gadabout

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 14, 2024 is:

gadabout • \GAD-uh-bout\ • noun

A gadabout is a person who flits about in social activity, as by going to many places and social events for pleasure.

// She was a gadabout who was rarely home, and her tiny apartment was cluttered with playbills and other souvenirs of her adventures.

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Examples:

"The wild career of David Johansen—New York Dolls frontman, punk gadabout, occasional actor, and Buster Poindexter portrayer—will be the focus of an upcoming documentary co-directed by Martin Scorsese." — Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2023

Did you know?

If you had to pick an insect most closely related to a gadabout, you might wryly guess the "social butterfly." But there's another bug that's commonly heard buzzing around discussions of the gadabout: the gadfly. Gadfly is a term used for any of a number of winged pests (such as horseflies) that bite or annoy livestock. But, although a gadabout's gossip can bite, gadfly doesn't have any clear etymological relation to gadabout. This word, which comes from the English phrase "gad about," traces back to the Middle English verb gadden, meaning "to be on the go without a specific aim or purpose." That word's source hasn't left a trail.