Word of the Day

Definition: (verb) Treat with excessive indulgence. Synonyms: baby, cocker, cosset, featherbed, mollycoddle, pamper, spoil, indulge. Usage: I have warned her not to spoil the children, but she chooses to coddle them anyway. Discuss

Definition: (verb) To return to a previous pattern of behavior, especially to return to criminal habits. Synonyms: relapse, retrogress, lapse, regress, fall back. Usage: I did not mean to recidivate, but burgling homes is second nature to me.

Definition: (verb) To foster boldness or courage in; encourage. Synonyms: cheer, hearten. Usage: Emboldened by the success of his first novel, he started on a second.

Definition: (noun) A small wooded hollow. Synonyms: dell. Usage: For no reason but that his fancy led him, he … walked down the grassy sunny slope of the open meadow, and so came to the little dingle. Discuss

Definition: (noun) An instance of insolent behavior, treatment, or speech. Synonyms: rudeness, cheek. Usage: Sara sassed the teacher and was given detention for her insolence. Discuss

Definition: (adjective) Ostentatiously lofty in style. Synonyms: bombastic, orotund, tumid, turgid, large. Usage: He has a reputation for making bold, declamatory statements.

Definition: (noun) An intimate talk in private. Synonyms: tête-à-tête. Usage: It felt good to open up, and I left our heart-to-heart feeling as though a great weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Discuss

Definition: (noun) Resoluteness by virtue of being unyielding and inflexible. Synonyms: adamance, unyieldingness. Usage: My obduracy and hardheadedness often gets me in trouble at the negotiating table.

Definition: (verb) Ridicule with satire. Synonyms: satirize. Usage: Joe's coworkers lampoon his affected way of speaking.

Definition: (verb) Travel around, either by plane or ship. Synonyms: compass. Usage: Ferdinand Magellan was the first explorer to circumnavigate the globe. Discuss