.
3. To chew food.


This one was new for me and, I confess, took me a minute to sound out!

Word of the Day for Wednesday, August 15, 2007

plenipotentiary \plen-uh-puh-TEN-shee-air-ee; -shuh-ree\, adjective:

1. Containing or conferring full power; invested with full power; as, "plenipotentiary license; plenipotentiary ministers."

I love the look and sound of this word but I find it's meaning so contrary to the way it feels in the mouth that I often forget what it means:

Word of the Day for Monday, August 13, 2007

bellicose \BEL-ih-kohs\, adjective:

Inclined to or favoring war or strife; warlike; pugnacious.

I can't remember if I posted this one or not so here it is (again):

Word of the Day for Thursday, August 9, 2007

diaphanous \dy-AF-uh-nuhs\, adjective:

1. Of such fine texture as to allow light to pass through; translucent or transparent.
2. Vague; insubstantial.
2. A person invested with full power to transact any business; especially, an ambassador or diplomatic agent with full power to negotiate a treaty or to transact other business.

What are some of your favorite words?