Word of the Day
Pavlovian
adjective
of, relating to, or characteristic of Pavlov or his work, especially of experiments in which he elicited predictable responses from laboratory animals.
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Why Dictionary.com chose Pavlovian
More about Pavlovian
- Pavlovian was first recorded in 1925–30.
- Pavlovian comes from the name of Ivan Petrovich Pavlov (1849–1936), a Russian physiologist who won the Nobel Prize in medicine in 1904.
- Pavlov conducted experiments that conditioned animals to associate an arbitrary signal with an event, such as the ringing of a bell and food being served, that brought about an instinctive response, such as salivating when hearing the bell in anticipation of the food.
EXAMPLES OF PAVLOVIAN
- The students’ Pavlovian response to the school bell ringing was to pack up their belongings and head to the next class.
- The Pavlovian nature of addiction was evident as the individual’s cravings were triggered by certain environmental cues.
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Why Dictionary.com chose modicum
More about modicum
- Modicum was first recorded in 1375–1425.
- Modicum comes via late Middle English from a noun form of the Latin word modicus, meaning “moderate.”
- The root of modicus is modus, which means “measured amount; limit,” from which mode, the most frequently repeated value in a set of values, comes as well.
EXAMPLES OF MODICUM
- The team was disappointed when their efforts resulted in only a modicum of progress towards their goal.
- Even on the busiest of days, he always made sure to maintain at least a modicum of calm.
garrulous
adjective
excessively talkative in a rambling, roundabout manner, especially about trivial matters.
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Why Dictionary.com chose garrulous
More about garrulous
- Garrulous was first recorded in 1605–15.
- Garrulous comes from the Latin word garrulus, meaning “talkative, garrulous,” which is similar to the Latin verb garr(īre), meaning “to chatter.”
- Garrulity is the quality of being garrulous, just like loquacity is the quality of being loquacious, a synonym of garrulous.
EXAMPLES OF GARRULOUS
- My neighbor’s garrulous nature proved to be quite challenging whenever I tried to have a quick conversation with him, as he would incessantly digress and meander through various unrelated anecdotes.
- Despite her advanced age, the garrulous woman never ran out of stories to tell, often rambling on for hours about mundane topics.
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