Summary: Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 26, 2014 is: visage \VIZ-ij\ noun 1 : the face, countenance, or appearance of a person or sometimes an animal 2 : aspect, appearance Examples: The model's severe, smoldering visage appears to gaze with contempt from billboards throughout the city. "The image that best sums up this disastrous Knicks season lies right there on the sidelines, on the incredible, incredulous visage of haggard coach Mike Woodson." From a post by Ben Yakas at Gothamist.com, December 26, 2013 Did you know? Writers occasionally come face-to-face with the fact that "face" is a pretty generic word that seems to have no ordinary synonyms. But it has a few synonyms of the high-flown variety. "Physiognomy," for instance, refers to facial features or expression thought to reveal qualities of mind or character ("I thought I could detect in his physiognomy a mind owning better qualities than his father ever possessed ."Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights). "Countenance" is usually used to refer to one's face and the mood revealed by it ("Mina struggled hard to keep her brave countenance ."Bram Stoker, Dracula). "Visage" works double duty, referring to both physical appearance and a display of emotion. It can also refer to the appearance of nonliving things, as in "the dirty visage of the old abandoned factory."
