Word of the Day

: May 17, 2009

domiciliary

adjective dah-muh-SILL-ee-air-ee

What It Means

a : of, relating to, or constituting a domicile: as

b : provided or taking place in the home

c : providing care and living space (as for disabled veterans)

domiciliary in Context

Citing the need to provide more assistance to the state's homeless veterans, the veterans home has asked the legislature to increase funding for the home's domiciliary unit.

Did You Know?

"Domiciliary" can be traced back through French "domiciliaire" and Medieval Latin "domiciliarius" to the earlier Latin word "domicilium" ("domicile"). "Domicilium" comes from the Latin "domus" ("home"), which is at the heart of a number of other English words, including "domestic" and "domicile." It is even the source of the English word "dome." In Medieval Latin, "domus" came to mean "church," and was borrowed by French for the word "dôme" ("dome" or "cathedral") and by Italian for "duomo" ("cathedral"). In the 1500s, English drew on these words for "dome," a word which originally referred not to a vaulted roof or ceiling but to a mansion or a stately building.