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.
Check out the Word of the Yearto bear fruit; become fruitful.
Fructify is based on Latin frūctus, which means “fruit.” Frūctus evolved into Old French fruit, which was borrowed into English. The change from Latin -ct- to French -it- also appears in Latin coctus, which became French cuit, “cooked” (as in biscuit). Fructify was first recorded in English around the turn of the 14th century. EXAMPLE OF FRUCTIFY USED IN A SENTENCE After blossoming in spring, apple trees begin to fructify by summer.
forming an exact proper divisor.
Aliquot is formed from Latin alius, “some, other,” and quot, “as many as, every.” Alius is also the source of alias, alibi, and alien, all of which have to do with otherness, whether by name or location. Words of the Day altruistic and ultramafic are formed from alter, “other,” and uls, “beyond,” Latin relatives of alius. Aliquot was first recorded in English in the 1560s. EXAMPLE OF ALIQUOT USED IN A SENTENCE Aliquot parts of 24 include 2, 3, 4, and 6, but not 5.
to observe or commemorate with rites or ceremonies.
Solemnize is equivalent to Latin sollemnis, meaning both “common, established” and “consecrated, holy.” Sollemnis may be connected to sollus, “whole,” the source of solicit and the Word of the Day insouciant, but not all linguists agree. Solemnize was first recorded in English in the late 14th century. EXAMPLE OF SOLEMNIZE USED IN A SENTENCE The newlyweds solemnized their marriage by exchanging vows they had written themselves.
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.
