quail

****************************************************************
Ready to tackle another Romance Language? Make your move
with Merriam-Webster's Spanish-English Dictionary!
http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/book.pl?spaneng.htm&1
****************************************************************

The Word of the Day for February 20 is:

quail   \KWAIL\   verb
     1 : to give way : falter 
    *2 : to recoil in dread or terror : cower 

Example sentence:
     Even though she quailed at the thought of rejection, Gwen asked Marcel out 
to dinner.

Did you know? 
     "Flinch," "recoil," and "wince" are all synonyms of "quail," but each word 
has a slightly different use. When you flinch, you fail to endure pain or to 
face something dangerous or frightening with resolution ("she faced her 
accusers without flinching"). "Recoil" implies a start or movement away from 
something through shock, fear, or disgust ("he recoiled at the suggestion of 
stealing"). "Wince" usually suggests a slight involuntary physical reaction to 
something ("she winced as the bright light suddenly hit her eyes"). "Quail" 
implies shrinking and cowering in fear ("he quailed before the apparition").

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.





You Are Subscribed As: gclw-mw-wod7@xxxxxxxxx
To unsubscribe, change your e-mail address or to subscribe to the html
version of Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day, featuring audio
pronunciations, please visit:

http://www.startsampling.com/sm/wod/changeofaddress.iphtml

(c) 2007 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated

Merriam-Webster, Inc.
47 Federal Street
P.O. Box 281
Springfield, MA 01102