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.
adverb
between ourselves; confidentially.
Explanation
- Entre nous was borrowed into English from French around 1680–90.
- When two people want to keep their (mis)adventures confidential, they may use entre nous as a way of saying "let's keep this between us."
- Entre nous can be a signal of mutual concern or an affirmation of this shared knowledge.
- After Mr. Hunham and Angus get into some shenanigans over the holiday break, they agree to keep it all entre nous.
- When Angus shares some personal information regarding his home life, Mr. Hunham assures him it will remain entre nous.
adjective
characterized by sickly sentimentality; weakly emotional; maudlin.
Explanation
- Mawkish was first recorded around 1660–70.
- Mawkish comes from the obsolete word mawk, meaning "maggot."
- Maggot, "a soft-bodied, legless larva of certain flies," comes from the Old Norse word for grub, mathkr.
- Maggot also has an obsolete sense, "an odd fancy; whim," as in "You have nonsense maggots in your head!"
- The overly sentimental speech at the wedding struck a mawkish chord with many attendees.
- The novel's ending was disappointingly mawkish, relying too heavily on clichéd romantic tropes.
adverb
in a series; one after another.
Explanation
- Seriatim was first recorded in 1670–80.
- Seriatim comes from the Medieval Latin word seriāt(us), “arranged in order.”
- The -im ending creates the adverb form.
- The related word, series, ultimately comes from the Latin verb serere, “to connect.”
- The professor listed the key points of his lecture seriatim, ensuring that each point was addressed in a systematic manner.
- The avid reader always tackled her new library book acquisitions seriatim, reading one novel after another without skipping a beat.
noun
a system of signaling, especially a system by which a special flag is held in each hand and various positions of the arms indicate specific letters, numbers, etc.
Explanation
- Semaphore was first recorded in 1810–20.
- Semaphore comes from the French word sémaphore, from the Greek word sêma, “sign,” and -phore, from the Greek form -phoros, “bearing."
- Other words ending in -phore include ionophore, "a substance capable of transmitting ions through cell membranes," and aerophore, "a portable device filled with compressed air."
- With a well-coordinated semaphore display, the scout effectively transmitted vital information to the rest of the team.
- Using semaphore, the sailor signaled the approaching ship by holding her arms in precise positions, forming letters and numbers.
adjective
fine; completely satisfactory; OK.
Explanation
- Copacetic is an Americanism that was first attested in Irving Bacheller’s 1919 book about Abraham Lincoln, A Man for the Ages.
- Copacetic is also spelled copasetic and is of obscure origin.
- Proposed languages of origin include Chinook, Italian, Louisiana French, and Hebrew, but none of the origin stories are particularly convincing.
- Copacetic further entered the public consciousness through the Prohibition-era song “At the New Jump Steady Ball,” whose lyrics include the line “Copasetic was the password for one and all, at the new jump steady ball.”
- The dinner party was a success, with delicious food, great company, and a copacetic atmosphere.
- Despite some initial concerns, the project's progress has been copacetic and is moving forward smoothly.
