Today's Word

Natty

NAT-ee

Definition

(adjective) Neat, stylish, and fashionable in appearance.

Example

He arrived at the party looking especially natty in a velvet jacket and bow tie.

Fun Fact

Though natty may sound like a nickname, it’s actually been around since the 18th century to describe someone with an impeccable sense of style. Originally tied to British street fashion and military uniforms, it’s since become a word often used in style reviews, especially for men’s tailoring and vintage aesthetics.

Previous Words

Abate

Today's Word

Abate

uh-BAYT

Definition

(verb) To reduce in intensity, force, or amount; to become less severe or widespread.

Example

The protests didn’t end so much as abate — the crowds thinning gradually over three weeks until one morning the square was simply empty again.

Word Origin

Abate derives from the Old French abatre, meaning “to beat down” — built from a- (“to”) and batre (“to beat”), itself from the Latin battuere, meaning “to beat” or “to strike.” The same root gives us batter, battle, and combat — all words built around striking. The sense in abate is of something being beaten back, reduced, pushed down from its peak — not eliminated but diminished to something more manageable.

Fun Fact

In English law, abatement has a precise and ancient legal meaning — the right to remove a nuisance that affects one’s property or public space. The doctrine of abatement of nuisance dates to medieval common law and gives individuals and authorities the right to reduce or eliminate conditions that cause harm, from flooding to noise to unsafe structures. The legal phrase “abate a nuisance” has been used continuously in English courts for over six centuries — making abate one of the few words whose legal and everyday meanings have remained almost perfectly aligned across that entire period.

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Natty

Definition

Example

Previous Words

Abate

Abate

Definition

Example

Word Origin

Abate

Pugnacious

Vociferous

Dilatory

Resplendent