Word of the Day

: January 14, 2011

jubilate

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verb JOO-buh-layt

What It Means

: rejoice

jubilate in Context

When the basketball team finally won a game after nine straight losses, they jubilated as if they'd won the state championship.

"They moved some dirt around, dropped a few seeds here and there, and jubilated as Michelle led the merry band." -- From Laura Ingraham's 2010 book The Obama Diaries


Did You Know?

When things are going your way, you may want to shout for joy. "Jubilate" testifies to the fact that people have had the urge to give (loud) voice to their happiness for centuries. Although "jubilate" first appeared in print around the middle of the 17th century, its connection to vocal joy goes back much farther; it is derived from the Latin verb "jubilare," which means "to shout for joy." "Jubilare" has also played a role in the development of a few other closely related joyful English words, including "jubilant" (the earliest meaning was "making a joyful noise," though it is now most often used to mean simply "exultant") and "jubilation" ("an act of rejoicing").



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