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Word of the Week: Nascent

01.14.2007

nas?scent [nas-uh nt, ney-suh nt]

–adjective
1. beginning to exist or develop: the nascent republic.

2. Chemistry. (of an element) in the nascent state.

[Origin: 1615–25; < L nascent- (s. of nascéns), prp. of nasci to be born, arise, equiv. to na(tus) born (var. of gnatus) + -sc- inchoative suffix + -ent- -ent]

–Related forms
nascence, nas?cen?cy, noun

In A Sentence
"The Warsaw Convention of 1929, formally known as the Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to International Carriage by Air, predates Communist rule of Poland. In any case, this wasn't the mysterious East imposing its will on the rest of the world. Rather, it was the nascent air transport industry and its government allies imposing their will on you."

- Cecil Adams, "If the stub you get at the airport is 'not the baggage check described in the Warsaw Convention,' what is?", The Straight Dope, October 21, 1994

 

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.0.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, ? Random House, Inc. 2006.

Shawn Denny, Information Services Librarian