- Today's Word
Unfledged
un-FLEJD
Definition
(adjective) Inexperienced or immature; not yet developed.
Example
The intern was talented but still unfledged in a high-pressure newsroom.
Fun Fact
Originally used to describe baby birds without feathers—unfledged later took on a figurative meaning to describe people lacking the “feathers” of experience. Shakespeare used it in Romeo and Juliet, and it still pops up today in political commentary or sports coverage, often with a mix of pity and hope. Think of it as the literary way to say, “You’re not quite ready yet.”
(adjective) Eager to argue or fight; aggressively defiant and quick to confront.
The truculent customer refused every solution the staff offered, seeming more interested in the argument itself than in any actual resolution.
Truculent comes from the Latin truculentus, meaning “fierce” or “savage,” derived from trux meaning “wild” or “cruel.” It entered English in the 16th century, initially describing something literally savage or brutal, before settling into its modern meaning of aggressive confrontational behavior and a hair-trigger readiness to fight or argue.