Category: Today’s Word

Definition: (noun) The quality of something that causes or assists healthy growth. Synonyms: fruitfulness. Usage: The island is famous for its fecundity and exports tropical …

noun: 1. A dessert made from gelatin, sugar, and fruit flavoring. 2. Something soft and wiggly.

Definition: (noun) An unsuspected difficulty or danger. Synonyms: booby trap. Usage: She's like a gentle little doe feeding on lilies—she doesn't dream of the pitfalls …

noun: A stupid person. adjective: Stupid; thoughtless.

Definition: (verb) To enlarge beyond bounds or the truth. Synonyms: exaggerate, hyperbolize, magnify, overdraw, amplify. Usage: I don't want to overstate things, but I feel …

verb tr., intr.: 1. To convert or change into bone. 2. To make or become rigid in thinking, attitudes, habits, etc.

Definition: (noun) A subsequent examination of a patient for the purpose of monitoring earlier treatment. Synonyms: reexamination, review. Usage: Heather hated going to the doctor, …

adjective: 1. Deep-rooted. 2. Habitual; inveterate.

Definition: (verb) Exaggerate one's acting. Synonyms: ham. Usage: The audience groaned as the actor overplayed his grief, beating his chest and wailing to the heavens. …

Definition: (adjective) Conducted with or marked by hidden aims or methods. Synonyms: clandestine, hush-hush, undercover, underground, secret, surreptitious, hole-and-corner, hugger-mugger. Usage: Action movies often feature …

Definition: (noun) A person who has retired into seclusion for religious reasons. Synonyms: hermit. Usage: He lived in Paris more lonely than an anchorite in …

noun: Money or wealth, especially when acquired in a dishonorable manner.

Definition: (verb) To whip or flog. Synonyms: scourge. Usage: The prisoner was flagellated for his recent escape attempt. Discuss

noun: 1. Muscle or tendon. 2. Power; strength; vitality.

Definition: (verb) Remove completely from recognition or memory. Synonyms: obliterate. Usage: Allow me to propose a remedy, to efface the shame, and to render it …

noun: The forefront; vanguard.

Definition: (verb) A Chinese rice gruel eaten for breakfast. Synonyms: jook. Usage: When the weather is cold, I like to drive to Chinatown first thing …

noun: A flat-bottomed boat with square ends.

Definition: (noun) Small cup of strong black coffee without milk or cream. Synonyms: cafe noir. Usage: He began to frequent another cafe, where more newspapers …

adjective: Irregularly notched or jagged.

Definition: (adjective) Being a part of general human experience; ordinary. Synonyms: everyday, mundane, quotidian, routine, unremarkable. Usage: Now and then, in this workaday world, things …

Definition: (noun) A woman's very brief bathing suit. Synonyms: bikini. Usage: Kristen changed into her two-piece and jumped into the pool. Discuss

Definition: (adjective) Sleep inducing. Synonyms: hypnagogic, somniferous. Usage: Even he is unable to withstand the soporific influence of the place, and is gradually falling asleep. …

noun: A castaway; a person who is isolated or without companionship. verb tr.: To be marooned; to survive or manage through one’s ingenuity without outside …

Definition: (verb) Reduce to small pieces or particles by pounding or abrading. Synonyms: bray, mash, crunch, grind. Usage: The chef comminuted the spices in his …

verb tr.: 1. To spellbind. 2. To hypnotize.

Definition: (noun) A burning sensation, usually centered in the middle of the chest near the sternum, caused by the reflux of acidic stomach fluids that …

verb tr.: 1. To motivate or to arouse to action. 2. To coat with a rust-resistant material, such as zinc. 3. To stimulate by applying …

Definition: (noun) An expression of sympathy with another's grief. Synonyms: commiseration. Usage: I hoped that my words of condolence would offer the grieving family some …

verb tr.: To punish (typically, killing by hanging) for an alleged crime, without a legal trial.

Definition: (noun) Inability to see clearly in dim light; due to a deficiency of vitamin A or to a retinal disorder. Synonyms: moon blindness, night …

verb tr.: To escort in a courteous manner.

Definition: (noun) Courteous formality; politeness. Synonyms: chivalry, gallantry. Usage: Carl held the door for Ashley as they entered the restaurant, and she was immediately impressed …

Definition: (adjective) Utter; out-and-out. Synonyms: double-dyed, sodding, thoroughgoing, unadulterated, staring, perfect, pure, everlasting, consummate, complete, stark, gross. Usage: That is the most arrant nonsense I …

Definition: (noun) One who practices magic or sorcery. Synonyms: necromancer, sorcerer, wizard, magician. Usage: The self-proclaimed thaumaturge bowed to his audience before disappearing in a …

adjective: 1. Meticulous or painstaking. 2. Following one’s conscience; scrupulous.

Definition: (adjective) Very good; of the highest quality. Synonyms: excellent, fantabulous, splendid. Usage: The power of the lantern seemed increased a hundredfold, like a lamp …

noun: 1. A gesture of submission, such as curtsy. 2. Deference or homage.

Definition: (noun) <i>(Nontechnical usage)</i> A tiny piece of anything. Synonyms: mote, particle, speck, atom, molecule. Usage: I would not touch one corpuscle of that germ-ridden …

adjective: Relating to the making of myths.