Word of the Day
Learn a new word every day! The Dictionary.com team of language experts carefully selects each Word of the Day to add some panache to your vocabulary.
Check out the Word of the Yeara translucent variety of quartz, often milky or grayish
Chalcedony is a variety of quartz that often takes on a translucent, milky appearance. Long before modern gem cutting, chalcedony was used in carvings and jewelry because it could take a smooth polish while holding fine detail. The blend of durability and beauty that made chalcedony useful to ancient craftspeople still makes it an appealing gemstone today.
The jeweler crafted a necklace featuring a smooth piece of pale gray chalcedony.
having merchandising potential or the quality of being marketable as a toy
When some characters just seem made for the toy aisle, you can say they're toyetic. It means they have strong potential to be turned into a toy or a similar piece of merchandise. If a major studio has a new action blockbuster in the works, you can be certain there's someone running the numbers on its toyetic potential.
The execs loved the colorful robots in the series because they knew their toyetic design would sell countless action figures.
growing old; aging
Senescent describes something that is growing old or showing the effects of age. In biology, the word can refer to cells that have stopped dividing but remain alive, a process researchers study for its role in aging. You might think of a person as senescent too, but we strongly recommend keeping that to yourself!
The senescent dog moved slowly and liked to take long naps in the sun.
a small, crisp Dutch waffle cookie
A stroopwafel is a Dutch treat made from two thin waffle cookies with a sweet caramel filling between them. One popular way to eat a stroopwafel is to rest it over a hot cup of coffee or tea so the steam gently warms and softens the filling. The result is still crisp at the edges, but pleasantly gooey in the middle. Yum!
She enjoyed a sweet stroopwafel as an afternoon snack during her trip to Amsterdam.
a lucky discovery or a found treasure
A trouvaille is a lucky find that's especially satisfying. Imagine checking out a flea market table piled high with mundane odds and ends, and suddenly you notice an original pressing of your favorite record just sitting there in plain sight. A trouvaille like that is something you didn't come looking for but are very glad you found.
The four-leaf clover tucked inside the dusty old book was a delightful trouvaille.
