lambent

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The Word of the Day for February 25 is:

lambent   \LAM-bunt\   adjective 
     1 : playing lightly on or over a surface : flickering 
    *2 : softly bright or radiant 
     3 : marked by lightness or brilliance especially of expression 

Example sentence: 
     On a warm, clear night, Roger and Theresa strolled through the park 
beneath the lambent glow of the moon.

Did you know? 
     Fire is frequently associated with lapping or licking imagery: flames are 
often described as "tongues" that "lick." "Lambent," which first appeared in 
English in the 17th century, is a part of this tradition, coming from 
"lambens," the present participle of the Latin verb "lambere," meaning "to 
lick." In its earliest uses, "lambent" meant "playing lightly over a surface," 
"gliding over," or "flickering." These uses were usually applied to flames or 
light, and by way of that association, the term eventually came to be used to 
describe things with a radiant or brilliant glow, as Alexander Pope used it in 
his 1717 poem "Eloisa to Abelard": "Those smiling eyes, attemp'ring ev'ry ray, 
Shone sweetly lambent with celestial day."





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