Unremitting is an adjective that means incessant or never relaxing. 

The root word of our word of the day is remit, which goes back to the early 20th century and is derived from the Latin word remittere (ree ma TARE ay) which means ‘send back’ or ‘restore.’ An unremitting person refuses to be sent back or to restore anything. Here’s an example:

Monica’s unremitting demeanor didn’t always make her popular at the office, but she was a great boss just the same. Sometimes a strong leader has to be someone who just keeps on the attack. 

Wan is an adjective that means pale or light in complexion. 

Coming from Old English, our word of the day’s origin is something of a mystery. But we do know it is something of a synonym of words like pallid or ashen. Example:

Having a wan complexion can often make people not seem healthy. But in Steve’s case, his pale skin has nothing to do with being ill. He’s just the product of very light-complected people. 

Junoesque is an adjective that means marked by stately beauty. 

Dating back to the 19th century, our word of the day combines the Roman Goddess Juno with the suffix E-S-Q-U-E. Here’s an example of Junoesque in use. 

At five-ten, Carly could be fairly imposing. If she were any taller or any more stunning, she’d be Junoesque. 

Spiel is a noun that refers to a long or fast speech or story. 

Coming from a German word for a game, our word of the day was imported into English in the 19th century and has seen a shift in its meaning. Its current meaning makes it a synonym of ‘speech.’ Here’s an example:

The teacher’s spiel about the need to be on time lasted way too long. In fact, by the time he’d finished it, I wound up being ten minutes late. 

Cahoots is a noun that refers to colluding or conspiring together secretly. 

The origin of cahoots is unknown, but we know it emerged in the early 19th century and it’s pretty always used in the plural. Example:

I quit my job when I discovered that my boss was in cahoots with the company executives. But I might have reacted differently if I’d known that they were secretly conspiring a surprise birthday party for me. 

Dregs is a noun that refers to the remnants of a liquid left in a container. 

The origin of our word of the day is unclear, but it seems to have emerged from Scandinavian, then later found its way into Middle English. Dregs may refer to the remnants of a liquid or an undesirable part of society. Either way, it is almost always used in the plural. 

I’ve been trying to clean my thermos for a while and for some reason, I just can’t get those dregs off of it. The remnants of all that orange juice can get really gummed in there. 

Techlash is a noun that refers to a backlash against the perceived negative effects of technology on society. 

Our word of the day is inspired by the word ‘backlash,’ which means a strong and adverse reaction by a large number of people. In this case, the reaction is to technology, which gets shortened to the prefix T-E-C-H. Example: 

I sense a little techlash from people in the last few years. That may explain why people aren’t buying laptops as much as they used to. Perhaps people are just reacting to having too much technology in their lives. 

Jomo is an acronym that means Joy Of Missing Out. 

Our word of the day was inspired by another acronym, FOMO, which stood for ‘fear of missing out.’ Within the past decade or so, some folks began to notice that missing out on certain activities brought as much joy as fear. Here’s an example of JOMO in use. 

I always thought I’d get excited about joining a bird watching club. But let’s face it, here in the big city, without many birds to watch, I began to feel a little JOMO whenever I missed a meeting. Some things are more joyful to miss than others. 

Upcycle is a verb that means ‘to reuse a product in such a way that elevates its value.’ 

Using the word ‘up’ as a prefix, our word of the day is a recent word that is closely related to the verb ‘recycle.’ The difference is that upcycling adds value to a recycled product. 

I’d love to upcycle my roommate’s old CDs as coasters. Considering how bad some of the music was, using them to place a beverage on would definitely make them more useful. 

Nomophobia is a noun that refers to the fear of being without a cell phone. 

Our word of the day is a recent addition to the English language that gets its origin from the words ‘no moble phone’ as well as the Greek suffix P-H-O-B-I-A which refers to an all-consuming fear of. Here’s an example of nomophobia in use:

While camping in the woods, I often feel overcome with a sense of nomophobia. But that feeling fades in the middle of a spooky ghost story told around the campfire. At moments like that, the last thing you want is a scary buzz of your iPhone.