Word of the Day
vellicate
verb
to twitch.
Why the Museum of Science chose vellicate
To find out, watch this video from science communicator Maynard Okereke, better known as the Hip Hop M.D.
Learn more at the Museum of Science.
More about vellicate
Vellicate comes from Latin vellicāre, “to pluck, twitch,” from vellere, “to pull, twitch.” Though hairs may be plucked and skin may twitch, there is no connection between vellicate and vellum, a type of parchment made from animal skin, or vellus hair, the tiny hairs found on the human body. Vellicate was first recorded in English around 1600.
EXAMPLE OF VELLICATE USED IN A SENTENCE
After the morning coffee break, I noticed that my left eye began vellicating from all the caffeine.
ejecta
noun
matter ejected, as from a volcano in eruption.
More about ejecta
Ejecta is a form of Latin ējectus, “thrown out.” Ējectus is ultimately derived from the verb jacere “to throw,” which is the source of numerous English words containing the element ject-, including adjective (literally “thrown toward”), rejection (“thrown back”), subject (“thrown under”), and the Word of the Day disjecta membra. Ejecta was first recorded in English in the late 1880s.
EXAMPLE OF EJECTA USED IN A SENTENCE
The ejecta from the volcano included minerals from deep inside the Earth.
skijoring
noun
a sport in which a skier is pulled over snow or ice, by a horse, dog, or a motor vehicle.
More about skijoring
Skijoring is a slight alteration of Norwegian skikjøring, which is composed of ski, “ski,” and kjøring, “driving.” Norwegian ski comes from Old Norse skīth, “stick, snowshoe.” Kjøring is from Old Norse keyra, “to whip” and by extension “to drive,” after the use of whips to incite vehicle-pulling animals. Skijoring was first recorded in English circa 1910.
EXAMPLE OF SKIJORING USED IN A SENTENCE
The day after the blizzard, the ski lodge guests headed outside for sledding, snowshoeing, and skijoring in the deep snow.