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Word of the day

bloviate

[ bloh-vee-eyt ] [ ˈbloʊ viˌeɪt ] Show IPA Phonetic Respelling

verb

to speak pompously.

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More about bloviate

Bloviate is strongly associated with President Warren G. Harding, who popularized the term but did not invent it. Bloviate is an alteration of blow in the sense “to boast,” as in blow-hard, perhaps on the pattern of abbreviate, deviate, or obviate. Bloviate was first recorded in English in the early 1850s.

EXAMPLE OF BLOVIATE USED IN A SENTENCE

When the poll revealed a high demand for shows relevant to modern audiences, the TV executive bloviated, insisting that the old ways were the best.

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Word of the day

bahuvrihi

[ bah-hoo-vree-hee ] [ ˌbɑ huˈvri hi ] Show IPA Phonetic Respelling

noun

a compound noun or adjective in which the first word describes the person or object denoted by the second.

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More about bahuvrihi

Bahuvrihi is from a Sanskrit word that literally means “having much rice.” In this rather meta way, bahuvrihi is itself a bahuvrihi. Sanskrit vrīhi and English rice may not look much alike, but they are indeed distantly related. Bahuvrihi was first recorded in English in the 1840s.

EXAMPLE OF BAHUVRIHI USED IN A SENTENCE

It was challenging to decide which bahuvrihi best described the hotheaded, dimwitted loudmouth.

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Word of the day

⚛️ Today's Word was chosen in partnership with the Museum of Science as the Science Word Of The Week! ⚛️

polyped

[ pol-ee-ped ] [ ˈpɒl iˌpɛd ] Show IPA Phonetic Respelling

noun

a being or object having many legs.

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Why the Museum of Science chose polyped

To find out, watch this video from science communicator Maynard Okereke, better known as the Hip Hop M.D.

Learn more at the Museum of Science.

More about polyped

Poly- comes from Ancient Greek polýs, meaning “many,” while -ped is from Latin pēs, “foot,” meaning that polyped is a blend of roots from two different languages. An all-Greek version would be “polypod,” while an all-Latin version would be “multipod” instead. Polyped was first recorded in English around 1820.

EXAMPLE OF POLYPED USED IN A SENTENCE

Centipedes, millipedes, and several other kinds of polypeds scurried across the forest floor.

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