Shirty is an adjective that means irritable or ill-tempered.

Our word of the day came from the word shirt although it’s not clear exactly how. But we do know it came to become slang in the 19th century.

Alice could be a bit shirty at times, but I don’t blame her. Having to deal with those guys in packaging would make anybody irritable.

Accelerant is a noun that refers to something that aids in acceleration. It comes also be used as an adjective to describe something that causes an acceleration.

The word accelerate comes from the Latin accelerare (ak sell er ARE ay) meaning to ‘to hasten’ or ‘make faster.’ Our word of the day is often used in a technical context.

The police suspected those responsible for the blast used certain stolen chemicals as accelerants in their explosives.

Contestation is a noun that refers to controversy or debate.

The Latin word contestari (con test TAR ay) means ‘to call upon a witness.’ It later evolved into a number of English words like ‘contest.’ Our word of the day is often used in formal settings to describe a process of disputing or arguing.

When debating over their borders, the two nations engaged in several years of contestation. Once the controversy had ended, they managed somehow to avoid a war.

Torpid is an adjective that means lethargic.

Our word of the day comes from the Latin word torpere (tor PAIR ay) which means ‘to be numb or sluggish.’ Torpid can be used to describe a lethargic person but it can also be used to describe an animal that is dormant or in hibernation.

During most of my torpid youth, I spent all day playing video games and watching TV. I’ve now become a lot less lethargic. I spend a lot less time watching TV.

Indolent is an adjective that means lazy.

The Latin word dorere (doe LARE ay) means ‘to suffer or cause pain.’ This word added the prefix I-N to mean ‘not causing pain’ and became indolent in the mid 17th century. Initially it was used in a medical context to refer to a disease or condition that didn’t cause pain. But it soon came to also describe someone who wanted to avoid work or exertion. Here’s an example of indolent in use:

Marvin could be indolent at times, but at other times he could conquer his laziness and do whatever work needed to be done.

Faineant is an adjective that means idle or inactive. It can also be used as a noun that refers to an idle or ineffective person.

Our word of the day comes from the French phrase fait neant (fe nee AW) that translates to ‘does nothing.’ It has been imported into English since the early 17th century.

With nothing to do all day, I found myself feeling hopelessly faineant. With any luck, there will be something to occupy my time tomorrow.

Detritus is a noun that refers to debris or discarded items.

Our word of the day comes directly from Latin. After being imported into English in the late 18th century, its pronunciation has shifted from dee TREE toose to its English equivalent de TRY tus, but it has retained the same meaning of ‘waste or discarded material.’

When we changed offices, some people came to think of all those photos on the break room wall as detritus. But I understood they were more than items to be discarded. They were memories of lifelong friendships.

Morass is a noun that refers to a complicated or confused situation.

The Latin word mariscus (mar EESE coose) means ‘marsh.’ This later evolved into morass, which originally held the same meaning. While it is still used in this context, morass may also be used figuratively to refer to any muddy or confusing situation. Here’s an example:

Before the lawsuit could be resolved, we had to climb through a morass of paperwork. The whole thing was a confusing and complicated mess that I hope to never have to endure again.

Putative is an adjective that means generally considered to be.

The Latin word putare (poo TAR ay) means ‘to think.’ When something is described as putative, it means ‘generally thought to be.’ For example: Greg was the putative leader of the trumpet section, but regardless of what everyone thought, I was the one actually leading things.

Fistic is an adjective that means pugilistic or related to boxing.

The English word fist came from Old English and came to exist simply by turning a noun into an adjective with the addition of the suffix I-C. The word is often used sarcastically and playfully.

As a kid, my fistic skills weren’t very intimidating. That’s why I never considered boxing as a career path.