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.
adjective
beyond calculable or appraisable value; of inestimable worth; priceless.
Explanation
- Invaluable was first recorded in 1570–80.
- Invaluable comes from the negative prefix in- and the word valuable in its outdated sense of “capable of valuation.”
- To complicate it all, invaluable has also been used to mean "worthless," although its "priceless" sense is much more common.
- The advice she gave me was invaluable; it completely transformed the way I approached the project.
- The experience of traveling to different countries and immersing myself in different languages and cultures has been invaluable to my personal growth and understanding of the world.
noun
afternoon.
Explanation
- 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.
- 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.
noun
the distribution of light and shade in a picture.
Explanation
- 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.
- 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.
adjective
of or like leather.
Explanation
- 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."
- 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.
noun
mental and emotional exhaustion resulting from excessive or relentless decision-making.
Explanation
- Decision fatigue was first recorded in the early 2000s and was first used in the fields of psychology and psychiatry.
- The concept is based on the mental and emotional fatigue caused by making on average over 35,000 decisions a day.
- Decision was first recorded in 1425–75 and ultimately comes from the Latin word dēcīsiōn-, which is a stem of dēcīsiō, “a cutting off.”
- Fatigue was first recorded in 1685–95 and comes from the French verb fatiguer, from Latin fatīgāre “to tire."
- After a long and busy day at work, I experienced decision fatigue and found it difficult to choose what to have for dinner.
- The constant bombardment of options and choices in today's society can lead to decision fatigue, leaving individuals feeling mentally drained.
