Word of the Day
May 25, 2026
Sangfroid
Composure, coolness, and self-possession under strain or danger.
From the French sang-froid, literally 'cold blood,' adopted into English in the mid-18th century.
Usage Examples
- The pilot's sangfroid kept the crew calm as the damaged aircraft lost altitude.
- She handled the hostile questioning with a sangfroid that unsettled her opponents.
- Adrift for weeks at sea, the survivors owed their lives to their leader's sangfroid.
From the Show
Sangfroid captures the steadiness Col. Bill Rutledge described in both Medal of Honor recipients. Eddie Rickenbacker held his composure through 22 days adrift in a Pacific life raft, and Joe Foss coolly drew an outnumbering Japanese formation into a fuel-draining chase over Guadalcanal until the enemy planes had to break off. Their calm under mortal pressure runs through the Memorial Day conversation in Real American Heroes: Eddie Rickenbacker and Joe Foss.