vivacious

<font size="-1" face="arial, helvetica"> <p> <strong> <font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 10, 2020 is:</font> </strong> </p> <p> <strong>vivacious</strong> &#149; \vuh-VAY-shus\&nbsp; &#149; <em>adjective</em><br /> <p><strong>:</strong> lively in temper, conduct, or spirit <strong>:</strong> <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sprightly">sprightly</a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Examples:</strong><br /> <p>The host was a <em>vivacious</em> woman with a knack for making people feel comfortable.</p> <p>"<em>Totoro</em>, the story of two young girls and the wood spirits they befriend, is <em>vivacious</em> and warmhearted, trafficking in the everyday magic and fertile imagination of childhood." — <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/05/movies/best-movies-hbo-max.html">Jason Bailey, <em>The New York Times</em>, 5 June 2020</a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Did you know?</strong><br /> <p>It's no surprise that <em>vivacious</em> means "full of life," since it can be traced back to the Latin verb <em>vivere</em>, meaning "to live." The word was created around the mid-17th century using <em>vivax</em>, a <em>vivere</em> derivative meaning "long-lived, vigorous, or high-spirited." Other descendants of <em>vivere</em> in English include <em><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/survive">survive</a></em>, <em><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/revive">revive</a></em>, and <em><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/victual">victual</a></em>—all of which came to life during the 15th century—and <em><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vivid">vivid</a></em> and <em><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/convivial">convivial</a></em>, both of which surfaced around the same time as <em>vivacious</em>. Somewhat surprisingly, the word <em><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/live">live</a></em> is not related; it comes to us from the Old English wo