This week’s theme
Words related to the names of planets

This week’s words
saturnine
mercurial
jovial
earthy
martial

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(JOH-vee-uhl)

MEANING:

adjective: Cheerful; good-humored.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin jovialis (of Jupiter), from Jov- (Jupiter). The word Jupiter is from Latin Jovis pater (father Jove). The planet Jupiter is named after the Roman god Jupiter and those born under the influence of this planet were supposed to be good-humored. Ultimately from the Indo-European root dyeu- (to shine) that is also the source of diva, divine, Jupiter, Jove, July, Zeus, and Sanskrit deva (god). Earliest documented use: 1590.

USAGE:

“The mood on the tour had gone from jovial and light to brutal inside an hour.”
Brad Lavigne; 'From Jovial to Brutal'; Maclean's (Toronto, Canada); Nov 25, 2013.

See more usage examples of jovial in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: