Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

A lively look at a playful, sometimes shady word for trickery and high-spirited mischief. Short readings recall childhood prank calls and goofy sleepover antics. A quick dive into murky 19th-century origins and competing British and Irish theories. Notes on how the word now labels both political skulduggery and youthful tomfoolery.

A lively look at the word genteel and its two main senses: upper‑class social status and quietly polite manners. A contemporary example shows British upper‑class mores. A literary detour argues Theodore Dreiser was anything but genteel, with a focus on Sister Carrie and its controversial reception.

A compact look at the word oblivion: its meanings of forgetting, unconsciousness, and destruction. A usage example shows technology pushing things into oblivion. The Latin root oblivisci and centuries of history get explored. Myth and literature appear with the River Lethe and Milton. The related adjective oblivious and the words' survival over time are discussed.

A lively look at the word cadge: its definition, pronunciation, and real-world examples of borrowing or persuading someone to give something free. A journey through etymology traces cadge from medieval cadgier and cadger to its later meaning tied to begging. Short anecdotes and period examples bring the word’s history and shifting senses to life.

A lively look at the word fiscal and how it connects to money matters in governments and organizations. Short examples show fiscal responsibility in audits and budgeting. A bite-sized history traces fiscal back to Latin fiscus, the ancient treasury, and links it to confiscate. The segment also explains the modern use of fiscal year.

They explore the word dross, its use to mean things of low value, and a modern example critiquing formulaic AI-made content. They trace the word back to Old English drōs and the image of dregs settling in liquid. They note the metallurgical origin where dross is scum removed to reveal purer metal, and a literary contrast of dross versus gold.

They unpack the quirky history of zany, tracing it from Italian commedia dell’arte stock characters to modern usage. They read a lively example about a birthday bash full of silly antics. They explain how the word shifted from a noun for theatrical buffoons to an adjective for eccentric, playful oddballs.

A lively look at the word undulate and its meaning of moving or being shaped like waves. Listeners hear a vivid example of cheese and dough gently rising and undulating. The show traces the word back to Latin unda and explores related words like inundate, abound, surround, and redound.

A lively look at the many faces of rhythmic flow in speech, music, and nature. Short readings show cadence in auctioneering and birdsong. A brief trip through Medieval Latin roots links cadence to cadenza and the Latin cadere. Playful appreciation of how language rises and falls.

A lively look at the word frenetic, its pronunciation, and vivid contemporary examples from film reviews. A brief dive into the word’s Greek roots and how its meaning shifted over time. Notes on related words like frantic and frenzied and how usage has broadened today.