Word of the Day
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Why Dictionary.com chose arvo
More about arvo
- Arvo is Australian English slang that was first recorded in 1930–35.
- Arvo takes the af- from the word afternoon, voices the –f so that is pronounced like a –v, and combines it with –o.
- The ar– represents how a speaker of a dialect in which r is not pronounced, like Australian English, would say a low back vowel (-a).
- Many Australian English terms are similarly shortened, like avo for avocado, servo for service station, and devo for devastated.
EXAMPLES OF ARVO
- Their friends said they would catch them at the beach later in the arvo for a game of volleyball.
- The sun is shining, making this arvo perfect for a bike ride.
chiaroscuro
noun
the distribution of light and shade in a picture.
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Why Dictionary.com chose chiaroscuro
More about chiaroscuro
- Chiaroscuro was first recorded in English between 1680–90.
- Chiaroscuro comes from Italian and is composed of chiaro, meaning “bright,” and oscuro, meaning “dark.”
- From chiaro comes the English word clear, “free from darkness; light,” and from oscuro comes obscure, “not clear” or “lacking in light.”
- Leonardo da Vinci and (Michelangelo Merisi da) Caravaggio famously utilized the technique of chiaroscuro in their works of art.
EXAMPLES OF CHIAROSCURO
- The photograph captured the beautiful chiaroscuro of the sunset, with vibrant hues blending seamlessly into deepening shadows.
- The filmmaker expertly crafted a scene using chiaroscuro to heighten the tension, casting eerie shadows across the dimly lit room.
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Why Dictionary.com chose coriaceous
More about coriaceous
- Coriaceous was first recorded in 1665–75.
- Coriaceous comes from the Late Latin word coriāceus, which means “leathern.”
- The related word corium, used in the fields of anatomy and zoology, means “skin.”
- The –aceous suffix means “resembling, having the nature of” or “made of,” and it occurs in loanwords from Latin such as cretaceous, “resembling or containing chalk,” and herbaceous, “herblike.”
EXAMPLES OF CORIACEOUS
- The book’s binding was made with a coriaceous material, giving it a luxurious leather-like appearance.
- The ancient warriors’ armor was coriaceous, providing them with both protection and the durability of leather.
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