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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

ancillary

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster

Arts, Literature, Language Courses, Education

4.31.2K Ratings

🗓️ 31 July 2023

⏱️ 2 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 31, 2023 is:

ancillary • \AN-suh-lair-ee\  • adjective

Ancillary is an adjective used in formal speech and writing as a synonym of supplementary to describe things that provide something additional to a main part or function of something else. Ancillary can also mean "of lower or secondary class or rank."

// One ancillary benefit of Beatrice's job at the movie theater is the ability to catch an early glimpse of new releases.

// Her job is to oversee the flagship store and its ancillary outlets.

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Examples:

"... The Mitre is a gorgeous Grade II-listed boutique hotel, set on the banks of the River Thames. Rebuilt in the mid-18th century, the building dates back to 1665 and was originally used as an ancillary accommodation for guests of King Charles II." — Joanne Shurvell, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2022

Did you know?

If you’re already familiar with ancillary, pull up a chair and help yourself to a side dish of trivia. The word comes from the Latin word ancilla, meaning "a female servant," which also gave us the rarer English word ancilla, meaning "an aid to achieving or mastering something difficult." While the English ancilla (which made its debut a couple of centuries after ancillary) is unlikely to be encountered except in very specialized contexts (such as philosophy or quantum computing), ancillary picks up on the notion of providing aid or support in a way that supplements something else. In particular, the word often describes something that is in a position of secondary importance, such as the "ancillary products in a company's line."



Transcript

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0:00.0

It's Merriam Webster's Word of the Day for July 31st.

0:11.4

Today's word is Anseleri, spelled A-N-C-I-L-L-A-R-Y. Anseleri is an adjective.

0:19.9

It's used in formal speech and writing as a synonym of the word supplementary to describe

0:25.1

things that provide something additional to a main part or function of something else.

0:31.2

Anseleri can also mean of lower or secondary class or rank.

0:35.2

Here's the word used in a sentence from Forbes.

0:38.9

The Miter is a gorgeous grade two listed boutique hotel set on the banks of the River Thames,

0:45.3

rebuilt in the mid-18th century.

0:47.5

The building dates back to 1665 and was originally used as an Anseleri accommodation for guests

0:54.1

of King Charles II.

0:56.8

If you're already familiar with the word Anseleri, pull up a chair and help yourself to a side

1:01.9

dish of trivia.

1:03.9

The word comes from the Latin word Ankila, meaning a female servant, which also gave

1:09.9

us the rarer word Ansela, meaning an aid to achieving or mastering something difficult.

1:17.6

While the English Ansela, which made its debut a couple of centuries after Anseleri, is

1:22.4

unlikely to be encountered except in very specialized contexts such as philosophy or

1:28.1

quantum computing, Anseleri picks up on the notion of providing aid or support in a way

1:34.5

that supplements something else.

1:36.7

In particular, the word often describes something that is in a position of secondary importance,

1:42.4

such as the Anseleri products and a company's line.

1:45.6

With your word of the day, I'm Peter Sokolowski.

1:52.3

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