Just in time for Passover Seder night, Merriam-Webster dictionary on Thursday announced their “Word of the Day” was Seder.
The dictionary’s website defines a Seder as “a service held in a Jewish home or community that includes a ceremonial dinner and that is held on the first evening, or first and second evenings, of Passover in commemoration of the exodus of Egypt.”
The #WordOfTheDay is ‘Seder.’ Chag Sameach!https://t.co/VfY65u9faP pic.twitter.com/NtfMN6EFeY
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) April 6, 2023
Did you know that…?
Merriam-Webster has a “Did you know” section that explains the word and its origin.
Under the “Did you know?” on the site, it lists fun facts about the word Seder and what it means for the Jewish people who celebrate Passover.
The dictionary explains that Seder is “a transliteration of the Hebrew word sēdher,” which means, order. The first known use of the term was in 1965, according to the entry.
Merriam-Webster explains the order of the Seder
Merriam-Webster explains: “The courses in the meal, as well as blessings, prayers, stories and songs, are recorded in the Haggadah, a book that lays out the order of the Passover feast and recounts the story of Exodus.
“Each food consumed as part of the Seder recalls an aspect of the Israelites’ 13th century BCE exodus from Egypt.”
The dictionary also explains the terms matza, maror and charoset.
“Matzah represents the haste with which the Israelites fled; maror recalls the bitterness of enslaved life; and a mixture of fruits and nuts called charoset symbolizes the clay or mortar the Israelites worked with during their Egyptian enslavement,” it said.
