'Mr Hector has an old fashioned faith in the
redemptive power of words.' (The History Boys)
Here's the Oxford English
Dictionary's Word of the Day too!
Word of the Day
Word of the Day is a service for the improvement of the minds of students currently engaged in advanced study and for any others interested in words. Inspired in part by Alan Bennett's play, in which the students (at that time armed only with their own intelligence and a large dictionary) seek to expand their command of language, it is appropriate that the first word in the list is taken from that play.
Word of the day is free - read it right here! It's also available by and now you can follow Word of the Day on Twitter. The first twenty words are given here for your interest. Suggestions for future words will be welcome.
| Byronic | Modernism |
| Cacophonous | Obfuscation |
| Clandestine | Otiose |
| Cornucopia | Pandora's box |
| Didactic | Platonic |
| Dilettante | Portmanteau |
| Eclectic | Recidivist |
| Empathy | Semordnilap (or: 'pals reviled') |
| Euphemism | Shibboleth (and the story behind this word) |
| Hyperbole | Stakhanovite (and who said: 'I will work harder'?) |
Suitable sources of information are given on the language page, though in some cases further research may be required. A corpus site or Wikipedia may help when the dictionaries fail.
Word sites on the web
See the Words on the web sites listed on the Language page.Books of Words
- Peter Bowler: The Superior Person's Book of Words
- frankly frivolous collation of ostentation.
- Michael Quinion: Port Out, Starboard Home
- fascinating mine of information from the creator of the World Wide Words website.
- Michael Quinion: Why is Q Always Followed by U?
: Word-Perfect Answers to the Most-Asked Questions About Language
