Word Archaeology: halation
This word refers to light spreading beyond its usual boundaries to make foggy edges on a bright image in a photograph or on a television screen....
May 28, 2021
Category: Word Archaeology
Word Archaeology: hackamore
This word refers to a type of bitless animal headgear with a noseband that works with pressure points on the face, nose, and chin. It’s commonly...
May 19, 2021
Word Archaeology: gyromancy
Gyromancy refers to a divination method in which an individual spins or paces around a circle with a perimeter marked by letters, until dizzy. The message...
May 18, 2021
Word Archaeology: gegenschein
Caused by backscatter of sunlight against interplanetary dust, this German word refers to a phenomenon that’s also known as “counterglow”. French astronomer Esprit Pezenas first noted...
April 23, 2021
Word Archaeology: gargoyle
This word, particularly in Gothic architecture, refers to a carved grotesque with a spout that’s designed to take water away from a rooftop and divert it...
April 18, 2021
Word Archaeology: gamboge
This word refers to a pigment, from deep saffron to mustard yellow, that’s been used to dye the robes of Buddhist monks and by Jean Perrin...
April 14, 2021
Word Archaeology: futhark
This word refers to an alphabet that started with 24 angular characters, derived from both Latin and Greek. Scandinavians and Anglo-Saxons used futhark runes for inscriptions...
April 12, 2021
Word Archaeology: fulminate
In modern times, this word means to issue a decree with denunciation. But the word came from the Latin “fulminare” – to strike – and originally...
April 7, 2021
Word Archaeology: foozle
This word, possibly German in origin, dates back to the late 19th Century. Foozle can be a verb or a noun. As a verb, it means...
March 26, 2021
Word Archaeology: fleer
This word, first used in the 15th Century, means to derisively laugh or grimace. It derived from the Middle English “flerven”, but that word is Scandinavian,...
March 22, 2021
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