Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 7, 2026 is:





libertine • \LIB-er-teen\ • noun

A libertine is in broad terms a person who is unrestrained by convention or morality. More narrowly, the word describes someone who leads an immoral life.

// The legend of Don Juan depicts him as a playboy and libertine.

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Examples:

"As horrifying as some of the sins of Victorian scholarship may have been, it would have been anathema to these students of classical philosophy to simply throw out Plato. But that's what some of their modern inheritors have tried to do. … It's worth noting that we might not have Plato's work at all, were it not carefully studied and preserved by the Islamic scholars (hardly libertines themselves) of the medieval period." — R. Bruce Anderson, The Ledger (Lakeland, Florida), 1 Feb. 2026





Did you know?

"I only ask to be free," says Mr. Skimpole in Charles Dickens' Bleak House. His words would undoubtedly have appealed to the world's first libertines. The word libertine comes from the Latin lībertīnus, a word used in early writings of Roman antiquity to describe a formerly enslaved person who had been set free (the Roman term for an emancipated person was the Latin lībertus). Middle English speakers used libertine to refer to a freedman, but by the late 1500s its meaning was extended to freethinkers, both religious and secular, and it later came to imply that an individual was a little too unrestrained, especially in moral affairs. The likely Latin root of libertine is līber, the ultimate source of our word liberty.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 6, 2026 is:





vaunted • \VAWN-tud\ • adjective

Vaunted describes someone or something that is often spoken of or described as very good or great.

// The team’s vaunted defense faltered in the second half of the game.

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Examples:

“After much initial hype, the much vaunted new production partnership fizzled out after just two seasons, leaving the franchise scrambling for a new direction and without a lead actor in its signature role.” — Lacy Baugher, Den of Geek, 22 Jan. 2026





Did you know?

The verb vaunt has been used since the 15th century with the meaning “to make a vain display of one’s own worth or attainments”—in other words, “to brag or boast.” Over time, vaunt developed the meaning “to boast of (a particular thing),” as in “the promotional flier vaunts the natural beauty of the area,” and that use gave rise to the adjectival form vaunted. The history of vaunt and vaunted leads back to the Latin word vānus, with the meanings “lacking content, empty, illusory, marked by foolish or empty pride.” The word vain itself is also a descendant of vānus.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 5, 2026 is:





deem • \DEEM\ • verb

Deem is a somewhat formal word used when someone comes to think something or to have something as an opinion after some consideration.

// The covered bridge was closed to automobile traffic for the winter because town officials deemed it a hazard to motorists.

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Examples:

“bbno$ is an artist who has certainly taken some flak over the years for his style. Some find it to be a gimmick, while others deem it corny. Despite this, he does have a pretty sizable fanbase.” — Alexander Cole, HotNewHipHop.com, 10 Jan. 2026





Did you know?

If you feel a sense of doom when asked to define deem, we’re here with some details for your dome (sense 7). While today deem is used generally as a synonym of consider (as in “a movie deemed appropriate for all ages”), its origins are more formal, coming specifically from the realm of law. The oldest meaning of deem, which comes from the Old English verb dēman (relative of dōm, meaning “doom”) is “to sit in judgment upon,” as employed by Edmund Spenser in The Faerie Queen: “... at th’one side six Judges were dispos’d, / To view and deem the deeds of arms that day.” This sense was obsolete by the early 17th century, and other senses including “to expect or hope” have come and gone, but deem’s use overall has never dimmed. In fact, today’s most common meaning of “to come to think or judge something; to consider” has also been in use since Old English and is still deemed quite common.

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 4, 2026 is:





ad hoc • \AD-HOCK\ • adjective

Ad hoc describes something that is formed or used for a special purpose, or that is made or done without planning because of an immediate need.

// An ad hoc committee was formed to investigate the matter.

// The company will hire more staff on an ad hoc basis.

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Examples:

"At the centre of the plan were tools designed to help governments and councils move beyond ad hoc responses to extreme weather." — Kirsty Johnston, The New Zealand Herald, 31 Jan. 2026





Did you know?

In Latin ad hoc literally means "for this," and in English the term describes anything that can be thought of as existing "for this purpose only." For example, an ad hoc committee is generally authorized to look into a single matter of limited scope, not to broadly pursue any issue of interest. Ad hoc can also be used as an adverb meaning "for the particular end or case at hand without consideration of wider application," as in "decisions were made ad hoc."

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 3, 2026 is:





spiel • \SPEEL\ • noun

A spiel is a fast speech that someone has often said before and that is usually intended to persuade people to buy something or to agree to something.

// The founder gave us a long spiel about the benefits of joining the running club.

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Examples:

“We were in a hotel and when he and his publicist exited one door of the suite, I slipped out the other to meet him at the elevator. I gave him my spiel about the film and handed him a rough cut on VHS. He said, ‘Alright, we’ll take a look.’” — Ed Burns, quoted in The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Jan. 2026





Did you know?

Here’s our spiel on spiel: it’s well-known as a noun, and you may also be aware that spiel can be used as a verb meaning “to talk extravagantly,” but did you know that the verb can also mean “to play music”? That, in fact, is the word’s original meaning, and one it shares with its German root, spielen. Spiel is also found in glockenspiel, the name of a musical instrument similar to the xylophone.