Word of the Day: Skirr


verb
1. Move rapidly, especially with a whirring sound.

Example Sentences.
1. "Courtney watched the birds skirr into the sky after they were startled by her dog's bark."
2. "The drone skirred high into the air to capture an aerial photo of the wedding."
3. "We ran inside to escape the cloud of insects skirring after us."

Word Origin.
Unknown, mid-16th century

"Skirr" originated from the now-obsolete use of the verb "scour," to mean "move hastily." The idea of skirring may conjure up images of birds hurriedly taking to the air in a flock; however, birds aren't the only animals to move in flocks.

The Blue Angels And The Thunderbirds Flying Together.

Word of the Day: Volplane.

VERB
1. (Of an airplane) Make a controlled dive or downward flight, especially with the engine shut off.
NOUN
1. A controlled dive or downward flight at a steep angle, especially by an airplane with the engine shut off.

Example Sentences.
1. "In order to quickly reduce altitude, the plane tilted into a volplane."
2. "The daring pilots at the air show wowed the crowd by successfully volplaning."
3. "John was required to perform a textbook volplane as part of his flight certification."

Word Origin.
French, early 20th century

The word "volplane" comes directly from the French "vol plané," literally meaning "glided flight." Originally used to describe the downward flight of birds, it's now almost exclusively used in reference to planes.

Word of the Day: Notional

ADJECTIVE
1. Existing only in theory or as a suggestion or idea.
2. Existing only in the imagination.

Example Sentences.
1, "Elves, gnomes, and fairies are all notional creatures, but many people are fascinated by them nonetheless."
2, "The paper introduces some notional concepts, but she needs more testing to support the theories."
3, "The locals insisted the legend of the yeti was merely notional, so we shouldn't be afraid to camp in the forest."

Word Origin.
Late Middle English, late 16th century

It's common to use the word "notion" to refer to an idea or concept, such as "the notion of dinosaurs being ancestors of birds," or to refer to a fanciful whim, as in, "I had a notion to call off work and take you out for lunch today." "Notion" came into English from French, but it originated from the medieval Latin "notus," meaning "known." ...

Word of the Day: Canard.

NOUN
1. An unfounded rumor or story.
2. A small winglike projection attached to an aircraft forward of the main wing to provide extra stability or control, sometimes replacing the tail.

Example Sentences.
1. "Contrary to the rapidly spreading canard, the lead actor would not be making a special appearance after the show."
2. "Joseph added a canard to his design, hoping it would stabilize the airplane prototype."
3. "Do the students believe that canard about the gym teacher being a werewolf?"

Word Origin.
French, mid-19th century

In French, "canard" means both "duck" and "hoax," from the Old French word "caner" ("to quack"). Birds and pranks don't seem to have much in common, but there's an old French saying, "vendre un canard à moitié" (which translates to "half sell a duck"). ...

Word of the Day: Auspice

NOUN 1. A divine or prophetic token.

Example Sentences.
1. "Gregory was superstitious about all kinds of auspices and omens."
2. "Some cultures consider finding an acorn a good auspice."
3. "My aunt thought a swallow sighting was a favorable auspice."

Word Origin.
Latin, mid-16th century

Those who encounter a prophetic sign or omen can use another word to describe such a phenomenon: "auspice," which means "a prophetic token that symbolizes a future event." "Auspice" came into English in the mid-16th century from Latin, and originally referred to a divination practice of observing a bird in flight. In Latin, "auspex" means "observer of birds," and can be broken into "avis" ("bird") and "specere" ("to look"). ...