Draconian is an adjective that means excessively harsh.

Our word of the day comes from a 7th Century Athenian legislator known for his harsh laws. The word retains its same basic meaning today. For example: the draconian approach to law enforcement, isn’t always the best. It may cause people to comply, but having citizens living in fear of punishment is not the best path to a compassionate society.

Augur is a verb that means to predict a good or bad outcome.

Our word of the day comes from the Middle English word for ‘a diviner.’ More recently, it’s come to mean ‘predict an outcome.’ I struck out three times at softball practice today — and I was the best batter on the team. That doesn’t augur well for our upcoming game on Saturday.

Resile is a verb that means to abandon a position or course of action.

The Latin word salire (sa LEER ay) means ’to jump.’ When combined with the prefix R-E, we get a word that means ‘to jump back’ or to abandon a previous plan.

James knew that his idea for launching the company had failed, but the problem was that he couldn’t resile from the idea. I’m sure if there had been any way to abandon it he would have.

Conterminous is an adjective that means sharing a common boundary.

The Latin word terminus (TEAR me noos) means ‘border.’ When combined with the Latin prefix C-O-N, we get a word that means ‘sharing a border.’ Two things are regarded as conterminous if they share a common boundary.

I’ve been to all forty-eight states that are conterminous with each other in the US. Someday, I hope to visit Alaska and Hawaii outside of the that boundary.

Lope is a verb that means to travel at an easy pace with long strides.

Our word of the day gets its origin from the Middle English word for ‘leap.’ It is best used when referring to someone moving at a casual, leisurely pace.

As a kid, I would lope through those open fields for hours, taking long, easy strides — until I heard those rattlesnakes in the bushes and I took faster, less easy strides into the house.

Sobriquet is a noun that refers to a nickname.

Our word of the day comes directly from the French word for nickname. Its origin borrows a little from Latin and refers to a ‘tap under the chin,’ as in a ‘jest’ or a ‘quip.’

After his performance at the karaoke party, Michael earned the sobriquet ‘Sinatra.’ His rendition of Strangers in the Night was so perfect, that no other nickname could apply.

Philistine is a noun that refers to a person who lacks appreciation of culture.

The original Philistines of the Bible were a tribe of people who were portrayed as crude and warlike. By the early 19th century, the term had come to refer to anyone who was perceived as uncultured or unsophisticated.

When my professor friends come over for a visit, I usually make sure I have copies of books laying around the house to help me appear cultured. I wouldn’t want then to think I’m a philistine.

Diurnal is an adjective that means happening durning the daylight hours.

Our word of the day comes from the Latin word dies (DYE ess) which simply means ‘day.’ Diurnal usually refers to the ‘the daytime’ as opposed to night.

The older I get, the more diurnal my lifestyle becomes. I have most of my fun when the sun is out shining, but the minute night falls, I’m drowsy and ready for bed.

Insufflate is a verb that means to blow to breathe something in.

The Latin word insufflare (in sue FLAR ay) means ‘to breath.’ Our word of the day has originated from this and come to refer to the act of blowing into something.

The patient mentioned that they couldn’t insufflate enough to blow out the candles on a birthday cake. When the act of blowing is this difficult it suggests severe damage to the lungs.

Natter is a verb that means to talk about unimportant matters. It can also be used as a noun to describe casual and leisurely conversation.

The origin of our word of the day is unclear, but it seems to have taken life in an imitative manner, meaning the word ‘natter’ came to be through people imitating the sound of incessant small talk. Brenda doesn’t talk much at work, but when she’s around friends she can natter for hours.