It's the Word of the Day podcast for December 28th.

Today's word is condone, spelled C-O-N-D-O-N-E.

Condone is a verb. To condone something that is considered wrong is to forgive or approve it or to allow it

to continue. Here's the word used in a sentence from health.com by Sherry Gordon. Remaining quiet is the

same as condoning bad behavior. Choose to say or do something as this will help hold people

accountable for their words and actions and encourage

others to follow your lead. If you're among folks who don't condone even what they consider

minor usage slips, you might want to hew to the more established meaning of the word condone.

Although English speakers sometimes use condone to mean

encourage or approve of, as in officials accused of condoning corruption, some people feel strongly

that it should only mean something closer to pardon or overlook. Condone comes from the Latin

verb condonare, which means to absolve. Condonare, in turn, combines the Latin prefix com,

indicating thoroughness, and donare, meaning to give.

Not surprisingly, donare is also the source of our words, donate and pardon.

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

Visit Miriamwebster.com today for definitions, wordplay, and trending word lookups.