Pronounced: GA-duh-reen, adj
Notes: I didn’t know the word, but I was amazed at the background
Yesterday’s word
The word balk (baulk), as a verb, means
- to stop, hesitate, or refuse to proceed
- to thwart or hinder
As a noun, it means
- a check or hindrance
- a defeat or disappointment
- a beam or rafter
- a ridge; an unplowed strip of land between furrows
First usage
Our word came into English as a noun in the late 800s; as a verb, it came into English in the late 1300s
Background / Comments
I am used to balk having the idea of heading off or stopping something; to hinder it, which covers most of the meaning. The third and fourth noun definitions above are unknown to me. Our word came from the Old English word balca (ridge; bank).
Richard's Vocabulary Word-of-the-Day 