It's the Word of the Day for September 26th.

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U.K. slash Wondery. That's audible.com.uk slash Wondery. That's audible.co.com.uk-slash-wondery. Today's word is

Gazuntite, spelled G-E-S-U-N-D-H-E-I-T. G-U-N-D-H-E-I-T. It's used to wish good health

to one who has just sneezed. Here's the word used in a sentence from the

Toronto Star. Personally, I did not like my husband's sneezing into his hand, so I stopped

saying Gazuntite whenever he did that. He now almost always sneezes into his elbow.

When English speakers hear a chew, they usually respond with either

Gazuntite or God bless you. Guzuntite was borrowed in the early 20th century from German,

where it literally means health. It was formed from Gazunt, meaning healthy, and height,

meaning hood, wishing a person good health, when they sneeze,

was historically believed to forestall the illness that a sneeze often portends. God bless you,

had a similar purpose, albeit with more divine weight to the well-wishing. Guzuntite at one time also served as a toast when drinking,

much like its English counterpart to your health,

but this use is now largely obsolete.

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

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