Pronounced: YOU-zuh-frukt, noun

Notes: We’ve seen this before (kind of)

---

Yesterday’s word

The word sinecure is “a position in which one is paid for little or no work”

First usage

Our word came into English in the mid-1600s

Background / Comments

When I was in high school (a long time ago), I subscribed to Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine (EQMM). Like most collections, there were stories I enjoyed very much, and others I didn’t; I always read every story, but there are some I never went back to. It is still running today, but is now known as Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine. It is the longest-running mystery fiction magazine in existence. I bring this up because it was in a story in EQMM that I first ran across our word. As is common with some words, I had an idea of the meaning from the context, but I didn’t bother to look it up. Knowing the correct definition, there are many jobs, both in government areas and in businesses that could be described with our word. It came from the Latin phrase beneficium sine cura – a church position that did not involve caring for the souls of the parishoners: the phrase uses the words sine (without) and cura (care).

Pronounced: SIGH-ni-kyoor (alt: SIN-ih-kyoor), noun

Notes: I’ve read this word, and got a general idea from context. Do you know it?

---

Yesterday’s word

The word effulgence means “radiant splendor; brilliance”

First usage

Our word came into English in the 1600s

Background / Comments

When I first glanced at our word, I swapped the “u” and the “l” and thought it was “efflugence”, which I thought was related to “effluence” (an outflow; I’ve heard it used in a euphemistic sense for the outflow of toilets). But all that was error; Our word came from the Latin word fulgēre (to shine). It does have a related word – “refulgence” – which has a similar meaning, but implies reflection.

Pronounced: ih-FULL-gen(t)s, noun

Notes: I transposed a couple of letters and had the totally wrong meaning

---

Yesterday’s word

The word laissez-aller means “unrestrained freedom”

First usage

Our word came into English in the mid-1800s

Background / Comments

I believe that unrestrained freedom is a very bad thing; we need some kind of check on our bad (evil) impulses. With no restraints at all, we would merely became self-centered and self-indulgent. Our word came from the French word laisser-aller (to allow to go).

Pronounced: less-ay-ah-LAY, noun

Notes: Also spelled laisser-aller; a new word to me

---

Yesterday’s word

The word halcyon means

• of or relating to the kingfisher
• calm; peaceful
• happy; golden
• prosperous; affluent

First usage

Our word came into English in the mid- to late 1300s

Background / Comment

I knew the third definition above, but certainly not the first one. However, the background of the word makes sense: In Greek mythology, Alkyone, a daughter of the god of the winds, was very upset when her husband was killed in a shipwreck. So was so distraught that she threw herself into the sea and was changed into a kingfisher. The Greeks called these birds alkyon (or halkyon). Legends say that the birds built floating nests on the sea, where they were able to charm the wind god so that unusual calm would last until the eggs hatched. Thus, the word referred to the kingfisher, and then to the calm, and then spread to the other meanings.

Pronounced: HAL-see-uhn, adj

Notes: There are multiple definitions; I knew one of them

---

Yesterday’s phrase

The phrase de rigueur means “required by fashion, custom, or etiquette”

First usage

Our phrase came into English in the mid-1800s

Background / Comments

I know I have read this phrase; I think it was in one of the Lord Peter Wimsey stories by Dorothy Sayers, but I could not begin to guess at which novel. I had a very general sense of the phrase from the context, but I don’t know that I could define it properly. Our phrase (as you might guess) came from the French phrase de rigueur (“of strictness”), which came from the Latin word rigor.

Pronounced: duh-ree-GURR, adj

Notes: The phrase is familiar to me, but I didn’t know the meaning

---

Yesterday’s word

The word chin-wag means “conversation; chat”

First usage

Our word came into English in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

Our word is an informal British word (perhaps slang): I don’t believe I’ve heard or read it in America. I did read it in the Dorothy Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey books, which were written between the first and second World War. I thought that the word was obsolete, but then – rather to my surprise – I was watching a British show in which the presenter used our word. Thus, it is apparently still in use (although I’ve not heard it used anytime I was staying in Yorkshire). Similar words and phrases are “chinfest” (chat), “chin music” (idle talk; chatter), and “chin” (as either a verb [to chat] or a noun [a chat]).

Pronounced: (as it looks), noun

Notes: This may be as easy one

---

Yesterday’s word

The word politesse means “formal politeness or courtesy”

First usage

Our word came into English in the late 1600s

Background / Comments

Like me, you may not be familiar with our word, but you could probably guess the meaning. It came from the Old French word politesse (cleanness; polished state), which came from the Italian word politezza (polish; smoothness), which came from the Latin word polire (to polish).

Pronounced: pol-ih-TESS (alt: poe-lee-TESS), noun

Notes: You might be able to guess the meaning of this word

---

Yesterday’s word

The word esemplastic means “shaping or having the power to shape disparate things into a unified whole”

First usage

Our word came into English in the early 1800s

Background / Comments

I was very surprised to see the early date of this word, as I was under the impression that plastic was invented after World War II (incidentally, I was wrong). However, the word plastic predates (by a long way) the invention of plastic. Our word was coined by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. It was a combination of the Greek phrase es hen (into one) with plastic (capable of being molded), which came from the Latin word plasticus (that which may be molded) which came from the Greek word plastikós.

Pronounced: eh-sem-PLAS-tik, adj

Notes: I thought this was a specialized type of plastic

---

Yesterday’s word

The word swidden is “an area of land cleared for farming by slashing and burning the vegetation”

First usage

Our word came into English in the mid-1800s

Background / Comments

As noted, people with knowledge of farming may know our word. I’ve heard of the practice, but our word is new to me. It came from a Northen England dialect swithen (to burn), which came from the Old Norse word svithna (to be singed).

Pronounced: SWID-n, noun

Notes: You might need special knowledge to get this word

---

Yesterday’s word

The word oneiric means “of or relating to dreams; dreamy”

First usage

Our word came into English in the mid-1800s

Background / Comments

When I saw this word, I thought it might be related to wine (thinking of oenophile, I guess). It came from the Greek word óneiros (dream) with -ic added to make it on adjective. Interestingly enough, in the early 1600s, the following related words referring to dream interpreters or interpretation were in use: “oneirocriticism”, “oneirocritical”, and “oneirocritic”. About that time, there was an interest by English scholars in a book called Oneirocritica, which is about dream interpretation by a Greek soothsayer named Artemidorus Daldianus, which may be the origin of these words.