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 defect of vision in which the retina fails to respond to the color green.
Deuteranopia is formed from Ancient Greek deúteros, meaning “second,” and English anopia, “absence of sight.” Red, green, and blue are the three primary colors of light, and deuteranopia gets its name because green is considered the second of these colors. Deuteranopia was first recorded in English at the turn of the 20th century. EXAMPLE OF DEUTERANOPIA USED IN A SENTENCE Because of his deuteranopia, the driver had difficulty reading the green dashboard lights.
a Chinese green tea dried and prepared from twisted leaves, especially of the early crop.
Hyson is an adaptation of Cantonese heiceon, “bright spring.” The hei element, meaning “bright, glorious,” is a cognate of Mandarin xī, while ceon, “spring,” is related to Mandarin chūn. It’s possible that hyson’s unusual spelling is the result of the term passing through Dutch or French on its way to English, in which it first appeared in the 1730s. EXAMPLE OF HYSON USED IN A SENTENCE Once the small bag of hyson was placed in the mug, the leaves added a golden tinge to the water.
to take dishonestly; steal; filch; pilfer.
Purloin comes from Old French porloigner, “to put off, remove.” The por- element comes from Latin prō, “for, in favor of,” while -loigner is ultimately from Latin longus, “long.” Prolong comes from the same sources as purloin, making the two words doublets. Purloin was first recorded in English in the early 14th century. EXAMPLE OF PURLOIN USED IN A SENTENCE After halting a man on the street under the pretense of asking directions, the thief purloined the man’s watch.
ask; inquire (an imperative used to introduce or suggest a question).
Quaere is the command form of the Latin verb quaerere, “to seek, ask,” and therefore demands of someone that they ask a question. In case you wish to demand of multiple people that ask questions, the second-person plural (“you all”) of quaere is quaerite. Quaere is also the source of the English noun query. Quaere was first recorded in English circa 1530. EXAMPLE OF QUAERE USED IN A SENTENCE If you are confused about how to use apostrophes, quaere whether you have it right!
any of various insects that sting or bite, especially a large American mosquito.
Gallinipper is a term with an obscure history. The word previously appeared variously as gal-knipper and gurnipper, and the second half of gallinipper looks as it does because of the influence of nipper, “a thing that bites.” Gallinipper was first recorded in English around 1680. EXAMPLE OF GALLINIPPER USED IN A SENTENCE A few spritzes of bug spray repelled the swarm of gallinippers that was pursuing the sweaty hikers.
