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.
noun
a cooked mixture of butter or other fat and flour used to thicken sauces, soups, and other dishes.
Explanation
- Roux entered English around 1805–15.
- Roux was borrowed from French, and comes from the phrase (beurre) roux, which means "brown (butter)."
- Roux came from the Latin word russus, "red-brown, red-haired," which is similar to ruber, "red."
- The chef prepared a velvety smooth sauce by slowly whisking a roux made with equal parts butter and flour into the simmering broth.
- The secret to the perfect gravy lies in achieving just the right color and consistency of the roux.
noun
a wonder child or child prodigy.
Explanation
- Wunderkind entered English around 1890–95.
- Wunderkind was adopted from German.
- Wunderkind, in German, is composed of the words Wunder, "wonder," and Kind, "child."
- Kind is also in another German loanword, kindergarten, which literally translates as "children's garden."
- The music industry was abuzz with talks of a new rising star, a wunderkind whose debut album took the charts by storm.
- The novel was written by a literary wunderkind who crafted captivating stories at a remarkably young age.
adjective
lacking social grace, sensitivity, or acuteness; awkward; tactless.
Explanation
- Gauche entered English around 1745–55.
- Gauche comes from the French word meaning "awkward."
- Gauche in French, is a derivative of the verb gauchir, "to turn, veer," which has Germanic origins.
- Trying to fit in with his well-mannered colleagues, he couldn't help but feel gauche in their refined presence.
- Despite her best efforts, her gauche attempt at small talk only made the conversation more awkward.
adjective
consisting of hoops or rings.
Explanation
- Armillary was first recorded around 1655–65.
- Armillary comes from the Latin word armill(a), "bracelet, hoop," which is typically worn on the arm.
- The Latin word armill(a) was formed from the Latin word arm(us), meaning "shoulder," and the diminutive suffix -illa.
- Armillary is most often used in the term armillary sphere, "an ancient instrument consisting of an arrangement of rings used to show the relative positions of the celestial equator, ecliptic, and other circles on the celestial sphere."
- As I studied the antique armillary sundial, I marveled at the elegant combination of delicate rings that allowed for precise timekeeping.
- The museum displayed a stunning armillary globe, its metal rings forming a three-dimensional representation of the celestial sphere.
adjective
covered with bushes, shrubs, and small trees; woody.
Explanation
- Bosky was first recorded in 1585–95.
- Bosky comes from the noun bosk, "a small wood or thicket," which entered English around 1250–1300.
- Bosk, in turn, comes from the Middle English variant of busk(e), which shares the Old Norse origin, buskr, with bush, "a low plant with many branches."
- In the heart of the bosky knoll, a family of deer gracefully emerged from the undergrowth, their antlers blending with the surrounding verdant foliage.
- The old stone cottage nestled in a cozy clearing, its windows framed by a bosky landscape that seemed straight out of a fairy tale.
