Word Of The Day @PWPWordOTD

sunstone: Definition: (noun) A translucent quartz spangled with bits of mica or other minerals. Synonyms: aventurine. Usage: He loved the red gold of the sunstone, and the moonstone's pearly whiteness, and the broken rainbow of the milky opal. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/sunstone?utm_s…

castellated: Definition: (adjective) Having turrets and battlements in the style of a castle. Synonyms: castled, crenellated, battlemented. Usage: He summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends...and with these retired to the… thefreedictionary.com/castellated?ut…

apiarist: Definition: (noun) One who keeps bees, specifically one who cares for and raises bees for commercial or agricultural purposes. Synonyms: apiculturist, beekeeper. Usage: Profits from the sale of honey comprised only a small portion of the… thefreedictionary.com/apiarist?utm_s…

bunsen: Definition: (noun) A gas burner used in laboratories; has an air valve to regulate the mixture of gas and air. Synonyms: etna. Usage: I accidentally singed my eyebrows while lighting my bunsen in chemistry class. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/bunsen?utm_sou…

brandish: Definition: (verb) To wave or flourish (a weapon, for example) menacingly. Synonyms: flourish, wave. Usage: The farmer, seeing before him this figure in full armor brandishing a lance over his head, gave himself up for dead. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/brandish?utm_s…

tidbit: Definition: (noun) A choice morsel, as of gossip or food. Synonyms: choice morsel, titbit. Usage: The book is chock-full of colorful tidbits about theater and theater people. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/tidbit?utm_sou…

plainsong: Definition: (noun) A liturgical chant of the Roman Catholic Church. Synonyms: Gregorian chant, plainchant. Usage: The music professor explained that in the Western church four main dialects of plainsong developed—Ambrosian, Roman, Mozarabic,… thefreedictionary.com/plainsong?utm_…

yardmaster: Definition: (noun) A railroad employer who is in charge of a railway yard. Synonyms: train dispatcher, trainmaster. Usage: Observing that the yardmaster had his back turned, the vagabonds leaped into one of the boxcars. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/yardmaster?utm…

squalid: Definition: (adjective) Dirty and wretched, as from poverty or lack of care. Synonyms: flyblown, sordid. Usage: They lived like beasts in great squalid labor-ghettos, festering in misery and degradation. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/squalid?utm_so…

verruca: Definition: (noun) A firm abnormal elevated blemish on the skin; caused by a virus. Synonyms: wart. Usage: When he developed a verruca on the bottom of his foot, walking became extremely painful. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/verruca?utm_so…

docket: Definition: (noun) A list of things to be done. Synonyms: agenda, schedule. Usage: Since everyone wanted to discuss healthcare, we put it on the docket for the next town meeting. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/docket?utm_sou…

deponent: Definition: (noun) A person who testifies or gives a deposition. Synonyms: testifier. Usage: In the taking of legal oaths, for instance, deponents seem to enjoy themselves mightily when they come to several good words in succession. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/deponent?utm_s…

dovecote: Definition: (noun) A compartmental structure, often raised on a pole, for housing domesticated pigeons. Synonyms: columbary. Usage: They were not allowed to keep doves themselves, and when the swarms from my lord's dovecote settled on their… thefreedictionary.com/dovecote?utm_s…

pyrexia: Definition: (noun) Fever. Synonyms: febricity, febrility, feverishness. Usage: His pyrexia made the doctors nervous, and they immersed him in a bath of ice water to bring down his body temperature. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/pyrexia?utm_so…

cupidity: Definition: (noun) Excessive desire, especially for wealth. Synonyms: covetousness, avarice. Usage: Their very cupidity was to prove the means of their undoing, in the matter of the ransom at least. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/cupidity?utm_s…

bedeck: Definition: (verb) To adorn or ornament in a showy fashion. Synonyms: bedight, deck. Usage: It was at the dawn of day in the merry Maytime, when hedgerows are green and flowers bedeck the meadows. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/bedeck?utm_sou…

nonstarter: Definition: (noun) An idea, proposal, or candidate with no chance of being accepted or successful. Synonyms: failure, loser. Usage: Many lawmakers are pronouncing the budget a nonstarter. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/nonstarter?utm…

wharfage: Definition: (noun) A platform built out from the shore into the water and supported by piles; provides access to ships and boats. Synonyms: pier, dock. Usage: After the storm, she stood at the end of the wharfage, waiting for her brother's… thefreedictionary.com/wharfage?utm_s…

dungaree: Definition: (noun) A sturdy, often blue denim fabric. Synonyms: jean, denim. Usage: He wore an open jacket, with a splotch of tar on the sleeve, a red-and-black check shirt, dungaree trousers, and heavy boots badly worn. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/dungaree?utm_s…

scintilla: Definition: (noun) A minute amount; an iota or trace. Synonyms: shred, smidge, smidgeon, tittle, whit. Usage: When the party was over, not a scintilla of food remained. Discuss thefreedictionary.com/scintilla?utm_…