Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 28, 2012 is: donnybrook \DAH-nee-brook\ noun 1 : free-for-all, brawl 2 : a usually public quarrel or dispute Examples: The two antique collectors found themselves embroiled in a spirited donnybrook over the value of an unusual piece of furniture at the auction. "We are in the middle of a donnybrook about the threat that falling off a 'fiscal cliff' poses for national security (to say nothing of what it would do to domestic discretionary spending)." — From an article by Gordon Adams in The Inquirer (Philadelphia), October 25, 2012 Did you know? The Donnybrook Fair was an annual event held in Donnybrook—then a suburb of Dublin, Ireland—from the 13th to the 19th centuries. The fair was legendary for the vast quantities of liquor consumed there, for the number of hasty marriages performed during the week following it, and, most of all, for the frequent brawls that erupted throughout it. Eventually, the fair's reputation for tumult was its undoing. From the 1790s on there were campaigns against the drunken brawl the fair had become. The event was abolished in 1855, but not before its name had become a generic term for a free-for-all.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 27, 2012 is: mise-en-scène \meez-ahn-SEN\ noun 1 a : the arrangement of actors and scenery on a stage for a theatrical production b : stage setting 2 a : the physical setting of an action (as of a narrative or a motion picture) : context b : environment, milieu Examples: "Rick Owens creates worlds more than fashion. His shows are famous for their otherworldly ambience, from the mise-en-scène (from foam to fire to electrifying light shows) to the soundtrack." — From a post by Matthew Schneier on Style.com's Style File blog, November 5, 2012 "Studio pictures tend to have a more controlled and artificial mise-en-scène no matter how elaborate and detailed the setting. The lighting is, after all, unnatural, space is confined, and locations are constructed. The emphasis is more on the interaction of characters and less on the interaction of character and environment." — From Ira Konigsberg's 1987 publication The Complete Film Dictionary Did you know? In French, "mise en scène" literally means "the action of putting onto the stage." The term's use originated in stage drama, where it refers to the way actors and scenery props are arranged; as its usage expanded into other narrative arts, its meaning shifted. In film production, "mise en scène" refers to all of the elements that comprise a single shot; that includes, but is not limited to, the actors, setting, props, costumes, and lighting. The director of a play or film is called the "metteur en scène"—literally, "one who puts on the stage."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 26, 2012 is: debilitate \dih-BIL-uh-tayt\ verb : to impair the strength of Examples: The flu debilitated him and left him bedridden for several days. "Hard hits are part of the game. But vicious hits intended to debilitate a player, maybe end his career, are intolerable." — From an article in the Chicago Tribune, March 8, 2012 Did you know? "Debilitate," "enfeeble," "undermine," and "sap" all share in common the general sense "to weaken." But while "debilitate" holds the distinction among these words of coming from the Latin word for "weak"—"debilis"—it packs a potent punch. Often used of disease or something that strikes like a disease or illness, "debilitate" might suggest a temporary impairment, but a pervasive one. "Enfeeble," a very close synonym of "debilitate," connotes a pitiable, but often reversible, condition of weakness and helplessness. "Undermine" and "sap" suggest a weakening by something working surreptitiously and insidiously.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 25, 2012 is: lord of misrule \LORD-uv-miss-ROOL\ noun : a master of Christmas revels in England especially in the 15th and 16th centuries Examples: Jesters, pipers, jugglers, and drummers followed the lord of misrule into the court for the singing of the carols. "Christmas before Victoria was a wild affair, in which the fun was presided over by the Lord of Misrule, and it was full of lewd and naughty pranks—usually strictly for the grown-ups." — From an article in the Northern Echo, September 20, 2012 Did you know? Late in the medieval days of England, the royal court, the houses of noblemen, and many colleges at the universities of Cambridge and Oxford appointed a manager for their Christmas festivities and dubbed him the "lord of misrule" or the "abbot of misrule." The lord of misrule was responsible for arranging all Christmas entertainment, including plays, processions, and feasts. The lord himself usually presided over these affairs with a mock court and received comic homage from the revelers. Scholars believe that the name "lord of misrule" (sometimes capitalized, as in our second example sentence above) was taken from the name of the official who presided over an older New Year's celebration called the "Feast of Fools."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 24, 2012 is: glogg \GLUG\ noun : a hot spiced wine and liquor punch served in Scandinavian countries as a Christmas drink Examples: "From traditional glogg and wassail to some combinations we never would have thought up ourselves, these mulled wine recipes will cut through any chill you can find." — From an article at The Huffington Post, November 15, 2012 "In snowy Norway, nothing evokes Christmastime like a pot of glogg brewing on the stove. The traditional Scandinavian winter drink mixes wine and port with spices like clove, cardamom and cinnamon to make for a brew that smells divine and tastes even better." — From a story on NPR.org, December 22, 2011 Did you know? Glogg is a holiday favorite in many Scandinavian cultures, where it is commonly served on St. Lucia's Day (December 13) and all around Christmas time. Not surprisingly, the word "glogg" itself (sometimes written as "glögg") is of Scandinavian origin; it comes from Swedish and derives from the verb "glödga," meaning "to burn" or "to mull." But although "glogg" may look like it should rhyme with that other notable holiday beverage—"eggnog"—the two aren't quite a perfect match. The "o" in "glogg" is pronounced like either the "u" in "nut," the "oo" in "foot," or the more foreign-sounding "œ" in "bœuf," the French word for "beef." "Nog," on the other hand, is generally pronounced with the "o" as in "mop"—and thus it rhymes with "grog."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 23, 2012 is: seasonal affective disorder \SEE-zuh-nul-a-FEK-tiv-diss-OR-der\ noun : depression that tends to recur as the days grow shorter during the fall and winter Examples: A person could really get the better of seasonal affective disorder if he or she could spend November to March in the southern hemisphere. "Having suffered from seasonal affective disorder (SAD) in the past, I fully appreciate the feel-good factor of sunshine. I couldn't believe how low I became on a recent visit to Cyprus when it rained heavily and was overcast for almost a week." — From an e-mail from Lisa Conway published in Good Housekeeping (UK), April 2012 Did you know? "Seasonal affective disorder" hasn't been recognized as a medical condition for very long, and the term has only become part of the general English vocabulary during the past three decades or so (its earliest documented appearance in print dates from 1983). "Seasonal affective disorder" (abbreviated SAD) is also sometimes called "Winter Depression" and some researchers describe it as a "hibernation reaction" in which sensitive individuals react to the decreasing amounts of light and the colder temperatures of fall and winter.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 22, 2012 is: farrier \FAIR-ee-er\ noun : a person who shoes horses Examples: Since he spent so much of his childhood around horses, it was not a surprise when James decided to apprentice to learn to be a farrier. "Idling in her cramped workspace outside the Washington International Horse Show, where the day's first whinnies were echoing throughout Verizon Center, the longtime farrier saw a lame brown gelding and an anxious owner approach." — From an article by Jonas Shaffer in The Washington Post, October 25, 2012 Did you know? "Farrier" is now usually applied specifically to a blacksmith who specializes in shoeing horses, a skill that requires not only the ability to shape and fit horseshoes, but also the ability to clean, trim, and shape a horse's hooves. When "farrier" first appeared in English (as "ferrour"), it referred to someone who not only shoed horses, but who provided general veterinary care for them as well. Middle English "ferrour" was borrowed from Anglo-French "ferrour" (a blacksmith who shoes horses), a noun derived from the verb "ferrer" ("to shoe horses"). These Anglo-French words can be traced back ultimately to Latin "ferrum," meaning "iron."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 20, 2012 is: impolitic \im-PAH-luh-tik\ adjective : not politic : unwise Examples: The talk show host's impolitic remarks were often the target of public outrage, but they also earned him legions of fans. "She'll say what's on her mind, no matter how wildly inappropriate or impolitic." — From a movie review by Steven Rea in The Philadelphia Inquirer, October 18, 2012 Did you know? "Impolitic" appeared 400 years ago as an antonym of "politic," a word that basically means "shrewd," "sagacious," or "tactful." "Politic" came to us via Middle French from Latin "politicus." The Latin word, in turn, came from a Greek word based on "politēs," meaning "citizen." "Impolitic" has often been used to refer to action or policy on the part of public figures that is politically unwise—from British statesman Edmund Burke's judicious "the most ... impolitick of all things, unequal taxation" (1797) to People journalist James Kunen's ironic "The author of these impolitic remarks has risen to the very pinnacle of politics" (1988).

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 19, 2012 is: algid \AL-jid\ adjective : cold Examples: "Lifting the taffeta hanging from the seat under the windows, he stroked the pipes of the radiator. He touched cold metal, metal algid as ice!" — From Carl Van Vechten's 1925 novel Firecrackers: A Realistic Novel "They knew how to keep moving, with air so algid it hits like a sledgehammer the moment you step into it." — From Michael D'Orso's 2006 book Eagle Blue: A Team, a Tribe, and a High School Basketball Season in Arctic Alaska Did you know? "Algid" is a rather cold and lonely word, etymologically speaking—it's the only word in any of the dictionaries we publish that comes from the Latin word "algēre," meaning "to feel cold." Also, English speakers have warmed to its many synonyms—among them "cold," "frigid," "arctic," "chill"—much more readily than they've taken to "algid." Even its compatriot, "gelid"—also a Latin-derived adjective that can describe ice and arctic temperatures—has managed to outpace it in most decades of the approximately 400 years the words have been in use. In one context, though, "algid" does something its synonyms don't: it describes a severe form of malaria that is marked by prostration, cold and clammy skin, and low blood pressure—a meaning that probably hasn't done much to endear the more general use to speakers of English.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 18, 2012 is: lagniappe \LAN-yap\ noun : a small gift given a customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase; broadly : something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure Examples: Diners will no doubt be pleasantly surprised that such a fine champagne is served with the special holiday menu's first course as lagniappe. "That type of service was common in the country stores and small businesses I dealt with when growing up. At a little grocery and feed store near my home, I even got lagniappe dropped from the candy counter into my bag as a boy." — From an article by Bob Anderson in The Advocate (Baton Rouge, Louisiana), November 7, 2012 Did you know? "We picked up one excellent word," wrote Mark Twain in Life on the Mississippi (1883), "a word worth traveling to New Orleans to get; a nice limber, expressive, handy word—'lagniappe'.... It is Spanish—so they said." Twain encapsulates the history of "lagniappe" quite nicely. English speakers learned the word from French-speaking Louisianians, but they in turn had adapted it from the American Spanish word "la ñapa." Twain went on to describe how New Orleanians completed shop transactions by saying "Give me something for lagniappe," to which the shopkeeper would respond with "a bit of liquorice-root, ... a cheap cigar or a spool of thread." It took a while for "lagniappe" to catch on throughout the country, but by the mid-20th century, New Yorkers and New Orleanians alike were familiar with this "excellent word."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 17, 2012 is: commensal \kuh-MEN-sul\ adjective 1 : of or relating to those who habitually eat together 2 : of, relating to, or living in a relationship in which one organism obtains food or other benefits from another without damaging or benefiting it Examples: "Florentines in the 1980s still valued their families and insisted on eating together every day, even as they recognized that several forces including television, restaurants, and the rapid pace of work undermined commensal meals." — From Carole M. Counihan's 2004 book Around the Tuscan Table: Food, Family, and Gender in Twentieth Century Florence "Nunez's work on bacteria that invade the gut focuses on competition between the naturally occurring, or commensal, bacteria that live in the intestinal tract, and invading pathogens." — From a press release from the University of Michigan Health System, November 1, 2012 Did you know? Commensal types, be they human or beast, often "break bread" together. When they do, they are reflecting the etymology of "commensal," which derives from the Latin prefix "com-," meaning "with, together, jointly" and the Latin adjective "mensalis," meaning "of the table." In its earliest English uses, "commensal" referred to people who ate together, but around 1870, biologists started using it for organisms that have no use for a four-piece table setting. Since then, the scientific sense has almost completely displaced the dining one.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 16, 2012 is: quadrate \KWAH-drayt\ adjective : being square or approximately square Examples: The linoleum featured a colorful pattern of large quadrate shapes. "For dessert, Namiri brings out quadrate slices of baklava accompanied by strong Turkish coffee." — From a review by Christy Khoshaba in the Monterey County Weekly, May 26, 2011 Did you know? Sharp-eyed readers may recognize the "quad" in "quadrate," suggesting the number four. "Quadrate" is in fact a relative of Latin "quattuor," meaning "four," though its direct line of descent links to "quadrum," meaning "square." Other descendants of "quadrum" in English include "quadrille" (a square dance for four couples), "quarrel" (a square-headed bolt or arrow), and "quarry" (a place where large amounts of stone are dug out of the ground); the latter of these can be traced back to a Latin word meaning "squared stone." "Quadrate," incidentally, can also be used in much more specific senses to describe a type of heraldic cross or a portion of the skull in some vertebrates.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 15, 2012 is: hagiography \hag-ee-AH-gruh-fee\ noun 1 : biography of saints or venerated persons 2 : idealizing or idolizing biography Examples: The book effectively portrays the leader's strengths without resorting to hagiography. "'Lincoln' gratifyingly dodges the kind of safe, starchy hagiography that some Spielberg skeptics feared. Rather, the filmmaker … proves yet again that he is the best filmmaker currently engaging in the form of assiduous research and creative interpretation known as historical drama." — From a review by Ann Hornaday in The Washington Post, November 9, 2012 Did you know? Like "biography" and "autograph," the word "hagiography" has to do with the written word. The combining form "-graphy" comes from Greek "graphein," meaning "to write." "Hagio-" comes from a Greek word that means "saintly" or "holy." This origin is seen in "Hagiographa," the Greek designation of the Ketuvim, the third division of the Hebrew Bible. Our English word "hagiography," though it can refer to biography of actual saints, is these days more often applied to biography that treats ordinary human subjects as if they were saints.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 14, 2012 is: schmooze \SHMOOZ\ verb : to converse informally : chat; also : to chat in a friendly and persuasive manner especially so as to gain favor, business, or connections Examples: Conference attendees will have plenty of chances to schmooze with the industry's power players. "Children were given the opportunity to try on costumes, test their balance on a mini tightrope or schmooze with the clowns." — From an article by Sara Schweiger in the Telegram & Gazette (Worcester, Massachusetts), October 4, 2012 Did you know? "Schmooze" (also spelled "shmooze") is one of a small, but significant, number of words borrowed from Yiddish that have become relatively common parts of the English language. Other such words include "chutzpah," "lox," "maven," "mensch," "nebbish," "schlep," and "schlock." Though classified as a High German language, Yiddish also borrows from the Slavic and Latinate languages as well as from Aramaic and Hebrew. It was the Hebrew "shěmu’ōth" ("news, rumor") that provided Yiddish with the noun "shmues" ("talk") and the verb "shmuesn" ("to talk or chat"). Although originally used in English to indicate simply talking in an informal and warm manner, "schmooze" has since also taken on the suggestion of discussion for the purposes of gaining something.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 13, 2012 is: parietal \puh-RYE-uh-tul\ adjective 1 a : of or relating to the walls of a part or cavity b : of, relating to, or forming the upper posterior wall of the head 2 : attached to the main wall rather than the axis or a cross wall of a plant ovary — used of an ovule or a placenta 3 : of or relating to college living or its regulation; especially : of or relating to the regulations governing the visiting privileges of members of the opposite sex in campus dormitories Examples: "In the 1950s, male college students served in the military but couldn't vote, and colleges imposed parietal rules, which kept young men out of women's dorms." — Harrisburg Daily Register (Illinois), March 27, 2012 "[Tuatara] also have a pronounced parietal eye, a light-sensitive pineal gland on the top of the skull. This white patch of skin called its 'third eye' slowly disappears as they mature." — From an article by Ray Lilley in The Associated Press, October 31, 2008 Did you know? Fifteenth-century scientists first used "parietal" (from Latin "paries," meaning "wall of a cavity or hollow organ") to describe a pair of bones of the roof of the skull between the frontal and posterior bone. Later, "parietal" was also applied to structures connected to or found in the same general area as these bones; the parietal lobe, for example, is the middle division of each hemisphere of the brain. In the 19th century, botanists adopted "parietal" as a word for ovules and placentas attached to the walls of plant ovaries. It was also in the 19th century that "parietal" began to be heard on college campuses, outside of the classroom; in 1837, Harvard College established the Parietal Committee to be in charge of "all offences against good order and decorum within the walls."