- Today's Word
Eminent
EM-uh-nuhnt
Definition
(adjective) Famous and respected within a particular profession or field.
Example
The eminent scientist was invited to speak at the international conference.
Fun Fact
Eminent comes from the Latin root meaning “to stand out,” and it’s been applied to everything from clergy titles to land rights (think “eminent domain”). In popular culture, you’ll often see it used to describe intellectuals, critics, or medical experts—people who are considered top-tier in their fields. It signals a reputation built on achievement, not just popularity.
(noun/verb) A gentle, continuous murmuring sound made by water or a person speaking rapidly and excitedly.
The hikers followed the burble of the stream through the dense forest long before they could see it, the sound guiding them toward water and rest.
Burble is an example of onomatopoeia — a word whose sound imitates the thing it describes. It emerged in Middle English as an imitative word for the sound of bubbling or gurgling water, related to the Old French borboiller, meaning “to bubble.” Lewis Carroll famously used it in Jabberwocky — “the Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, came whiffling through the tulgey wood, and burbled as it came” — cementing its place in the English literary imagination as a word that sounds exactly like what it means.