Words of the Day — September 8, 2011

Iconoclastic — eye-KON-oh-KLAS-tik — attacking or destroying cherished beliefs or institutions fetid — FET-id — stinking, reeking, pungent, acrid, malodorous

Example: "In an article about Walter Matthau's role in 'The Taking of Pelham 123' a N.Y. Times critic commented that his ironic air sends jolts of iconoclastic mirth into the fetid atmosphere of the train.'"