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.
careless, hasty, or haphazard
Something slapdash is thrown together carelessly or in a hurry. Since the 19th century, the word has been used to describe anything marked by obvious haste, from a rushed paint job to a messy report. Did it need just a little more time and care? It's slapdash.
The contractor's slapdash work left the new kitchen cabinets crooked and difficult to open.
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.
