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<font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 8, 2025 is:</font>
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<strong>gregarious</strong> • \grih-GAIR-ee-us\ • <em>adjective</em><br />
<p><em>Gregarious</em> is used to describe someone who enjoys the company of other people. </p>
<p>// Justin’s <em>gregarious</em> personality made it easy for him to get to know people at the networking event.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gregarious">See the entry ></a></p>
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<strong>Examples:</strong><br />
<p>“How can we reap the benefits of deep connection if we are not naturally <em>gregarious</em> and extroverted? But as I have delved into the evidence, I have discovered that our social skills are like our muscles—the more we use them, the stronger they become. Even self-declared introverts can learn to be more sociable, if they wish.” — David Robson, <em>BBC</em>, 23 July 2024 </p>
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<strong>Did you know?</strong><br />
<p>Everyone knows that <a href="https://bit.ly/3CGF25O">birds of a feather flock together</a>, so it comes as no surprise that <em>gregarious</em> was applied mainly to animals when it first began appearing in English texts in the 17th century. After all, <em>gregarious</em> comes from the Latin noun <em>grex</em>, meaning “flock” or “herd,” and it’s tough to avoid being social when you’re part of a flock, flying and roosting <a href="https://bit.ly/4hMzohq">cheek by jowl</a> (or beak) with your fellow feathered friends. Take <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/starling">starlings</a>, for example, which congregate in massive numbers—we define the word <em>starling</em> as “any of a family of usually dark gregarious birds,” meaning that starlings are inclined to associate with others of their kind. By the 18th century <em>gregarious</em> was being used to describe social human beings as well, be they chatty Cathys or <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/convivial">convivial</a> Connors who relish being in the company of others. </p>
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Examples:
“How can we reap the benefits of deep connection if we are not naturally gregarious and extroverted? But as I have delved into the evidence, I have discovered that our social skills are like our muscles—the more we use them, the stronger they become. Even self-declared introverts can learn to be more sociable, if they wish.” — David Robson, BBC, 23 July 2024
Did you know?
Everyone knows that [birds of a feather flock together](https://bit.ly/3CGF25O), so it comes as no surprise that gregarious was applied mainly to animals when it first began appearing in English texts in the 17th century. After all, gregarious comes from the Latin noun grex, meaning “flock” or “herd,” and it’s tough to avoid being social when you’re part of a flock, flying and roosting [cheek by jowl](https://bit.ly/4hMzohq) (or beak) with your fellow feathered friends. Take [starlings](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/starling), for example, which congregate in massive numbers—we define the word starling as “any of a family of usually dark gregarious birds,” meaning that starlings are inclined to associate with others of their kind. By the 18th century gregarious was being used to describe social human beings as well, be they chatty Cathys or [convivial](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/convivial) Connors who relish being in the company of others.](https://us-central1-podcastguru-217d6.cloudfunctions.net/gcf_get_image?image_url=https://is1-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Podcasts115/v4/9e/cb/6d/9ecb6d99-7c4e-4d2d-2b42-8ed4226a4e40/mza_5402798200759050103.jpg/600x600bb.jpg&width=300&height=300&api_key=xqFmUFX5BHLBTA)