mondain

Pronounced: mon-DAIN, noun/adj

Notes: I knew ‘mundane’ (similar sounding word) from my reading, but not this one

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Yesterday’s word

The word ferrule is “a usually metal ring or cap that is placed around the end of a slender shaft or handle to strengthen it for for joining or binding one part to another”

First usage

This word came into the language in the early 1600s

Background / Comments

The metal ring that holds the eraser in a pencil is a ferrule; so is a metal band around a cane. This versatile word can refer to the cap at the end of a cane or crutch or chair or table leg; it is also the point or knob at the hub of an umbrella. It also binds a paintbrush handle to the brushes. In Middle English, it was called a verrel, which were bands or rings of iron to prevent splitting or wear of the wooden shafts of implements. The word came into Middle English from Middle French virelle, which came from Old French virol, which came from Latin viriola (small bracelet). Somewhere along the way in English, the initial ‘v’ became an ‘f’; possible influenced by ferrum (iron).