Good morning, Word Nerds! How are you today?

Last week’s WOW (Word of the Week) was retronym. The definition of retronym, according to Merriam-Webster Online is as follows: a term consisting of a noun and a modifier which specifies the original meaning of the noun. For instance, a film camera is an example of a retronym and there are even web sites dedicated to retronyms. Who knew?!

Today’s WOW is septentrional. My French antennae are going off yet again because sept means seven in French. (In the original version of the Roman calendar, September was the 7th month of the year, not the 9th. Adding January and February to the calendar is why it’s now # 9! You’re welcome for giving you a little known fact that will never be useful Ever.)

septentrional (sep-ˈten-trē-ˌän^əl) 1. purposely grouping things together in 7’s 2. relating to one week’s time 3. having to do with the septum

What’s your guess for septentrional? Submit a comment to this post to let me know!

Wednesday’s Post: Know Your Body…

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Good morning, Word Nerds! Last week’s WOW (Word of the Week) was: mellifluous. The daughter guessed that it was “sweet sounding, musical, etc. ????” Let’s see how close she got.

Merriam-Webster Online says that mellifluous means having a smooth, flowing sound. So, she’s pretty darn close! Glad to know all those music lessons paid off! 🙂

Today’s WOW is ne plus ultra. Again, my French “bells” are going off, so let’s see what I can conjure up as my definition guesses for it:

ne plus ultra (nā-ˌpləs-ˈəl-trə) 1. no longer special 2. not noteworthy or significant 3. subtraction

What are your guesses for ne plus ultra? Submit a comment to this post to let me know!

Wednesday’s Post: Put on your thinking caps…

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