scurrilous

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The Word of the Day for March 14 is: 

scurrilous   \SKUR-uh-lus\   adjective
     1 a : using or given to coarse language  b : vulgar and evil
    *2 : containing obscenities, abuse, or slander 

Example sentence:
     I wondered why the man next to me kept making scurrilous remarks about the 
speaker under his breath.

Did you know?
     "Scurrilous" (and its much rarer relation "scurrile," which has the same 
meaning) comes from Middle French "scurrile." The Middle French word, in turn, 
comes from the Latin "scurrilis," from "scurra," which means "buffoon" or 
"jester." Fittingly, 18th-century lexicographer Samuel Johnson defined 
"scurrilous" as "using such language as only the licence [sic] of a buffoon 
could warrant." Qualities traditionally associated with buffoonery -- 
vulgarity, irreverence, and indecorousness -- are qualities often invoked by 
the word "scurrilous." Unlike the words of a jester, however, "scurrilous" 
language of the present day more often intends to seriously harm or slander 
than to produce a few laughs.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence. 




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