Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 15, 2026 is:





outlandish • \out-LAN-dish\ • adjective

Outlandish can describe things that are strikingly strange or unusual; in this use, it’s a synonym of bizarre. Outlandish can also describe things, such as claims, rumors, and accusations, that go beyond reasonable limits or standards.

// One of the author’s greatest strengths is her ability to write outlandish characters whose quirks remain lodged in readers’ minds long after they’ve finished the book.

// When asked to back up his outlandish claims, the mayor quickly changed the subject, all but admitting that he had no proof for his allegations.

See the entry >





Examples:

“In a successful book for children, no matter what outlandish stuff might be happening on the page, young readers will see their real emotions faithfully represented there ...” — Caroline Carson, Literary Hub, 3 Aug. 2026





Did you know?

For some, the grass isn’t necessarily greener on the other side of the fence—it may also be very, very strange. The side-eye that skeptical sorts cast toward visitors from parts yonder is embedded in the history of the ancient word outlandish. In Old English someone described as “outlandish” came from an outland, i.e., a foreign land. Within a few hundred years, outlandish had broadened in use to describe anything unfamiliar or strange. It’s now commonly applied to things—especially things people do, wear, or say—that are strikingly out of the ordinary, or even just beyond reasonable or proper limits or standards. But lest you mistake us for equating outlandish with wrong or bad, consider this line from a review of a Dr. Seuss book once published in Time: “Its illustrations are properly outlandish, and its verses are zany and catchy enough for many rereadings.”

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 14, 2026 is:





deportment • \dih-PORT-munt\ • noun

Deportment refers to the way in which one conducts oneself especially in a formal setting.

// The new students were instructed in proper dress and deportment.

See the entry >





Examples:

"The scholarship goes to a junior nursing student who has demonstrated 'academic achievement and abilities, promise as a future nurse, personal deportment and other outstanding characteristics,' the college said in a news release." — The Citizen (Auburn, New York), 24 June 2026





Did you know?

Deportment, like a number of English words, has its roots in Latin portare, meaning "to carry." Other portare descendants include such familiar terms as import ("to bring from an external source"), transport ("to bring from one place to another"), and portfolio, which by its oldest meaning refers to a case for carrying papers. In the case of deportment, the thing we "carry" is ourselves. Deportment can refer simply to one's demeanor, or it can refer to behavior formed by social conditioning and often conforming to conventional rules of propriety. A 17-year-old Emily Dickinson applied the latter meaning when she wrote to her brother, Austin: "Are you not gratified that I am so rapidly gaining correct ideas of female propriety and sedate deportment?"

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 13, 2026 is:





abscond • \ab-SKAHND\ • verb

To abscond is to leave, flee, or escape a place in secret and go into hiding. Often, someone is said to have absconded with something.

// It was mid-semester, when fantasies about absconding from school and leaving the stress of exams behind abound.

See the entry >





Examples:

“So having a variety of financial intermediaries is good. But they need to be regulated and supervised by objective parties using objective standards. If not, someone could open a bank, take deposits and abscond to a tropical isle.” — Edward Lotterman, The St. Paul (Minnesota) Pioneer Press, 23 Nov. 2025





Did you know?

In “Take the Money and Run,” a 1976 song by the Steve Miller Band, the singer punctuates a song about teenage bandits with the catchy refrain “Go on, take the money and run.” Granted, the song probably wouldn’t have charted had it been titled “Abscond,” but the meaning would have been the same. Abscond is a word most often used in formal contexts for when someone is running and hiding from the law, often with cash or other ill-gotten gains. In legal circles it’s used specifically when someone flies like an eagle from a jurisdiction to evade the legal process, as in “absconded from parole.” The history of abscond doesn’t evade scrutiny: it comes from the Latin verb abscondere, meaning “to hide away.” (That word’s root is condere, meaning “to conceal.”) Today, whether some joker absconds by going to the country to bury some treasure or by taking a jet airliner beyond the law’s reach, they are, in essence, hiding themselves away.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 12, 2026 is:





nexus • \NEK-sus\ • noun

A nexus is a relationship or connection between people or things. Nexus can also refer to a connected group or series or to the center or focus of something.

// The cultural district serves as a nexus for art and cuisine.

See the entry >





Examples:

“The eclectic costume design by Ryan Matthieu Smith suggests Eastern Europe at the nexus of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance: loosely fitting frocks and vests, layered and embroidered, and hats in myriad geometric shapes ...” — Manuel Mendoza, The Dallas Morning News, 1 Mar. 2026





Did you know?

If you’re unfamiliar with the word nexus, the popular, long-running video game series The Legend of Zelda provides an object lesson in its several definitions. When nexus came into English from Latin in the 17th century, it meant “connection” or “link.” Eventually, people began using it to refer to a connected group or series of things, as in “a nexus of relationships.” In recent decades it has taken on a third meaning, “center” or “hub,” perhaps from the notion that a point in the center of an arrangement serves to join together the objects that surround it. Now, one might plausibly say that the 20 Zelda games (not counting remakes and spin-offs) themselves form a nexus, as each represents an installment in a long, twisty saga with numerous echoes and callbacks to other games in the series. Most of these feature the fictional land of Hyrule, which often presents magical nexuses to shadowy alternate dimensions (1991’s A Link to the Past), the past (2011’s Skyward Sword), or the underworld (2023’s Tears of the Kingdom) that the hero, Link (ahem) must traverse. As for nexus’s third meaning, Hyrule’s map is nearly always situated around a central nexus, or hub, in the form of the castle where the titular Zelda lives. (If you’re into gaming or curious about its lingo, don’t miss the article “Popular Gaming Terms Explained”).

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for October 11, 2026 is:





galore • \guh-LOR\ • adjective

Galore is an informal adjective that describes something as being in large numbers or amounts. It is always used postpositively, that is, after a noun.

// The store promises bargains galore on Black Friday.

See the entry >





Examples:

“The rest of the home is filled with what Josh calls ‘love stuff,’ like an entire wall of family pictures, his mother’s recipe box, random heirlooms, and artwork galore, including his grandfather’s acid etching prints and three-dimensional pieces made by his mother … who worked in wood and papier-mâché.” — Meg McConahey, The Mercury News (San Jose, California), 1 July 2026





Did you know?

Galore means “in large numbers or amounts,” making it a synonym of useful words like abundant and plentiful. But its charm lies not in its meaning but in its sound and syntax. Galore doesn’t sound like familiar Germanic or Latinate words, and for good reason—it’s one of a small number of Irish borrowings, coming from go leor, meaning “enough.” It also takes an odd position in phrases: it’s used postpositively, which means that it follows the word or words it modifies. First defined in one our dictionaries way back in 1864, the word was for many years obscure and a bit of a conundrum. Limited evidence of the word in use, along with its unusual syntax, led to some editorial back-and-forth about whether galore was an adjective or adverb; one can see how in a phrase like “someone who has money galore” galore might have been interpreted as modifying the verb have rather than the noun money. But by the seventh edition of our Collegiate dictionary, published in 1963, enough evidence had accumulated to confidently declare galore an adjective. If you’re curious about the Great Galore Grammar Debate, this article has information galore.