Pronounced: CORN-pone, adj/noun
Notes: After reading the adjective definition, I think I ran across this years ago, but since I could not define it, it qualifies for this list.
Yesterday’s word
The word scarify means
- to make scratches or small cuts in
- to lacerate the feelings of
- to cut or soften the wall of (a seed) to hasten germination
Background / Comments
The word scarify is actually two words: the word defined above comes from a Greek word meaning “to scratch an outline”. The second word that was formed by combining “scare” with “-ify” (possibly a combination of “scare” and “terrify”) and means “to scare or frighten”.
First usage
The word as defined above came into English in the 1300s; however, the other meaning noted in the comments didn’t show up until the late 1700s.
Richard's Vocabulary Word-of-the-Day 