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.
a back door or gate
A postern is a small back gate or side entrance, often tucked away from the main path. Medieval castles used posterns for discreet arrivals and escapes, giving the word an air of secrecy and strategy. Even today, it sounds like the entrance to some hidden place.
The queen's supporters snuck her through an unguarded postern into the nearby forest.
being everywhere
Ubiquitous things seem to be everywhere at once. Some are so common you barely notice them until you stop and look: smartphones in people's hands, coffee shops on every corner, electric scooters zipping down city streets. If you can't escape it, it's probably ubiquitous.
QR codes have become a ubiquitous part of the shopping experience.
to tour small towns to stage theatrical performances
To barnstorm is to travel from town to town putting on shows, especially in smaller communities. The term first became popular with touring theater troupes and later with daredevil pilots performing aerial stunts and politicians who visited towns to speak. No matter the occasion, when you barnstorm it's bound to draw a crowd!
The traveling actors decided to barnstorm across the Midwest, performing their new play in several rural towns.
of necessity; by force of circumstance
When something happens perforce, it's because circumstances leave no alternative. A canceled flight may perforce leave travelers stranded overnight, or bad weather may perforce change barbecue plans. In such moments, choice falls away and necessity takes the lead.
With the main bridge closed for repairs, the travelers were perforce required to take the long detour.
a person who is easily duped or cheated
A gudgeon is the kind of person who falls for every scam or trick in the book. The word originally referred to a small fish that was especially easy to catch, which explains how it came to describe a gullible person. If something sounds too good to be true, a gudgeon is the one who believes it anyway.
The smooth-talking salesman easily convinced the gudgeon to buy the car for an inflated price.
