Word of the Day

: July 24, 2009

lanuginous

adjective luh-NOO-juh-nus

What It Means

: covered with down or fine soft hair : downy

lanuginous in Context

"The Leaves of the young Branches are like those of the Quince, green without, and white and lanuginous underneath, and serve for Food for the Elephants." (Monfieur Pomet, "Figs," History of Druggs, 1709)

Did You Know?

You're likely to come across "lanuginous" in only a few contexts, botany and spelling bees being the best candidates. In other contexts, the more common term is "downy." "Lanuginous" has an unsurprising pedigree. It's from the Latin word "lanuginosus," which is in turn from "lanugo," the Latin word for "down." ("Lanugo" is also an English word used especially to refer to the soft woolly hair that covers the fetus of some mammals.) "Lanugo" itself is from "lana," meaning "wool," a root also at work in "lanolin," the term for wool grease that's refined for use in ointments and cosmetics.