Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: feh-STOON, noun Notes: I know the verb, but I didn’t know the noun meaning Yesterday’s word The word zarf is “a sleeve or holder designed to hold a hot cup” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments As I noted yesterday, I didn’t know that there was aContinue reading “festoon”

Pronounced: zarf, noun Notes: I didn’t know that there was a word for this! Yesterday’s word The word esoteric means First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments I have used the word, but I thought that it meant “difficult” or possibly “highly unusual”: thus, when I used “an esotericContinue reading “zarf”

Pronounced: eh-suh-TER-ik, adj Notes: I have used this word, but incorrectly, it appears. Do you know the meaning? Yesterday’s word The word coquelicot means, as an adjective, “of orangish-red or reddish-orange color”. As a noun, it refers to such a color. First usage Our word came into English in the late 1700s Background / CommentsContinue reading “esoteric”

Pronounced: KAHK-lee-koh (alt: KOHK-lee-koh), adj/noun Notes: I had no idea of the meaning of this word Yesterday’s word The word deterge means “to wash off; to cleanse” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1600s Background / Comments The far more common “detergent” is the noun form of our word. Our wordContinue reading “coquelicot”

Pronounced: dih-TERJ, verb Notes: I didn’t know this was a word, but you probably can guess the meaning Yesterday’s word The word homeoteluton is “a repetition of the same or similar endings in a sequence of words” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1500s Background / Comments Our word came fromContinue reading “deterge”

Pronounced: ho-mee-o-TEL-yuh-ton, noun Notes: A kind of technical word Yesterday’s word The word mucro is “an abrupt sharp terminal point or tip or process (as with a leaf) First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments If your hobby is botany, you may know this word, which is often usedContinue reading “homeoteleuton”

Pronounced: MEW-crow, noun Notes: I know “macro”, but not this word (people with certain hobbies may know it) Yesterday’s word The word devi means “a goddess” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1700s Background / Comments Our word came from the Sanskrit word devi (goddess); note that I don’t think manyContinue reading “mucro”

Pronounced: DAY-vee, noun Notes: A word I didn’t know Yesterday’s word The word precentor is “a leader of the singing of a choir or congregation” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1600s Background / Comments I had no idea that our word existed. I’ve always heard such a person called “theContinue reading “devi”

Pronounced: prih-SEN-tuhr, noun Notes: I didn’t know that there was a word for this Yesterday’s word The word metonymy is “a figure of speech in which someone or something is referred to be the name of somethings associated with it.” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1500s Background / Comments Some timeContinue reading “precentor”

Pronounced: muh-TAHN-uh-mee, noun Notes: Although I didn’t know the definition, I did recognize part of the word Yesterday’s word The word bludge means First usage Our word came into English in the 1910s Background / Comments As I noted yesterday, our word is primarily used in Australia and New Zealand. Our word has an interestingContinue reading “metonymy”