Author Archives: Richard

Pronounced: si-KREE-tuh-ree, adj Notes: Looks like “secretary” misspelled, but that’s not it at all Yesterday’s word The word oleaginous means First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1400s Background / Comments Our word came from Middle French, which came from the Latin word oleagineus (of an olive tree) – the Latin word oleaContinue reading “secretory”

Pronounced: oh-lee-A-juh-nuhs, adj Notes: You may have a bit of a clue as to the meaning of this word Yesterday’s word The word grogram is “a course fabric of silk, combined with mohair or wool, and often stiffened with gum” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1500s Background / Comments Our wordContinue reading “oleaginous”

Pronounced: GROG-rum, noun Notes: This word is completely new to me Yesterday’s word The word pooh-bah is First usage Our word came into English in the late 1800s Background / Comments As I noted yesterday, I have heard this word — usually in the phrase “grand pooh-bah”; I deduce from contexts where I’ve seen itContinue reading “grogram”

Pronounced: POO-bah, noun Notes: I’ve heard this word, but had no clue as to the origination of it Yesterday’s word The word vizard is “a visor, mask, or disguise” First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1500s Background / Comments Our word is a variant of “visor”, which comes from the Anglo-French wordContinue reading “pooh-bah”

Pronounced: VIZ-uhrd, noun Notes: Also spelled “visard”, this is not “wizard” misspelled Yesterday’s word The word cicerone is First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1700s Background / Comments When I saw our word, I thought of the Roman named “Cicero” – rather to my surprise, that is the correct origin of ourContinue reading “vizard”

Pronounced: si-suh-ROH-nee, noun Notes: I didn’t know the definition, but my tentative guess at the origin was correct Yesterday’s word The word cocker, as a verb, means “to pamper or spoil”. As a noun, it is “a breed of small spaniel dog” First usage The verb definition came into English in the late 1400; theContinue reading “cicerone”

Pronounced: KAHK-urh, verb/noun Notes: I thought of the idiom “according to Cocker”, but that has nothing to do with this word Yesterday’s word The word Svengali is “a person who manipulates or exerts excessive control over another” First usage Our word came into English in the 1910s Background / Comments Our word came from aContinue reading “cocker”

Pronounced: sven-GAH-lee, noun Notes: I thought this was a country (it’s not) Yesterday’s word The word inspissate means “to thicken or condense” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1600s Background / Comments Our word came from the Latin word inspissare (to thicken), which came from spissus (thick). I assume one couldContinue reading “Svengali”

Pronounced: in-SPIS-ate, verb Notes: I did not know this word (making it fit for these posts) Yesterday’s word The word gloss means First usage Our word came into English in the mid-to-late 1200s Background / Comments As I noted, I know the noun gloss, which means “shine”; I also know the phrase “gloss over”, whichContinue reading “inspissate”

Pronounced: glahs, verb Notes: I know the phrase “gloss over” and the noun “gloss”, but not the verb Yesterday’s word The word prow means, as a noun As an adjective, it means “valiant” First usage The noun came into English in the mid-1500s; the adjective came into English in the mid-1300s Background / Comments TheContinue reading “gloss”