M-W Word Of The Day Aug 2007

Front 1

august \aw-GUST\ adjective

Back 1

: marked by majestic dignity or grandeur

Example sentence:
Mr. Lee's bearing was always august and stately, and he drew respectful glances wherever he went.

Front 2

deliquesce \del-ih-KWESS\ verb

Back 2

*1 : to dissolve or melt away
2 : to become soft or liquid with age or maturity — used of some fungal structures (as the gills of a mushroom)

Example sentence:
Someone forgot to put the butter back in the refrigerator, instead leaving it to deliquesce on the kitchen counter.

Front 3

Walter Mitty \wawl-ter-MITT-ee\ noun

Back 3

: a commonplace unadventurous person who seeks escape from reality through daydreaming

Example sentence:
"Many readers seem to be Walter Mittys, content to experience danger vicariously." (James Kelly, Time Magazine, August 19, 1985)

Front 4

nomenclator \NOH-mun-klay-ter\ noun

Back 4

1 : a book containing collections or lists of words
*2 : one who gives names to or invents names for things

Example sentence:
Within days of her promotion, Jenna found herself in the role of nomenclator, trying to name the company?s newest product.

Front 5

peruse \puh-ROOZ\ verb

Back 5

1 a : to examine or consider with attention and in detail : study b : to look over or through in a casual or cursory manner
*2 : read; especially : to read over in an attentive or leisurely manner

Example sentence:
Dmitri perused the menu while we waited for a table.

Front 6

turbid \TER-bid\ adjective

Back 6

1 *a : thick or opaque with or as if with roiled sediment b : heavy with smoke or mist
2 a : deficient in clarity or purity : foul, muddy b : characterized by or producing obscurity (as of mind or emotions)

Example sentence:
With alarm and dismay, Evelyn saw that the turbid floodwaters had started seeping into her kitchen.