Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 5, 2023 is: requisite \REK-wuh-zut\ adjective

Requisite is a synonym of necessary and essential that describes something needed for a particular purpose.

// It's clear from her application materials that Leona has the requisite knowledge and experience for the job.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/requisite)

Examples:

"On the eve of their own wedding, David presented Kavi with three custom fragrances in a series of ornate vintage vessels: one unique scent for each day of their traditional Indian ceremony. Naturally, the couple went on to launch his-and-her scents inspired by these sentimental creations: D.S. for David, with notes like sandalwood, saffron, and rose; Durga for Kavi, the requisite orange blossom mingling with tuberose and orris butter." — Ivana Rihter, Vanity Fair, 18 Aug. 2023

Did you know?

Acquiring an understanding of where requisite comes from won't require a formal inquiry. Without question, the quest begins with the Latin verb quaerere, which means "to ask" or "to seek." That word is ancestor to a number of English words, including [acquire](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acquire), [require](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/require), [inquiry](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inquiry), [question](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/question), [quest](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quest), and, of course, requisite. From quaerere came requirere, meaning "to ask again." Repeated requests can express a need, and the past participle of the Latin word requirere, which is requisitus, came to mean "needed" or "necessary." English acquired requisite when it was adopted into Middle English back in the 1400s.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 4, 2023 is: maelstrom \MAIL-strum\ noun

A maelstrom is a powerful often violent whirlpool that sucks in objects within a given radius. Maelstrom is also often used figuratively to refer to a situation resembling the turbulence of a maelstrom, as when there are a lot of confused activities, emotions, etc.

// He was caught in a maelstrom of emotions after the news he received over the phone.

// The ship was drawn into the maelstrom.

[See the entry >]( https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/maelstrom)

Examples:

“Innovation can be a crushing force—a physical and emotional [juggernaut](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/juggernaut) that can redefine entire sectors, societies, and civilizations in its [inexorable](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inexorable) path. As we peer into the maelstrom of technology’s ever-expanding possibilities—clinging to what guardrails we may find—the question that emerges is not just about what awaits us but about when. Timing, as they say, is everything.” — John Nosta, Psychology Today, 22 Sept. 2023

Did you know?

The original [Maelstrom](https://www.britannica.com/place/Maelstrom), also known as the Mostenstraumen or Moskstraumen, is a channel located off the northwest coast of Norway that has dangerous tidal currents. English speakers became familiar with its (often exaggerated) perils through literature—[Edgar Allan Poe](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edgar-Allan-Poe) wrote a story called “A Descent into the Maelstrom,” and [Jules Verne’s](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jules-Verne) Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea has—spoiler alert—a maelstrom at its climax. The English word arrived by way of the Dutch word maelstrom, which today is spelled maalstroom. (The Dutch word combines the verb malen, meaning “to grind,” and the noun strom, “stream.”) English speakers have applied the word to any powerful whirlpool since the 16th century, and by the 19th century they’d begun to apply it figuratively to things or situations resembling such maelstroms in turbulence or confusion.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 3, 2023 is: parse \PARSS\ verb

To parse something is to study it by looking closely at its parts. In grammar and linguistics, parse means "to divide (a sentence) into grammatical parts and identify the parts and their relations to each other."

// The lawyer meticulously parsed the wording of the final contract to be sure that her client would get all that he was asking for.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/parse)

Examples:

"Around the turn of the millennium, the [captcha](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/captcha) tool arrived to sort humans from bots based on their ability to interpret images of distorted text. Once some bots could handle that, captcha added other detection methods that included parsing images of motorbikes and trains, as well as sensing mouse movement and other user behavior." — Christopher Beam, WIRED, 14 Sept. 2023

Did you know?

If parse brings up memories of learning the [parts of speech](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/part%20of%20speech) in school, you've done your homework regarding this word. Parsing sentences, after all, is part and parcel of learning to read and write. Parse comes from the first element of the Latin term for "part of speech," pars orationis. It's an old word that has been used since at least the mid 1500s, but it was not until the late 1700s that parse graduated to its extended, non-grammar-related sense of "to examine in a minute way" or "to analyze critically." Remember this extended sense, and you'll really be at the head of the class.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 2, 2023 is: analogue \AN-uh-log\ noun

Analogue refers to something that is similar to something else in design, origin, use, etc. In other words, an analogue is analogous to something else.

// There are many historical analogues to our current political situation that we can learn from in order not to repeat the mistakes of the past.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/analogue)

Examples:

“When the 32-year-old artist Gray Wielebinski was growing up in Dallas, he saw 10-gallon hats and boots as the marks of a fantastical machismo that belonged as much to him as to cisgender men. … In his work, the cowboy is a tragic figure professionally endangered by commercial ranching, making him an analogue to the queer establishments that have closed in recent years.” — Evan Moffitt, The New York Times, 6 Sept. 2023

Did you know?

Analogue is a handy word for something that is similar to something else in design, origin, use, etc., as in “tofu is a meat analogue.” Like its relations analogy and analogous, it traces back ultimately to the Greek word lógos, meaning “word,” “speech,” “relation,” “correspondence,” and “proportion.” Not to get too [meta](/dictionary/meta) about analogue, but the nouns [analogue](/dictionary/analogue) and [analog](/dictionary/analog) are themselves analogues (or, ahem, analogs) of one another: they differ only in spelling, though the analogue spelling is more common except in contexts related to chemistry. The pair also function as adjectives—as in “an analog watch” or “analog recording”—but in that case the shorter form is preferred except by those who use British English.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 1, 2023 is: fuliginous \fyoo-LIJ-uh-nus\ adjective

Fuliginous is a formal adjective that is synonymous with [sooty](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sooty); it describes things related to, containing, or producing soot. It can also describe things that are figuratively sooty—that is, dark or murky, as in "fuliginous soul"—as well as things that are dark or sooty in color, from crystals and insects to the plumage of some bird species.

// [Stringent](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stringent) environmental regulations eventually helped the city rid itself of the fuliginous haze that had plagued its citizens for decades.

// The infamous journalist has a fuliginous prose style that’s not exactly ideal for general audiences.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fuliginous)

Examples:

"This latter-day Solomon remarked upon the atmospheric conditions he encountered ... a choking smoke that prompted him to cover his mouth and nostrils with a handkerchief. This exercise proved futile as he ventured into the fuliginous town where 'there was literally nothing for it but to breathe chimney smoke, or to turn and flee to purer air before it was too late.'" — Mervyn Edwards, The Stoke Sentinel (Stoke-on-Trent, England), 17 June 2023

Did you know?

Fuliginous is a word with a dark and dirty past—it comes from fuligo, the Latin word for "[soot](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/soot)," a substance formed by combustion or separated from fuel during combustion, that rises in the air in fine particles, such as what's seen in smoke. An early, now-obsolete sense of fuliginous described [noxious](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/noxious) bodily vapors once thought to be produced by organic processes. The "sooty" sense, which English speakers have been using since the 16th century, can be used literally to describe everything from overworked chimney sweeps to industrial city skylines, and figuratively for dense fogs, malevolent clouds, and grim senses of humor. Fuliginous can also be used to refer to something dark or dusky in color, as in [Henry James](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-James-American-writer)' novel [The Ambassadors](https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Ambassadors), in which the character Waymarsh is described as having "dark fuliginous eyes."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 31, 2023 is: eldritch \EL-dritch\ adjective

Eldritch describes things that are strange or unnatural, especially in a way that inspires fear. The word is often used as a synonym for [eerie](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/eerie).

// She's afraid to visit haunted houses because the eldritch decor and sound effects are too realistic for her liking.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/eldritch)

Examples:

“One of the newer entries on this list is Dredge, which is a cozy game for players who like spooky, eldritch tales of the open sea. It sounds counterintuitive to combine relaxing gameplay with horror, but it works out well here. You’ll catch eerie-looking fish, explore abandoned and sometimes dangerous areas and start dredging treasures from shipwrecks to help a mysterious collector. The joy in Dredge though comes from the casual way it lets you complete your quests and the openness of its world, which is ripe for exploration.” — Carli Velocci, CNN, 2 May 2023

Did you know?

[Curse](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curse), [cobweb](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cobweb), [witch](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/witch), [ghost](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghost), and even [Halloween](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Halloween)—all of these potentially spooky words have roots in Old English. Eldritch, although less common, is another, hailing from a time when otherworldly beings were commonly thought to inhabit the earth. The word dates back to the 16th century and may have its origin in the Middle English word elfriche, meaning “fairyland.” (The two components of elfriche—“elf” and “riche”—come from the Old English words ælf, “elf,” and rīce, “kingdom.”) Nowadays, eldritch is used to describe things that are eerie, weird, or frightful. You may also recognize the word as the name of the popular video game Eldritch, inspired by the stories of [H.P. Lovecraft](https://www.britannica.com/biography/H-P-Lovecraft), who often used the word in his horror fiction. Or perhaps you've encountered it in the role-playing game [Dungeons & Dragons](https://www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/8-dungeons-and-dragons-words).

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 30, 2023 is: werewolf \WAIR-woolf\ noun

Werewolf refers to a person transformed into a wolf or capable of assuming a wolf's form, especially during the full moon.

// She went to the Halloween party dressed as a werewolf, wearing faux fur from head to toe.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/werewolf)

Examples:

"With her brother and sister, Marnie follows her grandma to a city called Halloweentown, where ghosts and goblins and werewolves live side by side." — Claudia Guthrie, ELLE, 28 Aug. 2023

Did you know?

Although English sometimes makes use of other words for howling humanoid beasties, werewolf is the leader of the pack. It’s also an ancient word, tracing all the way back to the Old English werwulf, and before that to a prehistoric predecessor that also left its paw prints on German (Werwolf) and Dutch (weerwolf). Synonyms for werewolf in English include the obscure lycanthrope, which has roots in two Greek words (lykos, meaning "wolf," and anthrōpos, meaning "human being"), and [loup-garou](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/loup-garou), which comes from Old French. Whichever you use, the [lycanthropic](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lycanthropic) creatures these words refer to most often assume wolf form during a full moon—at least in works of fiction. There are no credible studies to date on the behavior of real-life werewolves, as scientists have yet to find the silver bullet that proves they exist.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 29, 2023 is: pandemonium \pan-duh-MOH-nee-um\ noun

Pandemonium refers to a situation in which a crowd or mass of people act in a wild, uncontrolled, or violent way because they are afraid, excited, or confused.

// Pandemonium ensued when a power failure knocked out the city’s traffic lights during rush hour.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pandemonium)

Examples:

“It was pandemonium when [Taylor] Swift broke out one of her first country singles that became an international hit. The crowd really lost it for the famous tale of a high school love triangle, especially with the signature lyric: ‘She wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts / She’s cheer captain and I’m on the bleachers.’” — Emily Yahr, The Washington Post, 18 Mar. 2023

Did you know?

When [John Milton](https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Milton) needed a name for the gathering place of all demons for [Paradise Lost](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Paradise-Lost-epic-poem-by-Milton), he turned to the classics as any sensible 17th-century writer would. Pandæmonium, as the capital of Hell is known in the epic poem, combines the Greek prefix pan-, meaning “all,” with the Late Latin daemonium, meaning “evil spirit.” (Daemonium itself traces back to the far more innocuous Greek word daímōn, meaning “spirit” or “divine power.”) Over time, Pandæmonium (or Pandemonium) came to designate all of hell and was used as well for earthbound dens of wickedness and sin. By the late-18th century, the word implied a place or state of confusion or uproar, and from there, it didn’t take long for pandemonium to become associated with states of utter disorder and wildness.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 28, 2023 is: irascible \ir-RASS-uh-bul\ adjective

Someone who is irascible is easily angered and annoyed.

// That tidy little house belongs to an irascible crank who never has a kind word for any of his neighbors.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irascible)

Examples:

"If anyone earned the right to be an irascible octogenarian—especially when it comes to music—it's probably Bob Dylan. In a new interview with The Wall Street Journal, the singer-songwriter got the chance to do some ... sermonizing—sharing both astute points, and some rather [curmudgeonly](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curmudgeonly) ones—about the state of contemporary music and the streaming era." — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 19 Dec. 2022

Did you know?

If you try to take apart irascible on the model of [irrational](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irrational), [irresistible](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irresistible), and [irresponsible](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irresponsible) you might find yourself wondering what ascible means—but that's not how irascible came to be. The key to the meaning of irascible isn't the negating prefix [ir-](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ir-) (which is the form of the prefix [in-](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/in-) that is used before words beginning with "r"), but rather the Latin noun ira, meaning "anger." From ira, which is also the root of [irate](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/irate) and [ire](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ire), came the Latin verb irasci ("to become angry") and the related adjective irascibilis, the latter of which led to the French word irascible. English speakers borrowed the word from French in the 16th century.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 27, 2023 is: shill \SHIL\ verb

Shill is an informal word that is used disapprovingly to mean “to talk about or describe someone or something in a favorable way for pay.” It is usually paired with for.

// It’s very common to see influencers shilling for different brands on their social media accounts.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shill)

Examples:

“The [NFT](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/NFT) market isn’t so hot these days. In June, Bloomberg reported that the JPG NFT Index was down more than 30 percent since its launch in April. ... Most of the celebs who had shilled for NFTs have gone back to promoting an upcoming project ... or appear to be on vacation.” — Lauren Goode, Wired, 3 Aug. 2022

Did you know?

The action at the heart of the verb shill—promoting someone or something for pay—is not, on its face, unseemly. After all, that is what marketers and public relations firms do. But when someone is said to be shilling for something or someone there is a distinct note of disapproval, and often the implication that the act is somehow corrupt or dishonest, or that the product or person being promoted is not to be trusted. This connotation is actually the word’s birthright: in the early 1900s, the noun shill referred to a type of con artist, specifically one who aided others in their efforts to part people from their money. For example, a shill might be paid to fake a big win at a casino to make a game look easily winnable. The first uses of the verb shill, appearing around the same time as the noun, show it applying to the kinds of cons shills did, but the term eventually came to be used in cases when someone was simply promoting someone or something. Perhaps fitting for a word with a criminal past, shill has a mysterious origin: it’s thought to be a shortened form of the older synonymous term shillaber, but the etymological trail goes cold there.