Word of the Day

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.

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.

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.

Chryselephantine is based on Ancient Greek chrȳsós, “gold,” and eléphās, “elephant.” Because of its similarity to Biblical Hebrew kharúts, “gold,” chrȳsós may have been borrowed from a Semitic language such as Phoenician. Eléphās may also be of Semitic origin. Chryselephantine was first recorded in English in the 1820s. EXAMPLE OF CHRYSELEPHANTINE USED IN A SENTENCE The chryselephantine statue of Athena glistened in the sunlight streaming through the temple.

Pervicacious comes from Latin pervicāx, meaning “stubborn, willful” or, more literally, “tending to conquer completely.” The -vic- element derives from the verb vincere, “to conquer,” which is the source of invincible and victory. The -āx part appears as -acious in many English adjectives, such as audacious and loquacious. Pervicacious was first recorded in English circa 1630. EXAMPLE OF PERVICACIOUS USED IN A SENTENCE When the dog walker wanted to change direction, the pervicacious Yorkie dug her nails into the ground and glared.