Aureate is an adjective that means gilded with gold.
If you’re a chemistry nerd who's ever wondered why the chemical symbol for gold is A-U, it’s because A and U are the first two letters in aurum (OUR oom) the Latin word for ‘gold.’ This highly colorful word found a home in English around the 15th century in the form of the adjective aureate. Our word of the day may be used in a literal sense to refer to something that is gold plated or in a figurative sense to mean something that is elaborately ornate. Here’s an example of the latter:
The college president used aureate language to describe the education the students were to receive. With all due respect, that kind of colorful, ornate prose can often lead to unrealistically high expectations.
