Word of the Day
dithyrambic
adjective
of, relating to, or of the nature of an impassioned oration.
More about dithyrambic
Dithyrambic, “of or relating to an impassioned oration,” describes a dithyramb, which refers to a wild Greek choral song or, more broadly, to an enthusiastic speech. Dithyramb comes from Ancient Greek dīthýrambos, which belongs to a small family of words related to song or rhythm, including íambos, “iamb.” Alas, these words are likely of mysterious pre-Greek origin, coming from a lost language spoken in the eastern Mediterranean. For more examples of pre-Greek words, check out the Words of the Day obelize and pharyngeal. Dithyrambic was first recorded in English at the turn of the 17th century.
EXAMPLE OF DITHYRAMBIC USED IN A SENTENCE
The teacher was known for dithyrambic declarations, praising all her students for their exceptional performance.
More about welkin
The roots of welkin, “the sky,” run rather deep in English history. Welkin’s earliest recorded form is Old English wolcen, “cloud, sky,” the plural of which is wolcnu. Wolcen belongs to a class of nouns in Old English that added a final -u when they became plural. Other such words include æcern, “acorn”; cnēow, “knee”; and scip, “ship,” all of which simply add -s today in the plural. Outside the British Isles, welkin appears to have relatives in other West Germanic languages, such as Dutch wolk and German Wolke, both “cloud,” but no clear connections beyond that branch. Welkin was first recorded in English before 900 CE.
EXAMPLE OF WELKIN USED IN A SENTENCE
As they drove through the night, the North Star arose in the darkened welkin, guiding them home.
More about asinine
Asinine, “foolish, unintelligent, or silly,” comes from Latin asinīnus, which is based on asinus, “donkey.” The specific origin of asinus remains unknown and unrecorded, but there is ample evidence that it derives from a lost pre-Roman language based on its resemblance to other Eurasian words for “donkey” or, specifically, “female donkey,” such as Ancient Greek ónos, Arabicʾatān, and even Luwian tarkasna-. This could all point to an origin for asinus in what is now Iraq, perhaps Sumerian anše or anšu, “donkey.” Asinine was first recorded in English at the turn of the 17th century. Learn a few synonyms for asinine.
EXAMPLE OF ASININE USED IN A SENTENCE
The guest speaker’s bizarre misuse of several complex words made him sound asinine.