Ziggurat - plus, try our new Difficult Spelling Words II Quiz

[Merriam-Webster] WORD OF THE DAY [December 5, 2016] ziggurat [Audio pronunciation] noun | ZIG-uh-rat Definition : an ancient [Mesopotamian] temple tower consisting of a lofty [pyramidal] structure built in successive stages with outside staircases and a shrine at the top; also : a structure or object of similar form Scroll down for more about ziggurat WORD GAMES AND QUIZZES: WEEKLY CHALLENGE [Difficult Spelling Words II] 15 more tricky words to spell. [PLAY NOW] Nailed this quiz? We have plenty more to try! [TAKE ME THERE [>]] Plus: [SEE WHAT LOOKUPS ARE TRENDING NOW! [>]] Did You Know? French professor of archaeology François Lenormant spent a great deal of time poring over ancient [Assyrian] texts. In those [cuneiform] inscriptions, he recognized a new language, now known as [Akkadian], which proved valuable to the understanding of ancient Mesopotamian civilization. Through his studies, he became familiar with the Akkadian word for the towering Mesopotamian temples: ziqqurratu. In 1877 he came out with Chaldean Magic, a scholarly exposition on the mythology of the [Chaldeans], an ancient people who lived in what is now Iraq. In his work, which was immediately translated into English, he introduced the word ziggurat to the modern world in his description of the ziggurat of the Iraqi palace of Khorsabad. Examples of ZIGGURAT "The building itself is certainly distinctive: The bronze-meshed ziggurat moves upwards toward the sky and into the light." — Lisa Benton-Short, GWToday (gwtoday.gwu.edu, George Washington University), 10 Oct. 2016 "The opulence remains in Barbara de Limburg's expansive sets, but the dramatic point is the contrast of the family's poverty with the consumerist [rapacity] suggested by the Witch's lair—not the usual gumdrop-bedecked gingerbread house but a towering ziggurat of brightly packaged junk food…." — Gavin Borchart, The Seattle Weekly, 19 Oct. 2016 Test Your Vocabulary Unscramble the letters to create the name for a temple tower found in eastern Asia: ADOAGP. [VIEW THE ANSWER [>]] ASK THE EDITOR How to Use the Subjunctive in English If I were you, I'd watch this. [WATCH OUR VIDEO NOW [>]] 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]