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Mar 7, 2022
This week’s themeOverachievers from mythology This week’s words aphrodisiac titanic borasco vulcanic gorgonian 
“If this thing was an aphrodisiac, would I be sitting here talking to you
on a Friday night?”
Cartoon: Dan Piraro Previous week’s theme Hands 
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu GargLast month, we met five overachievers from mythology. Overachievers, because each of them has given us multiple eponyms (a word coined after a person). As promised, we’ve lined up these mythical characters again this week. You odyssey them again and discover other eponyms they have inspired. aphrodisiac
PRONUNCIATION:
(af-ruh-DEE-zee-ak, -DIZ-ee-ak)
MEANING:
noun: Something, such as a food or drug, that increases sexual desire. adjective: Arousing sexual desire. ETYMOLOGY:
After Aphrodite, the goddess
of love and beauty in Greek Mythology. Earliest documented use: 1710.
Another word coined after her is hermaphrodite.
USAGE:
“Writing gave [Jackie Collins] a power like no one else’s, the ultimate
aphrodisiac.” Hollywood Undressed; The Economist (London, UK); Sep 26, 2015. “’Everything I do at Lyon Broadcasting makes me very, very happy.’ ‘Ah.’ He nodded. ‘Success is your aphrodisiac, I guess.’” Roz Denny Fox; The Lyon Legacy; Harlequin; 2011. See more usage examples of aphrodisiac in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Nature's laws affirm instead of prohibit. If you violate her laws, you are
your own prosecuting attorney, judge, jury, and hangman. -Luther Burbank,
horticulturist (7 Mar 1849-1926)
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