Category Archives: word

Pronounced: STROOLED-bruhg, noun Notes: I don’t remember every running across this word Yesterday’s word The word conclave means First usage Our word came into English in the mid- to late 1300s Background / Comments I am familiar with our word as used in its Roman Catholic meaning; I was not aware of the second definitionContinue reading “struldbrug”

Pronounced: KAHN-klave, noun Notes: Many people probably know one definition of our word Yesterday’s word The word shirttail means, as a noun As an adjective, it means First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1600s Background / Comments As I noted, I knew the first meaning as a noun, but I didn’t haveContinue reading “conclave”

Pronounced: SHURT-tale, noun/adj Notes: Yes, this is the bottom part of the shirt that reaches below the waist, but what then does the adjective mean? Yesterday’s word The word gadarene means “without pause or deliberation; headlong; precipitate” First usage Our word came into English in the 1920s Background / Comments I was astonished when IContinue reading “shirttail”

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 As a noun, it means First usage Our word came into English as a noun in the late 800s; as a verb, it came into English in the lateContinue reading “gadarene”

Pronounced: bawk, noun/verb Notes: Also spelled “baulk”; there is one definition of this word that I did not know Yesterday’s word The word delectation means “delight; enjoyment” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1300s Background / Comments Our word came from the Middle English word delectacioun, which came from the LatinContinue reading “balk”

Pronounced: dee-lek-TAY-shun, noun Notes: A nice, useful word to add to one’s vocabulary Yesterday’s word The word consanguineous means “related by blood; having a common ancestor” First usage Our word came into English in the early 1600s Background / Comments Our word came from the Latin word consanguineus, which is made up of con- (with)Continue reading “delectation”

Pronounced: kon-sang-GWIN-ee-uhs, adj Notes: You may be able to figure out the meaning of this word Yesterday’s word The word fulminate means “to complain loudly or angrily; to send forth censures or invectives” First usage Our word came into English around 1400 (either in the late 1300s or the early 1400s) Background / Comments IContinue reading “consanguineous”

Pronounced: full-muh-nate, verb Notes: I think I confused this word with another word Yesterday’s word The word yichus means “prestige, social status, or pedigree” First usage Our word came into English in the late 1800s Background / Comments Our word came from the Yiddish word yichus/yikhus (pedigree), which came from the Hebrew word yihus (pedigree).Continue reading “fulminate”

Pronounced: YEEKH-uhs, noun Notes: I could guess at the origin, but not the meaning Yesterday’s word The word mugwump is First usage Our word came into English in the mid-1800s Background / Comments I enjoy learning about US Presidents, and the 1884 election is a fascinating one to me. To summarize, the incumbent Chester ArthurContinue reading “yichus”

Pronounced: MUG-wuhmp, noun Notes: I have heard this word, but I only had vague ideas of the meaning Yesterday’s word The word yahoo, as a noun, is “a person who is boorish, loud, disruptive, etc”. As an interjection, it means “expressing excitement, delight, or triumph”. First usage The noun form came into English in theContinue reading “mugwump”