Literatim is an adjective that means letter for letter.

Literatim comes directly from Latin. Originally meaning ‘literature,’ its meaning has shifted a little over the years and now means ‘word for word,’ as in: Our English teacher demanded that we recite the introduction to Romeo and Juliet literatim. Even the tiniest deviation from the text would not be tolerated.

Widdershins is an adverb that means in a contrary direction.

Our word of the day is of German origin. It evolved from the word widersinnen (VEE der sin en) which means ‘against the way.’ In this case, the ‘way’ is clockwise, so widdershins first meant ‘counterclockwise.’ As it evolved through 16th century Scottish and eventually English, its meaning broadened a little into: ‘in a contrary direction.’

Harry has always been a contrarian. He seems to go through his daily life widdershins.

Abdicate is a verb that means to give up a position of power.

The king refused to abdicate his position in spite of protests from the people. It would take much more to get him to give up that kind of power.

Thaumaturge is a noun that refers to a worker of miracles or a magician.

The Greek word thaumatourgos (THOU mah too gose) refers to a ‘conjuror or worker of wonders.’ The word’s meaning has remained more or less the same, but today we’re less likely to believe in the idea of someone working miracles. Still our word of the day is always handy when a miracle worker does emerge.

The medication took away my swollen feet immediately. It seemed to me that the doctor was something of a thaumaturge.

Cogitation is a noun that refers to the action of thinking deeply about something.

The Latin word cogitare (KOE gee tar ay) means ‘to think’ and has given birth to a number of related English words like recognize, cognizant and cogitate, a verb that means ‘to think deeply.’ Our word of the day is a noun that is derived from cogitate.

Kevin wanted to contemplate things before calling the police, but I made it clear that we needed to act immediately. This wasn’t the time for quiet cogitation.

Paradisical is an adjective that means related to or befitting paradise.

The concept of paradise is old as time itself. But the word paradise comes from the Greek word paradeisos (par uh DASE ose) meaning ‘royal park.’ Our word of the day is simply a derivative that means related to paradise.

There was something paradiscal about that beach. I couldn’t imagine a more perfect place.

Burgeon is a verb that means to grow or flourish rapidly

The Latin word burra (BOO rah) means ‘wool.’ From there it evolved into the French word bourgeonenner (BOOGH ah nay) meaning to ‘put out buds.’ This gave birth to our word of the day, which is often used as the adjective burgeoning.

We thought the controversy would harm the sales of our t-shirt. It turned out to create a burgeoning demand.

Orgulous is an adjective that means haughty or full of pride.

Our word of the day emerged from Old French and gained popularity when used by 19th century historical novelist Sir Walter Scott. It has an old wold sound that may sound a little affected if used too casually.

The Queen’s orgulous behavior puzzled many in the court. They’d never before seen her act in such a haughty manner.

Reticular is an adjective that means having a netlike structure.

The Latin word rete (RAY tay) means ‘net.’ Something reticular resembles a net in some sense. The word is frequently used in science to describe cells that arranged in a net-like fashion. But may also be used in an everyday manner.

When I saw those reticular patterns on my legs, I panicked. But the doctor told me it was perfectly normal for someone of my age.

Coriaceous is an adjective that means resembling or having the texture of leather.

Corium (CORE ee oom) is the Latin word for leather or hide. This is the ancestor of our word of the day which may refer literally to something made of leather or figuratively to something that resembles the texture of leather.

I usually prefer having something soft against my skin, but with winter approaching, I love the coriaceous feel of my new jacket. It’s not leather, but thankfully, it feels like it.