Word of the Day: Auricular

Adjective
1. Relating to the ear or hearing.
2. Relating to or shaped like an auricle.

Example Sentences.
1. "We tried to collect only seashells with a distinctive auricular shape."
2. "This plastic surgeon specializes in auricular surgery."
3. "My favorite pasta is orecchiette, which has an auricular appearance."

Word Origin.
Latin, mid-17th century

This adjective originates from the Latin "auricula," meaning "ear." In human anatomy, the auricle is the projecting outer portion of the ear, also called the pinna.

Word of the Day: Inglenook

Noun
1. A space on either side of a large fireplace.

Example Sentences.
1. "We filled the inglenook with bookshelves and turned it into a cozy reading spot."
2. "Some historical homes have inglenook fireplaces tucked under a grand staircase."
3. "Adelaide built a pair of benches for the inglenook."

Word Origin.
Scots, late 18th century

"Ingle" likely comes from the Scottish Gaelic "aingeal," meaning "light, fire," and "nook" is a Middle English word that refers to a corner or fragment.

Word of the Day: Welkin

Noun
1. The sky or heaven.

Example Sentences.
1. "The choir sang so proudly the sounds lifted to the welkin."
2. "Adrienne liked looking at the night welkin and stars."
3. "The story claims the welkin is filled with angels."

Word Origin
Germanic, pre-12th century


"Welkin" comes from the Old English "wolcen," meaning "cloud, sky," but the word is also rooted in the West Germanic languages: It's related to the Dutch "wolk" and German "Wolke."

Word of the Day: Holophrasis

Noun
1. The expression of a whole phrase in a single word — for example "howdy" for "how do you do."
2. The learning of linguistic elements as whole chunks by very young children acquiring their first language — for example "it's all gone" learned as "allgone."

Example Sentences.
1. "Preschool teachers have a lot of practice deciphering a holophrasis from kids learning how to speak."
2. "The toddler indicated he didn't want to share the toy by using the holophrasis 'Mine!'"
3. "William tends to reply with a succinct holophrasis rather than a long explanation."

Word Origin.
Greek, late 19h century

This unique word is a combination of "holo-," from the Greek "holos," meaning "whole, entire, complete," and the Latinized form of the Greek "phrazein," meaning "to indicate, tell, express." Toddlers commonly go through a stage where holophrases make up a majority of their vocabulary.