Word of the Day

: January 6, 2007

expeditious

adjective ek-spuh-DISH-us

What It Means

: characterized by or acting promptly and efficiently

expeditious in Context

Poisonous snakebites require expeditious treatment.

Did You Know?

Like "expeditious," all of the following words contain "ped." Can you guess which ones get those three letters from the same Latin root as "expeditious"?

encyclopedia     expedition     stampede     torpedo     orthopedic     impede

The Latin source of "expeditious" is the verb "expedire," which means "to extricate," "to prepare," or "to be useful." The "ped" is from "pes," meaning "foot." (The "ex-" means "out of," and the literal sense of "expedire" is "to free the feet.") The "ped" in "impede" also comes from "pes." But the "ped" in "encyclopedia" and "orthopedic" is from the Greek "pais," meaning "child"; "stampede" is from the Spanish "estampar," meaning "to stamp"; and "torpedo" is from the Latin "torpere," meaning "to be sluggish." What about "expedition"? Meaning both "a journey" and "promptness," it too is from "expedire."