Bombinate - plus, check out the trending words

[Merriam-Webster]( WORD OF THE DAY [November 20, 2017](#none) bombinate [Audio pronunciation]( verb | BAHM-buh-nayt Definition : to make a sustained deep murmuring, humming, or buzzing sound : [buzz](, [drone]( Scroll down for more about bombinate WORD GAMES AND QUIZZES: WEEKLY CHALLENGE [Find the Cousins]( Identify the word pairs with a common ancestor [PLAY NOW]( Nailed this quiz? We have plenty more to try! [TAKE ME THERE [>]]( Plus: [SEE WHAT LOOKUPS ARE TRENDING NOW! [>]]( Did You Know? Bombinate sounds like it should be the province of bombastic blowhards who bound up and bombard you with droning blather at parties—and it is. The word derives from the Greek word bombos, a term that probably originated as an imitation of a deep, hollow sound (the kind we would likely refer to as "booming" nowadays). Latin speakers rendered the original Greek form as bombus, and that root gave forth a veritable din of raucous English offspring, including not only bombinate, but also [bomb](, [bombard](, and [bound]( ("a leap or jump"). However, Latin bombus is not a direct ancestor of [bombastic](, which traces to bombyx, a Greek name for the silkworm. Examples of BOMBINATE The only sounds Jared could hear in the office that night were those of his own typing and the air conditioner bombinating. "Black-marketeers and scalpers began buzzing around the theatres, bombinating ceaselessly, … 'Ten-for-five, ten-for five, ten-for-five.'" — Rohinton Mistry, Such a Long Journey, 1991 Name That Synonym Fill in the blanks to complete a synonym of bombinate: b _ m _ _ e. [VIEW THE ANSWER [>]]( WORDS WE'RE WATCHING What's a 'Silver Fox'? Attractive? Clever? Both? [FIND OUT [>]]( MORE WORD FUN: [WORD GAMES [>]]( [TRENDING NOW [>]]( [WORDS AT PLAY [>]]( FOLLOW US: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( [Pinterest]( SHARE: [Facebook][Facebook]( [Twitter][Twitter]( [View this email in a web browser]( You are receiving this email because you opted in to receive the Merriam-Webster Word of the Day. [Unsubscribe from Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day]( [Manage your subscription settings]( Merriam-Webster, Inc. 47 Federal Street P.O. Box 281 Springfield, MA 01102 [www.merriam-webster.com](