Word of the Day

: December 28, 2009

ergogenic

adjective ur-guh-JEN-ik

What It Means

: enhancing physical performance

ergogenic in Context

"New to this edition are chapters for rowers and a review of ergogenic aids, such as protein supplements and other products…." (Anne Stein, Chicago Tribune, June 3, 2007)

Did You Know?

No matter your profession -- be it office worker, athlete, physicist, or poet -- "ergon," the Greek word for "work," has generated a word for you to work into your vocabulary. There is "ergonomics," which concerns efficiently and safely designing things that people use -- for example, office equipment. Then there is our featured word, "ergogenic," which might crop up in a discussion about improving athletic performance. The physicist's mind is likely to think in "ergs," or centimeter-gram-second units of work. And for those of the literary, or even agricultural, bent, there is "georgic," which combines "ergon" with Greek "geō-," meaning "earth," and refers to a poem dealing with agriculture or to the activity of agriculture itself. The most common derivative, however, is "energy," which adds Greek "en," meaning "in," to "ergon."