Word Woman

Welcome to another astonishing episode of Word Woman's Weekly Work-Out! Don't let the dreary winter weather get you down - keep your mental energy up by doing crossword puzzles, solving cryptoquotes, working on sudoku or by learning new words! Here's the Word of the Week to help you on your way:

Prestidigitation: (noun)

This word conjures something grand from a simple phrase. Prestidigitation ultimately comes from the Italian word presto, meaning "quick" or "quickly," and digitus, the Latin word for finger.

So at its root, prestidigitation basically means "quick fingers."

1/26/2011, "prestidigitation", http://www.merriam-webster.com/top-ten-lists/top-10-unusually-long-words-vol-1/prestidigitation.html

Example: In an amazing feat of prestidigitation, Robert was able to snatch four freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies from the tray and stuff them into his mouth before his wife could smack his hand with her wooden mixing spoon.