Word Girl

This was in my home e-mail inbox today. If I didn't know better, I'd think Noah Webster was mocking me from his grave because of my recently developed dislike of this particular word when overused in popular literature.

Oddly enough, the "Word of the Day" etymology hit the nail on the head. "Yes," I thought, "As a matter of fact, this word does make me scowl." But, not because its origin seems uncertain.

By the way, you should sign up for your "Word of the Day."



Merriam-Webster’s
Word of the Day

glower
\GLOW-er (the OW is as in "cow")

verb
Meaning
: to look or stare with sullen annoyance or anger

Example Sentence
I could sense Katherine glowering at me after I took her usual parking spot.

Did you know?
Do words of uncertain origin make you scowl? If so, "glower" may put a frown on your face, because only part of its history can be validated. The well-established part of its story leads us to Scotland, where "glower" (or "glowren," to use the older Scottish form of the word) has been used since the late Middle Ages. Originally, the word meant simply "to look intently" or "to stare in amazement," but by the late 1700s, glowering stares were being associated with anger instead of astonishment. Beyond that, however, the history of the word is murky. The most we can say is that "glower" is a distant relative of Middle Low German "glūren," which means "to be overcast," and of Middle Dutch "gloeren," meaning "to leer."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.