Word of the Day

: March 26, 2011

legerity

noun luh-JAIR-uh-tee

What It Means

: alert facile quickness of mind or body

legerity in Context

With legerity, the prefect noted that the man had just divulged information about the murder that had not been made public, and which placed him at the scene of the crime.

"I think, the results will not take long to appear, taking into account the legerity acquired by our leading bankers in recent years." -- From a blog entry on 24dash.com, January 30, 2011

Did You Know?

When "legerity" first appeared in English in 1561, it drew significantly upon the concept of being "light on one's feet," and appropriately so. It is derived from words in Middle and Old French and ultimately Latin that all mean "light in weight." These days, "legerity" can describe a nimbleness of mind as well as of the feet. A cousin of "legerity" in English is "legerdemain," meaning "sleight of hand" or "a display of skill or adroitness." "Legerdemain" comes from the French phrase "leger de main," meaning "light of hand."