Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 8, 2025 is: finesse • \fuh-NESS\ • verb To finesse something is to bring it about, direct it, or manage it by skillful maneuvering. // We managed to finesse a favorable deal on some Beatles LPs at the flea market through subtle bargaining. See the entry > Examples: “Many times, the teams that can lead a company to a successful public listing are not the ones best equipped to finesse the delicate relationship with equity research anal...
Feb 08, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 7, 2025 is: malapropism • \MAL-uh-prah-piz-um\ • noun A malapropism is an amusing error that occurs when a person mistakenly uses a word that sounds like another word but that has a very different meaning. // "It's lovely to see all of you on this suspicious occasion," our host said. A flurry of snickers were heard in reply; the malapropism (she had of course meant to call it an "auspicious" occasion) was characteristic. See the entr...
Feb 07, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 6, 2025 is: ad-lib • \AD-LIB\ • verb To ad-lib something, such as a performance or part of a performance, is to improvise it—that is, to make up words or music instead of saying, singing, or playing something that has been planned. // The actor forgot his lines, so he ad-libbed . See the entry > Examples: “My real appreciation for [Céline] Dion grew in 2018, when I saw her perform in Vegas. I had agreed to attend with some friends, e...
Feb 06, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 5, 2025 is: canard • \kuh-NARD\ • noun Canard refers to a false report or story, or to a belief or rumor that isn't true. It can also refer to a kind of airplane as well as to a kind of small airfoil . // The book unfortunately repeats some of history's oldest canards . See the entry > Examples: "It's such a canard to think young people don't care about great information. They do. ... [W]e have to start thinking, as media, of where t...
Feb 05, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 4, 2025 is: zaftig • \ZAHF-tig\ • adjective Someone described as zaftig has a full, rounded figure, or in other words is pleasingly plump. // Portraits of zaftig models are exhibited in the artist's collection. See the entry > Examples: "... Pablo Picasso produced an estimated 13,500 paintings, in addition to astounding quantities of drawings, prints, sculptures and ceramics. ... He veered between opposite poles of abstraction and re...
Feb 04, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 3, 2025 is: sarcophagus • \sahr-KAH-fuh-gus\ • noun Sarcophagus refers to a coffin, and specifically a stone coffin. // The crypt under the abbey church contains the sarcophagus of the monastery's founding abbot . See the entry > Examples: "Experts found as many as 1,035 artwork fragments, as well as one hundred graves increasing the cathedral's total record to more than five hundred burials. Many of the coffins, along with scattered...
Feb 03, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 2, 2025 is: presage • \PRESS-ij\ • verb To presage something is to give or be a sign that it will happen in the future. Presage is a formal synonym of foreshadow , foretell , and predict . // The sudden gloom and ominous dark clouds clearly presaged a nasty storm. See the entry > Examples: “What we’re really looking for are handsome, vigorous chickens who do well in cold climes. … Adding birds of different breeds presaged an importan...
Feb 02, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 1, 2025 is: disputatious • \dis-pyuh-TAY-shus\ • adjective Disputatious is a formal word used to describe someone who often disagrees and argues with other people (in other words, someone inclined to dispute ). It can also describe something marked or characterized by arguments or controversies, or something that provokes debate or controversy. // The podcast is hosted by a disputatious pair whose sparring has drawn legions of listen...
Feb 01, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 31, 2025 is: encroach • \in-KROHCH\ • verb To encroach is to gradually move or go into an area that is beyond the usual or desired limits, or to gradually take or begin to use or affect something that belongs to, or is being used by, someone else. Encroach is often followed by on or upon . // Conflicts between people and bears increase as humans continue to encroach on bear territory. // They argue that the law would encroach on state...
Jan 31, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 30, 2025 is: audition • \aw-DISH-un\ • noun An audition is a short performance to show the talents of someone (such as an actor or a musician) who is being considered for a role in a play, a position in an orchestra, etc. // Auditions will be held next week for the spring musical. // She had an audition for a small part but ended up landing a starring role. See the entry > Examples: “When she was 18, Hannah D’Amato auditioned for a sp...
Jan 30, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 29, 2025 is: facetious • \fuh-SEE-shuss\ • adjective Facetious is used to describe something, such as a remark or behavior, that is meant to be humorous or funny but is sometimes instead annoying, silly, or improper. It can also be used to describe someone who is joking, often implying that they are doing so inappropriately. // The emcee delivered several facetious quips throughout the night that the audience found in poor taste. // I...
Jan 29, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 28, 2025 is: sward • \SWORD\ • noun Sward is a literary word that refers to an area of land covered with grass. // The hikers emerged from the forest to find a green sward stretching out before them, and dotted with yellow and purple flowers. See the entry > Examples: “A century or so ago, if you lived in the Boston area and were obsessed with trees, you were in good company. The Massachusetts Horticultural Society, which had united e...
Jan 28, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 28, 2025 is: sward • \SWORD\ • noun Sward is a literary word that refers to an area of land covered with grass. // The hikers emerged from the forest to find a green sward dotted with yellow and purple flowers stretching out before them. See the entry > Examples: “A century or so ago, if you lived in the Boston area and were obsessed with trees, you were in good company. The Massachusetts Horticultural Society, which had united enthus...
Jan 28, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 27, 2025 is: edify • \ED-uh-fye\ • verb To edify someone is to teach them in a way that improves their mind or character. // The commencement speaker hoped that her words would edify the graduates, and give them hope and encouragement. See the entry > Examples: "You might be tempted to think that Emerson advocates abandoning all admiration of others. He does not; he simply argues for hardheaded discrimination between what is good and ...
Jan 27, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 26, 2025 is: circuitous • \ser-KYOO-uh-tus\ • adjective If something—such as a path, route, or journey—is described as circuitous, it is not straight, short, and direct, but rather takes a circular or winding course. Circuitous can also describe speech or writing that is not said or done simply or clearly. // He took a circuitous route to town, stopping at several of his favorite shops even though it added minutes and miles to his tri...
Jan 26, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 25, 2025 is: nomenclature • \NOH-mun-klay-cher\ • noun Nomenclature is a formal word that refers to a system of names that is used in specialized fields and especially in science. Nomenclature is also used more broadly as a synonym of name and designation . // It took Faith, a trained herpetologist , a while to become familiar with the nomenclature used at the entomology conference. See the entry > Examples: “The junior leagues wanted...
Jan 25, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 24, 2025 is: divers • \DYE-verz\ • adjective Divers is an adjective meaning "numbering more than one." // The tri-county fair offers divers amusements for the whole family. See the entry > Examples: "'These prizes reflect the diversity of this year's edition,' NIFFF [ Neuchatel Int’l Fantastic Film Festival] artistic director Pierre-Yves Walder tells Variety . 'Our festival showcases the fantastic in all its forms, promoting divers st...
Jan 24, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 23, 2025 is: wanderlust • \WAHN-der-lust\ • noun Wanderlust refers to a strong desire to travel. // During their final semester at college, the two friends were both filled with an insatiable wanderlust and began planning a journey to Patagonia together. See the entry > Examples: "In a few weeks, Ortega explained in a quiet moment, the Red Desert herd would begin its annual pilgrimage toward summer range. ... Some were homebodies, wan...
Jan 23, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 22, 2025 is: opine • \oh-PYNE\ • verb To opine is to express an opinion about something. // Many people opine that social media platforms should be better regulated. See the entry > Examples: “Entertainment will always be inherently social. This latest age has prompted society to take a page out of video game culture, which has long relied on building a digital community. We text those we care about after a cliffhanger season finale a...
Jan 22, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 21, 2025 is: gourmand • \GOOR-mahnd\ • noun A gourmand is a person who loves and appreciates good food and drink. Gourmand can also refer to someone who enjoys eating and drinking to excess. // He was a gourmand who retired to New Orleans to live close to the cuisine he loved best. See the entry > Examples: "... the deck sports a dining area with a barbecue and pizza oven for gourmands ." — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report , 27 Oct. 2023 D...
Jan 21, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 20, 2025 is: inimitable • \in-IM-it-uh-bul\ • adjective Inimitable describes someone or something that is impossible to copy or imitate. // Courtnay delivered the speech in her own inimitable style. See the entry > Examples: “In a nation whose professed ideals include freedom, liberty and independence, every American is charged with an individual self-examination. ... Such a searching self-examination helps us discover our precepts, e...
Jan 20, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 19, 2025 is: virtuoso • \ver-choo-OH-soh\ • noun Virtuoso is used broadly to refer to a person who does something very skillfully, and is often used specifically to refer to a very skillful musician. // He’s a real virtuoso in the kitchen, whipping up gourmet dishes for his family not just on holidays but on regular weeknights. // Although the violin was her first instrument, she eventually proved to be a virtuoso on the harp. See the...
Jan 19, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 18, 2025 is: minuscule • \MIN-uh-skyool\ • adjective Something described as minuscule is very small. Minuscule can also mean "written in, or in the size or style of, lowercase letters," in which case it can be contrasted with majuscular . // The number of bugs in the latest version of the video game is minuscule compared to the number that surfaced in the beta version. // The ancient manuscripts on display are all in minuscule script....
Jan 18, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 17, 2025 is: apprehension • \ap-rih-HEN-shun\ • noun Apprehension most often refers to the fear that something bad or unpleasant is going to happen; it’s a feeling of being worried about the future. The word can also refer to seizure by legal process. // There is growing apprehension that next quarter’s profits will be lower than expected. See the entry > Examples: “Mark Pope felt uncertain. There was a moment, he admitted, after it w...
Jan 17, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 16, 2025 is: parlay • \PAHR-lay\ • verb To parlay something is to use or develop it in order to get something else of greater value. Parlay is often used with the word into . // He hoped to parlay his basketball skills into a college scholarship. // She parlayed $5,000 and years of hard work into a multimillion-dollar company. See the entry > Examples: “Sometimes, celebrities parlay their name and following into big-time sales and hyp...
Jan 16, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 15, 2025 is: hackneyed • \HAK-need\ • adjective Something is considered hackneyed when it is not interesting, funny, etc., because of being used too often; in other words, it's neither fresh nor original. // The new crime drama's characters are shallow stereotypes who engage one another in hackneyed dialogue. See the entry > Examples: “Any positive lesson here is lost in all the hackneyed jokes, and by the end the movie falls apart en...
Jan 15, 2025•3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 15, 2025 is: hackneyed • \HAK-need\ • adjective Something is considered hackneyed when it is not interesting, funny, etc., because of being used too often; in other words, it's neither fresh nor original. // The new crime drama's characters are shallow stereotypes who engage one another in hackneyed dialogue. See the entry > Examples: “Any positive lesson here is lost in all the hackneyed jokes, and by the end the movie falls apart en...
Jan 15, 2025•3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 14, 2025 is: deus ex machina • \DAY-us-eks-MAH-kih-nuh\ • noun A deus ex machina is a character or thing that suddenly enters the story in a novel, play, movie, etc., and solves a problem that had previously seemed impossible to solve. // The introduction of a new love interest in the final act was the perfect deus ex machina for the main character's happy ending. See the entry > Examples: "The poultry thieves in Emma provide a partic...
Jan 14, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 13, 2025 is: secular • \SEK-yuh-ler\ • adjective Secular describes things that are not spiritual; that is, they relate more to the physical world than the spiritual world. The word also carries the closely related meaning of "not religious." // Each year, Ian directed his charitable giving toward secular concerns like affordable housing and arts programming for teens. // In her autobiography, the actor mentions that her education in p...
Jan 13, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 12, 2025 is: leitmotif • \LYTE-moh-teef\ • noun A leitmotif is a dominant recurring theme—something (such as a melody, an idea, or a phrase) repeated many times throughout a book, story, opera, etc. // The overcoming of obstacles and a love of theater are the two leitmotifs of her autobiography. See the entry > Examples: “ [F. Scott] Fitzgerald considered his year and a half spent on The Vegetable a complete waste, but I disagree, for...
Jan 12, 2025•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
