demotic

Pronounced: dih-MOT-ik, adj/noun

Notes: I had an idea of the meaning of the adjective, but not of the noun

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Yesterday’s word

The word recondite means

• hidden from sight; concealed
• difficult to comprehend; deep
• little known or obscure

First usage

Our word came into English in the early 1600s

Background / Comments

I had an idea of the first and third definitions, but not the second one. Our word has at its root the Latin word condere (to put or bring together; to put up or store; to conceal). Interestingly enough, if one removes re- from our word, we are left with the obsolete verb “condite”, meaning “to pickle or preserve” or “to embalm”. Another word with the same root, “incondite” means “badly put together”.