Word of the Day
mendacious
adjective
telling lies, especially habitually; dishonest; lying; untruthful
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Why Dictionary.com chose mendacious
More about mendacious
EXAMPLES OF MENDACIOUS
- The tabloids published a mendacious story about the celebrity’s personal life.
- My mendacious behavior made it difficult for anyone to trust me.
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Why Dictionary.com chose tweak
More about tweak
- First recorded in 1595–1605; akin to twitch.
EXAMPLES OF TWEAK
- After reviewing the report, I decided to tweak the conclusion to make it clearer.
- The software engineer tweaked the program’s code to improve its speed.
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Why Dictionary.com chose catawampus
More about catawampus
- First recorded in 1830–40 for an earlier sense of “utterly,” (apparently the adverb catawampusly was used before the adjective).
- Thought to be formed from cata-, “diagonally,” (see cater-cornered) + –wampus, perhaps akin to wampish.
EXAMPLES OF CATAWAMPUS
- The construction workers left the beam in a catawampus position, causing concern about the building’s stability.
- The painting hung in a catawampus way, making it look out of place on the otherwise neat wall.
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