Happy Halloween, bookworms! Whatever your plans are, whatever you end up doing to celebrate this all Hallow’s Eve, I hope you enjoy yourself. And if you happen to come across a ghost, goblin, vampire or witch, I hope (for your sake) that he or she is not mercurial, but rather in a celebratory mood. Boo!
Mercurial (“mer-cure-ee-uhl”)
Adjective; from Dictionary.com:
1. Changeable, volatile, fickle or flighty
2. Animated, lively, spirited
3. Of or pertaining to the god or planet Mercury; pertaining to the metal mercury
“I wish his good humor was more reliable. Matthew is mercurial these days.” (Shadow of Night, Deborah Harkness)
Ah, mercurial. It’s as ever-changing as its definition. As you can see from above, mercurial can have many meanings, depending on the context. As you might expect, most of the definitions come from the metal mercury and its various scientific properties. Someone who is mercurial is thought to behave like the tricky liquid silver. Likewise, the word itself stems from both the planet Mercury and the Roman god for whom the planet was named. Mercurial people were thought to be volatile and sprightly, qualities associated with those born under the planet’s sign.
Your turn, bookworms – have you ever held mercurial opinions on a specific book, loving it one minute and despising it the next? Those are some of my favorite kinds of books.
[Photo Credit: Google Images]
