rictus

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The Word of the Day for February 20 is:

rictus   \RIK-tus\   noun
     1 : the gape of a bird's mouth 
     2 a : the mouth orifice *b: a gaping grin or grimace

Example sentence: 
     Randy's face contorted into a rictus that made his promise to keep 
Phoebe's secret seem insincere.

Did you know?
     When "rictus" was first used in English in the early 19th century, it 
referred to the hole formed by the mouth of a bird. Later, it was applied to 
the mouths of other animals, including humans. In Latin "rictus" means "an open 
mouth"; it comes from verb "ringi," which means "to open the mouth." In 
English, "rictus" eventually acquired a sense referring to the expression of 
someone grinning widely, as in Lawrence Durrell's 1957 novel _Justine_: "This 
ghastly _rictus_ gouged out in his taut cheeks." Although "rictus" might be 
used to describe the mouth of a laughing or smiling person, it is not related 
to "risible," a word associated with laughter. Rather, "risible" descends from 
Latin "ridere," which means "to laugh."





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