Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 5, 2020 is:

rendition • \ren-DISH-un\  • noun

: the act or result of rendering something: such as

a : a performance or interpretation of something

b : depiction

c : translation

d : surrender; specifically, US law : the surrender by a state of a fugitive to another state charging the fugitive with a crime : interstate extradition

Examples:

"Still, Cosme is bound to offer the 'hood plenty of surprises, including a mescal-spiked, cactus-studded rendition of Manhattan clam chowder." — Jeff Gordinier, The New York Times, 2 Sept. 2014

"The best part is the vast majority of adults will love [Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse]. Most know who Spider-Man is. We've seen many different renditions of this superhero." — Andrew McManus, The Portsmouth (Ohio) Daily Times, 27 Apr. 2020

Did you know?

Rendition entered English in the early 17th century and can be traced to the Middle French word reddition and ultimately to the Latin verb reddere, meaning "to return." The English verb render is another descendant of reddere, so perhaps it is no surprise that rendition fundamentally means "the act or result of rendering." English speakers also once adopted reddition itself (meaning either "restitution, surrender" or "elucidation"), but that word has mostly dropped out of use. Incidentally, if you've guessed that surrender is also from the same word family, you may be right; surrender derives in part from the Anglo-French rendre, which likely influenced the alteration of reddition to rendition.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 4, 2020 is:

posture • \PAHSS-cher\  • verb

1 : to cause to assume a given posture : pose

2 : to assume a posture; especially : to strike a pose for effect

3 : to assume an artificial or pretended attitude : attitudinize

Examples:

"During the rut, grabbing a bite to eat was an afterthought for bucks, but right now and in the weeks to come, choosing a prime food source is key to their survival. Sure … bucks are still banging antlers and posturing to prove who's boss. But this is all happening at, or around, the best food sources in the area." — Scott Bestul, Field & Stream, 6 Jan. 2020

"It's also been assumed that a rift exists between Elway and Harris, but according to the player, that couldn't be further from the truth, despite the two being postured as adversaries over contracts and money." — Chad Jensen, Sports Illustrated, 11 Jan. 2020

Did you know?

The Latin verb ponere, meaning "to put" or "to place," had a role in putting quite a few English terms into place, including component, dispose, expose, impose, oppose, posit, position, positive, postpone, and, yes, posture. The past participle of ponere—positus—gave Latin the noun positura, which has the same meaning as the English noun posture. Positura passed through Italian and Middle French and was finally adopted by English speakers as posture in the late 16th century. The verb posture later developed from the noun, finding its place in English at around the midpoint of the 17th century.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 3, 2020 is:

compunction • \kum-PUNK-shun\  • noun

1 a : anxiety arising from awareness of guilt

b : distress of mind over an anticipated action or result

2 : a twinge of misgiving : scruple

Examples:

"A big reason why Illinois' population continues to plummet is that college-age youth feel no compunction at all about heading out of state for college." — editorial board, The Chicago Tribune, 22 Feb. 2020

"Roses can get old and sick, and there are better varieties to try. I have no compunction ripping out a rose that no longer works for me." — Adrian Higgins, The Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2020

Did you know?

An old proverb says "a guilty conscience needs no accuser," and it's true that the sting of a guilty conscience—or a conscience that is provoked by the contemplation of doing something wrong—can prick very hard indeed. The sudden guilty "prickings" of compunction are reflected in the word's etymological history. Compunction comes (via Anglo-French compunction and Middle English compunccioun) from Latin compungere, which means "to prick hard" or "to sting." Compungere, in turn, derives from pungere, meaning "to prick," which is the ancestor of some other prickly words in English, such as puncture and even point.