Word of the Day
cranreuch
noun
a covering of minute ice needles, formed at night upon the ground and exposed objects when they have cooled below the dew point, when it is below the freezing point.
More about cranreuch
Cranreuch appears to be an adaptation of Scottish Gaelic crann-reòthadh, “hoarfrost,” which contains crann, “tree,” and reòth, “frost.” Reòth (also reodh) is a distant relative of English freeze and the Latin-origin Word of the Day pruinose. Cranreuch was first recorded in English circa 1680.
EXAMPLE OF CRANREUCH USED IN A SENTENCE
The temperature dropped sharply after dusk, leaving the once wet leaves coated in cranreuch.
vellicate
verb
to twitch.
Why the Museum of Science chose vellicate
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 vellicate
Vellicate comes from Latin vellicāre, “to pluck, twitch,” from vellere, “to pull, twitch.” Though hairs may be plucked and skin may twitch, there is no connection between vellicate and vellum, a type of parchment made from animal skin, or vellus hair, the tiny hairs found on the human body. Vellicate was first recorded in English around 1600.
EXAMPLE OF VELLICATE USED IN A SENTENCE
After the morning coffee break, I noticed that my left eye began vellicating from all the caffeine.
ejecta
noun
matter ejected, as from a volcano in eruption.
More about ejecta
Ejecta is a form of Latin ējectus, “thrown out.” Ējectus is ultimately derived from the verb jacere “to throw,” which is the source of numerous English words containing the element ject-, including adjective (literally “thrown toward”), rejection (“thrown back”), subject (“thrown under”), and the Word of the Day disjecta membra. Ejecta was first recorded in English in the late 1880s.
EXAMPLE OF EJECTA USED IN A SENTENCE
The ejecta from the volcano included minerals from deep inside the Earth.