Word of the Day

Definition: (adjective) Stubbornly contrary and disobedient; obstinate. Synonyms: headstrong, self-willed, willful. Usage: Her siblings were obedient and well-behaved, but she was froward and stubborn. Discuss

Definition: (noun) A channel for an overflow of water, as from a reservoir. Synonyms: wasteweir, spill. Usage: The workers cleared the debris from the spillway so the excess water could flow through the channel. Discuss

Definition: (noun) A state of extreme confusion and disorder. Synonyms: bedlam, chaos, topsy-turvydom. Usage: Instantly the avenue was a pandemonium of clashing blades, cursing warriors, and squealing throats. Discuss

Definition: (noun) Urgent requirements; pressing needs. Often used in the plural. Synonyms: need, demand, requirement, necessity, constraint, wont. Usage: The reduction was caused by the exigencies of a wartime economy. Discuss

Definition: (noun) A jointed puppet manipulated from above by strings or wires attached to its limbs. Synonyms: puppet. Usage: They appeared to me clear-cut and very small, with affected voices and stiff gestures, like a procession of rigid marionettes upon a toy stage. Discuss

Definition: (adjective) Having no limbs, feet, or footlike appendages. Synonyms: apodous. Usage: Eels are apodal and well adapted for wriggling in the mud, through the crevices of reefs, and along rocky shores. Discuss

Definition: (noun) A minor error, such as a slip of the tongue, thought to reveal a repressed motive. Synonyms: slip-up, miscue, slip. Usage: She thought her verbal blunder was just a silly mistake, but her friend, a Freud enthusiast, tried to convince her that the parapraxis actually had great significance. Discuss

Definition: (noun) An overwhelming, advancing force that crushes or seems to crush everything in its path. Synonyms: steamroller. Usage: It touched the ground just as it struck among them and mowed through them, a veritable juggernaut of destruction. Discuss

Definition: (adjective) Capable of being seen or noticed. Synonyms: evident, observable. Usage: Monkeys scampered about the deserted ruins, and gaily plumaged birds flitted in and out among the columns and the galleries far above; but no sign of human presence was discernible. Discuss

Definition: (noun) A small bunch of flowers. Synonyms: bouquet, corsage, posy. Usage: The wedding was informal and intimate, with the bride wearing a simple white dress and holding a nosegay of daisies. Discuss