Merriam-Webster

Take a screenshot of this GIF, and whichever new word you land on is YOUR word for 2026. Let's. Go.

We acknowledge that no one has the bandwidth for this, but if it helps: -It’s ‘sleight of hand’ -It’s ‘bated breath’ -It’s ‘lo and behold’ -It's 'buck naked' -It’s ‘brass tacks’ -It’s ‘free rein’ -It’s ‘toe the line'

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Today marks Word of the Day podcast episode # 7,305. That’s 20 years. Our editor-at-large @petersokolowski.bsky.social hasn’t missed a day. In TWENTY years. Please clap. art19.com/shows/merria...

Technically, a dictionary is a book of spells.

One of the fun parts of working on the AP Stylebook team is that when The New York Times runs an article about @merriam-webster.com's definition of biweekly and bimonthly, we can message dictionary editor Peter Sokolowski about it.

I hate editor Halloween. What do you mean you're going as an italicized period??

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12 Words and Phrases from The Simpsons -taps sign -d'oh -say the quiet part out loud -old man yells at cloud And more! www.merriam-webster.com/wordplay/wor...

The grammatical 'colon' and the anatomical 'colon' are not etymologically related. The anatomical 'colon' comes from the Greek ‘kolon’ which means “large intestine.” The grammatical 'colon' comes from the Greek ‘kōlon’ which means “limb.” Both are a means to an end.

patience = 🧘‍♀️🕰️ patients = 🤒🤕

‘Ciao’ comes from a shortening of a northern Italian word meaning, literally, "slave." It was used as a polite greeting meaning something along the lines of “I am your servant.”

The SPEAKER implies. The LISTENER infers. The DUDE abides.

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October is the 10th month. ‘October’ means “8th month.” In the first calendar used in ancient Rome, the year had only ten months, starting in March and ending in December. The extra period between December and March was not considered part of the series of months.

'Autumn' entered English in the 1300s. "The fall of the leaves" was shortened to 'fall' in the 1600s.

He’s a tin, but he can’t spell.

It looks like this is from the 11th printing, 2013. Great find, though!

Unabridged: The etymology of 'bucket list'

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Remember, ‘fewer’ is generally used when you’re talking about a smaller number of things that can be counted. Use ‘more’ when you want to indicate a larger number.

IMPORTANT: You can use the word 'autumnal' today.

‘Doll’ probably comes from a nickname for ‘Dorothy.’ For those asking, our American Girl Doll is Molly.

Ok, who has the most mortifying typo in an email/text? Please show your work. Top 3 get an M-W Sweatshirt.

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She's a 10, but she corrects people's grammar.

TW: POTTY WORDS ‘Pee’ meaning “urinate" was originally just the letter P. The P was short for ‘p*ss.’ Also, 'p*ss' originated in Latin, and is thought to be an onomatopoeia for the sound it makes.

We decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows.

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Why is 'lb' the abbreviation for 'pound'?

Not to brag, but our product has been foldable since 1828.

Silent movies often featured chase scenes, which were often the most exciting/interesting scenes. So, ‘cut to the chase’ came to mean “get to the important part.”

*Slams dictionary shut til Tuesday*

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‘Pundit’ comes from the Hindi word ‘paṇḍit,’ a term of respect for a wise person. Its ultimate source is the Sanskrit word ‘paṇḍita,’ meaning “learned.” It now usually means…something different.

macabre = “muh-KAHB” Worcestershire = “WOOSS-ter-sheer” omnipotent = “ahm-NI-puh-tunt” reticent = “RET-uh-sunt” epitome = “ih-PIT-uh-mee” myriad = "MEER-ee-ud" Never make fun of someone if they mispronounce a word. It means they learned it by reading.

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The Greek ‘xylo-’ means “wood.” The Greek ‘-phone’ means “voice.” Xylophones were originally made of wood and created sounds. So there you go.

M-W