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.
the use of a word in different senses or the use of words similar in sound to achieve a specific effect, as humor or a dual meaning; punning.
Paronomasia means “a play on words” in Ancient Greek and comes from the verb paronomázein, “to make a slight name-change.” The ónoma element means, “name,” and its common variant, ónyma, appears in English words such as homonym and synonym. Paronomasia was first recorded in English in the 1570s. EXAMPLE OF PARONOMASIA USED IN A SENTENCE The paronomasia in the line “I am too much in the sun” (also heard as “son”) implies Hamlet’s continued mourning of his father.
to treat with special fondness; pamper.
Cosher is of unclear origin. Some linguists connect it to the term cocker, “to pamper,” also of uncertain origin. Others, however, link cosher to Irish Gaelic cóisir, meaning “feast.” Either way, cosher is not related to kosher, from Hebrew kāshēr, “right, fit,” in the context of dietary laws. Cosher was first recorded in English in the early 1860s. EXAMPLE OF COSHER USED IN A SENTENCE They coshered and spoiled the cat, and he started acting like the king of the house.
an early movie theater where a film or a variety show could be seen, usually for the admission price of a nickel.
Nickelodeon is based on nickel and either melodeon, a small reed organ, or Odeon, a small roofed theater of ancient Greece. Nickel comes from German Kupfernickel, referring to the mineral nickeline but literally meaning “copper demon,” after nickeline’s resemblance to copper. Nickelodeon was first recorded in English in the late 1880s. EXAMPLE OF NICKELODEON USED IN A SENTENCE The old nickelodeon had been converted into a film museum with bright posters covering the once-drab walls.
an exceptionally luminous star whose diameter is more than 100 times that of the sun.
In supergiant, the super- element literally means “above, beyond,” and it’s a distant relative of English over, German über, and Ancient Greek hypér. Giant comes from Ancient Greek gígās (gígant- in compounds), which lost its second g as it passed into French and then into English in the late 1920s. EXAMPLE OF SUPERGIANT USED IN A SENTENCE Some of the brightest stars in the constellation were dazzling blue, superhot supergiants.
a yellow mist occurring during the spring and fall, caused by dust from the interior of China.
Bai is a loanword from Japanese and was exported from Middle Chinese to multiple languages of East Asia. In this way, bai is related to Mandarin mái and Cantonese maai, both meaning “fog” or “dust storm.” Bai was first recorded in English in the mid 1910s. EXAMPLE OF BAI USED IN A SENTENCE As the bai drifted over the countryside, the sun began to pale, and a thin coating of dust gathered in the treetops.
