Today's Word

Razzmatazz

[RAZ-muh-taz]

Definition

(noun) Exciting action or impression intended to attract and impress people. It often describes elaborate or showy display, fanfare, or flashy technique used to dazzle an audience.

Example

The new Broadway show was full of razzmatazz, with dazzling costumes, spectacular dance numbers, and over-the-top special effects that left the audience in awe.

Fun Fact

The word “razzmatazz” (also spelled “razzamatazz”) first appeared in American English in the early 20th century. Its exact origin is unclear, but it’s thought to be an elaborate variation of the word “razzle-dazzle,” which has a similar meaning. The term gained popularity in the world of entertainment, particularly in describing the flashy, attention-grabbing aspects of vaudeville and musical theater performances.

Previous Words

Acrimonious

Today's Word

Acrimonious

ak-rih-MOH-nee-us

Definition

(adjective) Angry and bitter in manner or tone; filled with ill will and resentment that makes any resolution feel impossible.

Example

The divorce proceedings were so acrimonious that the attorneys on both sides later said they’d never seen a settlement table that hostile — and both had been practicing for twenty years.

Word Origin

Acrimonious derives from the Latin acrimonia, meaning “sharpness” or “pungency” — from acer, meaning “sharp” or “keen.” The same root gives us acrid, acerbic, and acumen — all words built around the image of something pointed and penetrating. It entered English in the 17th century, initially describing sharp, biting speech before expanding into its broader sense of the bitter, resentful quality that poisons relationships and makes disagreement feel permanent rather than resolvable.

Fun Fact

The most acrimonious public feud in American literary history is arguably the decades-long war between Gore Vidal and Norman Mailer — two writers who seemed constitutionally incapable of sharing a cultural moment without attempting to destroy each other. Their disputes spilled from private correspondence into print, television appearances, and at least one notorious incident in which Mailer headbutted Vidal backstage before a live television appearance. Vidal’s response, delivered coolly on air moments later, became one of the most celebrated put-downs in broadcast history. The feud lasted until Mailer’s death in 2007 and produced more memorable prose than either man might have managed in a state of goodwill.

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Razzmatazz

Definition

Example

Previous Words

Acrimonious

Acrimonious

Definition

Example

Word Origin

Acrimonious

Bathetic

Welter

Supercilious

Pallid