Word of the Day
mistral
noun
a cold, dry, wind common in southern France and neighboring regions.
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Why Dictionary.com chose mistral
More about mistral
- First used between 1595–1605.
- Directly from Provençal mistral meaning “dominant wind” and from Latin magistralis ventus meaning “master wind.”
- Both dominant and master emphasize the strong nature of this regional wind.
EXAMPLES OF MISTRAL
- Farmers in southern France prepare for the mistral by securing their crops and equipment.
- Sailors dread the mistral because it can make navigating the Mediterranean Sea extremely challenging.
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Why Dictionary.com chose ergo
More about ergo
- Borrowed into English from Latin around 1350–1400.
- The word appears in a widely-known phrase by the philosopher and mathematician René Descartes: Cogito ergo sum, “I think, therefore I am.”
EXAMPLES OF ERGO
- The weather forecast predicted rain, ergo, we brought our umbrellas.
- The software had a critical flaw, ergo, it was recalled immediately.
eyewinker
noun
anything that enters or irritates the eye and causes blinking.
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Why Dictionary.com chose eyewinker
More about eyewinker
- First recorded between 1800–10.
- Formed from eyewink, “a blink of an eye,”+ –er1, a suffix used in forming nouns designating things from some special characteristic.
- Originally meaning “eyelash,” eyewinker refers anything else that is small enough to get in the eye and irritate it.
EXAMPLES OF EYEWINKER
- After a gust of wind, she felt an eyewinker causing her to blink repeatedly.
- Despite his efforts to shield his eyes, a dusty eyewinker still found its way in.
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