élan
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What is the Word of the Day and how is it pronounced?
It's the Word of the Day podcast for August 4th. Today's word is élan, also pronounced élan and spelled E-L-A-N. There's an acute accent rising to the right on the letter E. Élan refers to energy and enthusiasm.
How is élan defined and what does it mean in everyday usage?
Here's the word used in a sentence from the New York Times. Carrying the production with the élan of a cheerful college quarterback... Luke Brady is an immediately likable leading man. Once upon a time, back in the early 1700s, English speakers did not have élan, the word that is, we've always had the potential for vigorous spirit.
What historical origins and earlier English terms led to the adoption of élan?
We had, however, the verb élance, meaning to throw, which was used for the launching of darts, javelins, and similar weaponry. Élance came from the Middle French s'élancer, meaning to rush, that is, to hurl oneself forth. Elance enjoyed only a short flight in English, falling into disuse by the mid-1800s, around which time English speakers picked up élan, another French word that traces back via the Middle French noun élan, meaning to rush, to élancer. We copied élan in form from the French, but we dispensed with the French sense of a literal rush or dash, retaining the sense of enthusiastic animation
How does the episode wrap up and who hosts the Word of the Day podcast?
that we sometimes also characterize as dash, spunk, or vim. With your word of the day, I'm Peter Sokolowski.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
What is the Word of the Day and how is it pronounced?
0:06–0:26
2
How is élan defined and what does it mean in everyday usage?
0:26–0:48
3
What historical origins and earlier English terms led to the adoption of élan?
0:48–1:32
4
How does the episode wrap up and who hosts the Word of the Day podcast?
1:32–1:49