Pylimitics

You don’t hear the word “chauvinism” as much as you did a while back, when “male chauvinist” was a common epithet. As you probably know, “male chauvinism” is the belief that males are inherently superior to females. It was primarily applied to men — that is, human males, although I suppose a true believer might… Continue reading

In his 1907 book Days off and other Digressions, Henry Van Dyke included this line: “…and the tale of the season’s angling told from the beginning with many embellishments and divagations.” “Divagation” comes from the latin word “divagari”, which means “to wander.” It’s an obscure word, but not quite as rare as you might think.… Continue reading

To find a word with an unusual application, you don’t have to look any further than the kitchen. I”m not talking about “stove,” which is a word that originally meant a hot room like a steambath or sauna. That’s pretty close, though; a kitchen stove is also called (in the US) a “range.”  “Range” dates… Continue reading

When the weather is unusually cold, there’s flooding, or possibly an invasion of annoyed ferrets looms, humicubation is not advisable, particularly for extended periods. “Humicubation,” as you probably haven’t guessed, means “lying on the ground.”  The word first appeared in the 1650s in a religious tract written by the Bishop of Derry in Ireland. He… Continue reading

Somebody who hates spending any money and tries to hold onto it forever might be called a “miser,” a “cheapskate,” or a “piker.” That last one, “piker,” has an interesting history, and more than one origin story.  “Piker” was first used in the 1500s, and didn’t have anything to do with money at all —… Continue reading