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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day
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parochial
Today00:02:05Tap to summarizeMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 27, 2026 is: parochial • \puh-ROH-kee-ul\ • adjective Parochial is a formal word that is usually used in a disapproving way to describe something that is limited in range or scope, as to a narrow region or area. // For some, college can be an expansive experience that lifts them out of a parochial mindset. See the entry > Examples: “The twenty-first century American university is one of the great achievements of modern civilization and the destruction of the relationship between higher education, the federal government, and the business community would set America back to a parochial era that we left a long time ago.” — Peter Balakian, Literary Hub, 9 July 2025 Did you know? While it’s far from a given that small towns foster narrow-mindedness, the limited range of opportunities and experiences in such places when compared to those of bigger burgs is at the heart of the figurative sense of parochial. In Late Latin, parochia was the designation for a group of Christians in a given area under the leadership of one pastor—what came to be known in English as a parish in the 14th century. Both parish and its related adjective parochial were borrowed at that time directly from Anglo-French terms that came from parochia. It wasn’t until the mid-1800s that parochial expanded beyond the borders of its literal sense to describe attitudes, beliefs, mentalities, outlooks, etc., considered limited or narrow, confined or restricted, as if within a single parish.
Transcribe →aerie
Yesterday00:02:12Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 26, 2026 is: aerie • \AIR-ee\ • noun Aerie refers to the nest of a bird (such as an eagle or hawk) built high up on a cliff or on the top of a mountain. It can also be used for a room or building built high up so that people inside can see things happening below them. // From the lighthouse's aerie tourists can get a bird's-eye view of the rocky coastline. See the entry > Examples: “Their eaglet is expected to hatch around April 21. In the meantime, audience members tuning in will likely see at least one eagle at the nest. To keep up with home improvements, the majestic birds often arrive home bearing sticks and grass to add to their aerie.” — Mary Ann Lickteig, Seven Days (Burlington, Vermont), 8 Apr. 2026 Did you know? English poet John Milton put a variant of aerie to good use in Paradise Lost (1667), writing, “… there the eagle and the stork / On cliffs and cedar tops their eyries build.” But Milton wasn’t the first to use the term, which comes to us via Medieval Latin and Old French and probably traces to an earlier Latin word, ager, meaning “field.” English speakers had been employing aerie as a word for a bird’s nest for more than a century when he penned those words. Eventually, aerie was applied to human dwellings as well as birds’ nests. At first, this sense referred to dwellings nestled high up in mountains or hills. These days, you’re also likely to hear high-rise city apartments or offices referred to as “aeries.”
Summaryvituperate
2d ago00:01:52Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 25, 2026 is: vituperate • \vye-TOO-puh-rayt\ • verb To vituperate someone is to criticize or censure them severely or abusively. Vituperate can also mean "to use harsh condemnatory language." // They were vituperated for betraying their friends. See the entry > Examples: "On the world stage where Britain's royal family have traditionally been in the vanguard promoting our nation's brand, the Duke and Duchess remain hugely relevant. Old codgers vituperate and hate on them for their lucrative Instagram vibes, but out there in the global ether Haz and Megs still matter ..." — Tessa Dunlop, The i Paper (United Kingdom), 24 Mar. 2026 Did you know? There would seem to be as many English words and phrases for reading someone the riot act as there are justifications for doing so, from chew out, bawl out, and ream out, to dress down and tongue-lash. Vituperate, unlike this sample litany, is decidedly formal. This isn't to say that one needs must wear a top hat or pince-nez to vituperate or be vituperated, only that the word vituperate (which traces in part back to the Latin word vitium, meaning "fault") tends to appear in the types of publications that also use constructions like "needs must" and words like pince-nez.
Summaryitinerant
3d ago00:02:18Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 24, 2026 is: itinerant • \eye-TIN-uh-runt\ • adjective Itinerant describes someone who travels from place to place or only stays in a place for a short amount of time. It is used especially for people who travel in a circuit for their profession. // Being an itinerant musician gave her the opportunity to see the wonders of the world with her own eyes. See the entry > Examples: “‘There has long been this masculine idea that a lone, itinerant male blues singer, travelling the South with a guitar slung over his back, was the authentic representation of the blues,’ she [Dr. Cookie Woolner] explains, ‘while female performers like [Ma] Rainey, who drew from vaudeville and blackface minstrelsy, were commercial entertainers and not artists.’” — Deborah Nicholls-Lee, BBC, 5 June 2025 Did you know? Many a song in popular music has been penned about the itinerant lifestyle of touring, ranging from the exuberant (“Travelin’ Band” by Creedence Clearwater Revival) to the exhausted (“Lodi” by, er, Creedence Clearwater Revival). All journeys have their highs and lows, of course, and the word itinerant is all about the journey, not the destination. Indeed, itinerant comes from the Late Latin verb itinerari, meaning “to journey,” which in turn traipsed down the etymological trail from the noun iter meaning “way” or “journey.” Itinerant is usually encountered as an adjective used to describe traveling types, especially those—like touring musicians—whose itineraries (to use another iter descendent) are often circuits, but it can also be used as a noun. Itinerants, musical or otherwise, are those who never stay in one place for long, who whether by choice, profession, or circumstance, keep on chooglin’.
Summaryitinerant
3d ago00:02:18Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 24, 2026 is: itinerant • \eye-TIN-uh-runt\ • adjective Itinerant describes someone who travels from place to place or only stays in a place for a short amount of time. It is used especially for people who travel in a circuit for their profession. // Being an itinerant musician gave her the opportunity to see the wonders of the world with her own eyes. See the entry > Examples: “‘There has long been this masculine idea that a lone, itinerant male blues singer, travelling the South with a guitar slung over his back, was the authentic representation of the blues,’ she [Dr. Cookie Woolner] explains, ‘while female performers like [Ma] Rainey, who drew from vaudeville and blackface minstrelsy, were commercial entertainers and not artists.’” — Deborah Nicholls-Lee, BBC, 5 June 2025 Did you know? Many a song in popular music has been penned about the itinerant lifestyle of touring, ranging from the exuberant (“Travelin’ Band” by Creedence Clearwater Revival) to the exhausted (“Lodi” by, er, Creedence Clearwater Revival). All journeys have their highs and lows, of course, and the word itinerant is all about the journey, not the destination. Indeed, itinerant comes from the Late Latin verb itinerari, meaning “to journey,” which in turn traipsed down the etymological trail from the noun iter meaning “way” or “journey.” Itinerant is usually encountered as an adjective used to describe traveling types, especially those—like touring musicians—whose itineraries (to use another iter descendent) are often circuits, but it can also be used as a noun. Itinerants, musical or otherwise, are those who never stay in one place for long, who whether by choice, profession, or circumstance, keep on chooglin’.
Summarymaverick
4d ago00:01:55Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 23, 2026 is: maverick • \MAV-rik\ • noun Maverick refers to a person who refuses to follow the customs or rules of a group; in other words, a nonconformist. // Ayo has always been a bit of a maverick in the fashion world, inventing new trends rather than following them. See the entry > Examples: “[Luis] Alvarez has been described as a scientific Indiana Jones, but his reputation as a maverick was built on a foundation of patience and discipline.” — Alec Nevala-Lee, Collisions: A Physicist’s Journey from Hiroshima to the Death of the Dinosaurs, 2025 Did you know? When a client gave Samuel A. Maverick 400 cattle to settle a $1,200 debt, the 19th-century south Texas lawyer had no use for them, so he left the cattle unbranded and allowed them to roam freely (supposedly under the supervision of one of his employees). Neighboring stockmen recognized their opportunity and seized it, branding and herding the stray cattle as their own. Maverick eventually recognized the folly of the situation and sold what was left of his depleted herd, but not before his name became synonymous with such unbranded livestock. By the end of the 19th century, the term maverick was being used to refer to individuals who prefer, like cattle left to their own devices, to blaze their own trails.
Summarystalwart
5d ago00:01:53Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 22, 2026 is: stalwart • \STAWL-wert\ • adjective Stalwart is a formal word used to describe someone or something that is very loyal and dedicated or that is physically or mentally strong. // He was a stalwart civil rights supporter throughout his political career. // The football team's stalwart defense only gave up a single field goal in the second half. See the entry > Examples: "Arbour is a stalwart defender of women's rights, having witnessed the struggle for equality during Quebec's Quiet Revolution." — Allison Hanes, The Montreal Gazette, 6 May 2026 Did you know? Stalwart is a word with ancient roots that has lent its stalwart service to the English language for centuries. Coming, via Middle English, from the Old English word stǣlwierthe, meaning "serviceable," stalwart describes people or things that are marked by outstanding strength and vigor of body, mind, or spirit, as revealed by traits such as loyalty and steadfastness, capability and dependability, or physical robustness. Old oak trees, for example, have long been described as stalwart for their imposing stature and endurance. A baseball team's closing pitcher may be deemed stalwart by showing mental fortitude in consistently striking out opposing batters in high-pressure situations. And a stalwart lover is one who, through thick and thin, is never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down, never gonna run around and hurt you.
Summarystalwart
5d ago00:01:53Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 22, 2026 is: stalwart • \STAWL-wert\ • adjective Stalwart is a formal word used to describe someone or something that is very loyal and dedicated or that is physically or mentally strong. // He was a stalwart civil rights supporter throughout his political career. // The football team's stalwart defense only gave up a single field goal in the second half. See the entry > Examples: "Arbour is a stalwart defender of women's rights, having witnessed the struggle for equality during Quebec's Quiet Revolution." — Allison Hanes, The Montreal Gazette, 6 May 2026 Did you know? Stalwart is a word with ancient roots that has lent its stalwart service to the English language for centuries. Coming, via Middle English, from the Old English word stǣlwierthe, meaning "serviceable," stalwart describes people or things that are marked by outstanding strength and vigor of body, mind, or spirit, as revealed by traits such as loyalty and steadfastness, capability and dependability, or physical robustness. Old oak trees, for example, have long been described as stalwart for their imposing stature and endurance. A baseball team's closing pitcher may be deemed stalwart by showing mental fortitude in consistently striking out opposing batters in high-pressure situations. And a stalwart lover is one who, through thick and thin, is never gonna give you up, never gonna let you down, never gonna run around and hurt you.
Summarydog days
6d ago00:01:59Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 21, 2026 is: dog days • \DAWG-DAYZ\ • plural noun Dog days is a plural noun that refers to the hottest time of the year, which in the northern hemisphere is usually between early July and early September. Dog days can also refer to a period of stagnation or inactivity suggestive of hot, sultry weather when it can be difficult to summon the energy required for hard work. // Spending the day at a swimming hole has always been the perfect relief for the dog days of summer. See the entry > Examples: “When the dog days of summer were at their fullest, my new friends and I often played scrub baseball at Cameron Street School. We also rode our bicycles all over the south end.” — Gary Baldwin, The Peterborough (Ontario) Examiner, 19 July 2025 Did you know? Idle hands may be the devil’s workshop, but let’s be serious: when it’s stiflingly hot outside, who among us isn’t tempted to shirk work to go lie doggo in the shade somewhere? Such is the desire of many a creature—not just dogs (or lexicographers)—during the dog days of summer. If you’re curious about how dogs got singled out in this expression, we might say it was in the stars. The dog in dog days is the Dog Star, aka Sirius, the star that represents the hound of the hunter Orion in the eponymous constellation. The star has long been associated with sultry weather in the northern hemisphere because it rises simultaneously with the sun during the hottest days of summer.
Summaryraffish
1w ago00:01:56Summary readyMerriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 20, 2026 is: raffish • \RAF-ish\ • adjective Raffish describes people and things that show a careless but usually attractive unconventionality. // She didn't expect to like him but his raffish charm quickly won her over. See the entry > Examples: "Three or four decades ago, the newspaperman was appealingly raffish—at once a bum who drank too much and a knight-errant who charged unafraid at social injustice, succored the weak, and crossed lances with the powerful and arrogant." — David Wingrave, Harper's Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025 Did you know? Raffish combines the English noun raff with the suffix -ish, which in this case means "characteristic of": when we use the word raffish, we literally mean "resembling raff." But what exactly is raff? You might be more familiar with raff's synonym, riffraff, which refers to disreputable people of low social status. Despite the resemblance, these two nouns are distinct in origin. Raff comes directly from the Middle English raf, meaning "rubbish," while riffraff descends from the Anglo-French rif e raf, meaning "altogether." The similarities between raff and riffraff prompted people to start using the two words as synonyms, and raff gained a "rabble" sense. It was that ragtag raff that gave rise to the adjective raffish in the late 1700s.
Summary