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.
inclined or eager to fight
Ready to rumble? Pugilistic means "inclined to fight." Fittingly, the word comes from a Latin term for "boxer," and it's been bobbing and weaving through English since the 1700s. Keep your guard up today and land those knockout ideas.
the art or practice of disputation or controversy
Polemics is the art of sparring in spirited debate. The term marches in from a Greek word meaning "warlike," a nod to those who enjoy treating verbal jousting like battle. Polish those points, keep it civil, and let the friendly fire of ideas fly!
occurring around the time of a solstice
Solstitial describes anything occurring around the time of a solstice. The word beams down from Latin solstitium, literally "sun standing still," because some ancient astronomers thought a solstice was the day where the sun appeared to stand still at its highest or lowest point in the sky. Soak up those extra rays today, but keep the sunscreen handy.
to fidget or shift one's weight from one foot to the other
Hotch means "to fidget or shuffle around," shifting your weight when you just can't sit still. It came to us via the Middle French hocher, "to shake," the same root that simmered into the mixed-up stew "hotchpotch," and eventually morphed into the jumbled "hodge-podge." The next time a long meeting has you squirming in your chair, just call it a classic hotch and wiggle on!
based on the truth
Soothfast describes something or someone who's rock-solid honest and unwaveringly true. The word combines the Old English terms for "truth" and "firm." Stay soothfast, and to thine own self be true!
