Category: Today’s Word

Today’s Word

straight-out

Definition: (adjective) Without reservation or exception. Synonyms: outright, unlimited. Usage: Bob's excuse for missing work was a straight-out lie, and his boss knew this and …

pussomaniac

noun: One having an excessive enthusiasm for cats.

peddle

Definition: (verb) Sell or offer for sale from place to place. Synonyms: hawk, huckster, monger, vend, pitch. Usage: It is so hard to keep kids …

catnap

noun: A short, light sleep, typically in the daytime. verb intr.: To sleep briefly or lightly. verb tr.: To steal a cat.

saltpeter

Definition: (noun) (KNO3) Used especially as a fertilizer and explosive. Synonyms: niter, potassium nitrate. Usage: Gunpowder was not invented by any one; it was the …

recliner

Definition: (noun) An armchair whose back can be lowered and foot can be raised to allow the sitter to recline in it. Synonyms: lounger. Usage: …

catlap

noun: A watery drink, especially weak tea or milk.

troglodyte

Definition: (noun) A cave dweller, especially one of the prehistoric peoples thought to have lived in caves. Synonyms: caveman. Usage: These vile old troglodytes are …

coincident

Definition: (adjective) Occurring or operating at the same time. Synonyms: co-occurrent, concurrent, simultaneous. Usage: "You will observe," said Holmes, laying down the volume, "that the …

fizzle

Definition: (verb) To fail or end weakly, especially after a hopeful beginning. Synonyms: peter out, taper off. Usage: The music just fizzled out—there was no …

sallow

Definition: (adjective) Of a sickly yellowish hue or complexion. Synonyms: sickly. Usage: His face was sallow and shiny with sweat. Discuss

exfoliate

exfoliate: To remove or shed dead cells, leaves, bark, etc.

pagination

Definition: (noun) The system of numbering pages. Synonyms: folio, paging. Usage: The editions of Holy Writ are so numerous that he could hardly suppose that …

agon

agon: A conflict, contest, or struggle.

exhalation

Definition: (noun) The act of expelling air from the lungs. Synonyms: breathing out, expiration. Usage: He drew the first whiff of smoke deep into his …

pule

pule: To whimper or whine.

comeuppance

Definition: (noun) A punishment or retribution that one deserves; one's just deserts. Synonyms: deserts. Usage: The central character is an evil man who gets his …

innumerate

innumerate: adjective: Marked by ignorance of mathematical concepts. noun: A person who is unable to count or do simple mathematics.

curare

Definition: (noun) A toxic alkaloid found in certain tropical South American trees that is a powerful relaxant for striated muscles. Synonyms: tubocurarine. Usage: The arrow …

hard-pressed

Definition: (adjective) Facing or experiencing financial trouble or difficulty. Synonyms: distressed, hard put, in a bad way. Usage: Hard-pressed consumers are spending less on luxuries. …

deep-seated

Definition: (adjective) (Used especially of ideas or principles) deeply rooted; firmly fixed or held. Synonyms: deep-rooted, implanted, ingrained, planted. Usage: He divined the fanatical love …

indisposed

Definition: (adjective) Somewhat ill or prone to illness. Synonyms: ailing, peaked, poorly, under the weather, unwell, sickly, seedy. Usage: The princess is indisposed and has …

boojum

noun: An imaginary or elusive goal whose pursuit may lead to ruin.

seeker

Definition: (noun) Someone making a search or inquiry. Synonyms: quester, searcher. Usage: A seeker of the truth, he never took things at face value. Discuss

white knight

noun: 1. One who comes to the rescue of another. 2. A well-meaning but ineffective helper.

nonviolence

Definition: (noun) Peaceful resistance to a government by fasting or refusing to cooperate. Synonyms: passive resistance. Usage: Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., were …

jabberwock

noun: Nonsensical or wildly incoherent speech or writing. verb intr.: To speak or write in this manner.

penalize

Definition: (verb) Impose a penalty on; inflict punishment on. Synonyms: punish. Usage: The students were penalized for their tardiness and had to stay after school …

phlizz

noun: Something existing only in name: an illusion or empty semblance.

coerce

Definition: (verb) To cause to do through pressure or necessity, by physical, moral, or intellectual means. Synonyms: force, hale, pressure, squeeze. Usage: The lawsuit alleged …

rabbit hole

noun: 1. A bizarre, confusing, or disorienting situation that’s hard to exit. 2. A lengthy and often unproductive detour, especially one involving a unexpectedly deep …

cultivator

Definition: (noun) Someone concerned with the science or art or business of cultivating the soil. Synonyms: agriculturalist, grower, raiser. Usage: He soon became a land-holder, …

stepwise

Definition: (adjective) Marked by a gradual progression as if step by step. Synonyms: bit-by-bit, in small stages, piecemeal, step-by-step. Usage: Quantum mechanics is a natural …

hackneyed

Definition: (adjective) Repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse. Synonyms: banal, old-hat, stock, threadbare, timeworn, trite, well-worn, tired, shopworn, commonplace. Usage: For God's sake do not …

pillory

verb tr.: To subject to severe public criticism or ridicule. noun: A device used in the past to publicly punish offenders by locking their head …

soul-searching

Definition: (noun) A penetrating examination of one's motives, convictions, and attitudes. Synonyms: self-analysis. Usage: Mary's therapist told her she was going to have to be …