quotidian

American  

[kwoh-tid-ee-uhn] / kwoʊˈtɪd i ən /

adjective

1. occurring as part of the normal or expected order of things; usual or customary; everyday.

   Her biographer delved into the most routine and quotidian parts of her life to paint a fuller picture of his subject.

2. of no special quality or interest; ordinary; commonplace.

   His paintings are pleasant to look at, but show nothing more than quotidian talent.

3. done, happening, or given daily.

   We recommend quotidian dialysis for the patient.

4. (of a fever or disease) characterized by the recurring daily intensification of symptoms.

   Malarial fevers tend to be quotidian, with daily attacks lasting up to 12 hours before abating.

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noun

1. something that is characteristic of everyday life.

   Their writing focuses on the quotidian and mundane.

   It's easy to get stuck in the quotidian and forget to try new things.

2. Archaic. a fever or disease characterized by the recurring daily intensification of symptoms.

quotidian British  

/ kwəʊˈtɪdɪən /

adjective

1. (esp of attacks of malarial fever) recurring daily

2. everyday; commonplace

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noun

1. a malarial fever characterized by attacks that recur daily

Other Word Forms

• quotidianly adverb
• quotidianness noun

Etymology

Origin of quotidian

1300–50; < Latin quotīdiānus, cottīdiānus daily, equivalent to cottīdi ( ē ) every day (adv.) ( *quot ( t ) ī a locative form akin to quot however many occur, every + diē, ablative of diēs day; meridian ) + -ānus -an; replacing Middle English cotidien < Old French < Latin, as above

Example Sentences

By elevating quotidian subject matter to a sublime frenzy of saturated hues, he established color photography as an art form during the 1960s and ’70s, when it had been dismissed as déclassé.

From The Wall Street Journal

They focused instead on human experience as it unfolds, moment by uncertain moment, capturing everyday foibles, errors and foolishness in the face of quotidian ruthlessness.

From Los Angeles Times

“Father Mother Sister Brother” is here to commiserate, but because the veteran indie auteur remains a sharp chronicler of the quotidian, he has no patience for sentimentality or pat resolutions.

From Los Angeles Times

Isn’t the idea to get as far away as possible from your quotidian existence?

From The Wall Street Journal

Why Cesar Chavez carried her during United Farm Workers marches and why generations of Chicano artists have reimagined la virgencita as everything from a bikini-clad model to a jogger — the more quotidian, the better.

From Los Angeles Times