This week's theme
Words to describe people

This week's words
mossback
misanthrope
bon vivant
autodidact
magnifico

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(mag-NIF-i-ko)

MEANING:

noun: A person of high rank or position.

ETYMOLOGY:

Earlier magnifico was an honorary title applied to Venetian noblemen. From Italian magnifico (magnificent), from Latin magnus (great). Ultimately from the Indo-European root meg- (great), which is also the source of magnificent, maharajah, master, mayor, maestro, magnate, magistrate, maximum, magnify, mickle, mahatma, and magnanimous. Earliest documented use: 1573.

USAGE:

"All the magnificos emerge looking banally ordinary."
Peter Schjeldahl; Beasts: The Art World; The New Yorker; May 17, 2010.

See more usage examples of magnifico in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: