emeritus : M-W's Word of the Day

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The Word of the Day for January 5 is:

emeritus \ih-MEH-ruh-tus\ adjective
: retired with an honorary title from an office or position

Example sentence:
Although he is retiring from the newspaper, Mr. Richardson will remain as editor emeritus, and his name will still appear on the masthead.

Did you know?
In Latin, "emeritus" was used to describe soldiers who had completed their duty. It is the past participle of the verb "emereri," meaning "to serve out one's term," from the prefix "e-" (meaning "out") and "merere" ("to earn, deserve, or serve"). ("Merere" also gives us our English word "merit.") Beginning in the late 18th century, English speakers began using "emeritus" as an adjective to refer to professors who had retired from office. The word eventually became applied to other professions where a retired member may continue to hold a title in an honorary capacity. In many titles, "emeritus" is used postpositively, which means that it comes after the noun it modifies instead of before it, as in our example sentence.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.

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