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Word of the DayTuesday, March 29, 2005

aliment

\AL-uh-muhnt\ , noun:

Something that nourishes or feeds; nutriment.

Something that sustains a state of mind or body; sustenance.

transitive verb:

To give nourishment to; to nourish or sustain.

Quotes:

Mental health depends upon gastric health. Every ailment stems from improper aliment.

-- Frederick Kaufman, "Love Yourself Thin", Harper's Magazine, January 2000

Is not truth the natural aliment of the mind, as plainly as the wholesome grain is of the body?

-- William Ellery Channing, "On the Elevation of the Laboring Classes: Lecture II",

Liberty is to faction what air is to fire, an aliment without which it instantly expires.

-- James Madison, "Federalist", Number 10

Origin:

Aliment is derived from Latin alimentum, from alere, "to nourish." It is related to alimony.