Seldom-Used Words

Handley, like reperructions instead of repercussions? hehehe I shall add to the aforementioned words with this entry, which appears totally unrelated, even though it shares the same letter configuration.

ruck - noun 1.a. an indistinguishable gathering: JUMBLE b. the usual run of persons or things: GENERALITY 2. the persons or things following the vanguard

A couple more red words; so many words regarding red, it is amazing to me:

rubiginous - adj of a rusty red color

rubious - adj RED, RUBY

rubric - noun 1.a. heading of a part of a book or manuscript done or underlined in a color (as red) different from the rest, etc. (the remainder of the definition has nothing to do with the color red)

I couldn't pass the one up;

rube - noun an awkward unsophisticated person: RUSTIC

This is not the definition for this word that I would have expected;

rub-a-dub - noun the sound of drumbeats

fillip • n., 1. Something that acts as a stimulus or boost to an activity,
2. A movement made by bending the last joint of a finger against the thumb and suddenly releasing it; a flick of the finger,
3. A slight smart stroke or tap given in such a way.








What an interesting word! I've seen it many times but today's headline (below) inspired me to look it up:

Li Na’s Win in French Open Final May be Tennis Market Fillip for China

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That is a good word to know, Trysail, thanks for posting it.

rowel - noun a revolving disk at the end of a spur with sharp marginal points

I have never seen this one before;

routh - noun chiefly Scottish PLENTY, ABUNDANCE

AllardChardon said:

That is a good word to know, Trysail, thanks for posting it.

rowel - noun a revolving disk at the end of a spur with sharp marginal points

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Many early Cowboy films showed rowels attached to the spurs on cowboy boots. No real horseman would ever use them because they would draw blood and injure the horse.

Later films used to restrict their wear to the flamboyant villain and Mexican Bandidos...

Yes, Og, spurs are harmful, and, yet, were glorified by Hollywood westerns. I always wanted a pair as a child, until I learned the truth.

The list of entries for rout number five, but I am only going to post number 1;

rout - noun 1. MOB, THRONG; specif: RABBLE 2.a. DISTURBANCE b. archaic FUSS 3. a fashionable gathering: RECEPTION

AllardChardon said:

Handley, like reperructions instead of repercussions? hehehe I shall add to the aforementioned words with this entry, which appears totally unrelated, even though it shares the same letter configuration.

ruck - noun 1.a. an indistinguishable gathering: JUMBLE b. the usual run of persons or things: GENERALITY 2. the persons or things following the vanguard

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Ruck [ from the Wiki entry on Rugby]
A ruck is formed when at least one player from each side bind onto each other with the ball on the ground between them.

oggbashan said:

. No real horseman would ever use them because they would draw blood and injure the horse.

.

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No OG, both you and Allard need to qualify that. The sharp rowelled spur is indeed an unpleasant device and is banned in many places.

However a single, short, rounded spur is used in equestrian events, where the rider is required to direct the horse solely with the use of their feet, minimising hand movement. The best dressage riders barely nudge a horse and it is very difficult to see, they certainly don't dig the spurs in.

I believe spurs may be used in Rodeo but know nothing of the type or usage.

Now leading on from that,we all know what 'Gilding the Lily' means but how about 'gilded spurs' and why will Allard never have any?

ishtat said:

No OG, both you and Allard need to qualify that. The sharp rowelled spur is indeed an unpleasant device and is banned in many places.

However a single, short, rounded spur is used in equestrian events, where the rider is required to direct the horse solely with the use of their feet, minimising hand movement. The best dressage riders barely nudge a horse and it is very difficult to see, they certainly don't dig the spurs in.

I believe spurs may be used in Rodeo but know nothing of the type or usage.

...

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I was referring to a rowel, as defined in the earlier post, not to any type of spur.

I have worn and used spurs, but not pointed ones, and certainly not ones with rowels.

I found this and decided to post it;

Spurs: History & Usage

Early spurs, believed to have been used by the Roman Legions of Julius Caesar, have been unearthed in England. Early Roman, Greek, and Byzantine sculpture did not, however, show horsemen wearing spurs. The Romans developed spurs in order to have a way to steer their horses with their legs, while leaving their hands free to fight.
The earliest cavalry initiated by Alexander the Great did not use spur, bit, nor stirrup.
Originally, spurs had a single sharp protrusion. Etruscan tombs of the second century B.C. contained bronze spurs of this type. Many later variations of this type are found throughout Europe. The British Museum has iron examples, some with silver inlay, dating from the 11th to 13th centuries. The Mongol hordes of Genghis Khan wore similar prick spurs around the year 1200.
The revolving rowel used in modern western spurs probably originated in France. A roweled spur was shown upon the Seal of Henry III of England who lived from 1207 to 1272. This type became widely popular about the fourteenth century.
During the age of chivalry, spurs became an emblem of rank. Gold or gilded spurs were only worn by knights or royalty. Esquires' were silver and those of a page were tinned. One could tell the rank of the wearer by the spurs, even if the armor or clothing gave no clue.
The caste system was all-important at that time. Knights vied with each other to indicate their prestige with costly spurs. Many were jeweled and all were objects of art. Spurs were usually buried with their owner, accounting for the fact that few remain today.

ataraxia • n., peace of mind, ( from the Greek ἀταραξία "tranquillity") a term used by Pyrrho and Epicurus for a lucid state, characterized by freedom from worry or any other preoccupation.








A poster felt compelled by the insult to his ataraxia to respond to a categorically incorrect claim made in a thread.




________________________

Two in one day!


aranean • n., Aranean was an old district of Armenia c. 400-800.








Guessing from the context ( see below ) and the hint from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aranean , the word would appear to describe a person possessing political dexterity. I'm open to other interpretations.

It is ( obviously ) used as an adjective in the sentence where I encountered it.

How the free-spirited Oxford felt about this arranged marriage can easily be imagined, yet he had little choice in the matter, as the queen was largely at the mercy of Cecil, whose monumental discretion and aranean skill in holding together the threads of government policy ( threads often as gossamer as the whims of the queen herself ) bolstered her sense of security.

-Charles Beauclerk
Shakespeare's Lost Kingdom: The True History of Shakespeare and Elizabeth
New York, N.Y. 2010​

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trysail said:

ataraxia • n., peace of mind, ( from the Greek ἀταραξία "tranquillity") a term used by Pyrrho and Epicurus for a lucid state, characterized by freedom from worry or any other preoccupation.








A poster felt compelled by the insult to his ataraxia to respond to a categorically incorrect claim made in a thread.




________________________

Two in one day!


aranean • n., Aranean was an old district of Armenia c. 400-800.








Guessing from the context ( see below ) and the hint from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aranean , the word would appear to describe a person possessing political dexterity. I'm open to other interpretations.

It is ( obviously ) used as an adjective in the sentence where I encountered it.

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I thought aranean would pertain to spiders, and I was right. See here.

As for ataraxia, you wouldn’t care about incorrect claims because you wouldn’t see any claim as either correct or incorrect.

Verdad said:

I thought aranean would pertain to spiders, and I was right. See here....

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Nicely done, Verdad! Beauclerk certainly describes Cecil as having spider-like attributes.

I'm not going to break out the OED, but I suspect you're right. The Concise Oxford ( 10th Ed. ) has a listing for:




araneid • n., Zoology an invertebrate of the order ( Araneae ) that comprises the spiders.
-ORIGIN C19: from mod L. Araneida (former order name), from aranea 'spider'

Morning everyone, I am now in Santa Cruz and without a dictionary. I am reading a book about the 16th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment which saw action during the Civil War and encountered this word;

sutler - noun an army camp follower that peddled provisions to soldiers

AllardChardon said:

Morning everyone, I am now in Santa Cruz and without a dictionary. I am reading a book about the 16th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment which saw action during the Civil War and encountered this word;

sutler - noun an army camp follower that peddled provisions to soldiers

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the sutler was also found in Roman & medieval England

AllardChardon said:

Morning everyone, I am now in Santa Cruz and without a dictionary. I am reading a book about the 16th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry Regiment which saw action during the Civil War and encountered this word;

sutler - noun an army camp follower that peddled provisions to soldiers

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The French Army had a very different provider - a Vivandiere or Cantiniere. One of my stories Fort Whore features one of them.

SHE provided goods and services, sometimes personal services.

During the Napoleonic Wars there was a significant difference between the French and British Armies. The French were expected to live off the land which caused them real difficulties when they were forced to remain in a single area for some time. The British had a professional supply train organised by the Quartermaster General. Although occasionally the supply train failed, the British could remain in one place indefinitely without starvation. The other difference was that the British PAID for supplies taken from the local people. The French just took them without payment.

Guess which army was more popular, even when it invaded France?

Thank you, Og and Handley for the additional information on sutlers. Here is another one that I did not know, either;

chandler - noun 1. a person who makes or sells candles and sometimes other items made of tallow or wax, like soap 2. a dealer or trader in supplies, provisions, etc. of a specialized type: a ship chandler 3. a retailer of provisions, groceries, etc.

dromograph • n., An instrument for measuring velocity of blood flow.








http://savethewords.org/

Hello everyone, my daughter graduated from university this weekend and I decided to post this;

The square academic cap, often called a mortarboard (because of its similarity in appearance to the hawk used by bricklayers to hold mortar) or Oxford cap, is an item of academic head dress consisting of a horizontal square board fixed upon a skull-cap, with a tassel attached to the center. In the UK and the US, it is commonly referred to informally in conjunction with an academic gown worn as a cap and gown. It is also often termed a square, trencher, or corner-cap in Australia. The adjective academical is also used. In the US and UK, it is usually referred to more generically as a mortarboard, or (in the U.S.) simply cap.

The cap, together with the gown and (sometimes) a hood, now form the customary uniform of a university graduate, in many parts of the world, following a British model. Other traditions persist as well.

I neglected to thank you for posting Verdad.

roue' - noun DEBAUCHEE, RAKE

trencherman • n., a person who eats in a specified manner, typically heartily; a glutton.








...speaking of trencher.

Here is an interesting one t me ;

roturier - noun a person not of noble birth