palimpsest
[ pal-imp-sest ]
/ ˈpæl ɪmpˌsɛst /
noun
a parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text.
Nearby words
palikir, palila, palilalia, palilogy, palimony, palimpsest, palimscope, palindrome, palindromia, palindromic, paling
Origin of palimpsest
1655–65; < Latin palimpsēstus < Greek palímpsēstos rubbed again (pálin again + psēstós scraped, rubbed, verbid of psân to rub smooth)
Related formspal·imp·ses·tic, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for palimpsest
British Dictionary definitions for palimpsest
palimpsest
/ (ˈpælɪmpˌsɛst) /
noun
a manuscript on which two or more successive texts have been written, each one being erased to make room for the next
adjective
(of a text) written on a palimpsest
(of a document) used as a palimpsest
Word Origin for palimpsest
C17: from Latin palimpsestus parchment cleaned for reuse, from Greek palimpsēstos, from palin again + psēstos rubbed smooth, from psēn to scrape
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for palimpsest
palimpsest
"parchment from which earlier writing has been removed to clear it for new writing," 1660s, from Latin palimpsestus, from Greek palimpsestos "scraped again," from palin "again" (see palindrome) + verbal adjective of psen "to rub smooth" (of uncertain origin).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper