Word of the Day for Friday September 23, 2005 modicum \MOD-ih-kum\, noun: A small or moderate or token amount. Abraham Lincoln's childhood education, conducted almost entirely by himself, with only a modicum of schooling, is one of the most familiar stories in American history. --Douglas L. Wilson, [1]Honor's Voice Ruth worked in the sociology department which had a garden in an internal courtyard that gave the place a modicum of charm. --Gillian Slovo, [2]Every Secret Thing While he derived a modicum of pleasure from his son's rambunctiousness, he was also disturbed by it. --Jonah Raskin, [3]For the Hell of It _________________________________________________________ Modicum is from Latin modicus, "moderate," from modus, "measure." Synonyms: small quantity, trace, hint, speck, jot, iota. [4]Find more at Thesaurus.com. References 1. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/0375703969/ref=nosim/lexico 2. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0349108560/ref=nosim/lexico 3. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0520213793/ref=nosim/lexico 4. http://thesaurus.reference.com/search?q=modicum Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=9&q=modicum