fuliginous

<font size="-1" face="arial, helvetica"> <p> <strong> <font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 1, 2023 is:</font> </strong> </p> <p> <strong>fuliginous</strong> &#149; \fyoo-LIJ-uh-nus\&nbsp; &#149; <em>adjective</em><br /> <p><em>Fuliginous</em> is a formal adjective that is synonymous with <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sooty"><em>sooty</em></a>; it describes things related to, containing, or producing soot. It can also describe things that are figuratively sooty—that is, dark or murky, as in "fuliginous soul"—as well as things that are dark or sooty in color, from crystals and insects to the plumage of some bird species. </p> <p>// <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stringent">Stringent</a> environmental regulations eventually helped the city rid itself of the <em>fuliginous</em> haze that had plagued its citizens for decades.</p> <p>// The infamous journalist has a <em>fuliginous</em> prose style that’s not exactly ideal for general audiences.</p> <p><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fuliginous">See the entry ></a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Examples:</strong><br /> <p>"This latter-day Solomon remarked upon the atmospheric conditions he encountered ... a choking smoke that prompted him to cover his mouth and nostrils with a handkerchief. This exercise proved futile as he ventured into the <em>fuliginous</em> town where 'there was literally nothing for it but to breathe chimney smoke, or to turn and flee to purer air before it was too late.'" — Mervyn Edwards, <em>The Stoke Sentinel</em> (Stoke-on-Trent, England), 17 June 2023</p> </p> <p> <strong>Did you know?</strong><br /> <p><em>Fuliginous</em> is a word with a dark and dirty past—it comes from <em>fuligo</em>, the Latin word for "<a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/soot">soot</a>," a substance formed by combustion or separated from fuel during combustion, that rises in the air in fine particles, such