Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: PLEE-uhd, noun Notes: This looks similar to a word I know, but it is only remotely related Yesterday’s word The word anemious means “growing in windy conditions” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1800s Background / Comments I was thinking that perhaps our word was related to anemones, but noContinue reading “pleiad”

Pronounced: uh-NEE-mih-us, adj Notes: My guess at the meaning was incorrect Yesterday’s word The word aubade is First usage Our word came into English in the mid to late 1600s Background / Comments As you may have guessed, our word came the French word aubade (dawn serenade) — our first definition above. The second meaningContinue reading “anemious”

Pronounced: oh-BAHD, noun Notes: Another word I have no recollection of running across Yesterday’s word The word pishogue means “sorcery; witchcraft; spell” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments Our word came from the Irish word piseog (witchcraft).

Pronounced: pih-SHOHG, noun Notes: I have not run across this word Yesterday’s word The word chilblain is “an inflammatory swelling or sore caused by exposure (such as feed or hands) to cold” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1500s Background / Comments As you might expect, the first part of our wordContinue reading “pishogue”

Pronounced: CHILL-blane, noun Notes: I have run across our word, but didn’t know the definition Yesterday’s word The word picaro is “a rogue; an adventurer” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1600s Background / Comments Our word came from the Spanish word picaro (rogue).

Pronounced: PEE-kuh-roh, noun Notes: I’ve not run across this word Yesterday’s word The word snickersnee is “a large knife or sword” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1600s Background / Comments Our word used to be a phrase “snick or snee” (before it was compressed into our word). This phrase wasContinue reading “picaro”

Pronounced: SNIH-kuhr-snee, noun Notes: This word made me think of Lewis Carroll’s poem “Jabberwocky” Yesterday’s word The word pogonip is “a dense winter fog having ice particles” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments Our word came from the Shoshone word payinappih (cloud).

Pronounced: POG-uh-nip, noun Notes: I’ve run across this word Yesterday’s word The word festoon is First usage Our word came into English in the late 1600s Background / Comments I am familiar with the verb “festoon” (decorate), but not with our word. The verb is actually newer; the noun was older. Our word came fromContinue reading “pogonip”

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”