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etymology

Porcelain may be even ruder than was thought

When Marco Polo brought the first porcelain to Europe, just how did it get its name? From Roman nursery slang, perhaps.

May 2, 2017 General, Language, Life

In a Word: Spoof, hoax, and April pranks

Spoof was originally a card game. But why April fools? A quick trip around trickery.

April 1, 2016 General, Language, Life, Painting

Crash trash

T T Read More

The computing sense of crash lacks onomatopœa, is gross hyperbole, and is far too widely encompassing to be meaningful.

May 24, 2015 General, Language, Macs, Technology

In a word – panorama, which has outlived its original invention

A panorama is an image, usually broad in its extent, of landscape, and has seen extensive figurative application. What is remarkable is that it did not exist until 1789, and still thrives today.

April 25, 2015 General, Language, Painting

Heretofore-unseen: the return of moribund legalese

Every so often, I see some English which strikes me as being odd or unusual. This time it […]

April 20, 2015 Language

In a word – curb, kerb, or even courbe

Sometimes chasing the origin and meanings of an apparently simple English word gives us a glimpse of a […]

April 18, 2015 Language

In a word: wake

In a language with so many words, this is another which has several different meanings, which seem to be growing away from their origins.

April 11, 2015 General, Language

In a word – keen

From a brave king, to the pungent taste of mustard, with a wail on the side – all in the one word.

April 5, 2015 General, Language

In a word – spring

A single origin, many different meanings, and some irregularities to provoke the odd peeve.

March 31, 2015 General, Language

In a word – notwithstanding

This odd preposition can also appear as a postposition, but does not behave much like either.

March 27, 2015 Language

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