Word of the Day

: June 21, 2014

oblivion

noun uh-BLIV-ee-un

What It Means

1 : the fact or condition of forgetting or having forgotten; especially : the condition of being oblivious

2 a : the condition or state of being forgotten or unknown

b : the state of being destroyed

oblivion in Context

After driving for 10 hours with the events of the past few days running repeatedly through her mind, Elyse was looking forward to the oblivion of sleep.

"Remember those dire warnings about how climate change might raise sea levels, mess up global ocean currents and generally screw us all over? Well, the wait for disaster to strike may soon be at an end-as a vast chunk of ice gets ready to release its hold on the Antarctic continent and slide into sweet oceanic oblivion." - Ben Gilliland, Metro (United Kingdom), May 19, 2014

Did You Know?

"Oblivion" was derived via Middle English and Anglo-French from Latin "oblivisci," which means "to forget." This form may have stemmed from combining "ob-" ("in the way") and "levis" ("smooth"). In the past, "oblivion" has been used in reference to the River Lethe, which according to Greek myth flowed through the Underworld and induced a state of forgetfulness in anyone who drank its water. Among those who have used the word this way is the poet John Milton, who wrote in Paradise Lost, "Farr off from these a slow and silent stream, Lethe the River of Oblivion roules Her watrie Labyrinth."