Word of the Day
hyson
noun
a Chinese green tea dried and prepared from twisted leaves, especially of the early crop.
More about hyson
Hyson is an adaptation of Cantonese heiceon, “bright spring.” The hei element, meaning “bright, glorious,” is a cognate of Mandarin xī, while ceon, “spring,” is related to Mandarin chūn. It’s possible that hyson’s unusual spelling is the result of the term passing through Dutch or French on its way to English, in which it first appeared in the 1730s.
EXAMPLE OF HYSON USED IN A SENTENCE
Once the small bag of hyson was placed in the mug, the leaves added a golden tinge to the water.
More about purloin
Purloin comes from Old French porloigner, “to put off, remove.” The por- element comes from Latin prō, “for, in favor of,” while -loigner is ultimately from Latin longus, “long.” Prolong comes from the same sources as purloin, making the two words doublets. Purloin was first recorded in English in the early 14th century.
EXAMPLE OF PURLOIN USED IN A SENTENCE
After halting a man on the street under the pretense of asking directions, the thief purloined the man’s watch.
quaere
verb
ask; inquire (an imperative used to introduce or suggest a question).
More about quaere
Quaere is the command form of the Latin verb quaerere, “to seek, ask,” and therefore demands of someone that they ask a question. In case you wish to demand of multiple people that ask questions, the second-person plural (“you all”) of quaere is quaerite. Quaere is also the source of the English noun query. Quaere was first recorded in English circa 1530.
EXAMPLE OF QUAERE USED IN A SENTENCE
If you are confused about how to use apostrophes, quaere whether you have it right!