Word of the Day for Tuesday July 5, 2005 nostrum \NOS-truhm\, noun: 1. A medicine of secret composition and unproven or dubious effectiveness; a quack medicine. 2. A usually questionable remedy or scheme; a cure-all. James is put to work at country fairs, promoting a quack nostrum for pain relief. --Patrick McGrath, "Heart of Ice," [1]New York Times, April 13, 1997 His hopeful message attracted an audience eager to believe he had found the nostrum for all of society's ills. --Warren Sloat, "Looking Back at 'Looking Backward': We Have Seen the Future and It Didn't Work," [2]New York Times, January 17, 1988 Old ladies were always offering her their advice, recommending this or that nostrum. --Charlotte Brontë, Shirley: A Tale _________________________________________________________ Nostrum comes from Latin nostrum (remedium), "our (remedy)," from nos, "we." References 1. http://www.nytimes.com/ 2. http://www.nytimes.com/ Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=9&q=nostrum