underwhelm

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The Word of the Day for April 27 is:

underwhelm   \un-der-WELM\   verb
     : to fail to impress or stimulate

Example sentence: 
      The figure skater's lackluster performance underwhelmed the judges. 

Did you know? 
     "Overwhelm" and its rare synonym "whelm" have both been around since the 
14th century, but "underwhelm" first appeared in print in 1949. Both 
"overwhelm" and "whelm" are derived from the Middle English "whelmen," which is 
perhaps an alteration of "whelven" ("to turn over" or "to cover up"). 
"Underwhelm" is fashioned after "overwhelm" and probably originated as a 
playful alteration intended as a mildly humorous way of describing something 
unimpressive. More than one person claims the distinction of having invented 
"underwhelm"; several sources attribute it to the playwright George S. Kaufman, 
but sports columnist Red Smith is quoted as believing he coined the word 
himself, and still other sources cite other potential creators. Chances are 
that the word was in fact coined by more than one inventive writer.





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