Mumpsimus is a noun that refers to someone who sticks to old erroneous ways.

Our word of the day is derived from a tale of a medieval priest who persistently used the word ‘mumpsimus’ instead of ‘sumpsimus’ in prayer, despite frequent corrections from his superior. The priest replied that he’d been saying it the wrong way for so long that it had become a tradition. Here’s an example of mumpsimus in use:

Call me a mumpsimus if you want, but I prefer to use my old high school ball when bowling even though I know it’s too light to get the job done. I’ve been using it so long now that I simply can’t kick the habit — despite the ways it brings my game down.

Hyperacusis is a noun that refers to a heightened sensitivity to sound.

You may recognize the Greek prefix H-Y-P-E-R from words like hyperactive or hyperdrive. It means ‘above normal.’ The Greek word aukusis (ah KOOSE is) is where we get words like ‘acoustic’ and it means ‘hearing.’ When combined, we get our word of the day which refers to a condition of hearing things more loudly or harshly than normal. Here’s an example:

At first I thought my neighbors’ reaction to my band playing in the garage indicated some form of hyperacusis. After all, why else would our music affect their ears so harshly? But it turned out they didn’t have any medical condition. It was just that our band wasn’t so good.

Recondite is an adjective that means unknown or abstruse.

Coming from the Latin word reconditus (ray con DEE toose) which means ‘hidden’ or ‘put away,’ our word of the day has been with us since the mid-17th century. In more recent years, it is likely to refer to knowledge or information that is not well known. Here’s an example:

Although I enjoyed the poetry class I took last year, it was a little tough to keep up with it without a familiarity of obscure texts from the past. Because I didn’t have much recondite knowledge, I wound up not learning much from the class.

Schmatte is a noun that refers to a ragged or shabby garment.

Our word of the day comes from the Yiddish word for ‘rag’ and has been part of the English language since the 1970s. Here’s an example of schmatte in use:

There’s nothing more embarrassing than having to attend a fancy dinner without any good clothes to wear. Here I was being honored by my peers and instead of a fresh tuxedo, I was clad in a schmatte.

Malinger is a verb that means to exaggerate or feign illness to escape work.

The French word malingre (MAL ange) means ‘sickly.’ But once the word was imported into English, its meaning shifted to mean pretending to be sick — specifically to avoid work. Here’s a sample:

With so much to complete at the office, I was tempted to malinger. But in the end, I just felt that faking illness would I would saddle my co-workers with too much to do, so I decided against it.

Rive is a verb that means to split or tear apart violently.

Our word of the day’s origin isn’t fully known, but we do know it comes from Old Norse and has been with us since the 14th century. Here’s an example of rive in use:

I was so angry at the tiny amount I was paid for my landscaping work that I decided to rive the check right in front of my boss. But when I realized I needed to pay my rent that week, I felt that tearing my check up might not be the best way to express my displeasure.

Glabrous is an adjective that means smooth and hairless.

The Latin word glaber (GLOB er) means smooth and has been with us since the mid 17th century. Here’s an example of glabrous in use:

At my age I don’t really get upset about finding the occasional gray hair. I’m just happy that when I look at the top of my head, I still find hair and not a slick, glabrous surface.

Crag is a noun that refers to a steep rock formation rising higher than its surrounding rocks.

Our word of the day is Celtic in origin and dates back to the mid-18th century. Here’s an example of crag in use.

There’s something about rock climbing that gives me a breathtaking sense of rising above everything. My favorite moments involve standing on a crag and gazing down from its dizzying heights at the ground below.

Haverel is a noun that refers to a half-wit.

Coming directly from Scottish, our word of the day is related to verb ‘haver’ which means ‘to hem and haw.’ Here’s an example of haverel in use:

I was so confused by the instructions given to me that I must have come across like a haverel with all that fumbling and bumbling of my words.

Collate is a verb that means to collect and combine in proper order.

The Latin word conferre (con FAIR ay) means ‘to bring together.’ When we bring things together in a logical order, we collate them. Here’s an example of our word of the day in use:

My job at the office is to collate all the information from our many clients. Keeping them in proper order can be a bit difficult because after a while, they all just seem the same.