depose

Pronounced: dih-POZE, verb

Notes: You may know a meaning, but this word has a meaning that didn’t spring to my mind

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Yesterday’s word

The word glom means “take hold or possession of; to steal, catch, or grab” – but see my comments below.

First usage

This word came into English in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

I quoted the definition as provided in the information I had, but it seemed to be missing something; I had run across this word in a Nero Wolfe novella This Won’t Kill You, and, from the context, it was clear that glom meant “to look at”, which wasn’t given as a meaning. So, naturally, I checked the internet, and it has “steal” as the first meaning, then “to catch or grab” as the second meaning, and then “to look at” for the third meaning. I felt vindicated. By the way, when I was checking on the name of the novella, it was originally called This Will Kill You when published in magazines; the title changed when it was published in book form – a collection of Nero Wolfe novellas. The word is an Americanism; it is thought to come from the Scots word glaum/glam (to snatch at). There is also the Scots word glammis (the jaws of a vice). A parent word is the Scots Gaelic word glàm (to grab; to clutch). I’m guessing that the “look at” definition arises from the idea of “clutching” or “grabbing” someone with one’s eyes.