Word of the Day
barococo
adjective
excessively ornate or fussy in artistic or architectural style.
More about barococo
Barococo, “excessively ornate in style,” is a portmanteau, or blend, of baroque and rococo, two words of complicated origins. Baroque is a borrowing from French and comes from older Portuguese barroco or Spanish barrueco, “irregularly shaped pearl,” and from here, numerous linguists have weighed in with their ideas. Perhaps there is a link to Spanish berruca, “wart” (from Latin verrūca). Rococo is also borrowed from French and derives from Medieval Latin rocca, “rock,” which may come from a Celtic source or, alternatively, Latin rūpēs, “cliff.” Barococo was first recorded in English in the mid-1920s. For more examples of portmanteaux, check out this article.
EXAMPLE OF BAROCOCO USED IN A SENTENCE
The guests’ eyes bulged and jaws dropped when they entered the foyer, which had been renovated in a barococo style.
moiré
adjective
in silks or fabrics, presenting a watery or wavelike appearance.
More about moiré
Moiré, “presenting a watery or wavelike appearance,” is a borrowing from French and means “given a finish resembling moire.” Moire is likely an adaptation of English mohair, which makes moiré a reborrowing, or a word that is borrowed back into its language of origin, similar to anime and the Word of the Day yé-yé. The term mohair comes via Italian from Arabic mukhayyar, “choice, chosen,” from the verb khayyara, “to choose.” This means that mohair is not related to hair, although folk etymology may suggest it is. For more examples of folk etymology, take a look at the Words of the Day cathartic, eggcorn, and ferrule. Moiré was first recorded in English in the 1650s.
EXAMPLE OF MOIRÉ USED IN A SENTENCE
He saw moiré patterns everywhere, even in insect screens rustling in the breeze.
mehndi
noun
the art or practice of painting elaborate patterns on the skin with henna.
More about mehndi
Mehndi, “the art of painting patterns with henna,” is a borrowing from Hindi. Hindi and numerous other languages of the Indian subcontinent (including Bengali, Marathi, and Punjabi) come from Sanskrit. In this way, the earliest known source of mehndi is Sanskrit mendhī (also mendhikā), “the henna plant,” which is of uncertain origin. Today, although most languages that descended from Sanskrit are spoken in India and its adjacent countries, Romani is among a handful spoken elsewhere in Eurasia. Mehndi was first recorded in English in the late 1990s.
EXAMPLE OF MEHNDI USED IN A SENTENCE
Her sister practiced the beautiful, intricate patterns of mehndi on us.