- Today's Word
Cloudwhim
[klaud wim]
Definition
- (noun) The fanciful or imaginative shapes and stories that one perceives in cloud formations. It encapsulates the human tendency to find meaningful patterns or figures in the randomness of clouds, a practice that ignites the imagination and sparks creativity. Whether seeing a dragon, castle, or a ship sailing across the sky, cloudwhim highlights the playful interaction between the human mind and the natural world.
Example
Lying on their backs in the park, the children engaged in a game of cloudwhim, competing to see who could spot the most elaborate figure in the fluffy white canvases drifting above.
Fun Fact
The human brain’s tendency to seek patterns in randomness, known as pareidolia, is the reason we can enjoy activities like cloudwhim. This cognitive phenomenon is also why people can see faces in inanimate objects or interpret the moon’s craters as human features. Engaging in cloudwhim not only showcases this fascinating aspect of human perception but also encourages creativity and a deepened appreciation for the natural beauty that surrounds us every day.
(verb) To criticize someone or something severely and publicly, often with harsh or scathing language.
The columnist excoriated the company’s leadership for ignoring repeated safety warnings.
Excoriate comes from the Latin excoriare, meaning “to strip off the skin,” from ex- (“off”) and corium (“hide” or “skin”). While the word originally described physical abrasion, its meaning shifted metaphorically over time to describe verbal attacks so harsh they feel skin-deep, leaving nothing protected.