steadfast

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

语言学习

2024-11-16

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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 16, 2024 is: steadfast STED-fast adjective What It Means Someone described as steadfast is very devoted or loyal to a person, belief, or cause. Steadfast is also used to describe something, such as support, that remains unchanging. // Despite the singer’s recent change in creative direction, his true fans have remained steadfast. cynosure in Context "Describing the slowness of change is often confused with acceptance of the status quo. It's really the opposite: an argument that the status quo must be changed, and it will take steadfast commitment to see the job through. It's not accepting defeat; it's accepting the terms of possible victory." — Rebecca Solnit, LitHub.com, 11 Jan. 2024 Did You Know? Steadfast has held its ground for many centuries. Its Old English predecessor, stedefæst, combines stede, meaning "place," and fæst, meaning "fixed." Steadfast was first used in battle contexts to describe warriors who literally stood their ground, which led to its "immovable" sense, as when Sinclair Lewis wrote of "a castle, steadfast among storms." (The word was also once used to describe steady hands, as well as substances that keep their solid, firm state.) These senses were soon joined by one applied to people's character, implying unswerving faith, loyalty, or devotion; arriving in the 12th century, this meaning has remained steady in the English language ever since.
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  • It's the word of the day for November 16th.

  • Today's word is steadfast, spelled as one word, S-T-E-A-D-F-A-S-T.

  • Steadfast is an adjective.

  • Someone described as steadfast is very devoted or loyal to a person, belief, or cause.

  • Steadfast is also used to describe something such as support that remains unchanging.

  • Here's the word used in a sentence from lithub.com by Rebecca Solnit.

  • Describing the slowness of change is often confused with acceptance of the status quo.

  • It's really the opposite,

  • an argument that the status quo must be changed and it will take steadfast commitment to see the job through.

  • It's not accepting defeat, it's accepting the terms of possible victory.

  • Steadfast has held its ground for many centuries.

  • In Old English, its predecessor, Steadfast, combines stayed, meaning place, and fast, meaning fixed.

  • Steadfast was first used in battle contexts to describe warriors who literally stood their ground,

  • which led to its immovable sense, as when Sinclair Lewis wrote of a castle steadfast among storms.

  • The word was also once used to describe steady hands,

  • as well as substances that keep their solid, firm state.

  • These senses were soon joined by one applied to people's character,

  • implying unswerving faith, loyalty, or devotion.

  • Arriving in the 12th century, this meaning has remained steady in the English language ever since.

  • With your word of the day, I'm Peter Sokolowski.