Word of the Day Holiday Poem Contest

The end of the year is almost here, and we’d like to celebrate by inviting you to write a poem inspired by our Word of the Day site.

Prize: The winner will receive a $100 global Virtual Visa gift card. Runners-up (those are the top people whose poems we like but who do not write the one winning poem) will receive $25 global Virtual Visa gift cards. Winning poems will also be published on our site, daily.wordreference.com. We will announce the winners on Friday, December 23.

Click “Continue reading” for more information!

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Introducing the Basic+ Word of the Day!

Dear Word of the Day readers,

We wanted to let you know that on Monday we launched the Basic+ Word of the Day. The Word of the Day you have been receiving will not change, but to keep things clear, we will now call it the Intermediate+ Word of the Day (yes, we know many of you are advanced; we chose this name because our goal with this Word of the Day is to write content that intermediate users can understand, even though there should always be plenty for advanced speakers of English to learn as well).

The new Basic+ Word of the Day is for people who are learning the foundations of English. Even if you are a more advanced learner, you might enjoy the videos we post, so check it out! To sign up for daily emails for the Basic+ Word of the Day, use the form on the right side of our Word of the Day site. And please, tell your friends! We have big plans for more Word of the Day content at all levels, but we can achieve our goals only with your help.

Thank you for your continued support!

Sincerely,

The WordReference Word of the Day Team

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Word of the Day: lobby

In architecture, a lobby is an entrance hall that works as an anteroom or foyer. In terms of politics, a lobby is ‘a group of people who try to influence government officials to vote in favor of a special interest.’ Related to this, the verb to lobby means ‘to try to influence the actions or votes of someone,’ and also…

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Word of the Day: leak

A leak is a hole through which liquid, gas, or light enters or escapes and, figuratively, it is the release of secret information by an unknown source. To leak means ‘to let liquid, gas or light enter or escape through a hole’ and also ‘to let secret information become known’…

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Word of the Day: poll

A poll is a sampling of opinions on a subject taken from a group of people and analysed. A poll is also the act of voting in an election and the number of votes cast or the numerical result of the voting. Polls, usually in the plural, are the places where the voting takes place. As a verb, to poll is to ask questions about a subject, as well as to receive votes at the polls…

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Word of the Day: loop

A loop is any thread, cord, rope, etc. folded upon itself so as to leave a circular opening between the parts. In computing, a loop is the repetition of instructions in a program. Informally, we call a group or network of people who have access to inside information the loop…

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A Note From WordReference

Dear Word of the Day subscribers, In an effort to improve Word of the Day so we will be able to continue funding it for years to come, we are moving to the platform that WordReference knows best: a website. Our new home is daily.wordreference.com. During the transition, your daily email will probably be a … Read more

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Word of the Day: squat

To squat means ‘to crouch or sit with your legs bent closely beneath or in front of your body,’ as when hiding or cowering. The related noun squat can be either the position or the act of squatting…

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Word of the Day: embrace

To embrace means ‘to hug,’ ‘to take someone in your arms,’ or more generally, ‘to enclose or surround’ (though in these senses it is a bit formal)…

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